WeVideo

When students (or teachers) work on video projects, they often turn to WeVideo, the non-Apple answer to iMovie.  WeVideo works directly in your browser, so students can use their Chromebooks to make incredible videos with ease.  The web tool also offers a Google single sign on (SSO), so it's easy for students and teachers to access quickly.

Up until last month, we were just utilizing the free version. Now, the free version is good.  But the paid version is better.  So WRSD purchased WeVideo school licenses for up to 500 users.  Let's explore that.

If you would like to utilize WeVideo licenses, contact Liz Brobst for the group link and access code.  These work for both teachers and students; you need them access the premium features.

In addition, to the perks listed above, WeVideo makes it SUPER easy to use the green screens we have around our buildings.  All students need to do is film in front of a green background (or any solid color background, really), and then they edit it out in WeVideo.

If you would like to utilize WeVideo licenses, contact Liz Brobst for the group link and access code.  These wors for both teachers and students; you need them access the premium features.

I've been working on tutorials for WeVideo: here are two for you use to use and share with students.  The first shows you how to use the color keying effect (for green screens), the second shows you how to add audio to your video.

There are so many things you can do in WeVideo, just click around and explore.  I'll share more tutorial videos as they are created, so you can watch those too.  And as always, if you have further questions, just ask your friendly school librarian.

If you would like to utilize WeVideo licenses, contact Liz Brobst for the group link and access code.  These wors for both teachers and students; you need them access the premium features.

Everfi

The best type of educational technology is robust, flexible and FREE. Those terms are not normally used together. Fortunately, it appears like Everfi might fit this mold. Since they are funded by outside resources, they are free to us!

Everfi has a database of educational and interactive resources to teach concepts from financial literacy to college and career readiness to STEM. Each one has a grade span that it works best for, so it’s definitely worth considering.



One of the weaknesses of Everfi right now is that they do not have single sign-on. That’s a big deal to me because when a website has that, we know Google is not sharing the child’s name with them, but instead sharing a “code” with which to recognize them. Being a little concerned about CIPA and COPPA compliance, I decided to check into it more. It turns out that many schools in our area are already using this for some of their courses, such as financial literacy in the high school.

Students would have to go to everfi.com/register and make an account, so this should really ONLY be used with students 13 or over UNLESS you are going to get permission from their parents to create an account for them. Please also note that Warrior Run student accounts cannot receive outside emails. A teacher can add students from the teacher dashboard, but the same rules would apply for privacy compliance.



Once a student has successfully completed one of the courses, you can print a certificate for them.



Here is an example video overview for the “Ignition” course on Digital Literacy and Responsibility.

Everfi may be free, robust and flexible, but there will be an initial setup for the teacher, and it’s not ideal for every grade level. If you teach one of the topics listed in their K-12 resources and are looking for something that students can work through independently that is also engaging, I recommend you give it a try.

The Super Helpful G Suite Training Extension

When we first started this blog, Liz did a post on why you should be using Google Chrome (if you aren’t already).  In addition to using chrome, you should also be signing in to Google chrome on your personal device.  If you see your name like this:

Then you are signed in to chrome.  When moving through Google pages and apps, you will remain signed in.  It will also remember you when you shut down and restart.  DO NOT USE THIS FEATURE ON A SHARED COMPUTER.  If you see this:

Then you are not signed in.  You can be signed in to Google WITHOUT being signed in to chrome.  As noted in the picture above, signing in to chrome will sync your tabs, bookmarks, history, and your other settings.  View this page for more information and instructions.

In addition to this super useful feature, check out G Suite Training.  This icon appears in the top right hand corner of your browser on most G Suite apps (Drive, Docs, Slides, Sheets).  It autopopulates as an extension on your pages.

Depending on the page, it will give tips and tricks or instructions on how to use it (as interactive lessons).  It invites you to learn about features that you may not have already known about.  Here’s an example for Google Docs:

You could use it to learn how to use a feature, explore new features that you didn’t know about, or refresh your memory on something you haven’t used in a while.  Check it out and let us know what you think!

Use Your Noodle Tools

Noodle Tools, in their own words, “is a responsive, user-friendly research management platform with baked-in wisdom accumulated over years, and proven track record across thousands of schools and universities.  Since 2013, we have been teaching students to organize and manage their own research and resources.  This year, the Noodle Tools team rolled out a few updates, so it seemed like a perfect time to share with you.

Why pay for Noodle Tools?  Why not just use EasyBib?

When Google Docs added the EasyBib citation feature, I asked this very question.  Damon Abilock, one of the creators, clarified for me:

“EasyBib is simply an auto-cite mechanism, [which is] tempting in theory, but in reality does not work well… Resulting citations are completely dependent on how the author constructed the content.  EasyBib is wrong more often than it is right, and students assume that something generated for them is correct.  In addition, Noodle Tools prompts the student to think about what the content actually is.”

How can I access Noodle Tools?

In the high school, we use a paid subscription.  There are two ways to get there:

1. When you’re in Google Drive or Gmail, click the waffle menu at the top right.  Scroll to the bottom of the list, and choose the Noodle Tools app.

2. Go to the district website, click on Students > High School Students > Noodle Tools.

In the middle school, teachers and students use Noodle Tools Express.  The biggest difference here is that while students can still create citations, they cannot store their research and resources.  It is an excellent bridge between middle and high school research projects.

What are the benefits of Noodle Tools?

Besides critical thinking, communication, and collaboration...

• Their homepage explains why it is such an awesome tool.
• Their Help Desk is actually super helpful!
• They have great handouts and infographics to share with users.

Noodle Tools is for more than language arts and social studies.   Any project requiring research requires proper citations!  Please let us know if you would like more information about Noodle Tools, how it works, and/or how to use it with your students.

Do’s and Don’ts of making student accounts on websites

It’s the internet age and not using websites for education would be cheating our students of their ability to participate in a global community.  However, with that comes a number of unknowns regarding the audience, what information is provided about the student, and interactions that can take place online.  In order to keep your students safe online, please keep the following information in mind.

What do I need to know about CIPA?

CIPA is the Children’s Internet Protection Act.  All schools are required to comply with this in order to protect their students from dangerous content on the internet.  This includes the instruction of safe online interactions to our students.

What do I need to know about COPPA?

COPPA is the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and it provides the baseline for children’s privacy in the United States.  This includes the requirement of parental notice and consent when using web services directed at students under the age of 13.  The new changes made have said that data collection about students is important, but deciding who should be doing the collection is a matter for schools and school districts.  For this reason, it’s important to know what information your students are using when they make accounts online.

Types of sign-ins

Since most of the district is using Google Apps for Education, we have the benefit of having secure logins as school Google accounts.  When using Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, or other Google products, you can be sure that your students’ information is secure and in compliance with CIPA and COPPA.

If you are using a website that offers a single sign-on, such as Piktochart, then when your students go to sign in with their Google accounts, it’s going to list for you the information that the website is collecting from their Google account.  In most cases, it’s just their name and their account username.  This is not necessarily a COPPA violation, but it’s important to make sure that this is the only information that it is collecting.  If you have questions, please be sure to contact us!

Read the fine print!

If you are using a website that requires that you make accounts, such as Animoto, keep in mind the following limitations:

• concerns for creating accounts for students under the age of 13
• that account will exist forever
• there is no way to recover passwords through e-mail
• there may be an alternative that has similar functions but offers Google single sign-on

While these concerns are worth consideration, they should not stop you from using that site.  Some successful ways to still implement them include:

• creating a teacher account with a very basic password that all students log into in order to use the site content (this has been very successful with Animoto)
• create the account with student initials instead of full names
• providing the family with the information about the site and encouraging them to use it at home for extra practice or enrichment purposes
• sending home information about the site, with explicit instructions that the parents can “opt-out” of the account if they contact you accordingly
• talking to your building administrators, librarians, or tech director about using the site as a building or district across content areas

Your building librarians are problem-solvers, so talk to us if you need help!