Vocaroo for Voices

Vocaroo is a simple online tool for recording and sharing audio files across the internet.  After allowing your microphone, it literally takes two clicks to create a recording.  After that, the file is easily shared with an auto-generated link, or can be downloaded as an MP3, or get a QR code.  Since it is a web-based services, it's a natural friend to Chromebook users.  And, since it is web-based, students and teachers can use Vocaroo anywhere!

Ways for Students to Use Vocaroo

• Students at all levels can practice their reading and speaking skills.  Beginning readers might find it helpful to hear what they sound like reading a book and following along.  Older students could read drafts of essays aloud to catch mistakes.
• Practice presentations before giving them.
• Music students can share songs they sing or play with teachers and other students.
• Foreign language students can practice their fluency.
• Peer-to-peer feedback.  Students could even paste the link in a comment on a Google Doc or Slides.

Ways for Teachers to Use Vocaroo

• Leave instructions for your students when you have a substitute.
• Record a summary of what you did during the day and post the link of your website or Sapphire page.  (You could have a student do this too!)
• Give feedback to individual students.  (I know my hand cramps up after writing a lot, this might be a new way to give students feedback on a paper or larger assignment.)

How to Use Vocaroo

• Go to http://vocaroo.com
• Click the red button to record
  
• Click the green check mark to allow the service to use microphone
  
• Click to tell the browser to allow the microphone
  
• NOW YOU'RE RECORDING, WOO HOO!
• Click to stop recording
  
• Now you have the option to retry, listen, or save.  "Retry" will delete and start over, "listen" will allow you to listen to your recording, and "click to save" will give you options.
  
• This is what you see when you "click to save:"
  
• You can simply copy the link and send that wherever you want.  Or you can download as an MP3 to be used later, email it directly from the site, or create a QR code.

A quick tip: If you decide to have your students create recordings and share them with you, it would help to organize them with a Google Form.  You can create a simple form with a place to put their name and a place to paste the link, and then Google Form creates a spreadsheet with that information.  That way it's all in one place for you to access at your convenience.  Click here to get started with Google Forms.