Learning is a Lifetime Process

Our teachers are open to learning! 

Today three of our teachers earned LEARNING BADGES for inviting a technology intern into their classroom. 

Mrs. Thein and Mrs. J. Nelson asked myself, Jenny, to come into their classroom and help their students login to Tales2Go. It can be a process with a classroom of students but with extra hands we got it done in no time! Check out this blog post for more information on Tales2Go.

Mrs. Hull invited myself, Jenny, into her classroom to teach a lesson using Toontastic. The students were engaged, great listeners, and very excited about the process. I appreciate the opportunity to teach and Mrs. Hull was able to learn about the app. We wrote about Toontastic last spring so be sure to check out the post! It's a great app to use with a variety of grade levels. It is helpful for students to create a draft of their story before they use the app. I have posted the draft template that we have used with students on Teachers Pay Teachers. It is a free download so check it out!

Toontastic

You have probably seen the app Toontastic on your students' iPads, but aren't quite sure how to use it.  Just because it has cartoon graphics, doesn't mean it's just for the younger grades.  Toontastic is a great app for all ages, and can be implemented using the Common Core!

Students create their own story or retell a story using this app.  They pick the setting and characters, and then can record their voice and move their characters around to tell the story.  They can draw their own characters or even add their face.

Here is a video tutorial on how to use this app:

If you don't have time to watch the video, here are step by step instructions on how to use Toontastic:

1. Open the app and tap “Create Cartoon.”
2. Tap “New Cartoon” on the screen that appears.
3. Listen to the app narrator who explains the concept of the “Story Arc.” (Or, to bypass the narrator after the first time you use the app, tap the circle with the X in it located in the top left-hand corner of the screen.)
4. Optional: Click the + (plus) sign in the bottom left-hand corner to add a 6th story frame if you desire. Note: Each cartoon is limited to six frames. Students can choose where to add the frame. Most often, the frame that they need to add will be another climax frame, to further explain the high point of the story.
5. Tap the “Setup” frame then tap the green paintbrush that appears.
Begin creating your first animation segment.
6. Choose a setting background; your choices include preloaded options or creating your own. If creating your own, the tools you need are located along the bottom of the screen.
7. After choosing (or creating) the setting, tap the forward arrow in the top right-hand corner to continue.
8. Select or draw characters. If creating your own, the tools you need are located along the bottom of the screen.
9. Tap the forward arrow again.
10. Tap “Start Animation” and have students retell the scene using narration and dialogue. Note: The app will give a 3 second countdown to the start of recording.
11. Tap, hold, and drag to move characters around the screen as the app records.
12. Tap “Stop Animation” when finished with the scene, which will instantly begin replay.
13. If you need to rerecord your scene, then simply repeat the recording process.
14. Tap the forward arrow to move on to music selection.
15. Tap to choose an emotion, then adjust the mood of the scene up and down on the screen to hear the variety of music within that mood.
16. Choose the most suitable music for your retelling.
17. Repeat these steps for each scene in the story arc.

Source: https://psusd.haikulearning.com/lgrafton/ipadapptest/cms_page/view/1212020