This is from a training given at Kennesaw State University on Feb. 7, 2012

1. Michelle Fidalgo
ESOL Specialist, Lovejoy Middle/Clayton County
Ed.S Candidate, Instructional Technology, Valdosta State

2. Use engaging instruction. Use effective strategies such as
project-based learning, thematic instruction, and
cooperative grouping to engage learners. Give students
opportunities to talk about shared learning
experiences. Hands-on, experiential learning
experiences will develop understanding. Help ELL
students connect words with meaning by using
nonverbal clues and nonlinguistic representation of
ideas, including multimedia, manipulatives,
simulations, and modeling.
http://www.netc.org/focus/challenges/ell.p
hp

3.  Education World affirms the need to
specifically teach following directions
as a discrete skill.
http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesso
n/lesson/lesson275.shtml
 In Katharine Davies Samway and
Dorothy Taylor ‘s book called Teaching
English Language Learners: Strategies
that Work, they specifically state that
to engage any level of English learner, it
is important to incorporate an “action
response”. The commission/ omission
of an action makes clear if the student
understands fully what you have said.

4.  You should make a model of what you want the
students to create. Though you may consider that
this may limit creativity, some of these apps are
multi-step processes.
Consider writing concise,
clear directions for more
complicated apps.
You can differentiate in
many ways, but since many of
these apps are not text-heavy,
they can differentiate in
unobtrusive ways, reducing
stress for students.

5.  http://www.eslvideo.com/i
ndex.php
 For students – watch and
quiz. Great for level 1 and
even level 2 students.
 http://www.teflvideos.com/
 For a new ESL teacher or
regular ed teacher who
wants to learn some ESL
skills.

6. Like apps for your phone, there is
no software.
Use social interaction as part of
the learning experience
Are often free or low-cost
Usually accessible in
educational environments

7.  Your school system may have these applications
blocked. Check any web 2.0 app prior to using it. Your
media center professional may be able to grant you
access. Most principals would agree that a great lesson
justifies an exception to blocking a site.
 Make sure your technology has not been changed. For
instance, some apps that were previously available as
freebies now require payment. Checking on this makes
sure you and your students are not disappointed.

8.  Though some of these apps can be
saved and worked on at home,
some cannot. Further
complicating matters is the
“digital divide”, the fact that some
students do not have a working
computer at home. Consider this
when assigning homework.
However, many of these apps do
not require a working printer, an
advantage for some of our low-
income students.

9.  The best source for music?
 www.freeplaymusic.com
Clips come in various lengths, which means less audio
editing in www.audacity.com. Audio editing is an
acquired skill which students do not typically need to
make a quality product.
For videos: http://www.archive.org
or make your own!

10.  Though it’s great to accumulate a photo library for your
students’ projects, be cautious about where you locate
pictures. Though all Wikipedia pictures are approved to
use in another presentation, others are not.
Some systems block Wikipedia to stop
students from plagiarizing via cut and paste.
 Some good sources
http://www.probertencyclopaedia.com/browse/PG.HTM
http://totallyfreeimages.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Public
_domain_image_resources

11.  You can incorporate photos into lessons in
so many ways, but allowing students to
take pictures is an activity they will
remember. Whether for the basis of a story
they will write or to create a PowerPoint/
photo essay , Flickr is a great source for
photos. Teachers can also use the photos to
clarify concepts and show students
specifics.
 Use http://www.taggalaxy.com/ to explore
pictures of objects to build background.
You’ll be thrilled with the results.

12. Remember, for more on any of these programs or
applications, go to
https://my.pbworks.com/
and request access to
fidalgowiki.pbworks.com
You will receive info on all these
programs and others as well,
and consider how you or your
students might use a wiki. Check out the mini-
webquest, too.

13.  The usefulness of comics for EL’s is
obvious to all of us. There is less text and
it is much more accessible than other
written formats. The graphics support
the text, which clarifies the meaning.
 Use for anything short, which makes it
perfect as a exit ticket; also great to
complete a summary of a concept.
For adorable idiom definition comics, go to
http://igetitcomics.com/

14. Toondoo takes a great deal of dedication, but look at the
results.
 http://toondoo.com/Home.do // Ex:
http://www.toondoo.com/toondoo/ViewBook.toon?b
ookid=11706
 Here’s a toonlet, a small, compact option:

15.  This image program helps
students create visuals, like
magazine covers, posters, and
mosaics they’ll love to display.
This one is from a mini-unit
my class recently finished
reading non-fiction text about
Egypt. It can show you and
the other members of the class
what a student has learned.
Sharing with peers makes it an
activity that works with all
four literacy skills.

16.  Glogster is an image site to create posters. This half-sized
demo has some interesting natural images. Consider a glogster in
conjunction with an oral presentation to summarize a content area
unit. As usual, one product, a variety of uses.
 http://edu.glogster.com/what-is-glogster-edu/

17. Xtimeline: Create your own timeline. Uses are obvious.
 http://www.xtimeline.com/timeline/John-F--Kennedy
Classtools; Twister (http://classtools.net/twister/)
(http://www.classtools.net/fb/home/page)

18.  These tiny little gems of poetry and
pictures are multipurpose and easy
for all learner levels. The word bank
makes it even easier to create. Here’s
an example using figurative
language.
 Think of other
uses, but see the wiki
for the disadvantages.

19.  A Voki is a short, animated
avatar which speaks. The
students makes choices as
to how to complete a Voki’s
appearance. From there,
they type a script for the
Voki and choose an
animated voice, which will
say exactly what the student
types.
http://www.voki.com/pickup.php?scid=4847903&height=267&width=200

20. A Voicethread is a spoken word/ photo
combination which is unlike anything else
you have seen. It can be used for creating a
short documentary, as a differentiated
product for the end of a unit, can be used by
early finishers from day to day (since you can
access it from any computer ) and a
sensational idea for narrating and illustrating
your own poetry. Voicethreads can be shared
from anywhere, and there’s always the option
of deleting it after it’s been shared in class.
https://voicethread.com/?#u2436814.b2641802.i13990617

21. These creative, advanced tools can
help 8-12th graders to display
their knowledge on a variety of
subjects. Due to the complexity
of these processes, it is wise to
be respectful of the needs of
some students to scale down to a
level they can produce with
competency. See my Wiki on
PBWorks for specific details.

22. Provide feedback on the forms provided by KSU.
Also, please take a card from me so you
can access/ share all this information
online @
http://fidalgowiki.pbworks.com
Request entry and I’ll let you in to see
and share!