I am currently in a webinar on Migrating to ActivInspire and thought it would be a good idea to put some of my notes into this blog for my fellow CFF teachers. So here goes:
Editing Profiles--There are options now to create different profiles for your software. One note is that the "At the Board" profile is designed to use when you are presenting at the board. It makes the flipchart full screen size.
ActiveInspire has a different approach to adding tools to your toolbar. You now do this through the Editing profiles options. Click on the Commands option. You will see all the tools available and you can add them to the toolbar for this profile.
Settings in the Profiles equate to the studio settings or preferences options in ActivStudio 3.0.
Resources--Resources are now available from your Browsers windows. You will notice that your shared resources do not transfer automatically from ActivStudio 3.0 to ActivInspire. You will have to manually import them. Please be aware that it is possible that you will lose the resources in ActivStudio 3.0 when they are transferred.
Browser Windows:
Page Browser--You can drag pages to another flipchart by clicking on the page and dragging it to the flipchart name in the menu bar that you wish to place it in.
Property Browser--You can see all the properties for each object on the page or your actual flipchart page. Using the properties allows you to make many adjustments to your page and objects. It is much easier to make Containers now with this browser. You click on the object and look at its properties. Go down the list to Container. Complete the option choices. Make sure to pick the objects themselves from your flipchart and set them to Return if not correct. You can do all of these at once by drawing a box around them. You can also set your Restrictors from this Property Browser window.
Another new feature is the Setting Labels feature in the Property Browser. Click on your object, or example a line to a drawing, and set your options under the Label section. You can have them visible all the time or by marquis selection only.
All pages in a flipchart now have a grid on them. By default this grid is not visible. You can make it visible and change its attributes in the Property Browser. Grid Designer will allow you to change the size, shape and position of the grid.
Action Browser--You can add an action to an object just by clicking on the Drag and Drop option. Drag your action onto the object and let go. One thing to remember is that you no longer have the Enable/Disable Actions button. You have to switch to In Design Mode to disable your actions.
These are just a few of the things I jotted down as I was listening. I plan to give you more of an overview in a training session. There are a lot of differences and we will learn as we keep exploring! If you have and "A Ha" moment as you work, plan to share it with your colleagues at a training session!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Blog or Wiki?
March is definitely going out like a Lion! What a snowy cold morning to begin the week. As I was driving to school today I was thinking about how I can explain to my teachers what the difference is between a blog and a wiki. Which should you use and when? Should you use both? I have included a link to a blog with a good description of each type of Web 2.0 tool.
As we begin to look at all of these new emerging technologies, you can be overwhelmed. Do I use Glogster or Nota? Do I have my students create a PhotoStory or use Animoto? Do I blog or wiki? Should I be using all of these at the same time? You can be overwhelmed by the number of choices that we now have in education. I find that I am learning more and more new technologies as I go to my CFF coach trainings. Some people can do it all, I find that I work better by picking out one or two new technologies and focusing on them.
My advice is don't jump on all the bandwagons at once! Think about what you want your students to accomplish. What do you want for the final product? Think about what you want to have for your students in your lesson. You don't need to blog and create a wiki if the technology doesn't suit your plans. Just because the technology is available doesn't mean you have to use everything. You need to make the technology a tool in your instruction. You don't use the technology to say you used it in a lesson when it might not be the best tool to complete the task at hand. If a blog suits your needs then blog. If a wiki better suits your needs then wiki! You aren't a bad teacher if you aren't doing both applications.
It is better to learn one application and master it than to spread yourself to thinly in your curriculum. You will get burnt out and wonder if any of this change is worth it!
As we begin to look at all of these new emerging technologies, you can be overwhelmed. Do I use Glogster or Nota? Do I have my students create a PhotoStory or use Animoto? Do I blog or wiki? Should I be using all of these at the same time? You can be overwhelmed by the number of choices that we now have in education. I find that I am learning more and more new technologies as I go to my CFF coach trainings. Some people can do it all, I find that I work better by picking out one or two new technologies and focusing on them.
My advice is don't jump on all the bandwagons at once! Think about what you want your students to accomplish. What do you want for the final product? Think about what you want to have for your students in your lesson. You don't need to blog and create a wiki if the technology doesn't suit your plans. Just because the technology is available doesn't mean you have to use everything. You need to make the technology a tool in your instruction. You don't use the technology to say you used it in a lesson when it might not be the best tool to complete the task at hand. If a blog suits your needs then blog. If a wiki better suits your needs then wiki! You aren't a bad teacher if you aren't doing both applications.
It is better to learn one application and master it than to spread yourself to thinly in your curriculum. You will get burnt out and wonder if any of this change is worth it!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
I'm Back--What's been going on?
As you can see from the date, I haven't used this blog this year! I created it in a training class our first year of the CFF program. I'm now ready to use blogging as a tool for the Karns City CFF program. So what has changed? What have I learned since beginnning the blog in 07? What can I share with this blog? The answer to all of these questions is A LOT! I plan to expound on all of our changes and how we can continue to change in these blog postings.
The CFF program at Karns City is in full swing. I'm so excited about what the teachers here have accomplished with the new technology and more importantly how they are using it to move from a 2oth century classroom into a 21st century classroom. You know it is widespread when I walk into a classroom to help a teacher and I hear comments from the students like, "Not another WIKI!". We have expanded from basic usage of our new technology and Web 2.0 tools to imbedding them into our curriculum. They have become tools in student learning at KC!
As I walk through the halls I see laptops everywhere. Last week as I was assisting a teacher with a wikispace, we had several students and teachers stop by the classroom to see if all the laptops in the cart were being used and could they borrow one. I see laptops moving down hallways in the student's arms. I see students sitting in the hallway using a laptop. Have we created a monster? If so it is a good one, kind of like the guys from the movie, Monsters Inc. If all of our technology was removed tomorrow, could we survive! Of course, but would we like it? NO!
The CFF program at Karns City is in full swing. I'm so excited about what the teachers here have accomplished with the new technology and more importantly how they are using it to move from a 2oth century classroom into a 21st century classroom. You know it is widespread when I walk into a classroom to help a teacher and I hear comments from the students like, "Not another WIKI!". We have expanded from basic usage of our new technology and Web 2.0 tools to imbedding them into our curriculum. They have become tools in student learning at KC!
As I walk through the halls I see laptops everywhere. Last week as I was assisting a teacher with a wikispace, we had several students and teachers stop by the classroom to see if all the laptops in the cart were being used and could they borrow one. I see laptops moving down hallways in the student's arms. I see students sitting in the hallway using a laptop. Have we created a monster? If so it is a good one, kind of like the guys from the movie, Monsters Inc. If all of our technology was removed tomorrow, could we survive! Of course, but would we like it? NO!
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