I admit it...I love distressed brown leather. I guess the reason I like it is that it looks better the more it gets used and all banged up. The sign of well-loved distressed leather case is the marks it bears! When Snugg wrote me and asked me to review an item from their site, I was drawn to the Snugg iPhone 5 Distressed Leather Brown Pouch Case for two reasons. The distressed leather material caught my eye, and, even more importantly, this case was an updated version of my favorite iPhone case of all time! I always try to find a tight-fighting pouch case for my phone. A few years ago, Brookstone sold an iPhone 4 pouch case that had a tab on the back to pull up the phone for easily getting it out of the case. However, they have no plans to make one for the larger iPhone 5. I was so excited to see this Snugg iPhone 5 Pouch Case which has the same feature-- a tab on the back (that magnetically sticks to the back of the case) which is attached to an elastic strap to pull out the phone. It also includes a credit card slot on the front that will hold a one or two cards.
I made the short video below which demonstrates how well the tab works. This is my dream iPhone 5 slipcase-- distressed leather, thin and tight-fitting, protective, and an easy way to get the iPhone 5 out!
I ran to my Best Buy store on Sunday, the day the Best Buy was slated to start selling the Pebble Watch. However, due to the holiday the week before, the shipping schedule was off and there were none yet in the store. However, the Best Buy employee assured me he would call me when they came in, and he did, and I was able to get one (of the two!) that arrived. It is definitely a cool device. However, since there are not a lot of them out on the street yet, it is truly an early-adopter's dream! I had to work hard to learn how it worked and, more importantly, the best ways to make it work for me. The Pebble, for those of you that do not know, is a smartwatch that interfaces with your Android smartphone or iPhone via Bluetooth to provide notifications on your wrist. I would call it a pseudo-smartwatch since you cannot use it to send anything back. You can receive phone call info and SMS messages and you can control the music on your iPhone via the Pebble, set up to four reminder alarms, and, of course, change your clock face at will! The Pebble watch has an e-ink display (like the original Kindles) and can be easily read in the sunlight. There is also a back-light for use in the dark and you can simply shake your wrist to make the light comes on. Here is an unboxing video posted on Sunday from a user who has an Android device, but the set-up on the iPhone is pretty much the same.
It does not come with any real directions, probably because it is still a work in progress, but Pebble has information on their site to help you out. If you start searching for ideas, you might get confused between the Android phone owners and the iOS phone owners as to the capabilities of the watch. The new iPhone iOS 7 is going to allow notifications from third-party apps and to devices via Bluetooth which will be a boon for the iPhone/Pebble-owners crowd. Here is the link to the user guide from the Pebble site: http://help.getpebble.com/customer/portal/articles/957384-pebble-user-guide I started to use some workarounds with Pushover and IFTTT, which will work for some things, but once I realized, if I only had everything I wanted to be notified about sent to SMS, I could easily receive the updates on the Pebble. Since I already had my Twitter direct messages sent via SMS, I asked Adam Bellow to send me a DM so I could see how that worked. He is too funny!
I wanted my iCal appointment reminders to go to my Pebble, but, as the iOS instructions for setting up notifications page states, that functionality is coming soon to the Pebble. However, I knew there had to be a way to make that happen and I searched "sending iCal reminders to SMS" and came up with this great workaround that totally makes sense-- just use the email equivalent of your mobile phone number (mobile phone number followed by @ mobile company designated address) and send the appointment reminder to that email address! Here are the instructions and it worked like a charm! Another tip-- if you cannot get an app or watchface to install from your phone app, use the desktop, go to the site, download the .pbw files to yourself, and install them via the email app on your device. Pick them to open in the Pebble App. Tip #3: You can make a QR code and put it as a watchface in your Pebble and you will always have your contact info ready to share! It needs to be 144x144 pixels.
Do you have a Pebble watch yet? Any ideas for use in the classroom?
I recently had a brutally honest day. I was asked to review a new
book coming out and write a blurb for the back cover. The title was
something I was interested in, so I agreed. As I read along in a chapter
about change, I came across the line. “Everyone knows that teachers,
especially, are resistant to change.” Hold on! This book was written for
educators– why dis' them in the text? And who is “everyone” and why are
teachers more resistant to change than anyone in a different
profession? I re-wrote the sentence to be less insulting. As I read on in the technology sections, the exemplar lessons were
pretty much the lowest level of technology use. The assessments were
used to inform instruction but did not gauge student acquisition of
content knowledge at all. So, as I found things that I felt could be made better and more
meaningful to the proposed audience, I jotted them down and included
additional ideas, quotes, and links to resources. I sent them along to
the editor with a note stating I did not feel comfortable offering a blurb
for the book because I did not believe in many of the tenets that were
put forth. It was probably too late to do anything about the content,
because the book looked like it was in its final form, but I felt
compelled to do it. The same day, I was sent a lesson planning white paper that was
released by a company. It was already on the Web. However, there were no
author credentials on the pages and, since it was pedagogical in
nature, I wanted to know that someone who was (or had been) a K-12
educator had written the piece. It was also a bit “preachy”, so I
reworked one of the paragraphs to something a bit different, without
changing the content. I sent my thoughts along to them. I guess the point is, in education, where others sometimes tell us
things we don’t agree with or we feel would never work in a regular
classroom setting, it is up to us to give constructive feedback when
you see something that you don’t like or don’t agree with. The important thing is to provide something other than simply writing
“that sentence seems to put down the whole teaching profession”.
Re-write the content so it will not be demeaning to teachers and will make the teachers take more notice and continue reading the book or
article. Provide links to resources that are, in your opinion, more appropriate than the samples that are provided in the article, book chapter, Tweet,
or GOOGLE+ post. This goes for educational trends, too. Although it sometimes seems, IMHO, educators jump on lots of bandwagons for new pedagogical models, I don’t
always initially agree with the idea or the implementations of the new idea. I read
about it, look at successful practices, and then comment, constructively
(I hope!) about it. For instance, I passionately disagreed with this blog post about
turning Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy on its head. In this case, I publicly
disagreed in the comment area, but oftentimes I may just write to the
blogger directly and offer some alternatives for her/him to think about. Following are some links about constructive feedback and criticism. Most
are not directly related to education or even the online realm, but you
should garner some good ideas. As with anything you are passionate about,
you need to wait a few minutes before posting a bit of constructive
feedback to someone else. Passion in print comes across differently than
passion in person, so you have to plan your responses carefully. Write a
draft, look it over, take a walk, and then push the send button.
We need to encourage constructive discourse in our profession. I also
feel we should to step back and think about all aspects of a plan or
trend before becoming enamored with the idea just because everyone else
is. Maybe parts of the new concept are useful to help students acquire
both the 21st century skills and the content knowledge they need. But,
perhaps other parts of the new idea won’t work in your situation and you have already discovered alternative methods that work well. You need to share those
alternative ideas with the rest of us! Don’t be afraid to constructively criticize and don’t be afraid to be
criticized, which you might be. If you are passionate about
something or think something is not quite right about an aspect of
education, write the company, the blogger, the Tweeter, the President,
and let them know. Sometimes people just don’t know what they don’t
know!
Do you have any specific thoughts on ways to give online constructive
criticism/feedback? There are not a lot of good ideas out there…please
share via Twitter (@kathyschrock), Google+, or email me at kathy@kathyschrock.net!
I was contacted to see if I wanted to do a product review for Staples, and, of course, I agreed! I chose the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 to review.
The model I received has 2GB of RAM, is WiFi only (802.11a/b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.0, and has 16GB of memory storage, expandable to 64GB via a microSD/HC slot.
Some other important specs include:
8" screen with a 1280x800 resolution
Quad-Core, 1.6GHz processor
Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean)
.73 pounds in weight
5MP rear and 1.3MP front cameras
General overview
The Galaxy Note 8 is just the right size to hold in one hand, so I found myself keeping it n portrait mode most of the time, except for when using email, since the extra width is helpful then. It has a beautiful, bright, white screen which is the type of screen I like. I call it a "cool" screen as opposed to the "warm" screens of some tablets which are off-white.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 has some useful features not found on every tablet. The first thing I noticed, and wondered why all tablets don't have it, was a full QWERTY and number keyboard. It was so nice not to go back and forth between number and letter keyboards, especially for passwords! The keyboard can also be split or floating, which some people prefer.
The second cool thing I discovered was the ability to use a "face scan" instead of a swipe to unlock the device. (They give you a PIN back-up plan, too!) Now, I simply look at the lock screen and the Galaxy Note 8 unlocks!
I also appreciate the inclusion of a physical "home" button on the front of the device. I would rather use a button than swipe through pages of apps to get to the main page of my device! Another nice feature allows you, when typing passwords, to turn off the brief display of the characters you are typing. I wish other tablets had this feature since, when I am projecting and presenting to an audience, they can always see my password as I type it!
The addition of the "S Pen" stylus adds a lot to the device. The stylus has a button on it and is not just a "dumb" stylus. For instance, to take a screenshot, you simply hold in the button on the stylus, tap and hold the screen, and the screenshot is taken. You can then crop the image from that same screen and save the result to the gallery. It is so easy! In addition, when you remove the pen from its slot, a page pops up with items specific to use of the S Pen. (You get a special page popping up, too, when you plug in headphones.)
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 also has an infrared port which allows you to turn your device into a remote control. In addition, if you have a Samsung smartphone or other Samsung device, there are ways to share your screen with those via the AllShare Cast app. I could not try the AllShare cast process since I did not have those devices. Samsung has thought of everything! On most tablets, you have to set the amount of time for when the screen will timeout. This usually causes you to make it longer than you need just in case you do need a longer period at some point. The Galaxy Note 8 includes something called "Smart stay" which causes the screen to stay on as long as you are looking at it. It looks for your eyes!
Cool and useful software
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 has really good handwriting recognition and turns your printed words into text. You can use the S Pen or your finger in any app that allows for text input to write your notes or emails! The tablet also comes with a Microsoft Office compatible application, called Polaris Office, for word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations.
Polaris Office
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is, of course, tightly integrated with the Google tools and apps, including Google Drive, Talk, Google+, Picasa, Maps, Local, Latitude, and the Play Music and Book Stores. Once you are signed in to your Google account, you have access to all of your tools and media!
There is voice recognition in addition to handwriting recognition on the Galaxy Note 8 and any number of Samsung apps that take advantage of the S Pen for journaling, reminders, and note taking. The S
Note app includes templates for taking all types of notes at meetings,
in school, and while traveling. One type of note allows you to record
both your drawing and your voice in real time. The recording and the
voice recording are not put together, but you can easily view the
drawing as it is created and start the voice recording to listen at the
same time.
As far as video playback goes, I did not watch any movies on the device itself but did stream both movies from Netflix and my soap opera via the SlingPlayer app, which allows me to watch recordings from my home DVR over the Net, and it performed well on both accounts with no stuttering at all! The speakers are mounted on the front and they are very loud!
Of course, there are all types of accessibility options built-in to the tablet, too, including font size, background color, length of tap and hold, etc. Cameras
The back camera is a 5MP camera, and takes good images. However, there are all types of settings you can use to enhance your photo. You can also take panoramic pictures or videos, cartoonize an image as you take it, have the camera wait until the person smiles to actually snap the photo, and more! Once the image is taken, it is easy to share it with DropBox, Facebook, Picasa, via Bluetooth, or to additional apps and sites. I was able to send the photo from the Galaxy Note 8 to a Nexus 7 tablet, but was not able to transfer it that way to my iPhone. Backing up and storage Another
perk with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is that is comes with 50GB of
DropBox storage space for 2 years. That comes in so handy when moving
files from device to device as well as sharing documents with others.
You can also use Samsung Kies, which is Mac or Windows desktop software to sync your device and move contacts, images, and update software on the Galaxy Note 8 via a USB connection or wirelessly between the tablet and the desktop. There are some additional cloud solutions for back up, but I always like to have the back up on my computer. Summary
There are many choices for small size (7" and 8") tablets on the market right now. The Samsung Galaxy Note 8, with its large number of hardware and software options built-in to the device, has to be the most full-featured and fun one of them all!
Full disclosure: Staples.com provided me with this product for review. The thoughts and opinions expressed are strictly my own. Feel free to shop their entire line of tablets online.
I was given the opportunity to award a Wacom Bamboo Capture bundle to an educator. (See my review of the Bamboo Capture here.)
I asked teachers to submit their grade level, an idea for use of the Wacom Bamboo Capture in their classroom, and an idea, if they had one, for use of the device with online classes, Webinars, or Web 2.0 tools. I used a random number generator to pick the winner, who is a Technology Specialist in a grade 1-4 school in Texas. His idea for the use of the Wacom Bamboo Capture is: My school lets our 4th graders sign up for various clubs that meet monthly throughout our year. I'm in charge of the Computer Club, and have for a while now, set up Glogster.edu accounts for the kids to show off their creativity. They've truly enjoyed it, but I've longed for a tool that would allow them to create their own items, rather than just do the typical Google/copy/paste thing. With the limited time I've got that's been our only effective method to date. With the Bamboo Capture at our disposal, I can just imagine the difference in what my kids can create! No more borrowing my iPad to use a drawing app; upload to my cloud acct.; download to their Glog creation. Now... it shows up on their machine, they import it, viola! The kids now get to customize the products I've been dying for them to create from the beginning. This... it would be a game changer! Thanks.
All submission ideas for the use of the Bamboo Capure in the classroom Grades 9-12 Editing graphics for yearbook and game design classes.
Grades K-5 Technology I would love to use the Landmarker software to easily record the locations of all of the classrooms we connect with through online collaborative projects and Skype. Grades 6-8 I love the wireless feature! Would make it possible for students or teacher to demonstrate a technique in Photoshop/ Flash or share a project on the whiteboard from anywhere in the classroom! Grades 7, 9, 10 and 12 I teach Social Studies in a f2f environment and I am writing an online class this would be great for presentations. for both environments. I use maps and charts a lot and it would be great to use a tool like this to show trends and activities on maps. Grade 6 I have been using the original Graphire from your picture for a long time. I use the software "Deskscribble" (http://www.deskscribbleapp.com/) which is awesome. It gives me smartboard style drawing options, screen captures and more. I am able to face my class instead of turning my back on them. The Capture with this software would free me from having to always be at my desk. This would help with class management, as well as making it easier for students to participate using the tablet from their seat. Wireless would be great and I'd love to win. I think getting 11 years out of a $79 Wacom has been pretty good and it's time to move on. Thanks for your article! If I don't win, I'll be buying one. Grades K-12 I immediately thought of the students who struggle with words for self-expression but use their hands, hearts and minds in thoughtfully illustrating their learning. Professional development The Bamboo Capture would be a fabulous tool to share with the many teachers I work with across the Northwest in my role as Technology Evangelist for Southern Oregon Education Service District, trainer Oregon Virtual School District, and NCCE Board member. Often, I use a new tool to launch a PD session to demonstrate its uses, then hand it off to a group of teachers for project-based learning activities within the PD.
12 Let students in technical writing course use it to annotate their screencasts while thinking what their audience will see and hear. Grades 5-12 I believe that pairing the capture with Microsoft's OneNote would be an ideal way to infuse the technology into a math classroom (or really any classroom). With OneNote setup on a network users can create and share a digital notebook. As a instructor he/she could keep a running notebook with chapters, sections, and pages for their class - they could even drill down to pages for individual students. Using the equation editor in MS Word educators can create problems and easily copy and paste them or just save them into OneNote. During class time this shared notebook can be opened up by the students and the problems can be solved through the use of the Bamboo tablets. The teacher can easily project each students work up onto the board and have them explain the answers from their seat, annotating the problem as the students are explaining. After class this notebook can then be easily saved as a .pdf and posted onto a Moodle or Google site - or any web product for that matter. Students can then access the problems answered during class and annotated by the teacher. The problems you complete on the board are then never lost.
Teachers love annotating the problems via the bamboos also. :) Grades 9-12 I am making screencasts of Photoshop, Flash and Dreamweaver tutorials for my Multimedia class. Using Bamboo Capture would make this process so much easier and I could demonstrate more advanced skills because its challenging to draw with a mouse. I like using layers in Photoshop because I can create a rough sketch on one layer using the pen tool and then add a layer for the fill and another layer for the outline -- then hide the sketch layer. Grade 7 With the Bamboo Capture, I will be able to write out note, especially for struggling students and send them directly to their classroom iPads no run into the problem that these student struggle to keep up in class sometimes when we are taking notes. This way, they can still try but then will receive the regular copy to study. Grade 1 I teach in a Title I, large ESOL population that are learning to speak, read and write the English language. many are not literate in their native languages and have limited experiences, so vocabulary acquistion is difficult. I would use the Bamboo Capture by having my students learn vocabulary by drawing or animating words to be learned. I could also draw and animate for the students as a reference source. Grade 1 I would love to use it for a class daily journal. Each child would have a rotating turn of being the day's recorder. They could write about it, draw illustrations, and add to any of the photos from the day.
1-5 We have recently added a graphic novel unit in the Grade 5 A graphic novelist Skyped with us and showed us how he uses something like that to do his drawings. It would be great to have one for the students to use as they work on their own brief comics. Grades 6-12 I would use the tablets for practicing Chinese characters, so the class could write and dissect them together, everyone learning from everyone else by displaying via projector; I cold also use it to draw and projectt so that students can watch me. Grade 4 I don't have an interactive whilteboard and this could get me started!
It would be great to use with my document camera when we are solving math problems.
I could demonstrate art techniques as well....maybe even do some cartooning with the kids.
The handwriting recognition feature is great.
I have the kids do math, idiom and vocabulary notebooks and I demonstrate notetaking. This would be a great way to record my notes electronically. Elementary Teach Symmetry. Students begin a simple geometric shape on one side of a drawn vertical line and a partner continues it on the opposite side as closely as possible to create a symmetrical shape. Using graphics like butterflies, faces, etc, students can visualize how symmetry is all around them. Grades 6-12 I would use it to pass around to students to interact with Web 2.0 tools projected from my computer! We could all take part in creating a Glog on Glogster, for instance, when the classroom laptops were not available (which happens often enough during testing time!) Grades 10-12 "I would love to have this to support grammar activities. With rough drafts displayed on the computer, I could let students take turns marking mistakes using editors notes. This would save a lot of paper and increase engagement!
" Grades 6 and 7 I work with Life Skills students and this tool would be a valuable asset in helping these students to see their writing come to life in text. It would also help the teachers to read their writing more easily. Some of these students need to work on their fine motor coordination. Grades 9-12 I want to have remote control of my laptop that will be plugged into the projector to be more interactive and walk around the room while instructing. Grades 9-12 My students will create quick group logos, using the stylized, hand-drawn initials of each member of the group. These digitized logos will be printed or projected to identify group work on the bulletin board and to select random students for participation in class activities. Grades 7-12 Use it to develop skills inside Photoshop using the paint tools. Start with landscapes then progress to free art. Grades 9-12 I am planning to ""flip"" my classroom next year and will definitely need innovative photo editing in order to pique the interest of my students. When I create my short video clips, I can involve my students in the story prompts in the target language (Spanish.) I also believe that students would be happy to try this device as a way to contribute to the class with funny collage layouts of their fellow students. I think they would love to read bizarre (and appropriate) stories about each other.
We could write a book as a class. Students could each add a chapter and/or paragraph complete with photos, clips, etc. in the target language. Jr. High Art Show sketching and drawing on a screen for students to watch as I sketch, rather than on an easel and drawing pad.
All submission ideas for use with online classes, Web 2.0, or Webinars
Grade 6 The software allows you to write on a white or black background, or what's on your screen. I write on top of pdf's everyday. Grades K-12 Professional development The Bamboo Capture would be a perfect tool to support a Flipped Classroom initiative. It would be especially useful in schools who do not yet have wireless and do not have the money to implement tablets. Also, the Bamboo Capture would be an excellent tool for online and blended classes, because it would allow the teacher to do live online demonstrations using Webinar software and also capture the demonstration or explanation to post in the online class for other students. Grades 9-12 A teacher at my school uses a Bamboo pen to screencast math lessons because she finds it easier to write math problems and diagrams with the Wacom pen. She imports the math workshop into Photoshop and then uses Jing or Camtasia to create her math screencasts on her computers. Elementary In a tutoring situation, I frequently use sketches to help my students visualize concepts, from math to science to history. This tool would allow this dimension in online tutoring. Grades 1-4 We don't have the infrastructure for Webinars... but... I can see myself doing the next best thing and creating an unlisted YouTube channel for tutorials over our new tool. Grades 6-12 I could use it when creating screencasts about how to use different tools; it would be very helpful! My writing or drawing with a mouse leaves a lot to be desired... Grades 6 and 7 Bamboo Capture would be great tool for making visual graphs as you teach a lecture or even for a student to quickly take notes and have it organized quickly. Grades 9-12 You could illustrate flashcards with a photo or make a game with vocabulary. You could make flashcards involving the students in order to make the class more personal. You could illustrate a story with photos of crazy or bizarre scenes, however not inappropriately.( It might take the mundaneness out of the online courses.) You could altar a relevant photo and students must express what is wrong or missing in the photo.
Thank you to all who took the time to submit an idea! Do you use use a Wacom tablet in your classroom or have some ideas to share? Please leave a comment!
I received a very flattering email from a school librarian today. Here is the letter...
Of course, I wanted to see the site that rivaled mine, so I clicked on the link she provided. Here is that page...
Hum...lots of links. I looked at the bottom of the page to see the creator, and saw the other category links you see above, and then backed off the URL and got to the home page of the site, which you see below.
Nothing wrong with this dating site, but I wondered what librarian would have students use a page from this domain in class.
So I visited the Pinewood Elementary School site. It had the two pages below.
What school has a Web site with two pages and no identifying information? Hum...
I checked the WHOIS records to see who owned the pinewoodelementary.org site and it was a company that, for a fee, keeps your identity private in the WHOIS records and puts their company's information in the record. Again, nothing wrong with that, but why would a school want to hide their contact information in the WHOIS record?
Needless to say, I am not adding the link to my page. Just be on the lookout for things like this. I wanted to lead you through the process I used to determine authority of author and reliability of source. Not so much.
Anybody else ever get a letter like this?
FOLLOW-UP (6/13/13)
I received lots of tweets and emails from others who have had a similar experience. One educator shared the letter she received.
The page the sender asked the person who received the email to add to her site, again, included information with no author. You can view the suggested page here. And, when I looked at the Laramie Public Library site at http://laramiepubliclibrary.net, it was similar to the school site I had looked at above -- pretty but devoid of any identifying information. (BTW, this has nothing to do with Laramie, Wyoming. The Laramie branch of the Albany County (WY) public library can be found here.) When I checked the WHOIS records for the laramiepubliclibrary.net site, the name of the administrator of the domain was the same company who protected the identity of the school site I looked up above. Guess this is more common than I realized!
I recently received a Bakbone, a unique accessory for holding a tablet in one hand, and a HMDX Jam Wireless Bluetooth portable speaker. Here are my thoughts on these new gadgets!
Bakbone
Want to easily carry your tablet safely with one hand while you use the other hand to tap, swipe and type on it? The Bakbone is an ingenious new accessory that works perfectly for this purpose! It is a great solution for those of you (or your students) who carry a tablet around the classroom or use the device to teach or present.
The Bakbone includes two pieces. The first is a round magnet that you attach to the back of your tablet, or more likely, to the back of your tablet case.
The second piece looks like a jewelry ring that attaches VERY strongly to the magnet. Once the ring is attached to the magnet, you simply put a finger through the ring and it is easy to hold the tablet with one hand. The best part of this solution is that you can easily rotate the iPad between the landscape and portrait orientations. The ring itself rotates-- there is no need to separate the ring from the magnet or take the ring off of your finger.
(I know there are other solutions out there that have some type of strap you slip your hand into to hold the tablet, but, to change the orientation of the iPad with that type of solution, you have to remove your hand and slip it back on it to work in the other orientation.)
The ring detaches from the magnet pretty easily, and instructions are also included in case you ever want to remove the maget (which is about 1/4" thick) from the back of the device or the case you have mounted it to.
The Bakbone comes in white and graphite colors right now, with a pink one coming out soon. The compay plans to donate $1 to Breast Cancer Awareness for every pink one sold.
You can watch a video about the Bakbone here to see it in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLubSqH3OJ4
And to order one, simply visit his page: http://www.holdyourtablet.com/
The HMDX Jam Wireless Bluetooth Speaker
Okay, I admit it. I am a sucker for new shoes, tech bags, and portable speakers. I saw the Jam Wireless Bluetooth portable speaker at my local Bed, Bath and Beyond. The display caught my eye since the speakers are all packaged in "jelly jars" and come in many colors-- red, bright green (my choice), bright blue, purple, and some others. I did a little online research while I was deciding what color to purchase, and the reviews were mostly positive, especially in the areas of sound quality and loudness. (As with any Bluetooth device, there were mentions of some erratic connections, but I have not had that experience at all.)
The speaker comes with a USB charging cable and a small how-to booklet. Once charged, the speaker is said to last about 3 hours using a Bluetooth connection and 12 hours if you use the audio-in jack on the speaker. I charged it up, turned it on, and it paired flawlessly to my iPad via Bluetooth. (There is no pairing code needed, so I wonder what would happen if there was more than one BT audio source in range?)
I was very impressed with the sound quality and the volume of the speaker. I could hear it from quite a distance, as you can see in the video. (Please don't think that the iPhone video recording does justice to the sound quality to the Jam-- it doesn't. The audio quality is much better in person!)
I was also able to roam throughout the house carrying the speaker, straying far away from the audio source, so one could listen to music easily in various rooms.
The HMDX Jam is available on Amazon here: (or at your local Bed, Bath, and Beyond for the same price if you have your 20%-off coupon!).
Anyone have any experience with either of these devices or questions? Please leave a comment!
I have had a Wacom (pronounced "wah-kum") drawing tablet for years. In our district, we had computer lab sets of the Wacom Graphire2, which came out in 2002. The Graphire2 came bundled with software, including an early version of Adobe Photoshop Elements. Having a drawing tablet and a piece of software that easily allowed students to mark up images and create their own art products, opened an entirely new way of using a computer for our middle schoolers. The ability to hold a drawing tool just like they held a pencil was so exciting for them! The tablets still work today with the Mac and Windows machines! However, Wacom has continued to develop the capabilities of their drawing tablets. The Intuos pen tablets line includes various sized graphics tablets that can be used via pen or via touch. Their Cintiq pen displays line includes 13", 22" and 24" computer displays that have the ability to be used as graphic tablets, too! The line of pen tablets that are most affordable, and I feel would work well in a school environment, is the Wacom Bamboo Capture. The Bamboo Capture has a drawing area of 5.8"x3.6" and the Bamboo Create has a drawing area of 8.5"x5.4". The Bamboo Capture would probably work best in a computer lab because of its smaller footprint, but the Bamboo Create, with its larger input area, would work well in support of a graphics lab you might have in your high school. The tablets include the drawing pen and also work as a large touchpad for controlling items on your computer's screen with just your finger.
Bamboo Capture (2013)
Software bundle
Both of these models have similar features and come bundled with software that would be useful for schools. I have been using a Bamboo Capture, and, in the box, both Adobe® Photoshop® Elements 8 and Autodesk® SketchBook® Express were included with the tablet. When using Photoshop Elements with the Bamboo Capture, the interactive pen is pressure-sensitive. That means, if you press hard, the lines are darker and if you draw lightly, the lines show up fainter. Wireless module
One of the coolest accessories for these tablets is the wireless module. With a component plugged into the tablet and a USB receiver plugged into the computer, the Bamboo Capture drawing tablet can be used while walking around the classroom. With this accessory, you can control your desktop easily while away from your desk, as well as mark up an image projected from your computer. You can even hand off the tablet for students to solve those tricky math equations from their seats!
Use in online classes and Webinars
I have also used the Bamboo Capture in both in my online classes and my virtual presentations. In the online classes, when I hold a synchronous session with the students in Adobe Connect, we have a shared whiteboard. The Bamboo Capture makes it easy for me to mark up this virtual whiteboard.
In addition, when using any Webinar tool that allows me to share my screen (Adobe Connect, Skype, Google+ Hangouts, Screenleap, etc.), I can use the Bamboo Capture to mark up a Web page or slide, edit a student paper, or point out, graphically, items I want to the students to take notice of. Since most of these Webinars are recorded, the actions I take with the Bamboo Capture are saved along with the rest of the Webinar.
I have also used the Bamboo Capture when using online screen recording tools such as Screen-cast-o-matic and Screenr, and off-line tools such as TechSmith's Camtasia and Adobe's Captivate, when creating instructional screencast videos for my students or Webinar participants.
Bamboo Dock and software The Bamboo Dock, which is the desktop software installed with the Bamboo Capture drivers, includes its own suite of software. This software includes Doodler, Free the Bird, and Landmarker. I tried each of them and made a few screenshots and screencasts so you can see the capabilities.
Free the Bird
"Free the Bird" is a physics game, but also gives the user practice picking a point with the tablet's stylus as well as drawing.
Landmarker
Landmarker allows you to enter a zip code or place name and you are presented with the location on a map. You can then mark it up with the stylus and save it out as a JPEG.
Bamboo Paper
Bamboo Paper both comes with the Bamboo Dock software and is also available as an iPad app. It allows you to take notes, bring in images, create separate notebooks for your information and much more. You can easily share the notebooks with others, too.
Inkwell
Inkwell is handwriting recognition software built-in to the Mac operating system. It turns your handwritten notes into text. Here is a quick clip of this process while using the Bamboo Capture to enter handwritten text.
Win a Bamboo Capture! (US residents only, sorry...)
With all of these capabilities, how would you use the Bamboo Capture graphics tablet, wirelessly or wired, in your classroom to support teaching and learning? Submit an idea to the Google Form below (or visit this link) and one lucky (randomly-chosen) contributor, will win their own Wacom Bamboo Capture! The package will include the Bambook Capture, the bundled software, such as Adobe Photoshop Elements, and the Bamboo Dock software, as well as the wireless module! Submit your ideas by June 14, 2013 and the winner will be chosen on June 15, 2013. If you submit an idea, you will be agreeing to let me share that idea on the blog (without your name or email address).
“Work smarter, not harder.” — Scrooge McDuck (via Carl Barks, Disney illustrator)
Having iPads in the classroom, whether there are a few shared by the students, a cart that gets rolled in every now and then, or having a 1:1 initiative, does pose some interesting problems. How do you assign work and distribute files to the students? How do they turn in work to you? How do you assess their work and leave comments and get it back to them? How is all of this archived for future access?
All of these processes are collectively known as “classroom workflow”. Many educators with iPad initiatives are sharing their ideas, thoughts, and ways to do this effectively. There are also some no-cost Web tool alternatives that support this process, too.
One new feature of iOS6, the newest operating system for the iPad, allows images from the iPad to be uploaded through a submission box in a Web page. This helps if students have their documents as screenshots in the Camera Album, but it does not solve all the problems.
Sam Gliksman: iPad in Education for Dummies
Sam Gliksman, the author of iPads in Education for Dummies, posts some information about classroom workflow. He suggests using Dropbox to both share information with students via your public Dropbox folder and, if your students have email accounts, they can create a Dropbox account and share a folder with you so you can upload items to their Dropbox.
One other option that I have used is using DROPitTOme. This online tool allows you to set-up a unique upload address and a DROPitTOme folder appears in your Dropbox list, as seen below. You then can give this passworded folder address to students and they can upload directly to your Dropbox with no chance of seeing anyone else’s work.
Sam also recommends the use of Evernote for iPad classroom workflow. With the fact it can run on almost any device, from computers to smartphones, it is perfect, especially for BYOT environments. Students can submit files from their iPad via a special email address to your Evernote account even without an Evernote account, too. With an Evernote account, students can share a collaborative folder in your account.
Jonathan Wylie
Jonathan Wylie, an instructional technology consultant for Grant Wood AEA (Iowa) is a source of all types of great information! (If you are on Twitter, be sure to give him a follow at @jonathanwylie.) In a Slideshare presentation found here, Jonathan provides some ideas of how teachers can manage a digital workflow in the classroom. He includes Dropbox and Evernote, but extends it also to include how to print with the iPad, and the use of Google Drive, learning management systems, and other tips and trips. The presentation is embedded below.
Greg Kulowiec
Greg Kulowiec is a consultant for EdTech Teacher, a Boston-based educational technology consulting firm. A former social studies teacher, Greg presented at the New England 1:1 iPad summit. He concentrated on the sharing and submission of work to and from the iPad. In his presentation, he covered Evernote, Box, and Dropbox, as well as Google Forms, Web Dav options, Posterous, audio and video submissions, and use of social media to share work and information. The slideshare presentation can be found here and is embedded below.
David Berg
David Berg is a community college psychology professor who presented a paper at a conference entitled “Using the iPad in Your Academic Workflow“. Although specifically written for teachers of psychology, Dr. Berg includes an overview of why to use the iPad to support teaching and learning as well as specific apps that are useful to him. He includes the distribution and submission of files, but also provides a list of iPad apps for project and task management, writing, communication and collaboration tools and apps, as well as information management, and demonstration apps. Dr. Berg includes some interesting new apps that you might want to check out!
Don Orth
At the other end of the spectrum, Don Orth, the Director of Technology at Hillbrook School (CA), has been working with a 1:1 program for a number of years. In his blog post “Digital Workflow in Middle School with 1:1 iPads“, Don starts the conversation about the disadvantages of paper in the classroom, and goes on to discuss his school’s solution to the classroom workflow problem. He includes an overview of iTunesU for K-12 schools, which recently became available, as a viable option for sharing material. Don also talks about a commercial solution, eBackpack, which provides the ability to mark up student work and return it. (Another commercial option to look at is Showbie.)
There are also many apps for the iPad, some tied to online sites, that help with the classroom workflow. These include
I have a page devoted to the workflow in the mobile device classroom that I will add to as I discover new apps, suggestions, ideas, tips and tricks. You can access that page at https://www.schrockguide.net/ipads.html
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