Session+7+Collaboration+through+Voicethread

Session 7: Collaboration through Voicethread
 * Essential Questions**
 * 1) What is Voicethread and how can it be used as a collaborative tool?
 * 2) Why are collaborative skills important in the 21st century?


 * FACE-TO-FACE SESSION for 7.5 & 7.6 **
 * Wednesday, January 19, 2011
 * MHS Room D445
 * 2 Sessions: 3:00-4:00 and/or 4:00-5:00

7.1 __Opener__
Copy and paste the following questions into your **collaboration** page, virtual notebook, then respond to each question.
 * 1) What is collaboration?
 * 2) What are 3 ways in which students collaborate in your classroom and are they successful?

__**7.2 Video on importance of COLLABORATION in the classroom**__

The video below is a presentation by Randy Nelson the Dean of Pixar University. In this Video, Learning and Working in the Collaborative Age, Nelson discusses four keys to success for students in today's competitive work environment.

Please watch the following video: Learning and Working in the Collaborative Age and as you watch, think about how his analysis can apply to your practice.

Having watched the video, copy the following questions into your Collaboration page, virtual notebook, and respond to each question.
 * 1) How can expanded use of technology help develop depth and breadth for our students?
 * 2) What is the difference between cooperation and collaboration?
 * 3) What are the challenges in getting students to collaborate rather than just cooperating?

7.3 __Voicethread__
With Voicethread, group conversations are collected and shared in one place from anywhere in the world. All with **no software to install**. A VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents and videos and allows people to navigate pages and leave comments in 5 different ways- using voice (with a mic or telephone), text, audio file, or video (via a webcam). Share a VoiceThread with friends, students, and colleagues for them to record comments too. Users can doodle while commenting, use multiple identities and pick which comments are shown through moderation. VoiceThreads can even be embedded (such as the one below) to show and receive comments on other websites and exported to MP3 players or DVDs to play as archival movies.

__Voicethread Walkthrough__
Please watch the following Voicethread walkthrough to gain some familiarity with this resource: media type="custom" key="6617339"

Having watched the Voicethread walk through, go to your **Collaboration page** (virtual notebook) and complete the following: >
 * insert a heading, **Voicethread**.
 * briefly define a Voicethread in your own terms, and summarize your initial impressions
 * identify the various ways a Voicethread might be useful in your classroom

7.4 __Example of Voicethread - teacher created__
As you may have noted, Voicethread allows for students to use and hear their voices as part of their work. It allows for creativity and individuality, as well as for group work and the arena for ongoing conversations. Students can even use their cell phones to call their thoughts into a Voicethread. Voicethreads may be used for summarizing, for reviewing, or for providing fact and opinion pieces.

In the Voicethread below students were asked to respond to 3 questions posed by the teacher regarding Arizona Law sb1070. The teacher had students work in groups to collaborate on their responses and record their planned comments. Most groups chose to record their comments using microphones. Play the Voicethread below.

media type="custom" key="6617387"


 * __Create a new post__ entitled **"Immigration Voicethread"** in the **Discussion tab** of your **Collaboration** page of your notebook.
 * __Comment__ on the positives you saw and heard in this voicethread and some suggestions for improvement.


 * 7.5 __Voicethread Exercise__**
 * go to Voicethread.com and create an account. Be sure to write your password down in a good place.
 * upload a picture or symbol as your Voicethread identity picture (some people use their own faces, some use a pet's picture, clip art, or another image they enjoy).

Below is our Voicethread that includes 3 cartoons related to technology.
 * Please add one comment for each cartoon - one voice comment, one typed comment, and one phone comment.
 * Optional - if you you have access to a webcam, use it to add another voice comment.

media type="custom" key="6617345" width="160" height="160"


 * Return to your Voicethread post in the **Discussion** tab of your **Collaboration** page (virtual notebook) and comment on how you could use Voicethread in your classroom.


 * 7.6 __Collaborative Voicethread__**
 * Next, you will work with a partner(s) to create your own collaborative Voicethread. The topic of the Voicethread is: **What skills do our students need to be successful and how can the use of technology help our students to achieve those skills?**
 * Make sure your Voicethread includes at least 3 images (still or video), at least one comment from each group member, and a clear response to the question.
 * Make sure your Voicethread includes at least 3 images (still or video), at least one comment from each group member, and a clear response to the question.

media type="file" key="100728-140608.wmv" width="420" height="420" align="center"
 * Once you are satisfied with what you have created, embed it into your Collaboration page in your notebook. To do this, watch the video below:

Respond to the following prompts: 1. How do you think Voicethread can improve student collaboration in your classroom? 2. How does the use of Voicethread fit with your vision of a 21st century classroom?
 * 7.7 __Forum Post__:**


 * 1) Voicethread [] 7-15-2010