New Teacher Boot Camp Week 2 - Using VoiceThread
Editor's note: See the full archive of the five-week boot camp.
Week 2: Using Voicethread in the Classroom
Welcome to our second week of New Teacher Boot Camp! Register to participate by July 15. You will get notices about new posts, project updates and lists of resources via email.
Today we're going to be exploring VoiceThread.
About VoiceThread
VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slideshow that allows students to comment on images, documents, and video through text, video, and audio files. Teachers can set up groups and classes as well as moderate comments, embed to blogs, and export to audio files. It is an easy way to differentiate instruction while providing engaging choices to "show" learning, engage in conversation, and think openly and critically about content.
Before we get started, please review this intro video, What's a VoiceThread anyway?
Introducing Megan Palevich
Megan Palevich is curriculum specialist and 8th grade language arts teacher in Chester County, PA. She is also a wonderful resource for this week's theme: VoiceThread. Here is a short interview I did with her about her approach to using VoiceThread in the classroom.
Before reading on, please take a look at this example of a VoiceThread from Megan's eighth grade class based on the novel The Red Kayak, by Priscilla Cummings.
You can navigate through the Voicethread by clicking the arrow on the bottom right. Each time you go to a new "page" you will hear the prompt for that page first.
Megan Palevich, Curriculum Specialist and 8th Grade Language Arts, on Using VoiceThread
This year I used Voicethread as an alternative way to discuss literature.
Instead of a traditional read and respond or read and discuss, VoiceThread could offer my students the opportunity to listen and reflect through text, audio, or video. As you can see on my VoiceThread example, some students were comfortable jumping right into video while others were more comfortable with typing text.
What I found was that when given an alternative learning space, and choice in response, my students were dynamically engaged in discussing one of their summer reading novels! They loved creating their responses as well as listening to each other when we played the completed VoiceThread on our SmartBoard.
For the rest of the school year, they always asked if VoiceThread could be one of their options for responses. For this upcoming school year, I have created a poetry podcast site where my students will be creating their own VoiceThreads with original poems for their classmates to comment on. To me, the value of a Web 2.0 tool is in its ability to enhance the student's learning experience, and allows teachers to be inspired to cultivate learning in a purposeful, dynamic way. I would encourage all educators to take advantage of VoiceThread, an easy-to-use and flexible learning tool with their students.
Free VoiceThread Tutorials
Thanks to Megan for these great VoiceThread ideas to jumpstart our work with this awesome tool!
1. Click on this VoiceThread to add a comment.
2. Click "sign in or register."
3. Register with your first and last name, email address and password, then click "register" (you can upgrade your account to an educator account later)
4. You will be prompted to add a picture to your identity. It can be a photo of yourself or something that represents you. I don't allow students to use photos of themselves for their avatars.
5. Click on Megan's cartoon avatar (to the left of the page) to listen to the prompt.
6. Click comment and choose how you would like to respond.
7. Save your comment and consider making your own!
1. Go to VoiceThread
2. Log in with your VoiceThread ID that you created above.
3. Click "My Voice"
4. Click "Create"
5. Upload a picture, document, or video.
6. Don't forget to name your VoiceThread at the top left (Add title and description)
7. Click comment and follow steps 6 & 7 from above.
8. Click "Share", get a link.
9. Take a pic of your Voice Thread (like we did for Wordle)
10. Upload your example to your New Teacher wikispaces page as an image.
Voicethread Resources for the Classroom
- 25 Interesting Ways to Use VoiceThread in the Classroom (a collaborative effort between Megan Palevich and @tombarrett)
- VoiceThread Ning Community
- An Educator's Guide to VoiceThread
- Multimedia Literacy Group on Edutopia
- You can also use the "browse" feature on VoiceThread to see some really great examples of how people are using VoiceThread to have conversations.
About Megan Palevich
Megan Palevich is a curriculum specialist and 8th grade language arts teacher in Chester County, PA. She has been teaching for 16 years and has her M.Ed. in Educational Leadership. Megan blogs about technology integration in language arts at Middle School 101. She is a life-long learner who believes in engaging her students through technology integration and passion-based learning.
Comments (35)
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I really think that this application could have great potential. The only problem I see is the cost for the use. My Voice Thread is found at: http://radicalion.wikispaces.com/Voice+Thread+Example
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Love both Wordle & VoiceThread. I posted a voice thread on Harry Potter. I have read these books with some of my 8th graders and the discussions we've had have been fabulous and to incorporate voice thread in would bring them to the next level. Here is the link to the voice thread... http://voicethread.com/share/2161056/
Hope it works. I have been having issues with posting things. Wordle is also great for helping students with spelling and vocab. I see great uses for Wordle with my 1st and 2nd grade classes in computer and with my 4-8th grade in collaboration with the Spanish teacher for our joint effort to bring Christmas Around the World to life for our students & their families.
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I really believe in integrating technology in our curriculum. Teaching kindergarten has some challenges on how we can use wonderful tools like VoiceThread to enhance learning. I came across a wonderful website that helps our student’s Global Awareness by connecting them with other children outside our walls around the world using VoiceThead; responding to the call of Framework for the 21st century Learning.
Here is the link:
http://kinderkidsdraw.wikispaces.com/