My name is Cindy. I am a Fontaholic.

I'm a Fontaholic. Always have been. Always will be.

Downloading fonts may not be the most techy topic to discuss, but it's one that most teachers love! Check out a few of my new faves (and yes, they are FREE!)

If you haven't gone into ultimate cuteness-overload yet, let's get serious for a moment. The font choices you make for documents of any kind (printed, presentation, etc.) should enhance your topic, not overwhelm it. Fight the urge with everything you've got to not use all of your fonts in the same document. Go ahead, pick out one that you like and stick with it. Remember ... sometimes your old standbys like Arial and Century Gothic are exactly what you need!

Another thing to remember is that these cutesy fonts don't work well for text on websites. It may look super stinkin' cute on your computer, but anyone that doesn't have that font loaded on the computer is going to see some super-ugly, plain font that the computer selects. It will also likely throw off the spacing around images, etc. It's a bummer - I know. The only safe way to use a special font on a webpage is to create a graphic with it and insert the image (which is exactly what I've done above!)

By now, I KNOW you want to know where you can get your hands on these adorable fonts (and so many more) for FREE! I found them at Fontspace ... happy downloading!

End of Year Video Projects

As the end of the school year {quickly} approaches, I've been asked by a few teachers about creating a video project that they can share with their students. There are all sorts of video creation applications available these days - some are downloadable applications that run on your computer. Others are online tools. Check out some of my favorites:

Don't forget that you can edit photos with PicMonkey before using them in video projects. 

Animoto - my favorite tool for creating impressive "Music Video" style videos. I've blogged about it before here, if you want more details. You will need to create an account (be sure to get the educator account if you're a teacher - it will allow you to create full-length videos for FREE!). Once you have an account, you just import pictures, import or select music (they have a nice collection of music you can use for FREE), and let it do its thing to create the video. If you don't like it, just remix it. Your students (and parents and coworkers and administrators ...) will be impressed!

PhotoStory 3 for Windows - it's VERY simple to use. You can import up to 300 pictures (still images, no video), add text/headlines, and select from a wide variety of transitions and custom animations. My favorite feature is the ability to "create" music for your project. Yes, you can import your own music, but you can create your own music in PhotoStory and not have to worry about copyright issues or whether the timing will be right for the number of images, etc. It works all of that out for you! If you are on a district computer (XP operating system), you may already have PhotoStory3 in your programs list. If you do not, have it loaded, you can download it here for free!

MovieMaker - this has been one of my go-to video creation tools for years, but we have experienced glitches from time to time with it. Like PhotoStory3, you can use all sorts of transitions and text/headlines. One big difference is the ability to insert video clips and still images. If you don't already have MovieMaker on your computer, you can download it here.

PowerPoint - yep, I said PowerPoint! Did you know you could import pictures into PowerPoint and create an album in about 12 seconds? Follow the steps in this tutorial from GCF LearnFree.org. You can even save your final project as a move.

Whichever application you choose, your students will enjoy reliving the fun times they've had in your class this year!

Dollar Days at Scholastic Teacher Express!

It's that time of year again ... Dollar Days at Scholastic Teacher Express! Better hurry though, because the sale is only good through Wednesday, 3.28.12.

These downloadable "e-books" and "e-pages" are PDFs and can therefore be read on a computer or most mobile devices.

You will need a Paypal account to make your purchase, but as soon as you do, you will be redirected back to the Scholastic site to download your items (including the items you downloaded last year if you took advantage of their Dollar Days then!)

I just downloaded two books ... what about you?

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Triptico Toolkit

Oh wow ... I feel like I kinda hit the jackpot when my coworker, Lisa, shared this resource with me. If you've been looking for ways to jazz up your lessons or increase student participation and enthusiasm, you will love the Triptico IWB Toolkit!  (IWB stands for Interactive White Board, but you can use these resources whether you have interactive devices or not in your classroom!)

David Riley (of Triptico) created this amazing desktop application that currently contains 22 different interactive resources. Each of the resources are easy to personalize for your class(es).

Click here or on the image above to go to Triptico and click the Download Now link. (That was easy!) After the installation is complete, you are ready to go!

Once it's running, use the scroll bar across the bottom to move back and forth between the 22 available applications. Double-click on the one you want to try. It will open in a new window and it's ready to go!

Here's a look at the activities that are currently available ...

What do you think? 

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Shape Collage

I'm excited to share a FREE, fun, automatic photo collage maker with you this week. Shape Collage is a free, downloadable application that creates super fun photo collages using your own images or images from a webpage that can be used on websites, sent as an email attachment, or printed.

• Download and Run Shape Collage from www.shapecollage.com
• Add Photos (drag and drop them in the left pane or File > Add Photos)
• Adjust shape, size, and appearance in the pane on the right side of the Shape Collage dialog box
• In the Status pane (middle), click Preview
• Make any necessary adjustments, then click Create
• Name and Save your image as a jpg, png, or psd (Photoshop)

Shape Collage Demo Video

I'm sure you and your students will love Shape Collage - give it a try!

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Dropbox

If you've ever been at home and needed a document that was safely stored on your computer at school, OR you've been at school and needing a document from your home computer, Dropbox is for you!

Dropbox allows you to sync designated files online, allows you to share files with others, gives you access to your files virtually anywhere, and is even available on your smart phone!

The first thing you need to do is go to Dropbox and watch the little introductory video and then download Dropbox to your desktop.

In the interest of full disclosure, we do have something like this in district. iFolder is a similar tool that is available in district with your Novell username and password. Here are the reasons I've converted to Dropbox instead of iFolder:

• Dropbox is easier to install and run on your computer. 
• You get 2 gb of free space just for signing up - get friends, co-workers, or PARENTS to sign up, and you get additional space.
• I can get to dropbox on my iPhone (or other smart phones and mobile devices!)
• I can share documents, pictures, fonts, etc. with anyone - not just district employees. 

I'm a classroom teacher. Why do I need Dropbox?

• Easily share documents with other teachers on your team, campus, across the district, or anywhere in the world.
• Share class newsletters, class pictures, video or audio recordings of your class (with permission, of course). The only people that see it are the ones you have invited - no fear of internet predators.
• We all know it ... teachers work from home! Instead of emailing yourself that huge document or saving all those pictures to your flash drive that's in the bottom of your purse right now, just save them into Dropbox. You've got access to them from home, from your classroom, from the public library, from the Development Center ... anywhere!

If you have any questions, concerns, or comments about how we can use Dropbox, please leave a comment. (It's EASY ... give it a try!)

Tech Tip Tuesday ... The Hat

"I'm first!"

"Pick me, Pick me!"

"I never get picked ... it's not fair!"

"My turn!"

If this sounds like your classroom, then you definitely need to check out The Hat. It's a simple but handy little utility that offers a fun and easy way to automatically determine a random order from a list of any amount of names. You can even use it to pick individual names for raffle and sweepstakes winners, etc. or pick pairs of names for deciding random partnerships, complete with cool animation and sound effects. 

To load on your computer, follow these simple (one-time) directions:

1. Click here to download The Hat!
2. Click Run, Run, Next
3. UNCHECK the option to load the Harmony Hollow toolbar, click Next.
   
   
   
4. Accept the User Agreement (after you've read it, of course), click Next.
5. Click Next, Install.
6. Click Finish and you're all set!

Add your students' names by clicking the green button. You can even import them if you have them saved in a text file or copied to your clipboard.

To select a student, click Shuffle and then Stop. The name at the top of the list is "it!"

You can save your lists to use again later. 

Tech Tip Tuesday ... Jing

Jing is one of my all-time favorite applications that I've found. It also happens to be FREE, which is a wonderful thing!

 

Download it here!

I will confess that once upon a time, not so long ago, I needed a "picture" of something on my computer screen so I dug through my desk and found my trusty digital camera. I snapped a picture (okay, several pictures until I could get one without the flash!), uploaded it to my computer, and finally used Paint (yes, MS Paint) to crop it down. By the time I got the picture I wanted, I had already forgotten what I wanted to do with it! UGH ... Now with Jing, I can quickly and easily take a screenshot of the entire screen or just a portion of it. 

Jing also takes videos of your screen. Just use your handy-dandy "Britney Spears" headset to narrate what you're doing on screen and you can create your own little video tutorials in no time!

Here are some of the things I do and things you may do too:

• "Snag" a picture off a website to use in class
• Use the video to record yourself creating a PowerPoint, PhotoStory, MovieMaker, or anything
• Save graphics from PDF copies of CBAs to create additional activities
• Create instructional videos for class, other teachers, or anyone
• If your computer is "acting weird", JING it and send the video to me and I can help figure out what's going on =)

Warnings:

• Just because Jing gives you the ability to snag images from just about anywhere, you must still follow copyright rules when using images.
• Before you know it, you will start using "jing" as a verb!  Just JING it!

Do you already use Jing? Do you have any questions about it? Leave them in the comments below.