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This is just a sample blog. You will notice several features posted that we will talk about today.

Welcome

THING 23

Some of my favorite things were the "Sign Now, organization tools, the video tools and also the mobile device tips. I really didn't connect with anyone else completing the program, but I think it would definitely be beneficial to complete this with a few friends so that you could learn about the apps that we didn't actually try. I definitely appreciated the equal access to android apps and tools. Apple products hit the classrooms first, but with the advancement of chromebooks, and BYOD programs, android apps are also important. Many times the same apps are available in both platforms, but when they aren't it is good to know about different options. I love the format of the program, but when I completed the first 2, I worked with a couple other media specialists and then we were able to maximize our learning with the additional sharing. This time I was working by myself, but the learning experience is still tremendous. I would definitely participate in any additional programs like this that offer flexibility but still a tremendous amount of learning. This program is almost like going to a buffet and choosing the things you like from an excellent assortment of great tools. All of the choices are excellent, but there are some that fit your needs better than others.

THING 22

Discovering Apps: Quixey and Droid for the day were the app finding tools that I tried. When I was searching Quixey, I found some interesting relaxation apps and also some photography tips/guide apps. I found some other to-do list apps, but I still think I like Wunderlist better. I also found some apps that address different health issues and have quite a bit of information for that. I also found an app that gives you tips on coping with ADHD, which I thought would be very helpful since many students struggle with this, and it certainly couldn't hurt me either. :-) I think this is a good way to find apps as long as you are diligent about reading reviews, etc. There isn't any reason to load your device up with apps that you'll never use or that aren't worth using. The key is to try the apps and then uninstall anything you don't find as valuable as you first thought.

THING 21

Favorite App: I use Wunderlist to keep a running to do list, which has proven to be very helpful. When you create a task for your list, you can assign a due date and then sort your list by due date. You can also see a list of items you have completed or you can turn that setting off. I like to use it because otherwise I am always thinking about what I have to do and hoping that I don't forget something. It has proven to be very helpful.

THING 20

First of all, I refuse to try candy crush. I have heard it is very fun, but I know quite a few people who are totally hooked. They are actually very obsessed with it. I tried Temple run and have found that to be a fun game that totally consumes way too much time. I keep playing to try to do just a little bit better. I also tried frogger because I used to play it on my very first atari and was kind of hooked on it then. I found it much more difficult to play on my phone than when I used to use a joystick. On my phone, if you're looking at the scene it isn't always very easy to move the frog in the right direction. I think I would need a lot more practice, but I'm not going to do that unless I'm in the car with nothing to do. :-)

THING 19

Hobbies: I have used gardening apps before and flower/plant identification apps which are very helpful, but I also enjoy photography, so I decided to try to find something that fit hobby. Most of the ones I found are for photo editing, which I use quite often, so I decided to try photofunia. It is very intuitive and gives you many creative options, but I'm going to continue to look for photography apps. I did find photofunia pretty interesting. I sent out some pictures that were pretty funny, but definitely out of character for me. My kids certainly enjoyed it. This is definitely good for many laughs.

THING 18

Education: I have previously used many of these apps such as Socrative, khan academy, Google Earth, Science 360, fooducate, etc. I will be teaching summer school to some struggling students, so I decided to try the 10 monkeys multiplication. Multiplacation facts are an essential part of being successful in math and I found this to be a little bit addictive. It definitely keeps your attention and you can choose specific multiplication facts to work with. That way students can stay at one level until they are proficient and then move on, or only work on the ones where they struggle. I will definitely be trying this with my students this summer and their opinions and progress will give me more feedback for this app. Personally if I had grandchildren, I would try this with them.

THING 17

Connecting to Community: 511 Minnesota is the app that I tried and I think this would be very helpful now that it is construction season. You can also add layers to tell you about traffic, and cameras. This will be very valuable when we are traveling into the cities, so that we can avoid some major problems. There are always alternative routes to take, but if you don't know ahead of time, you can get stuck in delays. Professionally it would also be valuable if I was traveling for work. Going out -sponsored by the star trib. is a great one for telling you where restaurants are near you location or what type of entertainment is available. This would be extremely valuable because now we just go to the places we are familiar with and this would let us try some different venues. Professionally, you could use this to entertain visitors, etc. I also tried the star tribune app and found all of the local news which is nice to see without waiting through all types of sports/national news, etc.

THING 16

Audio: I registered on the audio boo site and created a couple of podcasts as exaples. This was extremely easy and something that students would be able to do for an assignment. I could also create podcasts and put them on my website with either assignment information, upcoming week activities, or even a review session before a test. This was by far one of the easiest audio recording apps I have used. As far as personal use, I could create reminders for myself, or I could actually create a weekly podcast on one of my hobbies and post every wee,.

THING 15

Success: Using a chromebook and going to the Google Play store, I found Piktochart. It is very intuitive and I definitely wanted to sign up for the Pro Version for more options, but it is 29.00 per month or 290 per year. That is a little out of my budget, so I guess Iĺl stick with the free version. Has anyone had trouble with this Thing? Using my android device, I am not able to locate any of the apps that are suggested.Instead, I installed infographic and How to create an info graphic and also infoto Free. I found lots of examples and also information about creating them, but not actually a generator. I'm still looking or will have to try on an IOS device.

THING 14

I installed Magisto on my android phone and used a short video of my daughter's wedding venue to create a simple movie. I added a theme with hearts and a soundtrack. I then was able to share it with my daughter and her finace. I haven't heard from her yet, but I'm sure she'll like it. This is a tool that was easy to use and would be easy for students to use. It was very easy to share on google plus with is available in the google apps suite, so I could see students creating a simple, yet creative video on any subject of choice. This is so simple that I know many of my colleagues will want to use it with their classes.

THING 13

Presentations: I did not choose educreations because I have installed it on our iPads at school and I thought it would serve as a good tool for our students and teachers. I have one teacher using it and has had numerous issues. Some of the problems were not being able to save a project, you would have to complete it in one session. Keep in mind this is a set of iPads, not a one to one setting. They also had issues with the recording. The staff member tried contacting the developers, but was unhappy with the response she was getting. I installed and tried Deck Slideshow Presentations. The presentation was fairly simple, but you have the option of saving it and also exporting it to PDFs or PowerPoint. I could see this as a way to get started on a project while you were on the go, and thinking about the project. Then you could export it and put in more details and transitions, etc.

THING 12

I installed both FreeBooks and Wattpad on my android device and browsed books in both apps. I like the options in Wattpad about selecting the category of books. Professionally, this might be something you would recommend to students, with a disclaimer that there are a variety of books with a variety of content. :-) Free books does give you an opportunity to read a review before opening a book. This is a great way to find books without making a purchase. Personally, I don't think I would use Free Books very much. It is all classics and I personally like to read current fiction. If I needed to refer to a classic novel, I would certainly use this tool to access the information quickly or to check a reference.

THING 11

Library and Reference: I explored the ELM databases mobile site and did some searching in Alt. Health. I found this to be very easy to find quality information on a topic of interest. I also tried to go to the find you library link and I get a 404 error every time. This is a tremendous tool to use in the classroom where students might be using mobile devices instead of having a computer lab, etc. There is no reason for them not to be able to find credible sources through these tools. Personally, I can use it to look up anything without sifting through the mountains of hits that you get in a general search engine. I also installed the Mackin Via app and can log in to our school's resources. This could be very helpful for students on a bus, or on a trip that would like to find a book to read on the go.

THING 10

I installed both snap chat and instagram on my mobile device. I am currently following my facebook friends but have declined to follow all of my contacts. I could see this being useful in a professional setting by sharing photos of school/group activities with parents and staff. What a great way to promote your activities. As far as personally, I don't know that I have photos that I want to share with the world. I do not use my mobile device for most of my photos. I like to use the qualities available with a DSLR. I do not share many of these photos. I'm not sure why, but it is something that I could try. I'm a little hesitant to allow snap chat access to all of my contacts. I would never want to accidentally send some of my contacts a photo. I was looking for a way to only add specific contacts, but I haven't found a way without giving access to my entire list. There has to be a way, but I need to explore further. For now, I'll be using instagram.

THING 9

Photo Editors: Color Splurge I tried this on my android phone and found it to have some nice features such as adding text to the photos. I did not find a crop feature or a feature to add background color to the text which was what I was looking for. I will try it some more in case I missed it. One photo tool I use is Perfectly Clear. It is more of a photo enhancer than an editor, but it certainly does improve your photos. It will take a photo that is extremely dark and adjust the lighting and contrast to improve the image. There is also a beautify feature that does wonders for skin tones. It also has a way of enhancing the eyes in a portrait that is amazing. There is a fee to it,maybe $2.99 but occasionally you can find it free.

THING 8

Social Media: I've been using facebook for several years, and I enjoy keeping up with family, friends and colleagues. Different facebook pages could be created for different organizations you are part of or in a school setting, it could be used for a class, club, etc. The important part of using this for school use, would be to check district policies and to strictly monitor the content on the page. I don't feel compelled to fully participate in all forms of social media, but there are good reasons to have accounts and to stay connected. For example at conferences, many presenters will post information or have attendees tweet different comments from different sessions. I have also found it beneficial to follow some of the leaders in my field to try to keep up with new trends, etc. One very important part of social media and our work environment is to keep personal information and business information completely separate.

THING 7

I downloaded the Pinterest app to my android phone and was somewhat disappointed that even though I logged in with my regular Pinterest information, none of that data came through to my device. I have some boards that I created using Pinterest on my computer with the very same login and nothing shows up. They did ask for access to my information and I agreed when putting this on my phone, but still not sure why the information doesn't show up as everything in 1 account. If you know of a trick for this, please let me know. I'm going to log out of my computer and phone, and then restart things to see if that corrects any problems.

THING 6

I installed sign now and quick office on my android phone. I was able to create a signature which was much easier on my phone using my finger to draw than on my computer using the mouse to draw my signature. With Quick Office, I created a document, then opened sign now and uploaded the document and added my signature. This is a very nice feature. I can tell you how many times, I have printed documents, signed them, scanned them and either emailed or faxed them back. Especially having the option of doing this on the go is amazing. I noticed on Sign Now that you can have others sign as well which is good if you have a document that requires witnesses, etc. I don't think I'll ever go over the free monthly limit for sign now.