MailVU (Week 9)

What?

MailVU is the greatest tool I ever seen in my life. It is a website that allows users to create a video message on their own preference. The website is free and users friendly. What you need to have in order to record you video is a webcam. After finish recording, you can send it to others via e-mail. The activity is suitable for secondary students age 14-17 years old.

MailVU webpage

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to MailVU website.
Step 2: Click at the record button and start record
Step 3: Send you 'product' to others via e-mail

* If you want to have a clear instruction on how to use mailVU, you can visit Russell Stannard's website

Suggested activites:

1. The best activity that can be used with the tool is speaking activity. Students will talk about their background using mailVU. After finish the recording, they will send an e-mail to the teachers. Teacher can give a feedback if necessary.

2. Moreover, it can be used as a listening activity. Teacher can create an information gap between students in a task. Students need to listen to the video made by their friend in order to complete the task.

I like it because:

1. It creates variation of learning styles in a classroom. It makes the learning become meaningful to the students.
2. Personalization in learning happens as students freely can choose their own topic of the video as long as it is relevant for them as student. It motivates them to explore more on the language
3. It provides an authentic listening materials for students. It puts their language leaning in a meaningful context.
4. It suitable for all level of students. Students will speak using their own level of competency. The affective filter may reduce as there is no stress at all for the students.

I don't like it because:

1. some technical problems whereby the website is not suitable with certain browsers
2. It cannot be embedded into blogs.

Reference Site:

mailVU on Youtube!

Elllo (Week 8)

What?

Elllo stands for English Listening Lesson Library Online which have lots of listening lessons that teacher can use for a lesson specifically listening activity. The materials are divided into few parts which are Mixer, Video, Games, View, and News. Besides, the tool is focusing on vocabulary quiz, speaking quiz and vocabulary focus. The activity is suitable for secondary students age 14-17 years old.

Elllo webpage

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to Elllo Website and you will find as above
Step 2: Click which articles would you like to explore on
Step 3: You can listen to the audio and answer the questions given

*If you want to have a clear instruction on how to explore Elllo, you can listen to Russell Stannard's video about it

Suggested activities:

1. Teacher can use it in a classroom. Teacher can download the audio available on the web and have a try with the students in order to test their listening skills. Besides, teacher can print out the activity that had been provided in the web for comprehension activities

2. In addition, the tool is good for teachers to check their students' vocabulary. This is because the tool is looking at vocabulary focus. It becomes more interesting for students to learn a new vocabulary instead of memorizing the words.

I like it because:

1. It is free and can be access by anyone
2. It promotes students' autonomous learning as they will explore the web by their own
3. Content-based and Language-based can be integrated as one type of activity. It is better known as CLIL
4. It can enhance students' vocabulary widely
5. For teachers, the activity creates variation in their teaching

I don't like it because:

1. Not all the video can be downloaded. It is quite disappointing if the audio which students prefer the most can be played.
2. The label at the left site of page is about numbers. If it is stated the topic, it might help the learners a lot to find the suitable topic for them

Reference Site:

Elllo as an materials for learning language on Youtube!

Audioboo (Week 7 part 2)

What?

Audioboo a simple way of recording audio while on the move and adding as much useful data to it as possible, such as photos, tags and location. The recording will link to Audioboo website itself, facebook, twitter, youtube as well as itunes. Users can add image and location of where they record their 'boo'. Recently, users can download the Audioboo application for smartphone either it is Iphone, Android or Nokia. Most of the students have smartphone, so they can just record and send it to others using their own phone!

How to use it?

Step 1: Go to the http://audioboo.fm/



Step 2: Get yourself an account. You need to fill in e-mail address, user name and password
Step 3: Check your email to verify your Audioboo account
Step 4: Click 'make a recording/upload file'
Step 5: For full tutorial on how to use Audioboo, you may click at Russell Stannard's Website


Suggested activities:

1. Pair work in a classroom. Students work in pair to talk about their opinion about learning English. Later, the teacher select a recording and play it to the class. Otherwise, teacher can ask students to e-mail the recording.

2. As a homework. Teacher asks students to record using Audioboo and e-mail it to the teacher. The topic is based on their own interest such as sport, hobby and so on. Teacher may reply the e-mail as a form of personal feedback.

I like it because:

1. Students get a real-life communication. They can interact with the others using feedback/comments on the podcast. It motivate them to write as it creates an authentic audience for the learners.

2. The website is free. There is no administration fee. So, it is practical for students to use it anytime they want either at school or home.

3. It creates personalization in learning. Students may record the voice based on their own interest. It encourages them to use the target language because they enjoy doing it!

I don't like it because:

1. There is no privacy as it can be view by anyone. Students may feel ashamed if they make a wrong using of language. Thus, it demotivates them to learn more.

2. Limited time to record. Learners have 3 minutes to record. If they want more, they need to pay for it.

3. Students need to have an access to the technology equipment such as internet connection and microphone

The example of Audioboo made by myself:

Wordsift (Week 7 part 1)

What?

WordSift was created to help teachers manage the demands of vocabulary and academic language in their text materials. This tool is helpful in supporting English Language by providing a fun and visually pleasing. Wordsift can be seen as a toy in a linguistic playground that is available to instantly capture and display the vocabulary structure of texts, and to help create an opportunity to talk and explore the richness and wonders of language. The tool works likely the same with Wordle. It is suitable to be used for 8-11 years old.

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to Wordsift website where you will find as below
Step 2: Select your text and paste it on the provided box
Step 3: Click the 'sift' button. You can sort the word from commonly use to rarely used as well as the opposite.

* If you want to know more about wordsift, you can visit Russell Stannard's website

Step 1 and 2

step 3

* The tool is different with Wordle as it can link with a thesaurus and grabs pictures that is associated with the word. For example as shown in the picture below:

Using thesaurus for a specific word

Suggested activities:

Creative teachers will find an endless variety of uses for WordSift, but here are some ways:

Lesson preparation: A teacher can use WordSift to review assigned text to identify challenging words or concepts prior to a lesson, and identify images and videos to use in class. The videos (hidden but displayed by hitting “>Video”) can be especially useful in the preview function since many schools do not allow access to YouTube, but a teacher can download useful videos (such as a science lab demonstration) onto his or her laptop computer from home.

Previewing text: In whole class or individually, students can preview text. Reading comprehension research suggests that previewing text is a useful strategy for improving comprehension. Using WordSift to identify the key vocabulary, and playing with the images and to use the example source sentence feature to “skim” the text can help students who might otherwise struggle with the complexity of the text.

Group activities: Teachers have found simple activities using small portions of WordSift useful. For example, one teacher has developed a simple routine in which she gives students the TagCloud, and has them working in small groups to write or draw a page using the words in the cloud. Another possibility would be to take the Visual Thesaurus® display of a word web and have students identify and discuss related words.

Literacy support: Individual students can use WordSift as they read text, or as they write a response or summary. Adult users of WordSift have reported using WordSift for their own purposes to skim text and also to review their own writing drafts. The creator of WordSift, Kenji Hakuta, uses it to preview and scout around documents that promise to be boring, such as long education policy documents, clicking on key words.

I like it because:

1. It is a fun way to learn language other than the traditional way which is quite boring
2. It can expand student's vocabulary with the help of thesaurus
3. It is marvelous for teacher to help students in finding key words in text

I don't like it because:

1. It is not good for a colour blind student. It may demotivate them to learn the language
2. Nothing more rather than highlighting few words from a text. Teacher needs to explore more on the tool to expand the activity.

Reference site:

Worsift on Youtube!
http://www.wordsift.com/site/about

Wordle (Week 7 part 1)

What?

Wordle is a toy for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The images you create with Wordle are yours to use however you like. You can print them out, or save them to the Wordle gallery to share with your friends. The tool is suitable for young learners at the age of 8-11 years old. The images can stimulate students' awareness of the topic.


How to do it?

Step 1: Go to Wordle website and you will see as below
Step 2: click at 'create' button on top of the page and paste your own choice of text
Step 3: click submit and choose the style, layout, font and the color that you want your visual to be.

* If you need more information about Wordle, you can visit Russell Stannard's website

step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Suggested activities:

1. The tool is suitable to be used as a pre-reading activity. For example, teacher gives students a paper consist of wordle words in it. As we know that, the bigger word means it is a key ideas of text. So, students need to guess the main ideas of the text before they read it.

2. Besides, teacher can use it for speaking purposes. The tool encourages students to talk during the discussion. It creates a communicative task for learners by giving up their opinion of the upcoming text.


I like it because:

1. It is free and everyone can assess to the tool
2. It motivates students to think creatively during their own learning
3. The tool suitable for any text and languages
4. It creates communicative task for students

I don't like it because:

1. It is not suitable for colour blind. They might find it useless to use in class
2. Students need to have a better internet connection to use the tool


Reference site:

Wordle on Youtube!

myBrainshark (Week 5)

Hi, today we gonna look at myBrainshark website. It is cool because you can combine both presentation slides and your own voice in it.

What?

myBrainshark is a tool that allows users to insert narration to their powerpoint presentation, word document, video or photo album. The tool is suitable for primary or secondary school students aged between 10 to 17 years old. It can also be used for adult learners.

myBrainshark

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to myBrainshark webpage and you can see like above
Step 2: upload your document that you want
Step 3: Add your audio on your document
Step 4: Share your myBrainshark with others via e-mail or embed it on blog

*For more information on how to use it, you can visit Russell Stannard website which has First and second part of it.


Suggested acivities:

1. Teacher can use brainshark during oral activity. Teacher may ask students to talk about their own life such as family background, hobbies or leisure time. It can help students to reflect their own oral presentation in using a target language.

2. It can also be a homework for students to work out by their own. It needs a quiet environment for students to add on the audio in the document. So, home is the best moment of it. Besides, it provides a platform for shy students to express themselves in the video. Teacher can give a personal feedback when the students email it using their brainshark.


I like it because:

1. It involves multitasking skills of students. For example, Oral skills when they add on the audio and writing skills when they want to describe the slide show

2. The tool can reduce affective filter of students. This is because students are free from all the pressure to speak as they can do it by their own. It makes the fluency of the speaking become clearer.

3. The 'Product' of learning can be shared with the others such as via e-mail or embedded it into blog.

I don't like it because:

1. It needs a proper technology facilities to do the task such as internet connection and microphone. If the students do not have it, it will demotivate them to explore more on the language.

2. It takes time for students to narrate their document and finish up their work. Teachers need to have a better time management plan if they want to do it in a classroom

Reference site:

Watch myBrainshark on Youtube


The example of myBrainshark:

Wallwisher (Week 5)

Hi everyone, we meet again. this time, i am going to tell you about a tool called wallwisher.

What?

Wallwisher is a Web 2.0 free online tool where anyone can build a “wall”. Discussing a new idea? Taking notes? Giving feedback? Voicing opinion? Wishing a happy birthday? Your students can then go onto the internet and stick post-it notes electronically onto your wall. The notes can include linked pictures, You Tube videos, PowerPoints, PDF documents, Excel Spreadsheets, or web page links.

wallwisher webpage

How to do it?

Step 1: Browse to wall wishers website.
Step 2: Create an online noticeboard and check out ideas for using Wallwisher with the students.
Step 3: Have students add to teacher's wall/notice board.



*If you want to know more about wall wishers, you can view This site taken from eduTecher.

Suggested activities:

1. Teacher can use wall wishers as a platform of feedback from students. At the end of lesson, teacher gives time for students to reflect their own learning by put it up on the wall board.

2. Teacher can use it at the beginning of lesson. Wall wishers being used to generate ideas or points to write such as during writing activity.

I like it because:

1. Students can express themselves on the 'wall' even the quiet or shy students in a classroom
2. Good ideas to get feedback from students during lesson.

I don't like it because:

1. During discussion, students may post unnecessary comments on the wall. Teacher needs to make sure that the students do not lose focus in contributing the ideas.
2. Teacher find it a bit difficult to identify the students if they use an anonymous name to post on the wall.

PIMPAMPUM Bubblr! (Week 5)

Hi, we meet again. Today, we will explore a tool in learning language which called PIMPAMPUM Bubblr.

What?

Bubblr is a tool to create comic strips using photos from flickr.com. There are plenty of pictures that we can choose and add bubbles to it to describe what the picture is all about. The tool is suitable for a young learner in the age of 9 to 13 years old. It may not be suitable for adult learners as the activity is too easy and they may feel bored when doing it.

PIMPAMPUM Bubblr

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to PIMPAMPUM Bubblr website and you can see as above.
Step 2: Type on tag column any specific topic that you want to search for the images
Step 3: Choose your pictures and add bubbles to describe what it is all about.
Step 4: Publish your images and sent it to others.

*If you want more explanation on how to use this website, you can view this Video


The example of Bubblr:



Suggested activities:

1. This tool can be used as supplement task in class after doing the main task. The teacher may ask students to sum up the learning objectives that they learn in a mini comic strips and present it in front of class.

2. It can also be a homework for students as it can creates autonomous learning. Teacher will ask students to sent their 'product' of learning via e-mail. Teacher can give a feedback for students if necessary.


I like it because:

1. It promotes students creativity in designing order of the pictures based on their interest. It also creates personalization in learning. Thus, it boost students' motivation to learn the language.
2. Students can do it during a leisure time. In other words, it promotes autonomous learning.
3. There are lots of pictures to choose based on their interest. Students enjoy what they are doing!
4. It is free to use and everyone can use it.

I don't like it because:

1. It may take times for students to finish up the work as there are lot of choices of pictures if teacher wants to do it as an activity in a classroom.
2. Teachers cannot control students' preferences of topic and the use of inappropriate language.
3. It may look boring for advanced learners as the activity is all about pictures and description of it.

Alternative way

Instead of using Bubblr, you can also use Bookr as it function exactly the same.

British National Corpus (Week 4)

What?

The British National Corpus (BNC) is a 100 million word collection of samples of written and spoken language from a wide range of sources, designed to represent a wide cross-section of British English from the later part of the 20th century, both spoken and written.

BNC webpage

How to use it?

Step 1: Go to BNC website and you can see as above
Step 2: Type a word or phrase in the search box and press the Go button to see up to 50 random hits from the corpus.
Step 3: You can search for a single word or a phrase, restrict searches by part of speech, search in parts of the corpus only, and much more.
Step 4: The search result will show the total frequency in the corpus and up to 50 examples.

Suggested activities:

1. Pronunciation activity. Teacher can check students' pronunciation of the words. This is because the tool is describing the authenticity language use by native speaker.

2. Teacher can make a concordance games in a classroom. Teacher line up all the students and ask one another the concordance of words. If they are correct, they will get a point.

I like it because:

1. It shows to the students the word usage 'as it really is' which is an authentic examples
2. It shows a pattern of word grammar
3. The Corpus is not just a teacher or expect opinions, it is based on an evidence.

I don't like it because:

1. students may get confused because it gives a lot of example for one word.

Relevant site:

A video on Youtube gives you an idea of how to use BNC.

Listen and Write (Week 2)

What?

Hi, today we are going to look at the next tool in learning language which is 'Listen and Write.' It is a simple but very useful site for learners of English. It helps students in dictation practice where you listen to a text and then you have to write down every word you just heard. The users' work is checked in real time and they have to spell each word correctly. If they make a mistake, they need to try again until they get it correctly. The users can stop and play the text again as many times as they like. There are a lot of different levels of difficulty, so the users will find their own suitable texts based on their level.The activity is suitable for secondary school at the age of 13 to 17 years old. It can be used by the teacher as a classroom activity or as a homework.

Listen and Write webpage

How to use it?

Step 1: Go to the Listen and Write website and you will see a webpage as above.
Step 2: Choose a story that you want to listen. There are different types of difficulties available such as Full mode, Quick mode or Blank mode
Step 3: After that, click the play button to listen and at the same time try to write words in the box provided.
Step 4: If you unable to spell the word correctly, you can click the hint button. A red 'good' will appear at the end of line if you write correct sentence.
Step 5: You can also submit your own oral recording as part of the bank of recorded items.

*If you want to have a clear instruction on how to use the tool, you can visit Russell Stannard Website


Suggested activities:

1. Teacher used it as a listening activity. Teacher can ask students to work individually or in pair. Students listen to the audio transmission and fill in the blank to complete the text. The process of doing it may help students to become better listeners in real-life situation.

2. Besides, teacher can give a homework for students where they need to find an article on internet and record it. Then, they will exchange the recording with the others to transcribe. It makes the learning process becomes more meaningful for the students.

3. Autonomous learning can happen when the students have free time and practice a listening skill by their own, outside classroom environment.


I like it because:

1. It can add on students' vocabulary by referring words to the dictionary.
2. Students are expose to the authentic language because there are lots of articles available on it.
3. It can develop students' autonomous learning where students practice the language by their own.
4. It is free and everyone can use it
5. Students can choose their preferences level based on their competency in a target language
6. It is a fun way of learning a new language
7. Students can evaluate and assess themselves after doing the activity

I don't like it because:

1. Unreliable sources of text as everyone can contribute to post the article
2. Students can get distraction with the other links on web
3. Some students may not have a proper technology facilities such as internet connection
4. Teacher does not know the progress of the students if it is an autonomous learning. This is because there is no form of feedback can be given to them.
5. Students may use a 'Hint' button to complete the task without trying it first.


Related Link

Listen and Write on YouTube

LyricsTraining (Week 1)

What?

Learning a new language is not easy and the traditional courses that make you memorize vocabulary and grammar are too boring. LyricsTraining is a website that makes learning a new language easy by listening to music and lyrics. It is an easy and fun method to learn and improve your foreign languages skills through the music videos and lyrics of your favorite songs. You can use it to learn English, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Dutch.


How to use it?

Step 1: Go to Lyricstraining Webpage and you will find the page as shown above
Step 2: Choose a song based on your interest. Then, choose your level such as beginner, intermediate and expert
Step 3: You need to complete the blank lyrics to continue playing the music (The music will stop playing to give time for you to write)
Step 4: To listen again to the last line, press backspace key. If you get stuck, you can click the 'give up!' button and see the word.
Step 5: If you could not understand a word, you may press the tab key to jump to the next. Once finished filling all the blanks, you can check your score.

*If you need a clear instruction on how to use Lyricstraining, you can visit Russell Stannard Website.


The example of Lyricstraining:

Bruno Mars - The Lazy Song, Music Video, Song Lyrics and Karaoke

Suggested activities:

1. Lyricstraining is very useful in a spelling activity. Teacher can form a group of students and they need to spell out the words correctly in order to complete the song. The fastest group that able to finish it will be declared as the winner.

2. Lyricstraining can be used as a homework. Teacher provides a list of song and students can choose which song they prefer to do it at home. It encourages the students to do their own learning outside classroom. Thus, it is an autonomous learning!

3. Teacher can check students' pronunciation in a target language. They can do it in a karaoke mode by singing a song with a correct pronunciation.

I like it because:

1. It is a multitasking activity. It requires students to use two important skills in learning a language which is listening and writing skills.
2. Besides, it encourage autonomous learning.
3. It is fun method of learning a target language as it is totally different with traditional type of learning language which is memorization of words.
4. Do not need to register or sign up to use it
5. You can still check the your score even-though you are not register
6. There are other languages that students can try to master such as French, Spanish, German, Italian and Dutch.


I don't like it because:

1. Inappropriate use of language through the lyrics as it comes from various kind of songs
2. There are some video clips that not suitable to be watched by the students
3. The lyrics of certain song may be difficult for the students to guess. It can demotivate them to continue the activity.

Related Link

Lyrictraining on YouTube

Dvolver (Week1)

Hello and welcome to my blog. For my first entry, I will explore a tool that can help students learning language through Dvolver.

What?

Dvolver is a website where you can make a cartoon comic strip type movie online using pre-made graphics. It is a combination of moviemaker and animations. The dialogue in a movie will appear in a form of bubbles. Students can explore the process of making the movie as an activity in a classroom or as a homework. The tool is suitable to be used by the primary or secondary school students range age between 8-17 years old with different levels such as beginner, intermediate and advanced.

Dvolver Moviemaker page

How to do it?

Step 1: Go to www.dvolver.com and click on the Moviemaker balloon
Step 2: Select a background and sky and click Next
Step 3: Select a plot and click Next
Step 4: Select characters and click Next
Step 5: Type in what you want your characters to say. Click Next
Step 6: Select music and choose between adding another scene (and repeat above instructions) or finishing movie
Step 7: Select the movie title design and give the movie a title and director’s name
Step 8: Press Preview and Send and complete the emailing details to send your movie to someone.

*If you need a clear instruction on how to use Dvolver, you can visit to Russell Stannard website.

Suggested activities:

1. Teacher can ask students to make a comic strip on their own. It depends to the students to choose a suitable topic for the movie such as their experience at school or their plan for summer holiday. It can motivate students to learn the language more as it is something that they enjoy doing it.

2. Teacher can ask students to make a summary of a text that they had read into a mini movie using Dvolver. It is important as teacher can check students' understanding of a text. Students' understanding of text can be interpreted into a dialogue between characters.

3. Teacher pair up students and let them explore the website. In order to form a grammatical sentence, the collaboration between students can help them to improve their understanding of a language in a fun and interactive way.

The example of Dvolver




I like it because:

1. It enhances students' creativity in directing the movie.
2. Brings variety of activities in learning a language.
3. Encourage autonomous learning by the students.
4. It is free and do not need to create an account or sign up
5. The 'product' of learning can be sent to others via e-mail or post it on blog.
6. Students take fully charge on making a movie such as in choosing a background music, settings and the characters

I don't like it because:

1. Students may use an appropriate language while using it.
2. Once students published the movie, it cannot be edited. Students need to make a new one if they do not satisfied with the first attempt.
3. Time consuming for teachers and students if it is being done as a classroom activity
4. Certain character may not suitable for students such as Hottie which is a bit sexy.
5. There are only three scenes available for the movie and the text entry is limited to write.
6. Lack of ICT facilites especially in rural area such as internet connection

Related Link

• Dvolver on YouTube

• The following link may help you with troubleshooting that you encounter CLICK HERE