MindMeister
Mindmeister is an app that works on the computer OR mobile device, allowing you to access material from anywhere there is internet or Wi-Fi (MeisterLabs, 2020). It is a mind-mapping app that allows students to take notes during lecture visually, prepare for projects and papers, and organize writing in an easy-to-see way.
Differentiation comes naturally with this program, as those for whom notetaking is difficult or impossible in real-time can easily capture thoughts on their map, refining later when time is available. Also, it allows for differentiation in groups, if a student is the speaker and one the recorder; you can pair students to support each other’s strength and weaknesses.
The ISTE-S standards focused on with MindMeister would be the ability to be a global collaborator, working together to communicate knowledge and products, and empowered learners focus in on using technology to organize learning and complete effective research (2016). This product was unknown to the author until researching this topic, but it will show up in class next year.
Not only can Mindmeister be used to organize material for a paper or project, it can BECOME the final product. To create the mind map, a student must conduct the research, therefore the material is covered. Why not allow this to be the final product for certain project topics? This allows others to see how the learning is connected in a student’s mind, which, as a teacher, is valuable in its own manner.
MindMeister can be used for free with very limited capabilities. If one planned to use this in the classroom regularly, an upgrade would be recommended.
Google Expeditions
This app is also a new one found during research for this class, and this teacher has already spent WAY too much time “playing” with it! This application has tremendous possibilities for use in a variety of content classes. According to Google (2020), there are already created expeditions for download, and a teacher can also create her own. It focuses mostly on social studies and art, as far as created “tours”, but a teacher could also create a tour to focus on mathematics as well with a little effort.
With this app, differentiation occurs almost without thought, as the visual learner can now “see” what they are discussing, taking visualization to a whole new level. Rather than struggle with text alone, each student can move around the chosen atmosphere and investigate the area.
ISTE-S standards this touches on are empowered learner and digital citizen, to focus on just two (ISTE-S, 2016). Using Expeditions would cover many standards. Digital citizenship is a focus because students must learn cooperative learning a treating other people acceptably. Sharing Expeditions could be a struggle since all would want to use. Empowered learner is a focus because Expeditions can be used anywhere if there is a headset and a phone. This teacher anticipates students wanting to follow more expeditions in free time, leading them to learn about topics in which they are interested.
This app itself is free. There are expeditions that are free to download and teacher creation for personalized expeditions is possible. It connects to Google Classroom/G Suite, so using without that would be a bit more challenging. This teacher (not at a Google school) would create a Google Classroom to make ease of use better. The more expensive part is the purchase of all the devices. For one headset, the cost was $5.99, which was the lower end of the cost. For a class expedition, you must buy a router and all the headsets to have them all working in tandem.
Mindmeister is an app that works on the computer OR mobile device, allowing you to access material from anywhere there is internet or Wi-Fi (MeisterLabs, 2020). It is a mind-mapping app that allows students to take notes during lecture visually, prepare for projects and papers, and organize writing in an easy-to-see way.
Differentiation comes naturally with this program, as those for whom notetaking is difficult or impossible in real-time can easily capture thoughts on their map, refining later when time is available. Also, it allows for differentiation in groups, if a student is the speaker and one the recorder; you can pair students to support each other’s strength and weaknesses.
The ISTE-S standards focused on with MindMeister would be the ability to be a global collaborator, working together to communicate knowledge and products, and empowered learners focus in on using technology to organize learning and complete effective research (2016). This product was unknown to the author until researching this topic, but it will show up in class next year.
Not only can Mindmeister be used to organize material for a paper or project, it can BECOME the final product. To create the mind map, a student must conduct the research, therefore the material is covered. Why not allow this to be the final product for certain project topics? This allows others to see how the learning is connected in a student’s mind, which, as a teacher, is valuable in its own manner.
MindMeister can be used for free with very limited capabilities. If one planned to use this in the classroom regularly, an upgrade would be recommended.
Google Expeditions
This app is also a new one found during research for this class, and this teacher has already spent WAY too much time “playing” with it! This application has tremendous possibilities for use in a variety of content classes. According to Google (2020), there are already created expeditions for download, and a teacher can also create her own. It focuses mostly on social studies and art, as far as created “tours”, but a teacher could also create a tour to focus on mathematics as well with a little effort.
With this app, differentiation occurs almost without thought, as the visual learner can now “see” what they are discussing, taking visualization to a whole new level. Rather than struggle with text alone, each student can move around the chosen atmosphere and investigate the area.
ISTE-S standards this touches on are empowered learner and digital citizen, to focus on just two (ISTE-S, 2016). Using Expeditions would cover many standards. Digital citizenship is a focus because students must learn cooperative learning a treating other people acceptably. Sharing Expeditions could be a struggle since all would want to use. Empowered learner is a focus because Expeditions can be used anywhere if there is a headset and a phone. This teacher anticipates students wanting to follow more expeditions in free time, leading them to learn about topics in which they are interested.
This app itself is free. There are expeditions that are free to download and teacher creation for personalized expeditions is possible. It connects to Google Classroom/G Suite, so using without that would be a bit more challenging. This teacher (not at a Google school) would create a Google Classroom to make ease of use better. The more expensive part is the purchase of all the devices. For one headset, the cost was $5.99, which was the lower end of the cost. For a class expedition, you must buy a router and all the headsets to have them all working in tandem.