Two Podcasts for Mobile-Minded Educators

Interested in mobile learning? Want to hear what other educators are saying about new digital tools? Ready to discover the latest and greatest iPad apps for teaching and learning? If so, I've got two audio programs for you!

Mobile Reach Podcast is hosted by David Freeburg, Jennie Magiera, and Sue Gorman. Mobile Reach discusses innovative yet practical ways to leverage mobile devices in the classroom. From redefining assessment to bringing more opportunities for student creation, collaboration and agency, your hosts explore how mobile learning can truly transform teaching and learning. Links to apps and sites mentioned can be found on the Shownotes Archive.

Techlandia Podcast is hosted by Jon Samuelson and Alison Anderson. It's by teachers and for teachers. Jon and Alison share practical tips and interesting apps. The show always features the work of some Twitter users you might like to follow. Links to all of the resources mentioned can be found on the Official Techlandia Podcast Page.

There are a variety of ways to download, stream, and subscribe to podcasts. You can find these two fine programs in iTunes for Mac and Windows. You can also find them in the Podcasts app for iOS. Android users can find both podcasts in the iTunes Podcast Player app.

Share Apps, Books, Podcasts with iTunes Widget Builder

Apple offers a Widget Builder where you can make lists of apps, books, or podcasts from iTunes. Widget Builder will give you HTML code to place on your site that displays the icon or artwork for each item you've included. I've been using a few widgets on my iOS page and Podcasting page.

Apple's widget is nice way to provide llink to apps, books or podcasts. I like that you can click the title to see more info, and you can click View to be taken right into iTunes or the App Store to download the app, book, or podcast.

The process of making a widget is fairly simple:

Go to widgets.itunes.apple.com/builder.
Select Widget Type (probably App List, Book List or Podcast Playlist).
Fill in the widget's Title and Description
Click Add/Edit List and search for the items you'd like to add.
You can reorganize the list by dragging and dropping the items into the correct order.
Click Done to see your widget.
Change the background color to match your site (the default is white, so you most likely won't have to mess with this).
Adjust the widget size. You cannot make it larger than 325x370.
Copy the HTML-Encoded Output.

The final step is to get the code on your website. It might be tricky because you cannot just paste it into a page or post. You will have to tell the web editor you use that you're inserting code. That's done in a variety of ways depending on the platform you're using. There's usually a button or tool that allows you to insert or embed code or widgets. Or, you might switch from the Editor to Edit HTML or Source. Below are some instructions for different platforms:

Wikispaces
PBworks
Wordpress
Squarespace
Blogger
Google Sites (this does not seem to work with Apple's Widget Builder)

Mr. Reisler has posted a short video on how to use Widget Builder on his iPaddiction blog.

There are a few bumps in the road when using Widget Builder:

You might need to know the author of the app, book, or podcast when you search because items often have similar names and icons are not displayed until after you select the item.
When picking app, you cannot tell if you are choosing an iPhone or iPad app.
Widgets are not saved under your account. So if you want to make changes, you have to start a whole new widget. Or, you can follow the instructions below.

Some of my widgets have many items in them. Instead of rebuilding the whole whole list again, I can add items to the code. Here's how:

Go to the iTunes URL of the item you'd like to add.
Copy the ID number from the URL. For example, Explain Everything's URL is itunes.apple.com/kz/app/explain-everything/id431493086?mt=8 so I copy 431493086.
View the HTML code on your site. Paste the ID number into the group of other ID numbers. Make sure a comma is separating the ID numbers.
Save your code and the new item is added. You can remove items from your widget by deleting their ID codes. You can also change the order by rearranging the ID codes.

Too see another app widget in action, check out Erin Klein's blog post. Not only does the post have a widget, but it also has a handy tip for finding apps using Google.

Of course, there are other ways to display apps visually. I've been pinning apps on Pinterest because I can choose a screenshot for each app. There's also Appolicious, List.ly, and Symbaloo for maintaining lists with icons.

Mirror iPad, iPhone, iPod to Your Screen for Free

The simplest way to see exactly what's on your Apple device's screen is buy Apple's VGA (Dock Connector or Lightning) or HDMI (Dock Connector or Lightning) adapters. Those adapters plug into the connector at the bottom of your device and send out a video signal to the projector or TV at the other end. There's no software to install–it just works when you plug it in. Those adapters sell for between $27 and $45. I want to tell you about iTools because it's a free mirroring solution.

Mirroring with adapter

iTools software from ThinkSky is a free download for Mac and PC that requires no special cable to mirror an Apple device's screen to a computer. iTools can use iPad's, iPhone's, or iPod touch's USB charge/sync cable to grab the connected device's screen and show it on your computer. If your computer is already connected to a projector, it's handy to have your device's screen appear on your computer, which will make it appear on the projector screen.

Mirroring with iTools

Unlike wireless mirroring solutions like Apple TV, AirServer, and Reflector, iTools requires the device to be tethered to a computer. But, that means you don't have to worry about your Wi-Fi network being compatible because the mirroring does not go through Wi-Fi.

iTools calls itself the "one-stop manager of your iPhone, iPad & iPod touch." The software can do much more than mirror your screen, so finding the mirroring option is somewhat hidden. On Mac, click Desktop under your device's name and then click the Record Screen tab. On a PC, click Desktop under your device's name and click the Live Desktop tab. For the best picture, click the full screen icon.

iTools has built-in screenshot and recording capabilities. You can make a photo or video of exactly what's happening on your device. iTools can include a voiceover using your computer's microphone. Unfortunately, your device's sound is not recorded directly through iTools. You could hold your device's speaker up to the microphone when recording if you need your device's audio output in a screencast.

Some observations and notes about iTools:

You don't install an app on your device. The only software to install is on your Mac or PC.
iTools is 100% freeware with no ads.
iTools' mirroring is laggy. Scrolling, zooming, and fast screen movements do not mirror well. Just remember to slow down.
iTools does not direct your device's sound through your computer. If sound is important, you can always connect speakers to your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch.
Your device has no idea that it is being mirrored. So apps that will display something different on a second screen do not. That's an advantage when trying to demonstrate an app like PaperPort Notes that typically hides toolbars on a mirrored screen.
Because you are connected with the charging/sync cable, your device charges as you mirror.
If you want a longer cable for more mobility, pick up a USB extension cable. You can get one for cheap from Monoprice, and they come in all kinds of lengths.
You cannot control your device through iTools or through an interactive whiteboard. Only the device's touchscreen works as input.
The Mac version is in beta, and I suspect that there will be updates to the Windows version. Since it's a work in progress, iTools might crash, and it might take some tries to get your device to show up.
ThinkSky, the company that makes iTools, is Chinese. Their website looks dubious, however, I've been running iTools for a few months and I feel the software is safe. It does not install adware, toolbars, or plugins.
Surprisingly, iTools' mirroring works with older devices like iPod touch 3rd generation and iPhone 4.
Thanks to Sam Parker who let me know about iTools through a comment on my post about Ways to Display Your iPad on a Projector Screen.

I've updated my comparison chart to include iTools – 6 Ways to Display Your iPad on a Projector Screen.

Instantly Craft Collaborative Books with Bindle for iOS

At the time of publishing this post, Bindle - PDF Maker, a universal app for iPad and iPhone, is free. Bindle's price is down from $1.99.

To use Bindle - PDF Maker, launch it and select up to 24 images, which can be from your Photo Library. Then Bindle - PDF Maker combines them into a multipage PDF file. You can share the PDF in a variety of ways.

While Bindle - PDF Maker's price drop got my attention, I was elated to see that it can fill a need. In my workshops, I guide teachers through model lessons. They often involve each learner creating a collage, comic, drawing, mind map, or annotated image. I collect each creation onto my iPad. Then, I bundle all of the creations into one file for easy distribution. I have used Scribble Press, which is no longer a free app. And it was not quick. In Scribble Press, I would have to create a new page and import and resize each image separately (often forgetting which image I last imported in the process).

In Bindle - PDF Maker, you can select all of your images at once. Each is placed on its own page. You can edit the order of the images. You'll probably make a cover page for your book in another app and make that your first page.

Before exporting, you can pan and zoom the image on each page. You can also add text headers and speech bubbles.

When you have everything just the way you want it, you'll click the Bind It button. Then you can email it or sent it to Dropbox. You can also call up all of the apps you have installed that can open PDFs, including iBooks, Evernote, QuickOffice, PaperPort Notes, Edmodo, and Explain Everything.

Using Scribble Press, I would be pressed for time to get a collaborative book bundled during a workshop. I'm excited to use Bindle - PDF Maker because it will take no time at all to put the book together. Of course, it will take time for learners to each create their contributions, but it the technical part of combining their work is a cinch with Bindle - PDF Maker. So even when the app goes back up in price, I still highly recommend it.

Below is a possible workflow for the scenario I describe.

Pic Collage

Each learner or group of learners make a collage and save it to their Photo Libraries.

Bump

The collage is selected and bumped to the teacher's iPad.

Bindle

The teacher selects up to 24 of the bumped images to combine into the PDF.

Dropbox

The PDF is shared to the teacher's Dropbox. Then in Dropbox, the teacher selects to copy the file's URL. That URL can be turned into a QR codes or pasted into a webpage.

Buy or Make Touchscreen Styluses for Cheap

Touchscreen devices aren't supposed to require a stylus. But there are times when you might want to use one. You probably draw better with a stylus. Your handwriting is more legible with a stylus. You don't leave fingerprints with a stylus. Using a stylus doesn't block your view of the screen.

Because modern touchscreens are capacitive sensing, they take the conductivity of the human body as input. It doesn't matter how much pressure you apply. It's the electricity flowing through your fingers that cause a change in the screen's electrical field. That change is interpreted by the device as input.

That's why you can't use your touchscreen device while wearing gloves, and it's the reason why using a fingernail, pen, eraser, or non-capactive stylus doesn't work. The screen works when it comes in contact with flesh.

Capacitive styluses have a fat tip because the touchscreen requires a somewhat large contact area. That tip is connected to material that conducts the static electricity from your fingers to the screen.

You can walk into a Best Buy and spend $15 to $40 on a stylus. That seems like a lot of money for something that in all likelihood will be misplaced within a few weeks. To save money, you can buy a three pack of touchscreen styluses for under two dollars from Amazon. It can take a few weeks for these styluses to arrive, but the shipping is free of charge. For less than $5 you can get a three pack that are of slightly higher quality and have somewhat less mushy tips.

If you think you might lose your stylus, consider buying a case for your device that has a holder for it. Or, buy a stylus that stays attached to your device. You can buy styluses that stay tethered when inserted to the headphone jack. Amazon has a pack of eight for less than $10. There's even a colorful pack of 10 that are under $3 and shipped free. They are short, so they aren't as nice to write and draw with. Even shorter is the MicroStylus, which just might be the world's smallest stylus.

It might be fun for you or for students to make do-it-yourself styluses. CNET shows you how to make a stylus in two minutes using a Q-tip and foil. Make Use Of has instructions for constructing a styles from foam, wire, and an old pen. Students at Anastasis Academy made with own iPad styluses for less than 10 cents using a sponge and wire.

Kelly Tenkely blogs about students making their own styluses.

Make Magazine has a video on how to make a Do It Yourself Stylus using foam, a wire, and a pen.

For youngsters who are just learning to hold a pencil, the AppCrayon promotes a control grip. Its three-sided shape is designed by teachers. Having three sides means that it doesn't roll away when placed on a table. You can purchase AppCrayon at Target, Walgreens, and Bed Bath & Beyond for $9.99. Educators can get AppCrayon at a hefty discount by contacting the company.

View poll on GoPollGo

Now You Can Upload Photos and Videos to Websites from Your iPad

iOS 6 adds a much-needed feature—the ability to use Upload, Select File, or Choose File buttons and links found on websites for submitting files. Previously, when browsing websites that have a button for uploading files, nothing would happen when you tapped it on iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Now with iOS 6, tapping that button on webpages brings up your Media Library where you can select an image or video to upload.

Because of this simple addition to the operating system, you can change your profile photo on social networks, upload photos to a blog, insert a photo on a Linoit canvas, and submit videos to websites from iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch without having to install an app.

This is a big deal for schools using iPads. Email has been a primary way for teachers to collect student work (which often might be an image or a video). Email can be challenging to set up in school environments, especially on shared devices. Furthermore, email has file size limits—most notably you cannot email videos longer than 50 seconds using iOS's Email app.

So being able to simply navigate to a website or course management system and upload is handy. I love that there's no need for a separate app, which is the way many sites have dealt with the limitation. For instance, the only reason to use the Edmodo iPad app (aside from it remembering your login) is to upload photos and video. And it has been a multi-step process to add media to an Edmodo post from a device's photo library. With iOS 6, you can simply upload directly to a post on Edmodo by tapping the File link. It's so great that the File link now works, even though it feels like it should have worked like this from the beginning.

A handy way to collect student work is with Drop It To Me. It's a free service that gives you a URL where others can upload files directly into your Dropbox account. Students do not need a Dropbox account, only the teacher receiving the files needs one. Before signing up for Drop It To Me, you to sign up for a Dropbox account. Drop It To Me works well for collecting videos from Apple devices. Drop It To Me has a file size limit of 75 MB, which should be large enough to accept a video that's six minutes in length. Students can simply go to a teacher's Drop It To Me page, input the page's password, and select a file to upload. The video then shows up in the teacher's Dropbox. However, because you cannot change the name of an image in your Photo Library, photos submitted through Drop It To Me overwrite each other because they have the same file name.

It sure would be nice to also be able to upload other files types, like PDF, Pages, and Word documents. Apple doesn't give us access to a device's file system, so don't expect this kind of functionally any time soon. We're lucky they let us upload photo and video files...

Limit an iOS Device to Running a Single App

Apple has introduced Guided Access in iOS 6. It keeps your device in a single app and allows you to control which features are available.

Locking a mobile device into a single app has been a request of parents and educators for some time. Using Guided Access to limit an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch to one app can be handy when you want a child to remain on task and focused. It is also nice for youngsters who might accidentally click the Home button.

To start Guided Access:

Launch the Settings App.
Go to General and choose Accessibility.
Turn Guided Access On.
Set a passcode.
Launch the app you want lock the device into.
Triple-click the Home button.
You can choose to disable touch or motion in addition to disabling the Home and volume buttons.
Tap the Start button.

To exit the app, triple-click the Home button and enter the Guided Access passcode.

iOS 6 is now available as a free upgrade for iPad 2, iPad 3rd generation, iPod touch 4th generation, and iPhone 3GS and newer.

Build Positive Behavior with ClassDojo Website or App

When I was a fifth grade teacher I made my own database to track student behavior on my Palm handheld. It was very effective because I could quickly take my device out of my pocket and with a few taps add a record to the database. In fact, my students knew exactly what I was doing if I looked at them and then started tapping on my device. My students knew I kept detailed records on how they behave in our classroom.

It was super handy to have all my anecdotal notes in a sortable database. It helped when I conferenced with students and parents because I had specific data collected over time. It certainly helped when completing report cards. And, for whatever reason, digital information is perceived by students and parents as more valid than if I had a paper notebook with my handwritten observations.

I used a Palm app (which is now an iOS and an Android app) called HanDBase. Years ago I wrote instructions on how to set up your very own class behavior database. Today, however, instead of buying the app, I suggest looking into ClassDojo.

I've been a fan of ClassDojo since I learned about it in the spring. Class Dojo is a free website and a way to track student behavior digitally.

A teacher sets up a class on Class Dojo. Each student can have a cutesy monster avatar. After set up, start the class and can click any name to add a positive or negative behavior. The behaviors are tallied. If you choose to track negative behaviors, it's possible for students to have negative scores. The leader board can be private for just teacher use. However, the list of names and scores can be projected for the class to see. In fact, the leader board works well on an interactive whiteboard.

When class or the day is done, ClassDojo will show a report of the class' overall performance. Reflecting on individual and class performance and setting goals for next time can improve classroom climate. Teachers can always access a complete record for every class session for each student.

Class Dojo has been very mobile-minded. The site works well on an iPad and through a mobile browser so teachers can use a smartphone to award behaviors when away from a computer.

And now ClassDojo has released an iOS app. The free app allows teachers to set up classes and monitor and track behaviors instantly. The app also has a random student picker.

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So, before creating your own behavior-tracking database, check out ClassDojo and see if it meets you needs.

Let's Use the Hashtag #iosedapp for Tweets with Educational iPad/iPhone/iPod Apps

In March 2010 I proposed that educators use the Twitter hashtag #edapp to make it easy for others to find tweets that mention an educational app when searching Twitter. I even made a t-shirt to get to word out about the hashtag. I wore that shirt and explained hashtags in Episode #22 of the Learning in Hand podcast.

You need to know that no one controls a hashtag. Anyone can use any hashtag, even if what they write is not relevant to the keyword. Unfortunately, spammers are including #edapp in their tweets. That makes it difficult to find the tweets that really contain educational apps. That's a tragedy because I have learned about so many great apps over the last two years through searching for #edapp.

My vision for #edapp was that tweets tagged #edapp would mention a single educational app or list of apps for iPad, iPhone, and/or iPod touch (all of which run Apple's iOS). Because no one controls a hashtag, my vision doesn't mean that it is others' vision for its use. Some Twitter users tag any tweet in which they mention anything that has to do with iPad or iPod touch as #edapp. Some mention web-based tools (even tools that are flash-based and do not work on iOS devices). Android, Windows, and Mac apps are often slipped in there too.

Don't get me wrong. So much of what people have been hashtagging with #edapp has been fantastically valuable. But, I want myself and others to be able to search Twitter and instantly find educational apps for iOS. Between the spammers and the ambiguousness of the keyword edapp, I now propose using the hashtag #iosedapp when mentioning apps or lists of apps for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. This is the keyword I will include somewhere in my tweets when I share a newly discovered educational app or when an interesting educational app goes on sale. I hope you'll do the same.

You can find tweets tagged #iosedapp in a variety of ways. One way is to go to twitter.com/search and enter #iosedapp. You don't need a Twitter account to use the search. If you see many tweets that are all the same, refine your search to include -RT. That will remove retweets so all tweets displayed are originals.

When tweeting about an app, I highly suggest including a link to the app's page in the App Store. The best way to do this is through iTunes on your PC. When on an app's details page, simply click the arrow next to the price and choose Copy Link. Paste that link into your tweet. Don't worry about how long the URL is because Twitter will shorten it.

Check out what has been recently tagged #iosedapp in the widget below. Note that there will probably be some tweets that do not mention an iOS app because, at least at first, some tweets will be referring to the use of the new keyword.

Got something to tweet about mobile learning and it's not a specific iOS app? Include one or two of these hashtags instead of #iosedapp:

#ipaded - iPads in education
#mlearning - Mobile learning
#slide2learn - iOS devices for teaching and learning
#iear - I Educational App Review's community

For your information, here's what Twitter has to say about hashtags:

Definition: The # symbol, called a hashtag, is used to mark keywords or topics in a Tweet. It was created organically by Twitter users as a way to categorize messages.

Using hashtags to categorizing Tweets by keyword:

People use the hashtag symbol # before relevant keywords or phrases (no spaces) in their Tweet to categorize those Tweets and help them show more easily in Twitter Search.
Clicking on a hashtagged word in any message shows you all other Tweets in that category.
Hashtags can occur anywhere in the Tweet – at the beginning, middle, or end.
Hashtagged words that become very popular are often Trending Topics.

Using Hashtags Correctly:

If you Tweet with a hashtag on a public account, anyone who does a search for that hashtag may find your Tweet
Don't #spam #with #hashtags. Don't over-tag a single Tweet. (Best practices recommend using no more than 2 hashtags per Tweet.)
Use hashtags only on Tweets relevant to the topic.

Of course, I cannot guarantee that #iosedapp won't be overrun with spammers at some point. Maybe in two more years I'll be suggesting yet another hashtag...

Be an iPad Superstar: 8 Collections of iOS 5 Tips

Just when I think I know a lot of about Apple's iOS, someone shows me a clever feature, setting, or shortcut I've never seen before. Since Apple doesn't include a printed manual, it's up to us as iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch users to find our own ways of learning these tips. I'd like to share eight links with tips to help us get the most of our iOS devices.

The Always Current iOS 5 Tips and Tricks Guide from Mac|Life