By Request - A Video Guide to Using the Google Drive iPad App

Cross-posted from one of my other blogs, iPadApps4School.com

Last Friday I was asked if I could share instructions for teachers and students using the latest version of the Google Drive for iPad app. I'm in the process of organizing all of my screenshots into a PDF. In the meantime, I have the following video overview of how to use the basic features of Google Drive iPad. At the end of the video I offer a tip about using multiple sign-in on shared iPads.

Designs for Democracy - Explore U.S. History Through Drawings

Designs for Democracy is an online exhibit created by the National Archives and Records Administration. The exhibit features drawings, sketches, and pictures that demonstrate the creativity and ingenuity of Americans through history. The exhibit is divided into three sections tracing the development of the United States from its early beginnings through the 20th Century. Each of the three sections contains images in the categories of symbolism, improvements, science and technology, and artistic expression.

Applications for Education
Designs for Democracy is a good place to find images that can be used as the basis for classroom conversations or VoiceThread projects. For example, you could use the drawings from a sewing machine patent application to start a conversation about the Industrial Revolution.

How to Use Little Bird Tales for Digital Storytelling in Elementary School

Little Bird Tales is one of the replacements for Kerpoof (closing on April 15th) that I recommended yesterday in this post. Little Bird Tales is a nice site intended for younger students to use to create digital stories. Little Bird Tales walks users through each step of creating a multimedia story. Users can upload images, draw images, or record from their webcams. Stories can be written with text or narrated by students using microphones connected to their computers.

In the video below Beth Holland from Ed Tech Teacher (an advertiser on this site) demonstrates how to use Little Bird Tales and she makes suggestions for classroom use.


Little Bird Tales from EdTechTeacher on Vimeo.

Explore the Temples of Angkor Through Google Street View

Google's Street View imagery just keeps getting better and better. The latest addition to Street View was released yesterday. The latest update features Street View imagery of the temples of Angkor, Cambodia. This new imagery can be viewed through Google Maps or by visiting the Google Cultural Institute.


Applications for Education
Browsing Google Maps Street View imagery is one of my favorite ways for students to virtually explore the world. Browsing Street View imagery provides a prospective that that they generally can't get by flipping through printed images or looking at flat maps.

Exploring History, Art, and World Wonders Online

The Google Cultural Institute is one of my favorite sites for students in history, geography, and art courses. The online exhibitions in the Google Cultural Institute feature art, videos, audio, and text about significant historical and cultural people, places, museums, and events. Some of the exhibitions like the Eiffel Tower Exhibition incorporate the use of Google Maps Street View imagery too.

The Google Cultural Institute is divided into three main categories; World Wonders, Historic Moments, and Art Project. In all three categories you can compare items using the built-in comparison tools that allow you to select items throughout a collection to view them side-by-side. You can also build galleries of favorite images. (A Google Account is required in order to do those things).


Applications for Education
The Google Cultural Institute is a great site to have students explore to view artwork, find answers to questions, and have new questions and curiosities sparked in their minds.

A fun extension to browsing the Google Art Project is found in Hangout Quest on Google+. Hangout Quest is a game that allows you to go on a virtual scavenger hunt inside the Palace of Versailles. The object of the scavenger hunt is to find artwork and other objects in the palace. If you invite others to your Hangout you can compete against them in a race to find the objects first. Hangout Quest uses the Street View imagery of Google Maps to bring you inside the Palace of Versailles. Another cool piece of technology added to Hangout Quest is facial tracking. The facial tracking technology allows you to move around in the Palace of Versailles by just moving your head instead of clicking around with your mouse.