FotoFlexer

Have you ever needed to make a quick change in a picture (or maybe a few changes :) before you added it to a presentation or uploaded your image to your website?

FotoFlexer provides a quick, easy, and free online tool that allows you to edit your pictures and even add text. To use FotoFlexer just go to fotoflexer.com, and click the Upload Photo button (if you want to just try the product there are sample images you can use as well).

Your image will open with the basic tools showing. With the basic toolbar you can fix red eye, crop, resize, rotate, flip, and/or adjust the color/contrast in your picture.

Just click the tool that you want to use and fotoflexer will tell or show you what you need to do next. On the other tabs you will find tools for adjusting or adding effects to your picture, including text! When you are finished editing your image just click the Save button and choose where and how you want to save your file.

Simple Timer

This website provides a large Simple Timer that can be displayed on your computer/projector. You can have the timer simply run, or set it to count down from a specific number of minutes. Simply choose the option you prefer, then click Start the Clock.

The clock will turn green when it begins counting, and will sound a gong when time has expired (if you have set the clock to count down).

Use this tool anytime you are in need of a timer in your class. Just bookmark the site on your computer so that it is easy and fast to access! If you like the Simple Timer you may also want to check out the One-Minute Timer.

Wordle

Wordle provides an easy way to create word clouds. If you haven't created a word cloud before, a word cloud looks something like this...

(These states were not picked at random...do you know the significance?)

Wordle will create a word cloud that is compiled of words that you (or your students) paste or type in. The site includes the feature of skipping small and common words (a, then, and...). You can change the way that your word cloud looks in Wordle by using the Font, Layout, and Color menus at the top of the word cloud window. If you're looking for a quick change use the "Randomize" button to generate a change.

It's free to use and you don't have to create a login. Just head over www.wordle.net and click "Create"!

Simply print your word cloud (or just save it in pdf form) when you are finished or take a picture of it on your screen using a free capturing tool...like Jing! To learn more about Jing head over to Cindy Tucker's blog at www.emsisd.com/ctuckerblog!

Classroom Application

Wordle can be used for many purposes in the classroom...from typing in words that describe an object or common theme (like the word cloud above), to students pasting in their own writing to create a word cloud. If students paste in text from their own writing, Wordle can serve as a great tool for identifying words that are used frequently (possibly too frequently) in their own writing because those words will be larger in the word cloud!

In looking for resources on using Wordle in the classroom I came across 45 Interesting Ways to use Wordle in the Classroom. It's a compilation of different ways that Wordle has been used by teachers...check it out!

fur.ly

Welcome to another week of Webby Wednesday! This week I'd like to introduce you to a helpful tool for grouping websites for students. Enter...fur.ly!

To get to the Furly site simply type the site address as fur.ly. Once on the site you will find a place where you can type or paste in multiple web addresses (enter one address and you will see a place for an additional address). Furly then takes those addresses and creates one URL for all of those sites. To see Furly in action visit the following link http://fur.ly/kkw (you will find multiple websites that all have educational video resources). At the top of the Furly created web address there will be a menu bar that allows users to browse through the various sites that were entered into Furly (see example below).

With the toolbar users can then page through the websites with the arrows, or click the drop down menu and select a different site in the list to view.

Classroom Application

Teachers can stipulate the websites that they would like students to use by directing students to one fur.lyaddress rather than trying to list out multiple sites for the students to enter on their own.