A new stitch in my Web 2.0 quilt: VoiceThreads

Process of Learning about VoiceThreads
There was so much excitement online about VoiceThreads, it was easy to research and discover endless possibilities. In particular, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of educators online sharing their ideas and projects from VoiceThreads. Of course, the very nature of this Web 2.0 tool makes it easy to share and collaborate.
I logged on to the Internet one day afterschool, with the intent to spend 15 or 20 minutes finding out about VoiceThreads before zipping home for dinner. An hour and a half later I had searched dozens of sites, explored countless VoiceThread examples, and added my ‘top 14’ discoveries to my Delicious.com account. The variety of sites that are available is amazing, and the creativity that teachers show when using this web application in their teaching is inspiring.
After completing most of my research, I decided to take a risk to see if I could at least begin a VoiceThread project of my own. In thirty minutes I had uploaded photos from Flickr, created audio and text comments and uploaded my VoiceThread project to the Internet. The process was simple!!! And while my first project is plain, and much like a digital storytelling project, it has promise, and has shown me how easy it could be to use this technology with my students.

Implications of the tool for teaching and learning
The nature of VoiceThreads allows teachers to share ideas and build on the plans of their colleagues. If I were to describe the application to another teacher, I would suggest that they first look at the examples available on the VoiceThreads website . It is a great place to see what VoiceThreads is all about, and the ideal place for inspiration. It was here that I realized the power of VoiceThreads to bring people around the world together around a common topic or theme. I believe the power that sets this application apart of other Web 2.0 tools such as wikis or blogs, is the ability to post voice responses, in addition to visuals and written comments. There is something very powerful about the personal nature of the human voice. When viewing Classroom 2.0 and hearing voices from Israel to Florida, the world seems a little smaller, and as a teacher I feel empowered to be a part of world-wide network of colleagues.
So, what will I do with this empowerment? Well, parent-teacher-student conferences are just around the corner in November. When viewing ‘Goal Reflections Term One’ (found via VoiceThread4education), I was inspired to use VocieThreads as a part of my portfolio, conferencing and goal setting cycle with my students. While I believe that this could have been a possibility for my grade one students in my past years of teaching, I am convinced it will be a motivating and thought-provoking process that is well-suited to my grade six students. During my research and reflection this week I posted the following comment on the ideas wiki at VoiceThread4education:
"Creating portfolios and tracking goals on VoiceThreads allows parents, students and teachers to continue the conversation throughout the entire term, rather than limiting the conversation to report card/conference time. Students can upload regular updates, including their most recent work samples. Teachers could leave comments as a form of assessment. Parents can leave their own thoughts, and hear (first-hand) the feedback their child has received from the teacher. VoiceThreads could sustain the dialogue in a simple, accessible and authentic way."

At his blog, Gary Stager shares some of his concerns about VoiceThreads being used as another form of PowerPoint or digital storytelling. There are some important considerations to reflect upon when designing and posting projects on VoiceThreads. Here are a few considerations which may ensure high quality projects that use the capabilities of VoiceThreads:
-Who is your audience? Good writers keep their audience in mind while writing and editing
-Is this your first draft? If you are posting on the Internet, you will want to edit your work to be sure it is a great reflection of you and your ideas.
-Great voice/recording quality will make people enjoy hearing your ideas even more.
-Can you include your own pictures instead of relying on clip art or public photo sites?
-What do you have to say that no one else has to say?
-How will you engage others to participate? Who will you invite? Will you pose a question? Ask for feedback?

Demonstration of new Knowledge
I hope you will join my Delicious network (jkwasnie at www.delicious.com) to see the amazing sites I bookmarked while researching this web application.

My Top Ten List this week was selected to share my favourite new knowledge with you. Enjoy!
10. A VoiceThread example: Using VoiceThreads to discuss political cartoons. Gather ideas from students, and those around the world. Political cartoons can be sourced at www.cagle.com

9. After reflecting on Gary Stager’s blog post, perhaps this isn’t an example of Best Practices, but I think it would be a powerful way to introduce VoiceThreads to primary students and teachers. Colour Poetry on VoiceThreads.

8. AlwaysLearning is a great, inspiring blog by Kim Cofino a 21st Century Literacy Specialist at the International School of Thailand in Bangkok. In her post "KinderKidsDraw!" Kim reflects on using VoiceThreads with Kindergarten and primary students.
7. Bill Ferriter has named his blog "The Tempered Radical" (brilliant!). In this blog post, he reflects on using VoiceThreads as a collaborative tool for educators.

6. A VoiceThread with 100 Ideas for Using VoiceThreads. See what educators from around the world have suggested and shared!

5. Edutopia: The George Lucas Education Foundation – An article by Lara Weir about Bill Ferriter and his experience with VoiceThreads. "Extending the Classroom with Interactive Multimedia Albums"

4. A Wiki on VoiceThreads, with great ideas, how-tos and examples. Grazing for Digital Natives.

3. My inspiration for using VoiceThreads for goal setting and portfolio discussions: Goal Reflections Term One

2. VoiceThread4Education is an excellent wiki for learning, discussing, and exploring VoiceThreads.

1. My first VoiceThreads project! A walk around the walls around Dubrovnik, Croatia.
More links to come... I can’t wait to share some of the VoiceThreads that my students create. I plan to start using them in relation to our first term reflections and goal setting for term two.