PowToon Update!

Since my inital post on PowToon, a few things have changed!  First, I shared the initial PowToon presentation with a student in my class', mother. After she showed the video to her child, she replied back with the comment below.

" When I told T*** you sent her a special video, she wanted to watch. I hit play and without  sound, it was difficult to gets her attention to watch initially. Once she saw the words he was interested but it went too fast for her to read it all and I started losing her. She seemed indifferent about the cartoon. I think seeing her face or faces of peers/staff she has a relationship with seems to engage him a bit more. I do love use of the words. I think she would enjoy hearing your voice reading while she follows along."

From T**** mom's feedback, I went back into PowToon and edited the video to go slower. I also added in pictures of myself and pictures of T***. When I added audio, I found that only 1 audio track could be added to the PowToon presentation. I was NOT able to delineate which audio track played on which slide. I then opted to take out the audio. 

After creating my first presentation with PowToon, I made a post on the PowToon's Facebook page inquiring about a PowToon app.  I think using PowToon would be easier on an iPad or tablet.  I think it would be easier to manipulate the presentation with fingers, than with a mouse.  Below was their prompt response. I am eager to try out the PowToon app once it is available! Since I have "Liked" their page on Facebook, I predict they will post updates as the release date becomes closer.

PowToon

Just amazing! This site took me a little longer than many of the other Web 2.0 sites I've explored, however, the results are much more noticiable!  PowToon is a presentation site that has various themed and animated characters, props, backgrounds, text options, and transitions.  Users can drag, manipulate objects and text in the presentation to enhance the presentation.  The picture above shows the screen that the user uses to create the presentation. PowToon has different features available for various costs. See below for a price overview. The main difference in subscriptions, aside from the price, is the length of each PowToon presentation. They vary from 45 seconds, Free subscription to 25 minutes, teacher subscription.

PowToon Pricing
Name	Price
Educator Subscription	$27/year
Class Subscription	$47/year
Student Subscription	$17/year
FREE Subscription	FREE

From an education standpoint, PowToon is newer, available in August 2011, not commonly viewed, eye catching, and provides a different type presentation for viewers.  PowToon might be a great way for teachers who create presentations frequently, to share information to their students or staff.  Another use for PowToon is to create social stories for students with disabilities.  Here is a social story I created using PowToon, to help a student when they are sitting on the carpet.

Students could use PowToon to create their own stories and/or presentations.  Once the presentation is created, the user can share their presentation via social media sites.

PowToon frequently updates their site and creates newer and better types of technology for PowToon presentations. In the last few months, PowToon added voiceovers and uploaded photos to their presentation.  Users can check PowToon on Facebook, PowToon Blog, and PowToon on Twitter for more updates on PowToon!

ThingLink

ThingLink is another Web 2.0 tool that allows users to upload or use a provided list of photos, to the site.  Once on the site, the original user can "edit" the photo and add tags to it. The tags that you attach can be link to other websites and/or add comments.  You may attach numerous tags to the photo.  Once you create the photo, you have the option for the ThingLink photo to be unlisted or open for the public to tag and edit.

  

Tutorial Video

ThingLink Shared With My Class

I used ThingLink to share details about an event we had in school. I was able to tag the photo of the event, with a video, a link that corresponded to the topic of the photo, and a comment describing the photo.  Another idea that I have is to post a picture and encourage parents to tag the photo with their related comments, photos, videos, and/or website links.  For older students, teachers could post a picture of a topic they were going to study. Students could then tag the photo with information that they know about that topic. It would allow the teacher to evaluate what prior knowledge the class has on a topic.