My Favorite Web2.0 Tools

Web 2.0 consists of various web-based tools for creating just about anything you can think of. These are tools that I have typically thought of as software systems that I would need to purchase in order to make use of. It's pretty exciting to have all of these things right there on the internet and ready to go. I have to admit that it's both frightening and provocative to think about using some of these applications in my future classes. It's difficult to get outside of the box as far as what my school experience was like. And, I admit, there is still an old-fashioned side of me that thinks, "I want my students to read literature from a book, not a screen... and I want my students to experience theatre in the flesh, not in some virtual reality." But, without a doubt, I will have to adjust in order to engage.

Some of the Web2.0 that are most impressive to me are:

Google Sites (for creating web pages) - this is exciting because you could have different websites for different classes... You could post assignments, videos for discussion, provide links to students, parents, and teachers... I am quite certain that I will have web sites for my classes... it's too easy and so much fun!

Google Chrome (like you said, not really a 2.0 tool, but still very cool)

FlipMyPhotos (a tool for photo editing & enhancement) - I keep thinking of different ways that this could be used. One specific thought that I had was in a middle school theatre class: students could take photos of one another's faces as they attempted to express specific emotions. We could then use the tools in this program to enhance the effects. Photos could then be put on a disc, blown up at a photo printing place, and used as a backdrop for student scenes.