Purpose (What is Glogster?): Glogster, started in 2007, is a free educational and creative expression platform that allows its users to create web-based interactive posters with multimedia such as text, images, videos, sounds, and data attachments as well as a social network. Glogs can be created and made private, meaning they are only visible to the creator and can only be viewed by others if the creator shares the URL address, or glogs can be created and shared within this network, making Glogster a great forum for communication as well as a rich resource to draw from. There is even a version called Glogster Edu, which is a controlled, secure forum specifically geared toward teacher and student use. Glogster EDU allows teachers to set up and manage individual student accounts. This version is recommended for use in educational settings. Glogster users can develop a social network by sending friend requests, becoming fans, and messaging other Glogster users. Users can explore top glogs and top users and can save their favorite blogs for easy future access. Users earn reward points, called "G Points" depending on their level of activity and involvement within the Glogster community. The Glogster team even chooses their favorite glogs and honors them with the "Movers and Shakers" title, indicating that it is a top glog. Glogster includes a live news feed, called Pulse, featuring what is currently happening on Glogster, and users can star favorite posts to remember/return to.
ISTE Teacher Standards Addressed: Standard 2- Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences & Assessments: Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS-S. 2a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.
ISTE Student Standards Addressed: Standard 1- Creativity & Innovation: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products 1b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression
Instructions for Creating a Glog (How do I use Glogster?): Glogster is very easy to learn and navigate, making it appropriate for both educators and their students to use. A simple glog can be created within a single lesson/class period, provided users have the general purpose of their glog in mind as well as some ideas to be included. Click on the links below to view tutorial videos that offer detailed, step-by-step directions for getting started and creating a glog:
Suggestions/Ideas for Teaching (What can I use it for?): Glogters is so versatile that it can be used for a wide variety of purposes in the classroom! Teachers can use Glogster as a teaching tool resource to find already-created glogs with content-related material to present to their students. Teachers can also create their own glogs to go along with specific units or objectives. These glogs can be used as a way to introduce a new unit/concept and can be revisited at the end of the unit/lesson as review, or can be used to teach content to students within a unit/lesson. Once the teacher has introduced Glogster to students and has given them a basic lesson in how to begin/create their own glog, (see above for support with this), students can demonstrate their learning and express their ideas/creativity in countless ways. Here are some ideas for use in the classroom:
-Create a glog to introduce teacher to students and/or students to each other in the beginning of the school year. -Create a glog to demonstrate learning as a summative assessment upon finishing a unit of study (This would work particularly well with a science or social studies unit.) -Create a glog as a book recommendation to share with peers & motivate them to read the same book(s). (Glog can relate to a single book or series, can represent an entire genre study (such as fantasy or biography), or can even represent a favorite author.) -Create a glog to teach about the life of someone famous, whether it be a character from a book, a well-known historical figure, current celebrity/artist/performer/etc., or even a local hero. -Create a glog to teach about a special place. -Create a glog that showcases current events or important issues and use it to spark a class discussion or debate. -Create a glog as a public service announcement to share with the class/school (Possible topics could include character education, anti-bullying, cultural awareness, combatting health issues, motivating kids to get involved and help the community in some way...etc.) -Create a glog news bulletin with school/classroom news and upcoming events. -Create a glog as an independent study project/challenge extension on a topic of student's choice. This could begin with a "burning question" or area of interest that a student wishes to explore in depth. Sharing the final product with the class would provide great enrichment. -Create a glog collection advertising other favorite Web 2..0 tools and websites that promote learning to share with peers, provide links to these resources -Create a glog to represent learning/experiences after a class field trip OR have students do research and create a glog to take the class on a virtual field trip! -Create a glog about a science experiment done in class or at home & new learning acquired from it. -Create a glog illustrating a math concept or breaking down how to solve a math problem. -Create a glog to represent students' favorite/most memorable parts of the year as an end of year reflection activity.