Wednesday, 6 November 2013

15 Sites and Apps for Augmented Reality

"Augmented reality (AR) is a live, direct or indirect, view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented (or supplemented) by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. (Wikipedia)"  AR has been around for awhile but is really starting to garner interest in the educational community/sector.  Using augmented reality is a great way to incorporate 21st century technology into the classroom using different types of apps, sites, and equipment.

15 Sites/Apps for Augmented Reality

  1. AR Dinopark - A fantastic iOS app for bringing augmented reality dinosaurs to life.
  2. AR Flashcards - One of the most popular sites/apps for using augmented reality.  An educator can choose from a wide selections of flashcards to print out w/ AR images built in to view on a mobile device.
  3. ARSights - A fantastic site that incorporates AR w/ Google Earth and allows users to view landmarks in augmented reality.
  4. Augment - A free iOS app for viewing 3D AR models.
  5. Augmented Reality Brings New Reality to Learning - a fantastic article from Edutopia on how to integrated AR into the classroom.
  6. Aurasma - Probably the most popular site/app for viewing augmented reality images.
  7. colAR Mix - A great free iOS app that turns a AR enabled coloring book into a 3D augmented reality experience.
  8. Daqri - A free iOS app that enables user to view 4D augmented reality enabled images.
  9. Fetch! Lunch Rush - A free iOS app that is a fun multi-player game where players try to keep up w/ the sushi orders.
  10. Junaio - A augmented reality browser that lets users view AR enabled images.
  11. Our Discovery Island: Phonic Tricksters - A fun free iOS app that uses augmented reality to learn phonics by capturing Tricksters.
  12. PopAR Viewer - A great free iOS app that allows users to view augmented reality objects as well as create books, cards, puzzles, and more.
  13. Science AR - A fantastic iOS App for viewing educational AR enabled posters.
  14. Wikitude - A very popular AR browser to view augmented reality objects.
  15. Zoo-AR - A fun iOS app for viewing animals and insects in augmented reality.
Bonus - Drew Minock & Brad Waid are the famous educators of Two Guys and Some iPads and are leading the way into integrating augmented reality into the classrooms.

For my Pinterest board on Augmented Reality click here.

Google Connected Classrooms

Google Connected Classrooms is a new learning adventure by Google that allows educators to take students on "virtual field trips" using Google Hangouts inside of Google+.  These field trips can take students to museums, zoos, memorials and more.  Also, there is a nice calendar that shows which field trips are coming up, and all field trips are archived for viewing at any time.

Thanks to David Andrade's great blog for the tip!!!

I highly recommend checking out Google Connected Classrooms by clicking here!!!

Below is a brief demo...



Tuesday, 5 November 2013

QuickCast

QuickCast is a nice free screen casting app for Mac (10.7) that I just found out about from Free Technology 4 Teachers.  It allows users to record up to 3 min and then share via unique URL or embed into a site/blog.














I highly recommend checking out QuickCast by clicking here!!

Voki Classroom

Voki Classroom is a new educational portal from the very popular avatar creation tool, Voki.  This is a wonderful safe way for educators to create a class w/ student accounts (no student email necessary) and then assign Voki based assignments.  Once a student completes an assignment a teacher can then preview/moderate which assignments can be displayed online or set them to private (ideal for COPPA).  Finally, there is a wide selection of lesson plans for educators to look through on the Voki Classroom portal.

I highly recommend checking out Voki Classroom by clicking here!!!

Monday, 4 November 2013

Shadow Puppet

Shadow Puppet is an excellent free iOS app for digital storytelling that I've known about for sometime but was kindly reminded via a promotional email.  This is fantastically simple app for students to use to create digital stories by adding their photos and then recording their voice over for narration.  Best of all, a finished story can then be embedded into a site or blog.

Click here for an example of a digital story created by Shadow Puppet.

I highly recommend checking out Shadow Puppet by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Digital Storytelling Sites/Apps click here.
For my Edshelf collection on Digital Storytelling Sites/Apps click here.


Sunday, 3 November 2013

The Time Tribe

The Time Tribe is a new (beta) site that I just found out about from Graphite that is ideal for Gamfification.  This is a free site geared for students 5th on up for learning about History and different cultures/artifacts.

Here are some more benefits to using Time Tribe in the classroom...

  • Immerse them in culture and past ways of life
  • Help them imagine what it was really like to live in the past, while exposing them to new ideas and ways of life
  • Prod them to consider complex issues from multiple viewpoints
  • Foster empathy and responsible global citizenship
  • Empower them to crave a personal path through an epic story

Below is a brief demo...


I highly recommend checking out The Time Tribe by clicking here!!!

Friday, 1 November 2013

Blendspace

Blendspace is a site I just found out about from Edshelf that reminds me a bit of MentorMob.  This is a site that allows educators to create interactive lesson plans by adding digital content such as videos in one location.  Also, a teacher can use Blendspace to assess and monitor students in real-time as well as give them online quizzes.

I highly recommend checking out Blendspace by clicking here!!!

Below is a brief demo....