Google Searches and Final Project: Instagam

Here we are at the end of week seven in the Connected Educator.  This week I focused on my final project, which I had been rollhttps://spark.adobe.com/sp/design/video/bca20e7a-1e7c-4091-83c2-8710cdaf38feing around in my head for a few weeks.  Our final project had to use one of our favorite tools that we had learned in the Connected Educator (for me Adobe Spark), the product should guide ( I elected to guide my students), and as always for me, I wanted the finished product to be something that I could walk into the Fall of 2019 and really utilize with my students!  I am so pleased to say that I think the final came together really nice and I definitely will utilize this video in the first week of school to introduce a way I am going to try out to get students to draw more in their out-of-class time.

Using Adobe Spark I created the following video to help entice my students to join me on an "Instagram Drawing Challange" that will hopefully show them that I try to draw every day and would love it if they joined in too.  Check it out below...



I was especially proud of the time-lapse hand-drawn into ( it was really easy to do using the time-lapse option on my iPhone) and the screen recorded "walk-through" that shows how to add the tags and turn off comments in Instagram.  New iPhones have the option to "record your screen" like a movie, that made adding those instructions really easy.  Check out this quick 1-minute video to learn how to record your screen in iSO 11...

 I did have to put the video's from my phone into my laptop and turn them using iMovie, but that was really all the editing that was necessary before I added them to Spark.  I love how simple Spark is to use and that it prompts you to edit your thoughts down to a bare minimum to get your point across.  This is such an efficient way to "hook" students at the introduction of a project!  I am so excited to see what kind of response I get in the way of participation after creating this video to get kids interested in drawing outside of class.  I think if they know they are working for an "audience" many will be more likely to participate.  I also think Instagram is the perfect platform for this as it is so visual and I love that comments can be turned off so that the focus stays on the visual impact.

The other focus for me this week that really left an impression was all the Google Search tricks that can be utilized to make your Google searches more efficient.  I had no idea Google had a timer...

Or the ability to check websites before you visit them to be sure that they are safe... check it out HERE.

Or that if your type "do a barrel roll" into a google search you will get this...

How fun is that!?

Well, that's it for not only this week but this course!  Thanks for taking this journey with me in the Connected Educator, I have learned so many awesome technology tools for my art classroom.

Mrs. J