Canva tool: the best way to do infographies!

 Hi everyone!

Today, I bring you another tool to make your class visual! It is something really cool called Educational infographics. There are too many tools to do them, such as:

-Easel.ly
-Piktochart
-Canva
-Smore
-Mural.ly.
-Padlet

The one that I have used is Canva. There are two options: the free way and the premium. I have tried the free option and you don't miss almost any extra choice. Using this option, you can access to multiple templates, images and types of letters. In addition, you can upload your own images if you want. However, you can´t use bold or italics letters unless you choose that pre-established option from the beginning. It is not a big mess but it is quite uncomfortable.

How can we start using it? It is so simple! We have to sign it up and start creating it, just using the templates and the backgrounds that the program offers to us and let your creativity and imagination do the rest!

This new tool helps us to make our class more visual. It is an scheme of the whole unit and in only two pages! They have the important information and the images all together to take a look whenever they need.

I show you an example that I did to my first graders in Natural Science when we studied the types of animals.

Types of animals de Cristina cano-magdaleno

All the images are taken from Canva, so, it is not necessary to cite or attribute sources.

I hope you like it!! Share your opinions with me in the comments!
See you in the next post!!

VISUALIZING OUR IDEAS: MIND MAP

Hi everyone!

I would like to show you a great way of visualizing our ideas and projects. It is essential to make our lessons visual and...how can we do that? Using mindmaps, of course!

There are too many tools to create them, such as:

-Coogle
-Mindmeister
-Mind42
-SpiderScribe
-Bubbl.us
-Creately

I have created my own mindmap with Mindmeister. It is so easy to use and also, it guides you when you sign it up, so, it makes you easier to learn how to do it.
 However, I think it is quite simple. I mean, you can't choose the type of letter of the structure of the bubbles and you can't personalize it as you want and that is something I don't like. Indeed, I would like to have the option of creating the structure as I like, not as the app does. On the other hand, fortunately, it allows you to change the direction of the branches and bubbles just dragging with the mouse and also adding new ideas just pressing tab key.

I share with you my example of mindmap. It has been done to explain the project that my course is going to follow the third term.

This project is about going to a trip to "Parque Europa" in Torrejón de Ardoz. We will go with the other two classes and each one will prepare information about a monument. In our case, we will look information about the Eiffel Tower. We will look for the country, the flag, important facts about the country and the monuments and French culture. Then, they will practice the presentation in the classroom and then, the trip day they will present their work.

A trip to Europe by Cristina Cano-Magdaleno

You can also see it here: https://www.mindmeister.com/1063180056/a-trip-to-europe

I hope you like my new post and don't forget to tell me your opinions srolling down the screen!!
See you!!

CREATING A COMIC

Hí everyone!!

I come back to tell you about a great idea to teach CLIL to our students. This idea is making a comic to integrate all the content!!
You can use different tools and apps. In my case, I have done it with Pixton.
It is great and really easy to use! Read more and you will learn how to use it!

STEPS TO USE PIXTON

The first thing you must do is to create an account or log in with your facebook or google account.
Then, you can start creating your comic! It is that easy!
You can choose whether you want the classic structure of a comic or an advanced option. Then, you can choose the background, the characters and their dialogues. Then, you can change the position of our characters, their arms, head or the whole body. Indeed, you can add other objects and you can put your voice to the characters.

All of these options are free! Isn't it great?

I have to recognize that it is not the first time I have used this tool. I have used with my students so many times in different ways. Sometimes, I have done the comic and they have read it, answered some questions and put their voice to the characters using the tablet. Other times, they have created their own comic, using their ideas and creativity.

An issue to take into account as well is the incredibly safety of this tool to use at classroom. Students can use it with no danger to find something innapropiate for their age. It is totally recommendable. In addition, you can use it in a computer or in a tablet or mobile phone using their app. However, I would change only one thing to improve it. The app would let us paste the text from outside webpages. You must write whatever you need leaving you no option to copy and paste the text. However, when the students make their own comic, this is a benefit instead of the opposite.

Anyway, I show you the comic that I have done. It is for my third graders who don't have the confidence to ask their doubts aloud. If they don't understand anything that has been already explained in class, they don't have the courage to ask about it, they just go home without understanding it. So, this comic is great to help them to get over it.




You can also see it here: https://Pixton.com/es/:mm3f9xid
I hope you like it!!
I'd be delighted if you share your opinions about it with me in my post!
See you in the next post!
Cristina XX

SLIDESHOW TOOL: GENIAL.LY

Hi everyone!
How are you?
Today I want to share with you the most useful tool I've worked with to support my lessons with slideshows. Its name is Genial.ly. You can use it in a free or in a premium way.

Fortunately, the free option provides you all the facilities you need.

How do we start? 

The first step you have to follow is to create an account. It is very easy and you can enter with your facebook or google ones, so it's super quick!

What do I do then?

It has many templates you can use depending on the type of slideshow you want to do. Once you have chosen one, you can start adding images, videos, links, gifs or any information that you want.
However, the only thing you can't do is downloading your slideshow but, you can copy the url and visualize it whenever and wherever you want.

I really enjoyed the experience of doing my slideshow with this program. It looks like it is reading your mind. You think.. I wish I could have an option to do that... and suddenly you discover that option. It is equipped with everything you need!

I let you the url of my slideshow in order you can see an example of how it can be done. It is an example for my second graders:

I also share with you an example of how you can use this presentation in classroom.

You can share your opinions with me about this tool commenting in the post.

I hope you like it as much as I do. See you!!