Thing 12: Glogster = intriguing

When I looked at the Glogster site, the first thing I thought of was the eighth grade memory books. At the end of each school year, eighth graders each put together a unique page that will serve as a souvenir for her classmates as they graduate. Most students have used Word or PowerPoint in the last couple of years. The pages are bound together in a book and each student receives a copy. Glogster seems to provide an excellent way to update the memory books, and I think students would have more fun composing various elements of their page...perhaps even including music or a podcast. However, I don't think Glogster includes a "print this page" component. So, would students not be able to have an actual book at the end of the year? I think they would still want an actual book...

Well, there are many other ways to use Glogster in the classroom. My seventh graders recently used Publisher to create a newspaper page about "Romeo and Juliet," but Glogster might be a great way for them to be more creative and original in what they could include in their newspaper. I'll have to explore some more. Another great way to use this applicaiton might be for summer reading projects. Instead of creating real posters, students could create a Glog to present at the beginning of the school year. The social aspect of this site is that the teacher can create a site, I think, on which all students would post their Glogs. That way, students can easily see what others have created/published. And, as a teacher, I would have an excellent product when everyone is finished...without having to figure out what to do with 35 posterboards left in my classroom.