Over the past month, our school librarian has been showing teachers how they can enhance learning and collaboration using technological tools.  She is working towards a transformation of the library into a learning commons.  Being a part of the iPad research team at school, I have had the opportunity to learn from my mistakes.  I have been meeting with several teachers in the school who are excited and motivated about integrating the learning commons’ technology but are weary of some of its « unknown » results.

I found that the toughest part of using the iPads in the classroom was being able to access the projects in order to mark them and give descriptive feedback. This is what I sent to my colleagues in order to share my own learning experiences so that they, and you, don’t have to make the same mistakes.

So when using the iPads, in order to collect student work from Book Creator you should to do the following :

1)   Create a class gmail account (for example neroimmersion@ gmail.com)

Students need to know this account name and the password.  I always write it on my board so that students have something to refer to when necessary.

2)   Create a Dropbox account with that particular gmail

When students are using the iPads and need to send their work to their teacher :

1)   Log into the Dropbox app

2)   If it is already open, click on Settings and check to see which email account has been linked to the iPad (They can change this by clicking the red button « Unlink this iPad from Dropbox)

When the students are finished their projects in Book Creator :

1)   Change the title and the author

2)   Click on the arrow and then click on « Open in Dropbox »

3)   Click Save

4)   Click on settings and check that it is going to the right email, and then click on « Unlink iPad from Dropbox »

When the students are finished creating projects in Puppet Pals :

1)   They need to click on each scene and export each file to the « Camera Roll »

2)   Once the file has been exported to the iPad’s camera roll.  They have to create an iMovie file by dragging all of the scenes that in their Camera Roll onto the iMovie timeline.

How to get projects off of iMovie :

1)   There are two ways to export a project from iMovie :

1. You send the completed file to Camera Roll and then hook the iPad up to your computer and export it onto your computer
2. Send it to the class Youtube that is linked to your class gmail account.  Ensure that the privacy settings have been changed to « Private » once the project is online.  (I have found this to be the quickest way)

Making teacher markings easier for you :

1)   Log onto your Dropbox on your iPad

2)   Click on the file you want to open

3)   Click on the down-facing arrow to upload the file to your iPad.  It may say : « Unable to view file » . Click the down-facing arrow (in half a box) and click « Open in iBooks ».  Your file is now uploaded to iBooks you would delete it from iBooks to remove it from your iPad.

These step by step procedures do not solve all of the problems you will encounter using iPads in the classroom.  However, sharing this information can make a difference.  I am proud to say that I am learning, that I make mistakes and that I try to learn from my mistakes.