Materials:

· Students will need computers with Internet access with current versions of browsers and must have Macromedia Flash Plug-in to do this program
· SMART Board or LCD projector and computer to use for demonstrations
· Color printer (optional)

Description:

Glogster originated as an online poster maker. Now students will be able to use it to create online reviews of books and films that utilize multimedia to review content. By utilizing a web-based application, students will be able to employ their creativity and reach a broad audience. Glogster can also be used as pre-writing information-gathering activity for writing essays. Beyond all this, it’s fun!

How It Works:

Students, after reading a book or viewing a film, will create an interactive poster, or  “Glog”, using prompts to fulfill relevant points and information.

Final Project/Product:

Students will have created an interactive poster that contains a review of a film or book which others can view and comment upon. The Glog can be embedded to a wiki, blog, or website. Students will make comments and give feedback on each other’s online work.
  
Overall Value:

Students will be able to apply a myriad of technology skills related to Internet usage by downloading and uploading various forms of media. Student work will have the potential to be seen by numerous viewers beyond the classroom which, when students become aware of this potential, increases the quality of their work. 

Tips for the Teacher:
 · As teacher-administrator you will be able to assign your students Glogster accounts and have all work on one homepage for you to check on.
· Students can continue working on a Glog till the desired final project is finished, and only then do they need to “publish.”
· Students can creating electronic “sticky notes” and the information gleaned for this project can then be used.
· When doing Google image searches, have students check the “show options” box and chose the "medium" or "icon" size so that there will be less resizing of images when uploaded to the Glog. Students can also search for specific types of images, such as sketches, or by color palette.
· Print out student Glogs upon their completion and create a bulletin board or booklet of these works.
· The final Glogs can be either embedded with their code (available from the thumbnail on the Glogster dashboard) or as a link on a wiki or blog where others can comment. Creating the external link is much easier.
· Use the educator version to avoid inappropriate content. There is a “flag” button for any questionable material on Glogster.edu.

1. Downloading and uploading various media from predesignated folders.

2. Accessing copyright-free materials for online usage.

3. Designing an interactive online poster.

4. Utilizing traditional prompts for reviews in a new and exciting format.

5. Embedding code from one website to another.

6. Evaluating and giving online feedback.

http://glogster.com

The Glogster site shows how students are using Glogs for personal expression. Some students may already be familiar with this.           

http://edu.glogster.com/

The educational version of Glogster. This is where you sign up for an account and will be given a number of student accounts to be under your control on your Glogster homepage as an educator.   

http://scribd.com/doc/14015153/Glogster-Instructions

Step-by-step instructions for setting up Glogs on the educator version.

http://boxoftricks.net/?p=936

Instructions for embedding a Glog in a blog, wiki, or website.               

http://creativecommons.org/

A resource for finding copyright-free multi-media.

http://smalltowncritic.com/2009/02/24/a-moviefilm-review-lesson-plan-for-teachers-by-coop/

Gives a Word download with step-by-step template for writing a movie review, with a list relevant terms.      

http://washpost.com/nielessonplans.nsf/0/b9151dfbe809cfd785256b0b00560201?OpenDocument&sol=0

Uses the Harry Potter book series as an example for writing a film review.   

http://readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/book-reviews-annotation-technology-137.html

This contains an NCTE lesson plan for writing book reviews.

http://teachersnetwork.org/readysettech/torres/torres.htm

This site contains pertinent links and a graphic organizer while offering a basic way of doing a book review.  

http://groovemaker.com/home/

This is a site for creating original music files.

http://epals.com/

This is a safe site for the creation of education-related blogs that Glogs can be embedded into. Using Internet safety controls, Glogs can be shared with students in a worldwide network. 

http://wikispaces.com/

This site houses wikis and can also be used to share student Glogs. 

Standard 1:

Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. They apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes; create original works as a means of personal or group expression; use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues; and identify trends and forecast possibilities.
Grade: High School
Subject: Technology
  
Standard 2:

Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. They interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media; and communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
Grade: High School
Subject: Technology

Standard 3:

Students will actively engage in the processes that constitute creation and performance in the arts.
Grade: High School
Subject: Art

Standard 4:

Students will be knowledgeable about and make use of the materials and resources available for participation in the arts in various roles.
Grade: High School
Subject: Art

Standard 5:

Students will read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding. As listeners and readers, they will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and use knowledge generated from oral, written, and electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language to acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information.
Grade: High School
Subject: ELA

Standard 6:

Students will read, write, listen, and speak for literary response and expression. They will read and listen to oral, written and electronically produced texts and performances; relate texts and performances to their own lives; and develop an understanding of the diverse social, historical, and cultural dimensions the texts and performances represent. As speakers and writers, students will use written language for self-expression and artistic creation.
Grade: High School
Subject: ELA

Standard 6:

Students will read, write, listen, and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.
As listeners and readers, they will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will present, in oral and written language and from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information, and issues. 
Grade: High School
Subject: ELA

Title: Getting Started with Glogster EDU

Project Objectives:

1.  To acquaint Students with Glogster EDU

2.  Creation of Glogster accounts.

Procedures:

1. Direct students to an overview of Glogster and, via class discussion, solicit what they think that Glogs are and what may be possible when creating one.

2. Students are assigned accounts. These accounts are given to you, the educator, when you sign up for Glogster EDU. Have students sign into these accounts and change their account names to first name and last name initial only.

3. Have students discuss which book or film they would like to review and why. They can write short persuasive essays about why they believe the book or film is worthy of a review.

Homework:

Read sample book/film reviews that have been supplied or from the newspaper or blog of your choice.

Title: Research

Project Objectives:

1. To research material needed for the creation of the interactive poster review.

2. To utilize the Internet for finding relevant, multi-media material apropos to the project.

3. To have students set up folders for the different type of media they find/create for their Glogs.

4. To download the media into the appropriate folders.

Materials: The same materials are used throughout this project.

Procedures:

1: Students should be given pre-set prompts/outline for structuring their Glog. I recommend:

· Title

· Author or director

· Characters (actors)

· Year of publication or release

· Country of origin

· Short synopsis

· Theme

· Character analysis

· Explanation of recommendation of book/film to others

This information should be saved in a Word document.

2. Students create folders for images, sound, video, and writing.

3. Students search for images that will enhance their Glog (use Creative Commons to find copyright-free images). They can also search the Glogster site for graphics that may fit into their theme. Download and save images to a designated folder. When doing a Google image search, make sure that students have utilized the “custom” tool to choose small to medium sizes to avoid resizing.

4. Repeat the above step, but look for a piece of music to be inserted into the Glog. Save it to a folder.

Assessment:

Do the students have designated folders for images, writing, sound, and video? Have they downloaded images that are appropriate for their Glog?

Title: Create a Glog

Project Objectives:

1. To upload previously searched material.

2.  To create an attractive Glog that is readable and appropriate to the content of a book/film.

3. Use aesthetic consideration to choose proper fonts, colors, background, texture, music, and graphic elements for the content of the book/film.

Materials: The same materials are used throughout this project. 

Procedures:

Begin by reminding students that they will be making aesthetic decisions and in order to create unity within their design, they may want to keep a limited color palette such as warm or cool. Similarly, they should employ limited fonts. Their work will constantly need to be checked for readability, making sure there is enough contrast between type color and background color, and that the font styles and sizes are appropriate. You can also tell students that they must have a certain number of different types of media. This can be checked for in the assessment/evaluation.

1. Students log on to their Glogster accounts.

2. Although there can be numerous ways of starting a Glog, I prefer that they “trash” all preexisting items from the template.

3. Choose a background to complement the book/film content.

4. Add the elements they want to have in their Glog.

5. Upload material from the previous day’s folders as needed, and copy and paste bits of text to go into the appropriate spaces.

6. Drag and move the design units around so that it is visually pleasing and readable to the viewer, avoiding too much blank space (unless used for a valid dramatic reason) or too much imagery on one part of the page.

7. Make the title of the book/film stand out from the other part of the image and remember to constantly and finally SAVE!

Homework:

Students can continue to work on Glog at home.

Title: Reviewing Glogs and Giving Feedback

Objectives:

1. Embedding a Glog into a wiki/blog or making comments on Glogster.

2. Giving construction criticism to one another.

Materials: The same materials are used throughout this project.

Procedures:

1. Having created their Glogs, students will see certain prompts on their Glogster page next to the thumbnail of their Glog at the bottom of the page.

2. You will now see a prompt to “Embed & Link to this page”. At this point you can either click "copy a link to the Glog" or you can copy the code of the Glog and embed it into a previously existing wiki or blog. If you choose to copy the code and embed it in a wiki, such as wikispaces, follow the instructions to change the dimensions of the Glog so that it fits well onto a wiki or blog space: http://boxoftricks.net/?p=936

3. After the Glogs are posted, students (and others) will be able to give feedback on a wiki or blog discussion area by using the following suggested guidelines for peer assessment.

Assessment:

· What is the first thing you notice when you open the Glog?

· Which elements are effective? Which elements might make it difficult to see the   content?

· If there is music, is it appropriate to the mood or is it distracting?

· Does the Glog convey a certain mood? Does this mood match the theme of the book/film?

· Is this Glog attractive and appealing to the viewer? Why or why not?

· Does this Glog make you want to read the book/see the film? Why or why not?