Using a Wiki in the Classroom

1. Using a Wiki in the Classroom 4th and 5th Grades Lincoln Elementary August 5, 2009 By Marilyn Whatley

2. Our goals for today’s inservice:1. Create a wiki for a class website and learn how to make it functional.2. Learn how to facilitate students’ use of multimedia to make a presentation for science or social studies.

3. The name “wiki” comes from the Hawaiian word for fast, wiki. It got this name because it is a website that allows easy creating and editing of any number of pages.

4. In elementary classrooms there are basically two ways to use pages in a wiki. • To Store and Communicate Information • To allow students to respond to and edit each others’ work. http://wikiwhatley4th.wikispaces.com/Spelling http://wikiwonderful.wikispaces.com/Book+chat

5. Wiki page used to store spelling lesson Information.

6. Wiki page used for student response.

7. Let’s look at an example of an elementary wiki that uses different types of pages: http://wikiwonderful.wikispaces.com Marilyn: use notes here!

8. Wiki page for a calendar.

9. Students created their own rules for their class wiki.

10. A wiki page used as a photograph gallery.

11. Wiki page hosting a class “book chat”.

12. If two or more members are trying to edit the same page at the same time, one or more of their edits may be overwritten and may not appear on the page. (suggestion: a station might work better than in the lab)

13. Time to make your own wiki! • Go to http://wikispaces.com or just log out of the wiki we were on.

14. Click here

15. Protected is what most use. Private means grandparents and other educators can’t see it. If you have one with ads, do this!

16. When you get to your new wiki, you will be on your home page. You will already be logged in so you are ready to edit that page. You can read the intro or x out and follow the next directions. Click on “edit page” and type in an introduction. It doesn’t have to be perfect because you can always edit it later! Be sure to “save”.

17. Add a picture to your Home page! Click “edit page” again.

18. Click on the sun/mountain add images/ photo button.

19. Click on “upload files”, click “browse”, choose LES s drive, “Whatley” “inservice” and double click on your photo. Click “upload”.

20. When your photo appears, double click on it and it will be added to your page.

21. You will get an image property box that allows you to make changes to your photo. “SAVE”

22. Time to make a “new page”! Click on “new page” under the wiki logo on the top left. Name it: My Favorite Thing About Third (or Fourth) Grade Click “create”.

23. Tags are labels to help people find your pages. You don’t have to have them.

24. Your new page is ready to edit. Let’s add the prompt: Last year I was in (3rd/4th) grade. My favorite thing about (3rd/4th) grade was…

25. Use the toolbar to change fonts, size, color, etc. just like you would in a document. “save”

26. Time to add students as members! Click on “manage wiki”. Click on “user creator”

27. Manage wiki User Creator

29. hendrix2009,hendrix2009

31. Keep a list of the usernames and passwords.

32. Your students are now ready to sign in and be able to edit and respond to prompts and/or questions on the wiki pages you choose.

33. What about locking the pages you don’t want students to be able to change? Click on “manage wiki”, click on “pages”, click actions” of the page you wish to LOCK, and click “lock”. Do the same to “unlock”.

34. Do you want an easy way to share pages with co-workers? Make it easy on yourselves by dividing up the information you want on your wikis, then just copy and paste each other’s info to save time. Let’s try it!

35. Go back to wikiwhatleytoo. Click on: “Supply Lists for 4th and 5th Grades” in the menu

36. Highlight the list you want, right click your mouse, “copy”. You do not click edit to copy someone’s page!

37. Go to your wiki, click “new page”, type in title (Supply List), click “create”, right click on page, and “paste”. You have a completed page that easy!

38. Adding links to other sites: On your wiki, click on “new page” and label it (Math Websites), click “create” Type: http://www.nlvm.usu.edu “save”

39. More Math Links: http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/Mathmagician/mathsmulti.html great mult. fact practice (timed) http://www.mathsisfun.com/

40. If you typed the complete correct address, the link will automatically be created. Try the link or links by clicking on them.

41. Want to make your wiki sparkle and shine? Let’s add “Glitter Text”! Go to : http://www.primarygames.com

42. Click on “widgets”, “glitter factory”

43. Type “Supply List” in the “glitter text” box.

44. Copy the code

45. Return to your wiki • Go to the “Supply List” page • Click “edit” and click on the top of the page • Click on the “embed widget” (looks like a blue television) Go to the bottom to click on “Other HTML” Right click in the white box and select “Paste” Save- You now have “Glitter Text”!

46. Let’s personalize your wiki’s logo! Go to: http://www.school-clip-art.com/school_clipart.shtml Choose a picture, right click, “save picture as”.

47. Save to “my pictures”. Open your wiki, “manage wiki”, “look and feel”, scroll down to Logo, “browse”, double click on your picture, and “save”.

48. You can change the layout and color scheme of your wiki on this same “look and feel” page. Experiment with different ones!

49. Do you want cute, animatedcartoons on your wiki? • Go to http://freefever.com/animatedgifs/

50. Choose a category