In this presentation by Jackie Gerstein, many ideas were given on how to provide students with the tools to create projects.  She described projects that she had designed for students ages 8-12.  Her point was to use emerging technologies for engaging, thinking, learning, collaborating, creating, and innovating.  This is constructivism at its best!  The good think about what Jackie is doing is that she uses tools that are free, open-source tools for kids to use.

She made several comments about webquests and how she felt they were too teacher directed. I guess when I used them a couple years ago, there wasn’t as much out on the web that I knew of.  Jackie’s main point was athat we should only provide the links for kids to use.  They should have a choice of which ones interest them instead of requiring the use of certain sites.  Another point she made clear was that teachers should provide a format and the tools, and the students become tool reviewers.  The possibilities are endless

I wasn’t completely satisfied with the explanations, as I would like to have heard more about what they used and how the teacher created such a project.  I learned about many sites from the links that were provided.  One of my favorites is WeeWebWonder.  This is an interactive site that showcases creative uses of some of the major web tools such as Wordle, Dipity, and ImageChef.

More information was on the wiki.  I found that it gave much more of the rationale behind the project.  She also has created a list of sites she and the kids use often to enrich instruction.  This is a resource to keep handy.