This afternoon in the AT&T Classroom the Fishcreek third graders were introduced to two new tools. Book Creator is a tool that students can use to create their own interactive ebooks. Students can add text choosing from over 50 fonts within the tool. Students can draw images using the pen tool or photos and images can be added from the tablet’s photo library, from the web or captured and inserted using the tablet’s camera. Books can also include video, music, and recorded narration. Finished books can be shared via email or uploaded for cloud storage via Google Drive, Dropbox or iCloud. Book Creator is accessible through the Chrome browser and is also available as an iOS or Android app.
Later this afternoon, the third graders learned to design and build apps using Bitsbox, an online application that displays a virtual tablet on which the student is able to access programming lessons to build simple apps and games in JavaScript. Once the student has created a game, they are able to use a mobile device such as an iOS or Android tablet or smartphone to scan the QR code associated with their Bitsbox project. They are then able to access their game on that mobile device through the QR code. The challenges that the students used in the AT&T Classroom are available on the Bitsbox website at no cost. Bitsbox also offers subscription plans that include monthly mailings containing new programming tutorials, challenges and projects.
