Pre-Writing+Tools



[|Tagxedo] - Cool tool like wordle but you can choose what image / shape you want to use ... (some examples on my class wikis @ www.weareroom1.wikispaces.com

Wordle - is an online app for generating "word clouds" from any text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text (in other words, they make them bigger). The resulting images can be tweaked with varying colors, fonts, and layouts, and then used as you like.

Possible uses
 * creating title slides and program covers
 * brainstorming ideas
 * designing poems

media type="custom" key="6957141" width="210" height="210" media type="custom" key="6957177" width="210" height="210" To save, you must print as a PDF, or easier, click on Ctrl and PrtScrn. This saves the whole screen as a screen shot which can be pasted and cropped to be used elsewhere. (Click Ctrl, then Prt Scrn. Nothing will appear to have happened, but when you right click in a Word doc or Power Point slide, you'll be able to paste the entire screen shot there. Then use the Crop feature from your Picture tools to trim to size). Trying to find your wordle in the gallery quickly becomes a long exercise as people all around the world make new wordles and your wordle gets further and further back in the gallery.
 * summarizing thoughts
 * turning random ideas into art
 * students to insert a chunk of their own writing. The resulting word cloud will reveal overused words in a stark, visual way

Here is a link for more ideas on using wordle in the classroom []

Other websites - The Brainstormer is a fun, interactive spinner that provides a random combination of conflicts, characters, and settings. More suitable to senior classes.

Bubbl.us is an online mind mapping tool that allows students to either brainstorm or organize thoughts.

Writing Fun is an online tool for teachers and students. It is an interactive writing site that included downloads for off-line use. Writing Fun explains the types of texts commonly written in schools and gives examples showing text structures, grammatical features and ideas for publishing. Writing genres include: reports, explanations, procedures, narratives, recounts, poetry and letters.

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