Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

Created by: Kitt Starnes

North Carolina State University

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Table of Contents
Reading Tools
~A
ctively Learn
~
NewsELA

Writing Tools
~
Book Creator
~
Comic Life

Vocabulary Tools
~
MindSnacks
~
Vocabador

Note-taking Tools
~
Hypothes.is
~
SideNotes

Social Studies Tools

~
The National Archives Website
~
PBS Learning Media

Science Tools

~
Coggle
~
Smithsonian Science Center

Math Tools
~
LearnZillion
~
Desmos

Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

Reading

1. ActivelyLearn
a. Description:
ActivelyLearnisawebbasedtoolthatisendorsedbyboththeBill
andMelindaGatesFoundationaswellastheNationalScienceFoundation.It
enhancesstudentreadingbyallowingteacherstoaddcomments,questionsand
textintovariousonlinetextsaswellastextsthatcanbeuploadedbyteachers.
LikeEdmodoandGoogleClassroom,teacherscreateclassesoncetheysignup.
Theythenchoosetexttoassigntostudents.Inadditiontoonlineanduploaded
texts,booksarealsoavailableforrentalorpurchase.Teacherscansearchthe
ActivelyLearndatabasebygradelevel,authornameandkeyword.Inaddition,
theycanfilterbylexilelevels.

Afterthetexthasbeenchosen,teacherscancreateassignmentsusingexisting
questionsorcreatingtheirown.Materialcanbechunkedsothatstudentscannot
moveforwardwithoutansweringquestions.Questionscanalsobedirectly
correlatedtoCommonCorestandards.Onceassignmentsarecreatedand
distributed,ActivelyLearnwilltrackdataincludingvocabularywordsresearched
andassignmentprogress.Teacherscanevengradeassignmentswithoutseeing
thestudentsnamestoavoidgradebias!

b. Application:
FindtextsonActivelyLearnthatalignwithyourcurriculumand
assigntostudentstoreadandanswerquestions.Click
here
tolearnmoreonhow
ActivelyLearnworksaswellashowtoincorporateitintoyourclassroom!

c. Process
:
ClickheretoviewaguidetoActivelyLearn!

2. NewsELA
a. Description
:NewsELAisawebbasedtoolthatoffersdailynewsarticlesthatare
tailoredtothereadinglevelsandlexilesscoresofstudentsaswellasCommon
Corestandards.Onceyouhavecreatedanaccount,youcancreateclasseslike
youwouldinEdmodoorGoogleClassroom.Afterclasseshavebeencreated,
youcanassignarticlestoyourstudentsaswellaswritingassignmentsand
readingcomprehensionquizzesthataccompanythearticles.Becausethissite
drawscurrentnewsarticles,thereissomethingforteachersofallsubjects,evenin
Spanish!

b. Application
:Assignyourstudentsarticlestopreparethemforadebateon
immigration.Assignyourstudentsarticlestotrackthepathandpatternsof
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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

storms.Assignyourstudentsarticleswithwritingassignmentscomparingcurrent
eventstomajoreventsinhistory.Click
here
togetmoreideasonhowtouse
NewsELAinyourclassroom!

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewaquickguideonhowtogetstartedonNewsELA!

Writing

1.
BookCreator
a. Description
:BookCreatorisanapp(foriPads,AndroidandWindows)that
allowsstudentstousetext,photos,videoandaudionarrationtocreatebooksthat
canbesharedonlinewithclassmatesandthecommunity.Thepictures,videoand
audiocanbeuploadedfromthedevice,theinternetortakenfromalibrarywithin
theapp.Studentscanevencollaborateacrossmultipledevicesononebook!

b. Application:
Havestudentswriteandcreateanautobiography,mathproblem
(wheretheyexplainandsolve),astoryaboutahistoricalfigureorevenastory
aboutanelementfromtheperiodictable!Viewthis
Pinterestlink
formoreideas!

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewaBookCreatortutorial!

2. ComicLife
a. Description:
ComicLifeisaccessibleondesktops,bothMacandPC,aswellas
iPadsandiPhones.ThedownloadforiOSismuchcheaperat$4.99.ComicLife
isacollaborativedigitalgraphicwritingapplicationthatallowsstudentstouse
sequentialillustrationsandtexttotellastoryormakesenseofaconceptthathas
beendifficulttounderstand.Studentscancreatetheirownindividualcomic,or
theycancollaborateinsmallgroupsorevenworkasawholeclass!

b. Application:
StudentscoulduseComicLifetoretellastorytheyjustread,to
describethewatercycle,todescribethestepsofamathproblemwithpicturesor
evenhavethemcreateacomicstripbasedoffof
TheOdyssey
!Click
here
to
ideasonhowtouseComicLifeinyourclassroom!

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewaComicLifetutorial!

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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

Vocabulary

1.
MindSnacks
a. Description:
MindSnacksisafreeappthathelpsstudentspracticeandlearnseven
differentlanguagesaswellasSATvocabulary.Itincludesninedifferent
minigamesfortheSATvocabularywithmorethan500wordstopracticeand
master.Italsoincludessynonymsandantonyms,sentencesforcontext,audio
clipstohelpwithmemorizationandanalgorithmthatrepeatswordsthatarethe
mostdifficultforthatstudent.

b. Application:
Dividethecohortintoteams.Createachallengewheretheteams
playagainsteachotherforpointsandprizes.Keeptrackofthepointsinthe
hallway.

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewaMindSnackstutorial!

2. Vocabador
a. Description:
Vocabadorisaninexpensiveappthatallowsstudentstobuildtheir
SATvocabularybystudyingmorethan400wordsusingdigitalflashcards.The
apphasthreedifferentlevelsofvocabularyaswellasavocabularychallenge
wherestudentsarequizzedbylevelofdifficultyinagameformat.Thevirtual
flashcardsincludedefinitions,partsofspeech,synonymsandantonyms,audio
pronunciationandevensentencesthatputthewordsincontext.

b. Application:
Startachallengeinyourclassroomwhereyoukeeptrackofwords
eachstudenthasconquered!

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewtheVocabadortutorial!

Note-Taking

1. Hypothes.is
a. Description:
Hypothes.isisanotetakingandannotatingwebsitethatcanbe
openedfromyourbrowserandaddedasaGoogleChromeextenstion.Students
canannotatewebpagesaswellasuploadedtext.Studentscanannotate
individually,insmallgroupsorasawholeclass.Teacherscanaddquestionsto
thetextbeforestudentsreadsothattheyanswerquestionsastheydo.Teachers
canalsogivespecificinstructionsastohowstudentsshouldannotateasthey
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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

readperhapsdefiningcertainwords,lookingforcertainprefixesandsuffixes,
andwritingtheiropinionaboutwhattheyhaveread.

b.
Application:
Createagroupforyourentireclasstoannotateadocumentwhere
theyaskandanswereachothersquestionsaboutthattext.Createsmallgroups
forstudentstoworktogetherinliteracycirclestoannotatedocument,each
assignedadifferenttask.Click
here
toviewmoreexamplesofHypothes.isinthe
classroom!

c. Process
:
ClickheretoviewtheHypothes.isguideandtutorials!

2. Sidenotes
a. Description:
LikeHypothes.is,SidenotesisalsoaGoogleChromeextension.
OnceSidenotesisinstalled,youcanautomaticallystarttypinginthesidenote.As
longasyouareloggedintoDropbox,thenoteisautomaticallysavedaslongas
thedotisgreen!ItisamuchsimpleextensionthanHypothes.isallowingstudents
tojotdownthoughtsandquestionsregardingthetextonthescreen.

b. Application:
Assignstudentsawebpageoronlinedocumenttoread,takenotes
onandstudy.HavethemtakenotesinSidenoteswhichsavesittotheirDropbox.
ThentheycansharefromtheirDropboxdirectlywiththeteacher!

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewtheSidenotestutorial!

Social Studies Literacy

1.

TheNationalArchivesWebsite

a. Description:
TheNationalArchiveswebsitehasanabundanceofresourcesfor
SocialStudiesandHistoryteachersofalllevels.DocsTeachontheNational
Archiveswebsiteincludeshundredsofactivitiesalreadymadebyeducatorsas
wellasthousandsofprimarydocumentstousetocreateyourownworksheetsand
onlineactivities.ThesiteincludesprimarydocumentsfromallerasofAmerican
history.TheDocsTeachincludesactivitiesthatemphasizechronological
thinking,historicalcomprehension,historicalanalysisandinterpretation,
historicalresearchcapabilities,andhistoricaldecisionmaking.Studentscan
createtimelines,conceptmaps,historicalmaps,andevenscaleswheretheyweigh
theevidence!

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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

b. Application:
Havestudentsanalyzedocumentsthatpertaintothewomens
suffrageafterthepassageofthe15thamendmentandcreateatimelinethatledto
thepassageofthe19thamendment.Havestudentsanalyzedocumentsthat
pertaintoimmigrationintheUnitedStatesandhavethemplacethedocuments
intothescaletodeterminewhetherimmigrationhasbeenwelcomedorfeared
overthecourseofhistory.

c. Process:
ClickonTeacherResourcesonceyoureachtheNationalArchives
website.ThenclickonDocsTeachandclickcreateregisterinthetopright
corner.Onceyouareregistered,explorethesite!
Clickheretoviewtutorialson
howtouseDocsTeachontheNationalArchiveswebsite!

2. PBSLearningMedia
a. Description:
WhileIhavePBSLearningMedialistedhereunderSocialStudies
literacy,itisactuallydesignedtobeusedforallgradesandsubjectsincludingthe
Arts,English/LanguageArts,HealthandPE,Math,Science,andWorld
Languages.Itallowsyoutosearchbygradelevelandsubjectorbystandardlevel
andtype.Afterconductingafilteredsearch,resultsthatincludephotographs,
videosandtextsappear.Youcancreateateacheraccountthatallowsyouto
createdigitallessons,quizzes,storyboardsandpuzzleswhichyoucanassignto
yourstudents!

b. Application:
HaveyourstudentscreateStoryboardwheretheyexplainvarious
conceptsfromthecurriculum,creatingadigitalprojectusingphotographs,videos
andtext.Createassignmentsthatallowstudentstoworkattheirownpaceby
pausing,askingquestionsandrevisitingcontentathome.

c. Process
:
ClickheretoviewthePBSLearningMediaLessonBuilderpageand
tutorial!

Science Literacy

1.
Coggle
a. Description
:
WhileIhaveCogglelistedasascienceliteracytool,thiscould
easilybeusedinanyothercontentarea.Coggleisawebbasedapplicationfor
creatingconceptandmindmaps.Thefinalproductlookslikeabranchedtree.
CoggleallowsstudentstocollaboratetogetheronthesameCoggle,sharewith
othersbyFacebook,Twitteroremail,orevendownloadasaPDForimage!
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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

Withinthebranchesofthetree,studentscaninsertdocuments,filesorimagesand
thereisapresentationmodeforpresentingthefinalproduct!

b. Application:
UseCoggletohaveyourstudentscreateaconceptmapwherethey
analyzeandexplainhowenvironmentalfactorsaffectpopulations.UseCoggleto
haveyourstudentsanalyzeandexplainthenitrogencycle.

c. Process:

ClickheretoviewanintroductionandtutorialforCoggle!

2. TheSmithsonianScienceEducationCenter

a. Description:
TheSmithsonianScienceEducationCenterisawebsitethat
providescountlessresourcesforscienceteacherstouseintheirclassrooms.
Teacherscansearchcurriculumresourcesbygrade,topicandevenactivitytype,
includingvideos,resources,games,eBooks,curriculumlessonplansandapps.
Notalloftheresourcesarefree,butteachercanfilterthesearchbyclickingFree
ResourcesOnly.TheSmithsonianScienceEducationCenterfocuseson
inquirybasedsciencewhichusesthepracticesofscientistsinvariousfieldsto
studytheworldaroundus.

b. Application
:UsetheSmithsonianScienceCenterwebsitetoaccessanabundance
ofresourcesthatcanbeusedforvariousunitsinbothEarth/Environmental
ScienceandBiology.

c. Process:

ClickheretoaccessthevariousCurriculumandResourcesthe
SmithsonianScienceCenterhastooffer!

Math Literacy

1.
LearnZillion
a. Description:
WhileIhaveLearnZillionlistedasaresourcesformathliteracy,this
isalsoaresourcethatcanbeusedforothercontentareas.LearnZillionisbotha
webbasedtoolandamobileappthathasover2,000teachermade,
standardbasedvideolessons.Itiseasilynavigablewithasearchtoolthatallows
teacherstobrowsebygradelevel,topicorCommonCorestandardforMathand
ELA.ThevideoscanalsobesavedasPowerPoints.Thereareevendocument
andassignmentstoaccompanycertainstandards.
b. Application:
Findvideosthatbestaccompanythestandardyouarecoveringin
yourclass.Havestudentswatchvideosathomefirstandthencometoclassto
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Digital Tools To Enhance and Increase Literacy

explaininmoredetailandpractice.Requirestudentstowritedownquestions
theyhaveontheconceptaswellasabriefexplanationastohowthevideo
correlatedtothatCommonCorestandard.Thiswillleavemoreclasstimefor
questionsandpractice!

c. Process:

Clickheretoviewatutorialonhowtonavigateandusethe
LearnZillionwebsite!

2.
Desmos
a. Description
:Desmosisafree,interactive,onlinegraphingcalculatorthatisalso
availableinamobileappforiPhones,iPads,andAndroiddevices.Inadditionto
usingthegraphingcalculatortographmathematicalconcepts,theyarealsoable
tosave,emailorposttheirwork!Desmosisnotjustagraphingcalculator
though,teacherscanalsocreateaccountstobrowsereadymadeactivitieswhich
theycanassigntotheirclassestocomplete!Theactivitiesrequirestudentsto
readandusemathconceptstocompletetheinteractiveactivities.

b. Application:
CreateaDesmosaccountandhaveyourstudentssignup,assigning
themaclasscode.BrowseDesmosactivitiesforonesthatalignwithstandards
youarecurrentlycovering.Assignthemanactivitythatrequirestheyreadthe
problemandanswerit,aswellasanalyzetheworkofothers,correctingmistakes
tostrengthentheirowncriticalthinkingskills.

c. Process:

ClickheretogetstartedonDesmosandviewtutorials!

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