Website Tools

Below is a list of the tools I am currently using on my website and in my classes.

Blogging Platform - Wordpress (If you are interested in setting up a Wordpress blog in a few minutes go to Wordpress.com)

Photos - Flickr (I have created a Worcester Academy Group where you can post your digital photos of school events and student work into a shared photostream. Flickr requires that you set up a free Yahoo account)

Microblogging - Twitter (Twitter has quickly become a very popular and as a result heavily trafficked service where you can post your thoughts, ideas, questions and general musings. Each post is limited to 140 characters and you can use a widget/script to include your “tweets” on your blog.

Social Bookmarking - del.icio.us (This service is a great way to keep track of great websites and “tag” them with keywords so that you can easily find them right in your browser. The power of del.icio.us is that once you have an account, you can connect with friends and colleagues that are using the service and when you come across a site that you think they would like or enjoy, you can “tag” it for them as well.

Web Surfing - StumbleUpon (StubmpleUpon helps you surf the web by “channel surfing” to find great websites, videos and photos based on your identified interests. You create an account and identify topics that are interesting you and click through the vast and infinite landscape of the web to find interesting new sites, videos and photos.)

Video - YouTube (This one is popular and well know, but what is less know is that you can save favorite videos to your account and create custom groups for subjects, topics or courses you are teaching. See http://www.youtube.com/antonioviva)

Personal Learning Network - ISENet (Independent School Educators Network is built on a Ning network and has over 1000 independent school educators discussing technology, education, learning strategies, etc. Signing up is free and it is a great way to stay connected with colleagues)

Business/Professional Networking - LinkedIn (LinkedIn is a business oriented social networking site, mainly used for professional networking.)