For the Love of Screen Recording!

When iOS 11 opened up screen recording on the iPad I was excited at the possibilities of what this could mean for so many learners.  Using your voice to communicate your understanding can open a huge window for struggling writers.  And what about taking away the anxiety of standing in front of a room filled with an audience for you to share your knowledge about something that might not be your passion? I do not want any child to feel that way.  By using the power of recording the voice of a presentation combined with a visual learners are able to shine when sharing!

 My first time around with a group of learners to use screen recording on their iPad was pretty smooth.  Everyone was able to add the screen recording icon to their control center.  We had a few people who needed reminding to turn the microphone on while they were recording.  Rookie mistakes we all make.  The video clips played back well on their devices.  So, we uploaded videos to  Google Drive and a few to YouTube.  Then there was no audio.  What??

The videos plays fine on the iPad.  So, I tried importing the videos in to Quicktime to see if manipulating the video through another source would help.  Well, I think that helped one of the numerous videos I was working with at the time.  There did not seem to be any consistency as why some audio was working and the other audio was not.  At the time I had to "let it go" and move one with what was working.

Fast forward a few months and screen recording is coming back up again for a project I was working on myself.  I did what I thought I was supposed to do.  I made my screen recording.  I tried to share my video and the audio was gone!  The struggle!  At this point I reached out to my teammates, but no one else knew what was wrong.  The iOS was up to date.  I restarted the iPad.  All of my usual "tricks" to make something work were not helping me.  After a little research I discovered I was not the only person with this struggle.  Others were having the same issue.  It's not just me!

Through my searching I found out it was not me and there was no way to fix it, as of right now.  Hopefully, Apple will fix the issue in an update.  So the interim solution was to either purchase a pricey app or record the screencast again.  Personally, I knew I was not going to ask an entire school to purchase an app for something that should be fixed.  Instead, I tried screen recording my screen recording.  Yes.  I made the first screen recording.  Then I started another screen recording, opened Photos and played the video to record it all again.  When I played the 2nd recording back it sounded a little echoey and I was skeptical.  When I uploaded the video to Google Drive it sounded great!  I then tried uploading it to YouTube where the sound was exactly as it should be!  Success!!!

The next step was to work with a small group of learners to make sure it worked for others.  Then, why not let the learners lead their own classes on how to successfully screen record?  So that's what we did.  The learners presented to their peers.  They did a great job.  They experienced what it's like to lead instruction to restless learners who like to respond in their own special way!  I'm very proud of these learners.

Back It Up!

Everyone will experience data loss.  It's not a matter of if, but when.  In the very recent past I was working with an educator who was organizing years worth of files and I encouraged having a 2nd place to house all of the files other than the USB flash drive that had been used for years.  Just as our spring break had begun I received an email filled with joy and relief!  Yes, the USB flash drive indeed had seen better days and was now laid to rest.  However, the work was not lost!  The "cloud" is your friend!  take the time to back up your work!

Working with learners who are fortunate to have iPads as their main device for all of their school work it is important to insure their work is also safe.  A device can fail.  We hope it won't, but it happens.  Accidents happen and work can be lost in an instant.  iCloud gives all Apple ID accounts 5GB of free storage.  You have the option to purchase more space.  You also have the option to delete old backups in iCloud.

You also have the option to auto backup and sync using Google Photos.  Watch this video to learn how to free up space on the iPad and backup valuable work.

Did you also know Google Photos can automatically delete all the image files it just transferred?  Yes!  You don't have to individual delete all of these files on your own.  Follow these steps to learn how...

Now, save yourself the heartache and headache of data loss.  Backup your files!

An Apple a Week Podcast Series: Creating with Clips

On this podcast episode of An Apple a Week we take a closer look at the app Clips!

Look at the blogpost written by Ali to see it in writing then listen to the episode where our DLC teammate Sam joins us to tell us about her experience with Clips.

Follow @Clipsiration on Twitter to be inspired by others who are already using Clips!  How will you use Clips to share information with your learners?

An Apple A Week Podcast Series: Why Book Creator?

In this episode of An Apple a Week podcast series Alli and I talk about our new favorite collaboration tool...Book Creator!

 Listen to find out why we love this tool that is so easy to us on mobile devices!

I am eager to share this tool with more educators!

Multitasking

Multitasking.  I am always multitasking.  Life would be too simple if I only had one thing to focus on at a time.  When it comes to multitasking while I'm on a device, you can bet there are lots of tabs involved!!  I am currently working on a project for the math department that has me accessing multiple documents at the same time.  In order to use my time wisely I am working between multiple screens, split screens.  Here is how you can maximize your screen when using your MacBook...

And, here is how you can use split screen on your iPad...

What do you do on your devices to help you multitask?

Look at Me!

Who doesn't love a good Bitmoji?  As educators, we use a Bitmoji to communicate a lot of words and thoughts in a short amount of time.  What do you do if you want your learners to also have an animated version of themselves and you don't have time to download an app?  Check out Avatar Maker.  It's free and it works on the iPad!  With a few taps on the iPad, I had an avatar ready to be saved to my camera roll!

The options include selecting the shape and color of your face, eyes, hair, clothing, and even a background!  I like the background option as I had not thought much about what the background might look like.  My one complaint are the options for hair.  I mean, how many times do I have a bad hair day?  I want my avatar hair to be amazing!  Here is the result of this simple, straightforward tool.

How can learners use an avatar to help communicate who they are?

An Apple a Week Podcast Series: Nerding Out with Numbers

It's time for another episode of An Apple a Week podcast series!  This week Alli and I talk Numbers.

 Seriously, we talk about Numbers, not data, but the native Apple product for spreadsheets.  But wait, it's so much more than a spreadsheet!  Listen to find out!

I have been inspired to revamp how we plan for recording this podcast.  This podcast is very casual.  We do not create a script, if you listen you should be able to tell.  Alli and I have a natural converstation, but we do need a few notes so we keep our focus.  I have been using a word document, but now I'm going to try Numbers.  I'll let you know how it turns out in the future.

Give us your feedback on how you want to explore Numbers on the Flipgrid!