

I learned that when given the time to explore and figure things out, my students can be brilliant problem solvers and creators. I would have to say I learned a great deal from my students on this project. Several of my kids dedicated their books to their first grader and this was very special. The first grade kids loved the books that were specially made for THEM. Then she had each one of the books on her iPad for the first graders to read. To continue the interaction and sharing of books, I emailed each book to our first grade friends’ teacher.

#How to know totla number of books in ibooks free
It is free and you can create folders for each assignment. Within Showbie it can be graded and left with verbal or written feedback.įrom Showbie, using my iPad, I opened each book in iBooks to view it as an actual page-turning book (this blew the kids minds!). Showbie is an excellent management app that is like Dropbox. When the students were ready to publish they uploaded it to Showbie. This process is a natural part of the writer’s workshop all year long, and it resulted in many great conversations and significant improvements to the students’ finished books. Once their book was done they had to partner-revise and edit. The things they came up with blew my mind. They could draw their pictures on paper and take pictures of them to import, bring in pictures from the internet, bring in objects from home to set up a scene and take pictures of it, or use the app’s pen tool etc. I gave my students multiple choices for the way they could illustrate their book in Book Creator. Endless choices for illustrating the books My kids knew the app forwards and backwards and were discovering different features of the app on their own that and then sharing with one another. I found this was the best instructional move I have ever done before a technology project. Prior to starting this project I made a PowerPoint with specific directions to get to know the Book Creator app. We used this time to review and also learn the app so when the kids began to type their books they would feel comfortable and allow everyone time to become successful. Once it was “publish ready” I approved the pitch and the budding authors began publishing in Book Creator. It was amazing to see their creative ideas come alive through the planning and then continue to develop and change throughout the process. Students who might typically be unmotivated where thriving. My students faced this challenging task head on.

#How to know totla number of books in ibooks full
Great conversations resulted and many began to see the full scope of what needed to be taken into consideration as the author of a book. Students planned out their story making sure to include all the components of the assignment as well as keeping in mind what the survey results showed. This perked not only the first graders interest but my students’ interests as well. My students would be writing a story specifically for their 1st grade buddies, so they sat together and worked out what elements they would like in the story.

characters, plot, problem, solution, sequel etc. The whole experience was powerful and moving to witness! Plotting the story elementsĪfter studying the ins and outs of children’s literature and all it has to offer, together we created a Google form survey asking interest questions for each story element, i.e. Through Showbie, I was able to leave feedback in the form of a quick voice note. I believe that Book Creator awakened creativity and critical thinking within my students. This time was going to be different and we all were excited to integrate technology into the mix. My students had been writing narrative and expository pieces all year. Her students are 1:1 with their iPads, so with our campus only having three iPad carts we had to get a little more creative with management! My sister introduced me to Book Creator when her 5th grade students were using the app to make similar books to what my students had created. How 4th grade Language Arts and Social Studies teacher Hayley Sample combined old-school storytelling techniques with new technology to get her students writing masterpieces! He moved to California to join Imagine K12 as a startup founder & currently writes for Showbie. Justin is a teacher & edtech evangelist from Melbourne, Australia.
