Thing 25: Power Up Your Browser

Browser Settings
I was actually somewhat skeptical about the usefulness of exploring the browser settings, but was pleasantly surprised about a few things that I know I will use.  The first thing that I had fun playing with were the themes.  This was a good discovery, because I realize that students spend lots of time playing with this, and I had never really taken the time to find out how they were making these changes.  There wasn't a library or book theme though!  This could become a huge time waster too- I found myself getting lost in the search (so easy to get caught up).
The next setting that I found very interesting was with the "Advanced Settings" under "Privacy".  This is something that I will share with students when I am teaching about filter bubbles and the effect of your search activity being tracked.  Tracking the effectiveness of this "Do not track" option will be interesting.  It had a disclaimer that different websites respond to that request differently.  Good to know about!
The final setting that I found interesting was under "Downloads", and I'm glad to know where that setting appears now.  When I download things they automatically go to my "Downloads" folder, but I know that I have seen other people unable to find things that they downloaded because they didn't know where it saved.  Knowing where this setting is, I will be able to help people with this dilemma now, and it is always nice to be able to give people an answer to their questions.

New Extensions
I have used extensions in the past, but did some exploration to try out some new ones.  I know that I have gone through and deleted extensions in the past because they were slowing down my browser, so I am anxious to see what happens with these.  I just added ones that are connected to tools that I use frequently:
Pinterest- This one I have already used today, finding immediate use for it, as I am always adding things to my Pinterest account.  I think I had this in the past, but it was one of those I disabled when my browser was moving slowly.

PicMonkey- This is such a great and easy to use photo editing tool.  I am not sure that I need an extension to grab pictures and open directly into PicMonkey, but the option is interesting.  I will keep it on for awhile and see if I find it useful.


AccessGrid- This provides a drop down grid with easy access to letter accents, which I am always struggling to remember.  I know that I will be using this- simple but helpful extension.

EasyBib- This one has the most direct application for student support and instructional purpose, because our students use EasyBib throughout all grade levels.  I like that this extension helps them identify both the credibility of the site and opens a pop up window to create the citation while still on the website.

Thing 24: Infographics

The tools that I have enjoyed using to create Infographics in the past are easel.ly, piktochart, and recently Canva.  I typically visit each one once I have gathered information and brainstormed a concept for design, to see which one has the best templates, tools and icons/ images for the task.
Although I have tried other tools, these ones have given me the best options both for creating and sharing (which is often the more difficult component).  Other tools have made it difficult to transfer the finished Infographic to other place.  It is so frustrating to me when I have put lots of time and energy into creating something and then am unable to download or freely share the finished product.  I often run into this challenge with students as well, who are asked to create something and then print or copy and paste the finished product, and the tool does not allow for this.  I highly recommend testing the "share" functionality of any Infographic tool before dedicating time to creating something meaningful.
Although I have made many infographics in the past, for purposes ranging from advocacy to professional development to teaching I would like to get into making them more interactive, adding layers to the information provided.  Towards this end the blog by Jennifer LaGarde, 27 Ways to Make This the Best Year Ever was very inspiring.  So, I decided to make my WISER infographic interactive using ThingLink.  I use this infographic both for PD with teachers, and as a teaching tool with students learning inquiry skills.  Below is the new version, which includes interactive links- videos, narrative descriptions, and Web 2.0 tools to use during the implementation of the Inquiry process.  I am excited to use this new tool, and hope that it will add layers of meaning for both students and teachers.