Photo Background Removal

As students create content for presentations and documents, they often take their own photos. One skill that was previously only possible with high-end photo editing tools, removing the background of images, is now possible with a simple click. While there are various tools that can remove the background, one of the easiest to use is Remove BG. To use this tool, go to the website, upload your photo, view the image without the background and edit it to make the background removal crisper or download the new image to use in your project.

Do I have to take the original photo in front of a green screen?

  • No. However, if the image background is a solid color you may see better results.

Does this work on the iPad?

  • Yes! When you tap on “Select a photo” on the home screen, you will see the option to Take a Photo or browse your Photo Library appears on the screen as a pop-up menu. 

Check out the Before and After below as an example!

Before

After

Digital Book Creation

As we look to integrate technology into classroom lessons, the SAMR model is one framework that can guide teachers towards meaningful integration. Although it is not possible to redefine every lesson, we know that students respond favorably to lessons where they are actively engaged in their learning. Part of engaging students is how they are engaged. When students are producers of content, they are actively engaged in their learning. Whereas when students are consumers of content, they are more likely to be passively engaged in their learning.

Having students create digital books is one way to actively engage students as producers of content. The tools and their features are outlined in the graphic below.

Book Creator is a web and app-based tool where teachers can create a library and students author digital books. This collaborative tool allows for students to work on the same book at once and read their peer’s books.

Google Slides is a common presentation tool widely used by schools. This tool can be repurposed with a change of some settings to allow for collaboration and hyperlinks. The video clip below shares a visual of how to change the slide settings to resize the slides. This blog post also provides step by step instructions with screenshots.

If you are using Google Classroom, you may find it helpful to provide students with a template you create to scaffold the design of the book and select the option “Make a copy for each student” when you post the assignment.

Pages is an application that works on Apple devices. Both the Mac and iPad version of Pages provide book templates for students to author their own digital book. Teachers who are curating their own content may also find this helpful to easily drag and drop text, photos, and other multimedia. The robust library of shapes gives students immediate access to clean icons they can use in their ebooks. 

Storybird is a web-based tool where students select an overall theme for their story and are given images created by artists. Students can author a multi-chapter, multi-page or poem using the image templates.

StoryJumper is another web-based tool where students can use built-in backgrounds, props, and import their own photos to represent their ideas. There is also the option for students to purchase their books in hardcover copy.  

Looking for ideas on how to use Digital Books in your classroom? Visit these blog posts for ideas.

50 Ways to use Book Creator in your Classroom

4 Tips for Student-Created Digital Books

Student-Made E-Books

 

Education Blogs to Follow

On the eleventh day of Techmas, the resources I received…

11 Tools to Formatively Assess Student Learning

Taking charge of your own learning as a teacher is critical to growing and sharing new ideas with your students. One way to learn is by reading the thoughts of other educators posted on their blogs. The following 11 blogs represent a variety of teachers, administrators, and consultants in education who can help expand your understanding of how to engage students with technology.

  1. Shake Up Learning
  2. Ditch That Textbook
  3. Teacher Tech
  4. Kathy Schrock’s Guide to Everything
  5. Learning in Hand
  6. Free Technology for Teachers
  7. Kleinspiration
  8. AR/VR 
  9. Pre-Service Teachers
  10. TechChef4U
  11. Mindshift 

Tools to Formatively Assess Student Learning

On the tenth day of Techmas, the resources I received…

10 Tools to Formatively Assess Student Learning

Formative assessment gives teachers insights about student mastery of new content. The following tools can be used to formatively assess student learning with technology. Many of these tools give the teacher feedback in real time to inform their instruction. As you explore the tools, consider how these tools can be used to provide your students with choices about how they share their learning. Scroll down to the end of this post for a visual comparing the features of each of these 10 tools.

1.  Answer Garden

2. Classkick

3. Edulastic

4. Explain Everything

5. Formative

6. Gimkit

7. InsertLearning

8. PlayPosit

9. Socrative

10. Quizalize