Mariia Selivanova

"Ancora Imparo - I am still learning" - Michelangelo

Day: May 21, 2024

Canva Video Creator and Editor Review. The SAMR Model

May 21, 2024 / / 2 Comments

When I first started this class, I saw technology as a way to have fun, but now I see technology as an extension of my educational beliefs. Technology is an essential tool that has become a part of the learning process, allowing the differentiation and creating new opportunities for students and teachers. Good technology integration in the classroom is not about using a fanciest tool, it is about being aware of the range of options and picking the right strategy. As a future educator, I believe that technological experience in the classroom must serve a purpose. This can be accomplished by working through the SAMR model as a way of identifying the functionality of the new piece of technology. Also, before implementing a new tech tool, teachers need to understand their students learning styles and their access to technology.

SAMR model is based on using technology with a purpose in order to enhance learning experiences. SAMR stands for Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition. Here is a quick summary of each stage of the SAMR model:

  • Substitution is a simplest stage, where the educational technology acts as a direct substitute and is used to replace the traditional practices. For example, replacing paper-based lectures or worksheets with digital versions.
  • Augmentation is a stage where the technology piece involves adding functional improvement to the learning process, not just for the convenience purposes. For example, a teacher’s guide is complemented by a video that explains a particularly difficult concept.
  • Modification involves the technology tool used to go beyond the traditional classroom. For instance, students can work together on a shared document in real-time.
  • Redefinition is the most advanced stage of the SMAR model, where technology opens up completely new learning opportunities.

For this blog post, I would like to take the time to provide an app review of Canva and highlight where it can be placed in the SAMR model. Canva is an online graphic platform that has become increasingly popular in schools as a tool for creating visually appealing and professionally-looking materials, encouraging creativity, and enhancing collaboration. One of the main benefits that teachers and students can access this platform for free.

Using Canva’s video editor and creator is quite straightforward. I found this YouTube video on how to create videos with music and animation in Canva. It is very helpful and easy to follow. Here’s a guide on how to get started:

  1. Create an Account: If you haven’t already, sign up for a Canva account. You can use your Google or Facebook account to sign up, or create a new account with your email address.
  2. Access Video Editor: Once you’re logged in, navigate to the Canva homepage. You should see an option to create a new design on the right hand side . Click on it and select the “video” option.
  3. Choose a Template or Start from Scratch: Canva offers a variety of templates for different types of videos like presentations, social media posts, ads, etc. You can choose a template that fits your needs or start with a blank canvas.
  4. Customize Your Video: After selecting a template or starting from scratch, you can customize your video by adding text, images, videos, and other elements. Canva provides a library of millions of images, videos, graphics, and fonts to choose from. You can also upload your own media, videos, and audio.
  5. Edit and Arrange: You can edit your video by clicking on the “scissor” icon on the tool bar above the editor. Drag any of the sliders on the ends of the highlighted part of the video to shorten or lengthen it. Click on “Done” to save the changes. You can drag and drop elements to reorder them and adjust the duration of each element.
  6. Add Effects and Transitions: Canva offers various effects and transitions to enhance your video. You can add animations, filters, music, and more to make your video more engaging.
  7. Preview and Finalize: Once you’re satisfied with your video, preview it to make sure everything looks good. You can then finalize your video by clicking on the “Download” or “Publish” button, depending on your needs. Canva offers options to download your video in various formats or share it directly to social media platforms.
  8. Save Your Work: Don’t forget to save your work periodically to avoid losing any changes.

Take some time to explore all its features and get comfortable with the platform. Hope you have fun creating your videos! Using a Screencastify extension in Chrome and Canva, I made this quick video tutorial that summarizes the steps above:

When applying this to the SAMR model, I would say that it falls under the Modification category, allowing for significant task redesign. Students can work on a shared document together and create a video in real-time. This would assist in completing tasks online and changing the core structure of the assignment.

Also, this tool ties directly into my learning project post this week where I used the Canva Video Creator & Editor to show my progress in my second week of learning the Spanish language.

Hola! Let’s Master the Spanish Alphabet!

May 21, 2024 / / 6 Comments

Alright everyone, let’s start this adventure! Welcome to my second week of learning another language! Honestly, I feel like Spanish won’t be a hard language to learn, but we shall see!

question hablas espanol? do you speak Spanish?

Photo by nito on Adobe Stock

ENGLISH vs SPANISH ALPAHBETS

As a beginner learner, I think it is important to start with the alphabet and pronunciation, as it will give me a solid foundation to learn on. Before I dive into learning the Spanish alphabet and pronunciation, I wanted to pay attention to a few key similarities and differences between English and Spanish languages. Doing so will help me spell in Spanish in no time! After reviewing a several online resources, I put together a comparison summary between the English and Spanish alphabets:

Similarities

  • Alphabet origin. Both English and Spanish languages share the same alphabet – the Latin Alphabet. This alphabet, also known as a Roman alphabet, was originally used by ancient Romans, and is now used to write hundreds of different languages.
  • The same letters. I find English and Spanish alphabets very similar which makes learning Spanish a lot easier than learning a language with a different alphabet like Japanese, for example.  There is no need to learn a whole new alphabet, how exciting!!

Differences

Number of letters. English alphabet has 26 letters, while Spanish has 27 letters, including the famous Spanish “ñ” letter.

Pronunciation. In comparison to English, Spanish is a very straightforward language when it comes to pronunciation. English language has 44 phonemes, individual speech sounds, while Spanish has only 25! There are way more sounds to learn in English than in Spanish, isn’t it surprising? Each letter has its own sound and will always (with some exceptions) make that sound, no matter where it’s placed in a word. However, there are some different sounds in Spanish language that don’t exist in English.

SPANISH ALPHABET

I found this YouTube video lesson on how to learn Spanish alphabet. It was very helpful: straight to the point and with no long unnecessary pauses, just examples and pronunciation – exactly what I needed to start with! Then I looked for more online resources to find further explanation on each letter, including the examples and tips on how to sound like a native speaker. For example, lesson 1 on the Language Tutor YouTube channel was very easy to learn from. Dr. Danny Evans had very good examples and tips on how to sound like a native speaker. I am enjoying the learning process so far!

Pronunciation Guide and Tips on How to Sounds Like a Native Speaker

Vowels. In Spanish, 90% of pronunciation and reading is knowing your vowels. All vowels are always pronounced the same (unless paired with another vowel). Letter “a” sounds like “aa” (lips and mouth wide open), “e” pronounced as “ey” (lips slightly open and mouth stretched), “i” sounds like “ee” (lips slightly open and mouth stretched), “o” sounds like “oh” (lips rounded and opened slightly), and “u” is pronounced as “oo” (lips rounded and almost fully closed).

Consonants. Most consonants in Spanish sound similar to their English counterparts, with some exceptions:

  • letter “h” is always silent
  • letter “j” sounds like “h” in English
  • letter “g” is pronounced differently depending on the vowel that it follows:
  1. when “g” is followed by “a”, “o”, “u”, “ue”, and “ui” vowels, it is  pronounced as a hard “g”, similar to English “go”. For example, gato (cat) and  grande (big);
  2. when “g” is followed by “e” and “i”, it is pronounced as a soft “h” sound, similar to the “h” sound in the English word “hello”. For example, gente (people) and gigante (giant).
  • letter “ñ” is one of the unique features of the Spanish alphabets and is pronounced like “nio” sound, similar English word “onion”
  • “ll” is pronounced like “y”, similar to English “yes”
  • letters “b” and “v” sound the same in Spanish, and that can be a little confusing.

To sum up, I think this week was very productive. Using various online resources, I learned a lot about similarities and differences between English and Spanish alphabets, as well as unique letters and sounds in Spanish language. Below is a video of me saying Spanish alphabet with an example for each letter. Wish me luck for next week, when I take on learning the numbers.

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