Exploring Japanese with google maps

I am actually typing this as I experiment with google maps.

The subject is Japanese, the topic is "travelling in Japan" & the idea is to create a map in google maps with placemarks that describe various tourist locations in a city (in this case Kyoto). I have created my first placemark at Kinkakuji (The temple of the Golden Pavilion). The description is in Japanese, using vocabulary and kanji characters from the unit.

So, now I've had the idea (since my description says I took a photo there) of adding a photo to google maps. After a bit of searching and confusion (much confusion), I discovered via a google video on youtube that it's really quite simple to add a photo. In your map, click on a placemark...

1. After clicking on the placemark to edit it - choose "Rich text"
2. Click on the image icon and, in the pop-out, insert the URL link to a photo (I linked to one of my flickr photos)

So I now have a google map that describes 3 tourist locations, with explanations in Japanese, and a photo attached.

Why have I done this? What use could it have? Why didn't I simply create a reading comprehension & stick some pictures in?

Well ...

• The students all visited the locations in Kyoto on a school trip last December so they are relevant to them
  
• I will create comprehension questions for the students to answer - a simple activity (but important in gauging their understanding of the unit vocab and kanji)
  
• I will embed or link to the map in our class ning so that the students can access the map from anywhere at anytime and comment on the whole process. Easy access.
  
• I will invite the class as collaborators (allowing them to edit the map) and have them add to the map. Each student will be given 2 locations that they have visited and will be required to write a written piece in each placemark describing the location and what you can do there.
• Students will then (via the ning forum) comment on each others creations and suggest grammar and vocabulary that they could have used

All in all, the aim is to engage the students with "real" Japanese. Have them create written pieces that are useful, relevant & easily expanded upon later on if they choose - as further revision, extension work or simply to use the language somewhere that it can be seen and recognized; not simply written in an exercise or workbook, marked and forgotten.

The google video that put it all succinctly for me is below:

Google Custom Search

There is more to Google than I know what to do with but one way to help refine your student's searches when they are given an assignment is to create your own mini search engine with Google Custom Search. This allows you to select the sites that you want students (or anyone else that looks at it) to use when looking for information on a particular topic. You can set up the search engine so that it only uses the sites you choose, or gives preference to those sites.

By clicking the "more" link on the Google homepage (or your iGoogle page) and then clicking "even more" you will find yourself with quite a spread of Google products and innovations. It is here that you will find the Custom Search option under the banner of "Explore and innovate". Setting up your own search engine is then quite simple. Fill in the name, description and keywords for your search engine and then select the sites you want that engine to search. The Standard edition also has the option to not show ads on the results pages if you are a non-profit agency, University or government agency. My first offering is here or use the search box below:

Searching for surveys - network to the rescue

For a while now I have used the first Japanese lesson yr7 have with me to gauge their impressions of Japan and try to find out exactly what they think of when they think “Japan”. Until last week I have done this via the whiteboard and class discussions – first asking them what words they come up with and then discussing stereotypes. This week I thought that I’d try to combine this with the ICT available, feeling that this would allow me to get through things quicker and represent things visually to the students through word clouds, so that our discussions would be more meaningful. So I though I’d search for some sort of online survey.

Enter my slowly but surely expanding personal learning network (PLN). Within a few minutes of posting a question on Diigo, asking if anyone had used surveys effectively, Jess McCulloch came through on Skype and the ensuing discussion led me to a variety of sites that could create surveys (Thanks Jess!). However, the forms function in Google spreadsheets seemed the simplest way – and worked a treat! I was able to email the students the question and they could simply click on the link in the email and type their response. The responses are automatically updated in the spreadsheet – magic! You are also able to add a variety of gadgets to the spreadsheet – I added a word cloud as this is exactly what I was looking for in the first place. A visual representation of the student’s impressions (stereotypes) of Japan. The result is below.

So, when I got to class, some boys had already responded and some results were in the spreadsheet already. If this had not been the first class with the students I could have got them to answer before class, for homework. This would cut out the initial time spent responding.

All in all I was pretty pleased with the way it went; simple but effective - and all I did was use the Google Docs Help centre. The word cloud was good but when you put it into wordle it looks so much better ...

Thanks network!