Matt’s Media Tips 11-4Turning a Nano, iPad, iPhone, and/or an iTouch into an iCenter

Many of the schools and districts that I have been working with have been exploring how an iPad roll-out might look in their classrooms. I myself have been hesitant to embrace the iPad as the “all-in” device that many people think it can be. And while I still don’t think we should limit ourselves to one specific tablet, device, or piece of technology in a classroom, I do now see the iPad as way more than a consumption device.

Recently one of my colleagues showed me how to create an ePub - or interactive book - on an iPad. And that’s when a ray of light from the heavens beamed down upon my head, choirs sang and somewhere a light-bulb went off. Because in that moment, my friends, the iPad that I was holding no longer was a shiny new object. In that moment it became a great instructional tool, a learning center, and a fantastic new way to reach our students.

With that in mind, I began exploring the idea of using a Nano, iPad, iPhone or iTouch as learning centers in the classroom. I thought that it would be pretty cool if I could combine free apps, the built in camera (iPad 2, iPhone or next generation iTouch), and Discovery Education STREAMING videos into one ePub and use it for as a self-directed learning center. I built the ePub in Pages on a Mac.

However, if you are on a PC, iTunes, and you have an iSomething, you will need to build your ePub in PowerPoint and then save your PowerPoint as a Movie. Then drag your movie over to iTunes. Once your movie is in iTunes, click on the Advanced tab and then choose “Create an iPad or Apple TV version.” If you are using a iTouch or iPhone click on the Advanced tab and choose “Create an iPod or iPhone version.”

The following information are the steps that I used on my Mac.

First I created my draft in Pages. Note: In order for you to publish your work in an ePub you can’t use any of the fancy templates - at least I couldn’t get that to work - and trust me I learned that the hard way! I recommend clicking on the little Pages drop-down icon in your tool bar and then either choosing the Text Page or Blank templates. I was able to get them to work 100% of the time. The others...not so much.

If you choose to embed any images or video into your document make sure that you select Inline and not Floating. An ePub will not publish if your images and/or video are floating. You can tell it is “floating” if you can move your image around within your document. If it is locked into one location it is “inline.” I think the default is “floating.” The inline and floating buttons are located within your tool bar when you click on the image.

Before you embed a video from Discovery Education you’ll first need to download a QuickTime (.mov) version of a video onto your Mac. Then drag it into iTunes and click on the Advanced tab. If you’re building for an iPad, choose “Create an iPad or Apple TV version.” If you’re building for an iTouch or iPhone click on the Advanced tab and choose “Create an iPod or iPhone version.”

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This will turn your .mov file into a MPEG-4 video file. You’ll probably have two files in your iTunes (one .MOV and one MPEG-4). Drag the MPEG-4 into your Pages document. Remember to click on the video and choose “inline” in your tool bar.

Once you have your Pages document complete, click on the word “File” in your tool bar. Then choose “Export” and click on the ePub icon and then the “Next” button.

This will place a .epub version of your document somewhere on your computer (I put my stuff on my desktop and move it later).

You’re almost there at this point. Drag your .epub file into the “books” section of your iTunes.

Then all you have to do is sync up your iPad with your Mac and bingo, bango, presto - you have an ePub/learning center on your Nano, iPad, iPhone or iTouch!

What is a DEN Star Member?

Discovery Education Webinar ScheduleDiscovery Education Webinar ScheduleDiscovery Education Webinar Schedule

Dates Time (EST) Link

11/7 7pm - 8pm Discovery Education STREAMING 101 Great tips for getting started with Discovery Education

11/8 7pm - 8pm Story of Learning: Digital Storytelling with Discovery Education STREAMING!Join us for an exploration of the creative ways to engage students across the curriculum with digital storytelling with Discovery Education resources.

11/9 7pm - 8pm Siemen’s We Can Change The World ChallengeThe nation’s premier sustainability competition that gives students the inspiration and free tools to make a difference.

11/10 7pm - 8pm The Collective Brain - Digital StorytellingLeverage the power of community and learn effective ways to engage and inspire your students through digital storytelling projects.

11/14 7pm - 8pm Discovery Education Science 101This webinar provides an overview of the Discovery Education Science for Elementary service.

Here is a portion of the center that I built into my iPad center. The full version includes an Encyclopedia Article and three video segments from Discovery Education. You can download this epub as a Pages document for your Mac by clicking on this link -

Practice turning into ePub.

You are no longer curriculum specialists, teachers, educators or even students. You are now esteemed research scientists and you have a new problem to solve.

You and your colleagues are developing a new propulsion system that will be used to transport heavy cargo in a new cost efficient and environmentally green way. Using the material provided for you on your lab table you must work with your colleagues to successfully move the three cargo models (soccer ball, tennis ball and baseball) into the receiving mechanism (trash can) using your prototype hand-held hot-air propulsion system (blow dryer).

Time is money so you have three tries and/or 10 minutes (which ever comes first) to document and record your best transportation time.

You may use any of the materials on your table/lab. However you may not move the trash can.

As innovators in your field you must share your findings with the world. With that in mind:1. Choose someone to either film/or take pictures and document your progress.2. Choose someone on your team to be the scribe and provide a narrative to complement

the pictures3. Choose someone(s) on your team to carry out your experiments.

Use the Posterous App on the iPad to both take pictures and document your experiment.

Please be sure to include pictures and one - two sentences that describe:1. Your hypothesis (what you think will happen and why)2. Your procedure and how you used the material3. Any principles, forces, etc at play that can explain why the propulsion system and cargo

behaved the way they did4. A name for your propulsion system and a reason why the world should adopt your new

way of transporting goods.

After completing your experiments review the research material on the following page

And speaking of innovative real-world problems to solve - check out what Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ STEM Director, Cindy Moss, shared with me this week!

Call for students to develop innovative products to solve real-world challenges5th annual Spirit of Innovation Challenge continues its quest to transform STEM education HOUSTON — Recently, Nancy Conrad, founder and chairman of the Conrad Foundation, officially launched the 2011-2012 Spirit of Innovation Challenge to encourage students to create technologies and products that solve global issues. For the past four years, the Innovation competition has helped transform the way science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) is being embraced by high school students. “If we are to ignite passion for STEM education, we must embrace an academic plan to focus on the relevance of the knowledge we share with our students,…#157; said Conrad. “Memorizing facts to pass a test just won’t do the job. The hallmark of America’s culture is innovation and entrepreneurship. It’s how we got to the moon. It’s how companies like Apple, Facebook and Google were formed. It is how our country will continue to explore the universe, discover cures for disease and become good stewards of the world we share with our global neighbors.…#157; Hosted by the Conrad Foundation, the Spirit of Innovation Challenge invites high school teams to use STEM skills in developing commercially viable, technology-based products. It is the only competition of its kind to combine education, innovation and entrepreneurship, giving students the tools they need to succeed and sustain a knowledge-based economy. “Using a network of world-renowned scientists, engineers, academics and business leaders, the competition connects teams with mentors to assist in making their ideas a reality,…#157; said Jennifer Fotherby, executive director, Spirit of Innovation Challenge. “We are thrilled by the support and collaboration from global industry leaders in this year’s program.…#157; The 2011-2012 Spirit of Innovation Challenge is supported by Lockheed Martin and PepsiCo and in partnership with U.S. Department of State and NASA. Additional corporate and organizational involvement from, Kraft Foods and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute is allowing for rapid program growth. This year’s Challenge Partners who provide experts, mentors and judges for the student entries include: the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Foundation (Aerospace Exploration), The William James Foundation (Clean Energy) and the American Society for Nutrition (Health and Nutrition). Interested student teams draft an online abstract that addresses five questions about their innovative idea for first-round judging. From there, selected semi-finalists in each challenge category – Aerospace Exploration, Clean Energy, and Health and Nutrition – develop a business plan, technical plan and graphical representation of the team’s product or innovation. The top five teams from each category will travel to the annual Innovation Summit, hosted at NASA-Ames Research Center (Moffitt Field, CA), March 29-31, 2012, where they present their innovations and vie for awards and commercialization opportunities. The Conrad Foundation is also currently in discussion with the Department of State about sending the winners of the 2011-2012 Spirit of Innovation Challenge to Rio de Janeiro in June 2012 during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. Winning teams would present their work in conjunction with the official U.S. delegation led by the Department of State. This event will allow Spirit of Innovation winning teams a lifetime experience of joining diplomats, scientists, sustainability experts and other leaders to take a forward look on pressing global needs and opportunities for creative problem-solving.      This year’s Innovation competition features a new online community that facilitates student, teacher and mentor collaboration across multiple platforms, from sharing videos to uploading documents and communicating in forums. The Portal for the Spirit of Innovation Challenge is also being expanded to assist teams in acquiring patents and funding for further development and commercialization of their products. To learn more, visit www.conradawards.org.