2nd Grade Writing

Shadow Puppet is an app that allows the user to create mini-slideshow movies. It's a great option if you'd like to hear students record their voices as they read several pages of text, or if you'd like students to publish their writing. Shadow Puppet movies are easily shared to Seesaw or the iPad Camera Roll.

• How to use Shadow Puppet

Seesaw can be used for publishing multi-page pieces of writing. After taking a picture of each page of their writing, students select the Camera Roll option when generating a Post and then choose the images of their story. They may then tap the Mic and record themselves reading their writing. Here are the steps in more detail.

• Seesaw tutorials and resources

 Scratch Jr. can be used to publish nonfiction or fiction. Students can program separate scenes to match different chapters of their books (e.g., "Where do elephants live?"; "What does an elephant eat?"). 

• What is Scratch Jr.?

• Scratch Jr. video tutorial

Flip is a video posting site that allows users to post quick selfie videos. It's a great way for students to create a class set of videos featuring student poems. 

• Flip tutorials and resources

Magnetic Poetry is a creative writing aid consisting of individual words—often related to a particular theme or topic—typed into on small text boxes which can be creatively arranged into poetry. Here are some resources:

• Magnetic Poetry templates

Google Drawings can be used to create comic strips for the fantasy unit. Use the Insert Image feature to add characters and icons. Text boxes and callouts can be added to create narrative and dialogue. 

• Google Drawings tutorials and resources

• Comic example

Google Slides is a great format for publishing writing across all genres. Students may add text just like they would in Google Docs, but Slides is much more flexible in terms of adding images and videos. By clicking Present, Google Slide shows can leafed through just like a digital book. 

• Google Slides tutorials, resources, and examples

• Google Slides magazine templates