Building+A+Wikispace

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= = = = =Creating & Linking Pages=

Okay, up until now you've been working collaboratively on a site that was created for instruction and that's one of the cool things about the wiki. You and a partner or an entire team can all work on the wiki from different places, whether those are separate computer stations in one computer lab or around the school or from home or from across the world! But as a teacher, you will need to construct your own wiki shell so that your students can get to work enjoying all the learning opportunities the wiki and the digital world has to offer! So, if you haven't already registered for your own wiki pages, do that now and then follow the instructions: A new window will open up Your first wiki page will open. =Customizing Wiki Pages=
 * Under "Join Now" enter user name, password, email address
 * Select a space name...perhaps associated with your school name or community
 * Click on "Make a New Space"
 * Enter your space name (cannot have any spaces between letters)
 * Choose visibility (remember, this can be changed later)
 * Follow the guide and create look and feel
 * Add pages:
 * Click on New Page (upper left)
 * Window opens; type in title and click on "Create"
 * Possible Titles
 * one for each class you teach
 * one for each content area you teach
 * working in a single class...one for each unit
 * Page opens; click on Save
 * Repeat the process until you have three or four pages loaded
 * Return to main page; click on "edit navigation" left bar
 * Enter page titles in the order you would like them to appear (this can be changed later)
 * Highlight the titles and click on the linking icon (world with a chain link) in the toolbar
 * Diaglogue box opens to create a "wiki link" between the navigation bar and the page
 * The right page probably comes up; double check the titles are the same and click "Okay" = =

Space Contents
Go to the top blue box in the uppper left-hand corner and click on "Manage Space." You will navigate away from this page. Once the new window opens, look under "Space Contents" and click on "List Pages." Click on "List and Upload Files." You may use this in the future, or you may choose to upload files directly from your wiki pages. Click on "Usage Statistics" and note the variety of views this chart provides. Click back on "Manage Space" in the left box.

Space Settings
Click on "Name, Description, and License." Here you will see basic information about your wiki site. Click back on "Manage Space" and then click on "Look and Feel." In this area, you can customize your wiki space by changing the theme or layout of the page, the colors of the background, text and links, and you can add a logo. =Adding Visual Appeal=

One criticism regarding wikis is their lack of visual appeal. To make your wiki more "pleasing to the eye, go onto the web and find an image that conveys the essence of your page. If you are doing a math wiki, look for an image that connects those concepts; if you have a social studies page, perhaps you want a political cartoon; a literature page may depict the concept of heroism or conflict, and so on.

How to embed images

 * Once you have found the image, right click and "Save as"
 * Give the image a memorable name and save in your picture files
 * Go back to the wiki page where you intend to upload the image and click on "Edit"
 * Click on "Text Editor"--it must be in "Visual Editor" mode
 * In the "Visual Editor" mode, click on the photograph with the tree found on the Toolbar
 * Click on "browse" to locate the image and then click on "upload"
 * Once the image is uploaded, place the cursor in the position you want the image to take and then double click on the image.



Once the image is placed on the page, you can double click on the image and locate it to the left, to the right or in the center of the page. This done, you can enter text around the image as you see here. This makes a clear connection between the text and the image.

=PowerPoints in the Wiki=

For Instruction
Using online resources to engage and motivate is an excellent tool in today's classrooms. However, just using technology is not the answer. Lessons must be carefully thought out so that they foster the kind of learning state standards, district standards, and your standards demand. Below are two PowerPoint presentations that address the need be intentional in your planning of online lessons and the need to cause your students to be introspective in their learning, if it is to be real and rich.



For Review
Numerous PowerPoint games have been devised that can engage and provided repeated encounters with essential concepts enhancing student learning. Below is a template for Jeopardy.





As WebQuests
Wikispaces are a perfect source for creating and engaging students in Webquests. Easier to build than web pages and as interactive, your wiki site can provide endless possbilities for web based projects that provide authentic experiences for educational growth and authentic audiences for real-world feedback. Unfamiliar with a WebQuest, check out this explanatory PowerPoint.

How to Embed PowerPoints
= = = =
 * Click on "Edit the Page"
 * As with embedding images, you will need to click on "Text Editor" and go to "Visual Editor" mode
 * Go to the picture frame with the tree
 * The Images and Files dialogue box will open in the upper right
 * If the PowerPoint is in your computer, Click on "Browse"; **if** the PowerPoint was found online, follow "Insert External Image by URL" instructions
 * Your files will open up in a dialogue box; go to the saved location; double click on the file **or** or click on open in the lower left corner
 * The file will transfer into the Images and Dialogue Box window; click upload
 * You will see your document appear inside the box the position you would like the PowerPoint to take in the Wiki page
 * Locate the cursor on the wiki page in the location where you want the PowerPoint to open
 * Double click on the doc; it will insert itself
 * Click on "Upload" in the Images and Files window
 * Close the Images and Files dialogue box
 * Save

Summarizing
Entered Text Linked Pages Created Discussions Documented Change through History Tabs Embedded Images Embedded PowerPointss What could you have your students do? Well, you've seen a chart in a wiki; you've seen pictures in a wiki; you've seen a word document in a wiki; you've found sites outside of the wiki and entered them into the wiki and you've entered your own text into a wiki. What other creative ideas did you see teachers doing with wikis when you went out and searched for "Worthy Wikis"? What could you have your students do? Be creative and your students will thrive!