Need to be organized and on-the-go at all times?
Ever find yourself feeling scatterbrained, with an unmanageable number of ideas bouncing through your head??
Do you enjoy writing or reflecting on your thoughts?
Well, if you fit any of these broad categories--or honestly, even if you don't...but you still kept reading by accident ;-] -- I would like to suggest this free and useful productivity tool. Evernote is a cloud-based website and application, designed to make file storage, personal organization, and complex note-taking a simple and convenient experience.
To summarize, Evernote allows the user to create text, audio, and video "notes" and organize them into "notebooks". The user data is stored on the company's secure central servers, and is immediately accessible (remotely) from any of web-enabled device.
Applications are available for computers running Windows and Macintosh operating systems, and also through iPhone, Android, and Blackberry mobile platforms.
Below are a few ideas for incorporating the Evernote experience into the ELA classroom. Feel free to add any comments you may have regarding the app!
o Compile
complex notes, study guides, or lesson plans using different mediums of data--whether
it is textual research, website screenshots, pictures, or YouTube videos/
o
Could
be implemented in the classroom through quick-write activities--engages
students with modern technology, allowing them to jot ideas down, brainstorm,
outline, and organize research for larger assignments.
o
Potentially
eliminates the need for “Note Card” style research techniques...which many
students dread or find counterproductive.
o
They
will have immediate access to all their notebooks from home, school, and abroad--and
depending on their usage, they can add ideas for essays or projects on the go
through mobile devices.
o
Because
they may use Evernote through a cellular device, it feels more like texting
than writing.