Let me map it out for you

So what did you do today? This morning I spent time using Google Maps to create a map of all schools in Hampshire that are using our VLE, Wizkid. This is the Hampshire name for Studywiz.

Why do we want a map of our schools? Well, there are a few reasons:

*To see which schools have signed up to the county solution- many of us are visual people!

*So schools can see if the others in their area are using the same VLE and when they started using it

*To help us plan support sessions depending on the amount of schools

We have around 400 schools that have started, finished or are halfway through their VLE training. The last batch of schools are all starting this term, so this is the last map we will be producing. In the past, I created a map at each phase of training. This was fine for the first 100 or so schools, but Google Maps had the odd problem of allowing 200 points on a map. This was an issue and meant our map didn't look very good due to the second page.So something else was needed.

We created 4 maps, splitting the county into areas. They can also be overlaid to produce the picture below.

Now, why am I telling you about our Google Map? If you are outside of Hampshire, surely this is pointless?

Well, no...

For those of you that are thinking I spent hours plotting all 400 points, you are wrong. I used a fab service called MapAList This is a service that allows you to create a map using a Goolge spreadsheet.  It is designed for businesses to map their customers, but I thought it could help me too. 

I had a list of schools already in Excel, I deleted the information that I didn't need and then uploaded this into Google Docs. MapAList then links with Google Docs and transfers the data into a map. You can give all points the same pin or use the advanced tool, as I have done, and assign different colours. All of the pins with the same colour started their training in the same term. You can then save the .KML file and import it into Google Earth or Google Maps.

So how would I use it within school?

@deputymitchell is teaching a zoo based topic(starting today) and asked for people to suggest zoos for his children to investigate. Putting these onto a Google Doc would enable him to map them across the globe.

What about plotting the countries in the World Cup/African Cup of Nations?

Where do we have relatives? Plot their locations on a map and investigate different parts of the UK.

I saw a school that had a local map on the wall and they had put sticky labels to represent children. This showed how far and wide the children had travelled to attend their school. This could be done very quickly and simply using Google maps and an exported CSV file from the school office.

How would you use this mapping service? It would be great to hear your comments.

If you wish to see the maps, click below:

http://bit.ly/wizkidarea1

http://bit.ly/wizkidarea2

http://bit.ly/wizkidarea3

http://bit.ly/wizkidarea4

So here I am. Finally in the world of blogging. I've always hated writing or maybe it was just because I wasn't any good at it. At school it wa my weakest subject and when I started teaching, I hated literacy. Working hard on it with my year 3s helped, but I'm still just a beginner. So who knows, maybe I'll enjoy blogging, maybe I wont.
Anyway, what do I do? I'm a primary teacher currently on secondment working with the local authority, Hampshire, on the rollout of their learning platform Studywiz. It has its ups and its downs but the potential for collaboration across Hampshire is huge. As we stand at the moment in October 09, we have trained just under 200 schools and will have 420 onboard by January. It is a mammoth task and one that has been exciting, but full of struggles and learning opportunities.
Throughout the secondment my mind has always been torn about what to do next. Do I go back to my old school, Hulbert? Do i look somewhere new? Do I try and combine Studywiz and teaching? I think the half and half approach was where my mind has been at for most of the past year, but joining Twitter has given me an enthusiasm for trying new things with children.
I follow a few teachers on Twitter and constantly, every day, I see new sites, new links, new ideas that I wish I was using with a class of my own. Seeing the virtual timeline gave me ideas about creating a class timeline or maybe one for the whole school? Looking at blogs about the use of the Wii for maths or deep sea diving has made me want to go and see what other opportunities there are for learning.
A visit to Hulbert last week gave me a buzz. They are using Community outreach money to equip an empty classroom with 6 Wiis! I mentioned I had heard of ways of using it and now I've been invited to lead the training.
What about Wii golf or baseball to find out how far the ball has gone? Manipulating the numbers to provide the different sums needed. What about using Mario Kart to explore different worlds and settings? The fire of Bowser's Castle, the dark, broody scenes of the highway, all rich for vocabulary collection.
So now I'm thinking I want to go back and teach full time. The opportunities are huge. I want to use the learning platform to share a radio show. I want to create animations and games using tools like Scratch. I want children to comment and share ideas using Edmodo or Studywiz. I want to share vocabulary using Wordle. Am I being greedy? Maybe. But I have always tried new things with my class, but maybe this time I need to think more about the whole-school. How will Google calendars help with whole school organisation? How will the website help with invigorating home-school links? I have ideas bouncing all over the place and this is even if ignore 90% of the links on Twitter.
I've signed up for a delicious account. What about sharing websites with the whole staff? We have a school account and tag the bookmarks to share with everyone. I need to play with it more but it could work. Are the staff too old-school for it to work? Who knows. Will the head want me to go in and change anything? Will there be another job available that tempts me instead? Who knows! But the opportunities are there.
Anyway...thats the first blog post. Not sure what will become of this, it will probably just be a list of the useful things I find on Twitter, tagged and ready for use next year when/if I go into class again. Tomorrow I'm off for the first join meeting with the Primary and Secondary Leading ICT teachers. Could be interesting, and I know at least one uses Delicious so I'm sure he'll be my first friend on there!