BP_4 DoInk

BP_4 DoInk

Hello and welcome to my fourth blog!  Here I explore and review a new Web 2.0 tool to assist in language learning for students on the go.   The tool I chose to learn more about is called DoInk.  This interactive tool promotes creativity, community, and sharing.This is attractive as it is something you can access from your smartphone so you can create on the spot or sit down and take your time at your home computer.

DoInk is really fun to use, in fact, I couldn’t stop laughing the entire time I was using it! Students can create their own story lines and make short animations by drawing their own images with the drawing tool or using “props” from a gallery, also known as the Bazaar. This tool has a free trial and user-generated content and social participation can be published to major networks like YouTube and Facebook.

Key features like the drawing tool or the library of pre-made images allow students to invest their own creativity to share an idea.  This will be really fun to include as an option for an assignment for my ESL students.  They can access this tool from their mobile devices when they have a moment of inspiration.  Once they create their picture story, they can share it with classmates by uploading it to Facebook or YouTube.  To test of the ease of use for this tool, I created a very short animation of my own.  Regardless of user talent, there is something for everyone.  I am not an artist, but am definitely creative or at least had fun trying to be. I chose to freehand a character called Domingo Pepino.  I found inspiration from the name I used when I was learning Spanish when I was in school. Oddly enough, the name translates to “Sunday Cucumber” but it was so much fun to say during presentations or even to write on exams.  I’ve included a sample of my character introducing himself…”Hola me llamo Domingo Pepino”.

This will be a fun way to encourage peer-to-peer feedback, creative expression, and to have fun while learning a new language.  By spending time thinking about the story behind the picture, students will be able to apply a visual association to learning new words or phrases in a fun, practical and interactive way.   You can “Like” the DoInk community and stay connected to your friends and classmates’ creations. Go to http://www.doink.com and have some fun!  Until next time, every good wish.