Monday, June 20, 2011

Free Software for the Classroom Compilation

I'm working on making a compilation on a DVD of educational software that can enhance student learning and productivity. Here is a list of the programs that I'm planning on putting on the disc. Please feel free to add your suggestions. Many of the programs are open source while others are simply free.

Office/Desktop Publishing:
Graphics:
  • Gimp (Win, Mac, Lin) http://www.gimp.org
    Photo editor. I've used this program extensively for editing images from simple crops to image creation.
  • Picasa (Win, Mac, Lin) http://picasa.google.com
    Photo album. Can be used to create basic video clips or slide shows. I used this extensively to organize the files for the yearbook this past year and found the face recognize feature very useful.
Organizational:
  • Xournal (Win, Lin) http://xournal.sourceforge.net
    Digital paper, can be use with a smart board or to annotate PDF files. For our daily grammar activities in class I would scan them to a PDF and then my students or myself would mark them up using a Wacom Bamboo pad as students called out corrections.
  • FreeMind (Win, Lin, Mac) http://freemind.sourceforge.net
    Concept/Mind-mapping software. Students used this extensively to create study guides. Very quick and easy to use.
  • Dia (Win, Mac, Lin) http://dia-installer.de
    Create diagrams and flow charts. I used this more in the past but it is still a good piece of software.
Audio/Music/Video:
  • VLC (Win, Mac, Lin) http://www.videolan.org/vlc
    Plays most any audio or video file.
  • Audacity (Win, Mac, Lin) http://audacity.sourceforge.net
    Sound file editor/recorder. I've used this program extensively when creating my online spelling tests. Both the Windows and the Linux versions.
  • MuScore (Win, Mac, Lin) http://musescore.org
    Musical score editor. I have not used this very much yet but plan on using it in the classroom this next year.
  • OpenShot (Lin) http://www.openshotvideo.com
    Video editor. I just started using this program this last spring and am very impress with its offerings.
Science:
  • Celestia (Win, Mac, Lin) http://www.shatters.net/celestia/
    Allows you to explore space from your desktop
  • West Point Bridge Building Software (Win, Mac) http://bridgecontest.usma.edu
    Bring the engineering lab to your classroom. This software allows you to build and test bridges within the confines of your classroom.
  • Google Earth (Win, Mac, Lin) http://google.com/earth
    Explore the world. Note: Internet connection required.
  • Online Interactive Science Simulations (Win, Mac, Lin) http://phet.colorado.edu
    Excellent science lab activities that can be done and manipulated on the computer.
Internet:
Misc:
  • Word Search Creator (Win, Lin) http://wordsearchcreator.org
    Create word searches that can be printed.
  • Hot Potatoes (Win, Mac, Lin) http://hotpot.uvic.ca
    Create a several different electronic activities such as word sorts, crossword puzzles, matching, and multiple choice activities.
  • GnuCash (Win, Mac, Lin) http://www.gnucash.org
    Persona/Business accounting software. I have not yet integrated this into my classroom but I'm working on it and see that it has some great potential.
Computer Maintenance:

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