Finishing Scripts, Rehearsing, and Exploration

Hello to my hard working podcast creators.  I am not able to be there with you today, but Mrs. Diggins is ready to help you with whatever you need.  Please do a great job for her!  Everything you need for class today can be found in this blog post.  Please be sure to read it in its entirety.  Don’t leave anything out!!!  
You will start class today by taking the “Pop Culture Survey” created by our yearbook committee.  When you click on this link, it will take you to our Google portal.  **If this link does not work, please go to the BIS homepage.  If you look under the “Quick Links” you will see the survey as your first selection.  You will need to sign in to your Google account to take the survey.  Please be sure to work independently.  You will need to select an answer for each of the questions.  I know there may be some questions for which you do not care for any of the choices, but you MUST select one.  So just pick the one which is least objectionable.  Mrs. Diggins will be giving you some directions before and after this activator.  Please wait for her before moving on.
Once you have finished your activator, you will be moving on to the next three agenda items on the front board.  
Some of you may have already completed #2:  Finish/Print your Podcast Script.  If you have not yet completed your script you will only have 15 minutes to get it finished and printed (one copy for each person in your group.)   You will need to do a run through of your script and time it.  Remember you may find an online stopwatch to complete this task.  If your podcast falls short, you will need to quickly add more to your script and reprint it.
Then you will move on to item #3 (if you have already printed your script you will be starting with #3).  Rehearse your podcast ( a minimum of 5 times) This should take you at least 10 minutes to complete.  Be sure to rehearse it the same way you will be recording it (outloud, slowly, and clearly.)  Once you have finished rehearsing your script, please put it in your folder or binder.  You will not need it for the rest of class today.  Remember my suggestions to highlight your lines on your copy of the script.  Highlighters can be found at the on the back row of computers workstations.  ***Remember you will only have a 15 minute recording session so it very important you are well prepared.
Now it is time to move on to item #4 Explore Audacity/Soundbooth.  Look at the column of icons on your desktop.  The third icon from the bottom is a folder named, “audio/video”.  Please open this file.  You will find four items inside.  You should see both Audacity and Adobe Soundbooth.  You will need to open and explore both of these software programs.  As you are exploring you will need to be sure to learn how to do the following things:

1. Start a recording
2. Pause a recording- this will be very important next week.  It is very possible you may have a case of the giggles of get tongue-tied when recording.  You will not want to end and then restart your recording.  You will instead want to pause, regain your composure and then begin recording again.
3. Re-start your recording
4. End your recording
5. Save your recording

You have saved some resources for Audacity in your diigo accounts.  Please use these to help you as you explore.  If you did not bookmark these resources, you will find some helpful links at the end of this post. You should also use the “help” tabs within each of these programs.   Once  you have figures out how to accomplish the five tasks above, I would like you to create a test recording.  There are a few sets of headphone/microphones hanging on the sound proof carousel on the computer at the far side of the classroom by the windows.  These “peripheral devices” have a USB connector (do you remember what those 3 letters stand for???)  You do not need to use the headphones, just speak in to the microphone.  After recording your test audio track, listen to it and see how it sounds.  You need to get a sense of how close to hold the mic and how loud to speak.  You will need to share these headsets, so after recording your track, please put them back.   If time allows, you can actually play around a bit with editing.

Audacity Resources:
Audacity Tutorial Part I
Audacity Tutorial Part II
Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Podcast? (power point)
Audacity WIKI

Soundbooth Resources:
Adobe Soundbooth Tutorials
Learn Adobe Soundbooth
Soundbooth Essential Training

***You will not be doing any searching or saving of music today.  We will address where to find music and search for it next week.  You should not be working on a video part of this project today either.  If you are using a video in your podcast, you will need to bring that video in to class next week.  Please do not panic about this piece. I will help you problem solve getting the video on to the computer in class.

If you should finish with all of these items before the end of class please do any of the following things:

   Work on your blog

   Clean out your Gmail

   Clean and organize your Google docs

   Check to make sure you have a folder for each of your classes

   Check to make sure you have shared the folder with your teachers

   Clean out your pdrive

You may NOT go to any on line game sites or listen to music on line.  Remember the AUP you signed and the trust I have in all of you.  You need to get all of these things done so you are ready to record next week.  Have a great class.  I am so excited for you to record your podcasts next week.  I know you will do a great job!  Have an awesome weekend!

Image Link:  http://allthingsd.com/20120615/apple-gives-podcasts-a-gentle-push-out-of-itunes/