Documenting Reading and Writing with Doodlecast App

The more I use Doodlecast Pro ($2.99) the more I like this app. My favorite app for recording audio on a screen has always been Educreations (Free) because of the simplicity of the app. The two things I think Doodlecast offers over Educreations is the ability to have multiple pages and the ability to export the videos directly to the camera roll. I love that the iPad gives me different ways to document things that are happening in the classroom. I plan to use Doodlecast Pro in this way and share the results with parents at our last conference. Here are a few ideas I had app…

Reading: I wanted to document the kids reading their decodable books or leveled readers in a different way than just a simple video. My goal was for the parents to be able to see the story, hear their child’s voice, and know where their child’s eyes were looking. So I took a screen shot of their readers and added those pages to Doodlecast. Then as the kids read the story I asked them to touch under the word just like we do during our reading groups. I think this does a great job of documenting their reading. As I get more and more reading samples I plan to make a library of videos that the class can use as a reading center. I know they will enjoy reading along with their friends. (example below)

Writing: I basically did the same thing as the reading example except this time I took a picture of their journal paper. I like this idea even more than the reading one because I think it will give great insight into their story making process and writing ability. I wish I had done this at the beginning of the year to document their growth. Next year I plan to make one writing sample each month. (example below)

*I decided to leave in the “made with Doodlecast Pro” at the end of the video for these examples. I will be removing that part of the video with iMovie before saving the final product for my class or parents. I will make a separate post soon showing how easy that process is

What other ways do you see using this app for writing or reading?