Voki

One of my favorite, free, technology tools is Voki. With this site, you can create a speaking avatar that can look like nearly anything you choose! It is perfect for every teacher's webpage and can also be emailed to parents. This is perfect for parents who have difficulty reading and parents who speak foreign languages. There are also options for translating your text into other languages (be careful with free translations!). Voki can also be used to announce homework assignments to your classes and to give short, simple, directions. It is great for students who may need to hear things repeated several times.

Students can also create their own Voki. I have seen these used in classrooms to introduce a wiki page or to briefly describe a topic that has been researched. The kids really enjoy creating one that looks a lot (or not so much) like they do. Another idea is to have students create a Voki to speak as an important historical figure or to promote a campaign such as anti-bullying. Although the talking time is limited, there are numerous possibilities to use Voki and to keep students engaged and enjoying themselves while learning or showing what they have already learned.

The Voki site is extremely easy to use. Just select a face, hair, clothing, and accessories. You can then alter skin, hair, eye, and lip colors if you decide to. It is also fun to add a background to your Voki to really make it come to life. If you don't want to voice record your message, there is an option to type it in. It is important to note that Voki reads things phonetically, so you may need to spell them they way they sound if it is having trouble with a word. Since your viewer does not see what you typed in, this is not an issue! Overall, Voki is a really fun tool to use and benefits everyone! See my newest Voki avatar below. I personally prefer to type in my messages since both my microphone and cell phone do not sound as clear as I would like.

For another example, check out Jackie's Voki!