There are a ton of apps and programs to use with student to practice their speaking skills. I won't even begin to try a comprehensive list, but here are six tools I found to have great potential, both in and out of the classroom.
Voxopop (FREE, website) is a message board that uses audio instead of text. You can create private, public or restricted discussion boards with specific tasks for students, then they post their audio responses. Good for practicing a variety of speaking tasks. It is not ideal for practicing conversational turn-taking, but it has great value for responses to speaking prompts, practicing presentations and collaborative projects for students.
Chirbit (FREE, website with app option) is really versatile. You can record audio files up to 2 hours, then upload, send, share, or embed on a website or blog. You can also extract audio from YouTube videos, add a photo to recordings, or transcribe your posts to make them searchable. These features are available on your smart phone or computer. This could be used for presentations, discussion tasks, and dictation, plus a million other things I have not thought of.
Podomatic (FREE, podcasting website) allows you to create your own classroom channel for your podcasts. You can create podcasts for students to practice listening, or they could create podcasts and listen to each other’s. This would be good for group projects and presentations, such as performing skits, conducting interviews, or creating a commercial or radio-type show.
Fotobabble (FREE app) – snap a photo, tell a story about the picture (up to 1 min) and share it with friends and classmates via Facebook, Twitter or email, or post on your class blog/website. A good activity to promote focused, concise descriptions about an image that is meaningful (and therefore interesting) to your students.
Up In Pieces (FREE app) – Create puzzles from your pictures and share via Facebook, Twitter and email. Students create their own puzzles (or you could email them one) and work in groups or pairs to put it together. Taking turns, move a piece to the board and make a statement about what you think the picture might be or where each piece could fit (use modals of inference).
Google Voice (FREE, U.S. only, voice mail) is an option for students without internet access. Set up a Google phone number for free, then students can call the number on their phones and leave a message in response to your prompt. You can download the audio file to listen on your computer. It also automatically generates and emails you a transcript of the audio. I like the idea of being able to set up a designated phone number for my students. This could be a good option for adult learners who do not have access to or use all the gadgets.
Voxopop (FREE, website) is a message board that uses audio instead of text. You can create private, public or restricted discussion boards with specific tasks for students, then they post their audio responses. Good for practicing a variety of speaking tasks. It is not ideal for practicing conversational turn-taking, but it has great value for responses to speaking prompts, practicing presentations and collaborative projects for students.
Chirbit (FREE, website with app option) is really versatile. You can record audio files up to 2 hours, then upload, send, share, or embed on a website or blog. You can also extract audio from YouTube videos, add a photo to recordings, or transcribe your posts to make them searchable. These features are available on your smart phone or computer. This could be used for presentations, discussion tasks, and dictation, plus a million other things I have not thought of.
Podomatic (FREE, podcasting website) allows you to create your own classroom channel for your podcasts. You can create podcasts for students to practice listening, or they could create podcasts and listen to each other’s. This would be good for group projects and presentations, such as performing skits, conducting interviews, or creating a commercial or radio-type show.
Fotobabble (FREE app) – snap a photo, tell a story about the picture (up to 1 min) and share it with friends and classmates via Facebook, Twitter or email, or post on your class blog/website. A good activity to promote focused, concise descriptions about an image that is meaningful (and therefore interesting) to your students.
Up In Pieces (FREE app) – Create puzzles from your pictures and share via Facebook, Twitter and email. Students create their own puzzles (or you could email them one) and work in groups or pairs to put it together. Taking turns, move a piece to the board and make a statement about what you think the picture might be or where each piece could fit (use modals of inference).
Google Voice (FREE, U.S. only, voice mail) is an option for students without internet access. Set up a Google phone number for free, then students can call the number on their phones and leave a message in response to your prompt. You can download the audio file to listen on your computer. It also automatically generates and emails you a transcript of the audio. I like the idea of being able to set up a designated phone number for my students. This could be a good option for adult learners who do not have access to or use all the gadgets.