QR Codes in the Classroom

A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon QR Codes (Quick Response codes) and quickly discovered their widespread use. Intrigued by their potential, I shared my findings in a blog post titled "My Digital Footprint is a Barcode." Since then, I've been actively exploring ways to integrate them into the classroom. Here are some innovative ways you could leverage QR Codes in your educational setting:

1. Print to Audio:

2. Scavenger Hunt in the library

3. Adding QR Codes to an assignment so students can check their answers.

(40 interesting ways to use QR Codes in the classroom)

4. I find the concept of including a QR code at the back of books, linking to a website for additional information, quite appealing.

5. Mystery Picture

(http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2011/04/qr-codes-in-classroom.html)

6. Showcasing Student Work (vidcasts)

7. Design a print art project and incorporate animation into a specific area by integrating a QR code. Here's an example of how advertisers are implementing this technique in their "Print Campaigns."

What ideas would you add to this list?

Please include these educational videos in your playlist!

At Free Tech for Teachers, Richard Byrne has begun creating an educational youtube video playlist. He has listed seven great videos that are worth checking out. I would include these valuable videos to his playlist:

A Vision of K-12 Students Today (different one than Byrne has listed)

The Lost Generation

21st Century New Brunswick

Empowering Young Learners

Who is Depending on Your Dream

The Thrilling Potential of Sixth Sense Technology

Reimagine Learning in the 21st Century

The Power of Mutual Knowledge

Changing Education Paradigms

Sugata Mitra's New Experiment in Self-Teaching

I will add to these as I continue to think about some of my favorites!

My digital footprint is a bar code?

I stumbled upon the concept of individuals having their own "bar codes" some time ago, initially dismissing it with a chuckle. However, today, while perusing Cybraryman's webpage, I noticed a tiny barcode with the caption "QR Code for this page" underneath. This piqued my curiosity. Why would someone want their own barcode? Could it even be possible?

To satisfy my curiosity, I embarked on a journey of research. First stop: Wikipedia. There, I discovered that a QR Code stands for "Quick Response" code and was originally employed to track vehicles. It has since gained popularity in countries like Japan and South Korea, slowly making its mark in the Western world. Interestingly, QR Codes have the capacity to store various types of data, from text to URLs to contact information.

Next, I turned to Twitter, searching for #QRCodes, where I unearthed further insights. It appears that people are utilizing QR Codes for their resumes, business cards, and even creating stickers featuring their codes to adorn laptops, conference brochures, and more.

Intrigued, I decided to give it a try and see how I might incorporate it into my own endeavors, if at all. I experimented with two code generators, Qurify and Kaywa, primarily because they were the top hits in my Google search.

I inputted the URL for this blog: http://up2notches.blogspot.com/ and clicked "create."

Here is what I obtained from Kaywa:

 Code from Qurify:

Oddly enough, the codes appeared identical. Could it be that this was actually effective? Intrigued, I grabbed my iPhone and swiftly downloaded "QR Code Reader" (for free). With bated breath, I scanned the codes, and to my amazement, my blog popped up!

I'm thrilled! Without a doubt, I'll be adding my QR Code to my blog, definitely onto my business cards, and I'm even considering printing some stickers.