What’s In Your Course Design Toolkit? #35

E-Learning Toolkit #35: Challenge | Recap

In a recent workshop someone asked a question about my favorite tools and resources. I replied that I would pull some forum conversations together for her where folks shared their favorite tools. Easy, right?

“What do you use, Mr. David?” she asked. Evidently this wasn’t going to be a simple handoff. She explained that what she wanted was a personal recommendation of tools from me. And I get that.

As members of this community, you guys are looked at as trusted sources. You come together in this community but each of you has your own trusted network that you look to you as experts. Anyone can do a search for “Free design tools” or “free writing tools” and find thousands of recommendations. But to the person who looks to you as a trusted source, the only list that matters is the list you share.

Curation is personal. And that’s what this week’s challenge is all about.

Challenge of the week

This week your challenge is to share your favorite, free tools that make your course design easier.

Answer the following questions for each tool you share:

1. What’s your favorite free tool?
2. Why is it your favorite?

I know some of you will use this challenge to build out some really neat interactions and that’s great. But you don’t have to. You can skate through this challenge by sharing a short list of your favorite tools and how you use them.

Use the comments below to include your tools or post the list on your own blog. If you post on your blog, be sure to include a link to your post in the comments below.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Color pickers and schemes
• Image editors (online or desktop)
• Free storyboarding tools
• Utilities and production tools
• Lorem Ipsum text generators
• Writing and editing tools

Last week’s challenge

Before you begin this week’s challenge, take a look at the instructional design activities your fellow community members shared in last week’s challenge:

• Dianne Hope kicked off the challenge with an interactive overview of Gagne’s 9 Events of Instruction. You can read more about Dianne’s creative project over at her blog.
• Michael Fimian shared an interactive presentation on Bloom’s Taxonomy in this great use of Engage ‘09. Nice job, Michael!
• Mary Cropp shared a blooming example in this animated concept that combines poetry and Bloom’s Taxonomy. Great idea, Mary!
• Matthew Mason shared a creative example in this interactive Bloom’s Taxonomy presentation.
• Matthew Guyan introduced learners to some of the most influential learning researchers and theorists.
• Nick Russell shared binders full of learning theories in this accordion-style interaction. Nick also writes about his project in this blog post. Great work as always, Nick!
• Dan Sweigert shared an interactive presentation on Bloom’s Taxonomy that features a fun drag-and-drop activity. You can read more about Dan’s project over at his blog. Nice one, Dan!
• Ashley Chiasson took a break from her projects to put together an interactive tutorial on cognitive load theory. You can read more about this creative project in Ashley’s blog post.
• Mike Taylor shared his own crash course in the principles of learning design in this multimedia presentation.
• Ron Chow shared his own interactive presentation on Bloom’s Taxonomy in this engaging activity. Well done, Ron!
• Allison Nederveld hopped back into the e-learning challenge saddle this week by reminding us of the basics in her interactive presentation on learning objectives. You’ll want to read more about this project on Allison’s blog.
• Jackie Van Nice took her favorite e-learning design model and used it to teach itself. You can read more about this novel approach in her blog post. Super demo, Jackie!
• Dana Dutiel shared a performance support idea in this creative concept for just-in-time learning theories. Great idea and starting point, Dana!
• Paul Alders closed the gaps in this creative interaction based on a popular instructional design book. 

More about the e-learning  challenges:

The weekly challenges are ongoing opportunities to learn, share, and build your e-learning portfolios. You can jump into any or all of the previous challenges anytime you want. We’ll feature your work and provide feedback if you request it.

Wishing you a productive week, E-Learning Heroes!

Even if you’re using a trial version of Studio ’13 or Storyline, you can absolutely publish your challenge files. Just sign up for a fully functional, free 30-day trial, and have at it. And remember to post your questions and comments in the forums; we're here to help. For more e-learning tips, examples, and downloads, follow us on Twitter.