Wakelet is a digital curation platform that lets teachers and students organize a mix of content for easy access. This, of course, means it's a broad platform that can be used in many ways, making it a creative way to be engaging with students.
If you think of a media feed on something such as Pinterest, that's a little what Wakelet feels like -- a recognizable platform for students that can make sharing a mix of digital content easy. From social media posts and videos to images and links, this lets you collate it all in one stream.
These combinations are known as wakes and can be easily created and shared with a single link, making any widely accessible for students, teachers, and families.
Read on to find out everything you need to know about Wakelet.
What is Wakelet?
Wakelet is a digital curation tool, so it offers a way to collate online resources in one place, called a wake. These wakes can then be shared with a link to be accessed online, easily, by anyone.
Teachers can create wakes as a way to pool resources, say on a certain topic, allowing students to explore the various information ahead of a lesson. Crucially, this is an open platform, meaning students can go off and explore wakes created by others to learn more.
Wakelet works with lots of education technology platforms, including Microsoft Teams and OneNote, Buncee, Flipgrid, and plenty more. This makes it very easy to integrate and work across resources.
Wakelet can be used by a collective group or individually. It not only works as a digital platform but also lets you export to PDF so you can print and use it as a physical classroom resource too. Since it works well as a way to make infographic-style outputs, it can be ideal for in-class media.
Wakelet is aimed at ages thirteen and above, and works for both in-person and remote learning.
Not only is Wakelet available via a browser but is also in app form for iOS, Android, and Amazon Fire devices.
How does Wakelet work?
Wakelet allows you to sign-in and start using it right away for free. You can log into the platform via a web browser on nearly any device. From inside, it's possible to start building your wakes.
But, helpfully, Wakelet also has a Chrome browser extension. That means you can be browsing various resources as you would normally and then simply hit the Wakelet icon in the upper right corner and that link will be saved to any wake you pick.
Wakelet can also be used by students as a place to collate research resources. This can be a great way to start a project or to review and revisit learning after a topic has been covered.
Since Wakelet works in a story-based way, it can also be useful for teachers to use as a professional development presentation platform. You can deliver the story of your development program in a single stream that's easy to add to and share information and best practices with colleagues, as needed.
What are the best Wakelet features?
Wakelet is super simple to use. From pulling in a webpage to adding a video, it's all very straightforward. Since this is a collation platform it does all depend on you being able to use other tech, such as YouTube to create and upload your own videos, for example.
Some great examples of wakes include lesson plans, newsletters, group projects, research assignments, portfolios, and reading recommendations. The ability to copy these wakes is a powerful feature as teachers can view already completed wakes of other educators and copy for editing and using themselves.
The ability to follow others, such as on a social media platform, makes it easy to build a list of useful regular creators who you can get ideas from or copy wakes to use in class.
Wakes can be shared either publicly or privately. This allows students to share with one another without their work being exposed if they want creative privacy.
It's worth keeping in mind, for teachers, that posting publicly can open them up to more exposure, especially if their social media accounts are linked to their profile. Also worth noting is that students can be exposed to other content that may not be suitable, even though the platform aims to only offer content that is appropriate.
How much does Wakelet cost?
Wakelet is free to sign up for and use. That means there are no hidden costs, no scaling for the amount of users, and no worries about being bombarded by advertisements while you're trying to use the platform.
The company says on its website that all the features currently available are free and will remain that way. Even if premium plans are introduced in the future, no features will be removed or charged for, only new features will be added at a premium.
