1. What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?
I honestly think my favorite exercise was creating my blog. I am terrified of technology, but setting up my blog and keeping up with each week really made me feel a part of the technology community. Learning how to be comfortable with technology, upload different items into my blog, and being confident enough to share my thoughts each week about what I had discovered was a challenge, but I enjoyed it. I want to now start a blog for my future classroom. I also liked the idea of exploring so many different technology ideas to use in the classroom. My favorite technology item that I explored was the Web 2.0 Tools, Podcasting and Bookmarking. Everything challenged me, but I learned so much!
2. How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?
Looking at this question, I referenced back to the 7 1/2 Habits discussed in our first post about life long learning. Even though this was only 6 weeks ago that I began this technology journey, I feel like I grew so much in my technology abilities. I can now feel stronger in the area of Habit 3:View problems as challenges. I came into contact with tons of problems while completing my blog. There were times when I spent two hours trying to figure out how something worked, but I was determined to learn and accomplish the task. I rose to the challenge!
I also feel like I better understand Habit 6: Use technology to your advantage. After reading and exploring so many websites and seeing how technology can be used in the classroom. I realize I would be doing a disservice to my students and myself if I did not incorporate technology into my lesson plans. Technology is at our fingertips and can be used in so many ways! Also, most importantly...Habit 7 1/2 has totally made itself known to me: Play! I had so much fun exploring, being creative, and experiencing a lot of trial and error when completing my blog entries. I got to come into contact with a lot of great websites that are going to be excellent resources for my students and my teaching. I learned how to have fun with technology and play around with it!
3. Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
I think the biggest outcome for me is that I now really like technology. In the past, I only used technology because it is a part of everyday life. Now, I find myself interested in reading articles online about new technology and how it is being used in the classroom. Also, my confidence in regards to technology. I would not say I am 100% confident, but I feel a lot better about technology. Another positive outcome is that I am now obsessed with blogging! I mentioned in quesiton one that I want to begin a classroom blog when I beging teaching.
4. What could I do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?
One aspec that I noticed is that some of the links do not work for certain tutorials provided on the instructional blog. Also, I know it is hard to do because as a teacher we wish we could make certain projects last forever, but the reality is that there is a timeline we must stick to while planning. I just wish that I could have had more than a week to accomplish some of the blog post. The reason for this is because there were some blog entries I wish I could have spent more time exploring and really getting the opportunity to experience more in depth before posting about them.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Thing 16: PhotoPeach
A New Day on PhotoPeach
A New Day on PhotoPeach
PhotoPeach was so easy to use! I could see using this in the classroom with any grade level. At the beginning of the year, the teacher could take a picture of each student on the first day of school. The student could then upload their picture into the slideshow and type a sentence about themselves. The teacher could then play the slideshow for the class and it could be a way for the students to get to know each other. Also, the teacher could have the students draw pictures to illustrate a story and scan the pictures into the computer. The teacher could then have the students upload the pictures into the slideshow and each student write a sentence that narrates their part of the story. The teacher could make this a monthly project and start collecting the stories in a library on the computer. The students could then watch, listen, and read the stories they created as a class during center time.
A New Day on PhotoPeach
PhotoPeach was so easy to use! I could see using this in the classroom with any grade level. At the beginning of the year, the teacher could take a picture of each student on the first day of school. The student could then upload their picture into the slideshow and type a sentence about themselves. The teacher could then play the slideshow for the class and it could be a way for the students to get to know each other. Also, the teacher could have the students draw pictures to illustrate a story and scan the pictures into the computer. The teacher could then have the students upload the pictures into the slideshow and each student write a sentence that narrates their part of the story. The teacher could make this a monthly project and start collecting the stories in a library on the computer. The students could then watch, listen, and read the stories they created as a class during center time.
Thing 15: Things like Skype
I have so many friends who use Skype and always talk about how much they love it. I have never had the need for it, therefore I never took the time to explore the website to learn more about Skype. After reading the information on the Skype website and all of the links on Dr. Wilson's 16 Things, I realized that Skype is such a great and effective resource.
After reading the links with the different alternatives to Skype on Dr. Wilson's 16 Things, I was amazed about how little I know about communication resources with the exception of e-mails, chatting online, and calling people with cell phones! Although there were some great items mentioned, I really like Skype the best.
I did not know any of my classmates Skype info, so I surprised my fiance and Skyped with him. It was so neat to experience and really easy to use. I think I might try and get my grandpa set up on Skype because he lives four hours away and I miss seeing him. This would be a great way to talk to him, as well as see him! It is also great that if you do Skype to Skype it is free!
When I think of using Skype in the classroom, I think of a topic I explored when I was in Applications of Technology. Students can use Skype to talk to students in other countries. This would be great if students were researching the same topic and sharing their ideas or if students were learning about other cultures by talking to students all over the world! 50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom talked about a site called ePALS that could accomplish the task of connecting students around the world.
50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom is an excellent website with rich resources to apply into teacher instruction. I like that it discussed bring busy parents into the classroom using Skype. I know my mom would have appreciated Skype when I was little because she was a single working mom. Therefore, it was hard for her to meet with teachers for conferences. Skype would have made this much more accessible.
I love introducing the students I work with to new authors and books. 50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom talked about having students meet authors and illustrators through using Skype. SO NEAT! I would love to have the opportunity to share this with my future students. Allowing students to have a first hand experience with an author or illustrator makes writing and illustration come to life. Librarians could also use this idea if they were featuring a certain author or illustrator that month in the library. After sharing stories by this author/and or illustrator with students, the librarian could contact the author/illustrator via Skype for students to learn from and interview.
During student teaching, I did a letter writing unit where my 1st grade students wrote letters to a close friend who is a Marine. It would have been neat if I could have figured out if he had Skype and the students could have talked to him while he was on deployment.
I am going to learn a lot more about Skype so I can apply it to the classroom and teach other fellow teachers about it!
After reading the links with the different alternatives to Skype on Dr. Wilson's 16 Things, I was amazed about how little I know about communication resources with the exception of e-mails, chatting online, and calling people with cell phones! Although there were some great items mentioned, I really like Skype the best.
I did not know any of my classmates Skype info, so I surprised my fiance and Skyped with him. It was so neat to experience and really easy to use. I think I might try and get my grandpa set up on Skype because he lives four hours away and I miss seeing him. This would be a great way to talk to him, as well as see him! It is also great that if you do Skype to Skype it is free!
When I think of using Skype in the classroom, I think of a topic I explored when I was in Applications of Technology. Students can use Skype to talk to students in other countries. This would be great if students were researching the same topic and sharing their ideas or if students were learning about other cultures by talking to students all over the world! 50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom talked about a site called ePALS that could accomplish the task of connecting students around the world.
50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom is an excellent website with rich resources to apply into teacher instruction. I like that it discussed bring busy parents into the classroom using Skype. I know my mom would have appreciated Skype when I was little because she was a single working mom. Therefore, it was hard for her to meet with teachers for conferences. Skype would have made this much more accessible.
I love introducing the students I work with to new authors and books. 50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom talked about having students meet authors and illustrators through using Skype. SO NEAT! I would love to have the opportunity to share this with my future students. Allowing students to have a first hand experience with an author or illustrator makes writing and illustration come to life. Librarians could also use this idea if they were featuring a certain author or illustrator that month in the library. After sharing stories by this author/and or illustrator with students, the librarian could contact the author/illustrator via Skype for students to learn from and interview.
During student teaching, I did a letter writing unit where my 1st grade students wrote letters to a close friend who is a Marine. It would have been neat if I could have figured out if he had Skype and the students could have talked to him while he was on deployment.
I am going to learn a lot more about Skype so I can apply it to the classroom and teach other fellow teachers about it!
Thing 15.5: Twitter
I have always made fun of Twitter because I felt like people use it to comment on their every thought throughout the day. I always found it to be a waste of time. After signing up for an account for our class, I actually can seen how Twitter can be beneficial. Another positive about Twitter is that it is super simple to use. I was able to set up my account and add several people I wanted to follow in a matter of 15 to 20 minutes! The past few days I have been following mostly education related tweets.
After looking at 50 Ways to Use Twitter for Education I liked the idea discussed about using Twitter as an Opinion Poll. I think this would be a fun idea to use in the classroom. The teacher can post a poll topic and allow the students to twitter their opinion about the topic. This is helping students to formulate ideas and to support their opinion.
Using Twitter in and Out of the Classroom also had a couple of great ideas of how to incorporate Twitter in the classroom. I liked the idea of allowing students to get current information by asking other people on Twitter questions related to educational content or the news. This is really reinforcing the idea of social media and learning from those around us through the use of technology.
I am following so many neat people on Twitter:
MsSavvyScience: Her blog has so many great insightful comments about each of the 16 Things, therefore I knew I wanted to follow her on Twitter. I like that she updates her students' parents about important school information.
octobersmith: I had her as a professor last fall and she loved integrating technology in the classroom. Her Twitter account offers links to great education ideas she comes across and shares with other people on Twitter.
Education Week: I find myself constantly going back to read the new Tweets Education Week posts on their Twitter feed. They post topics about education in regards to new laws and news up-dates about education.
I know this is redundant, but I agree with others who have blogged about using Twitter to update students and parents about classroom news. It could also be used for students to communicate ideas with one another and ask for help. The link we visited talked about having students find an article and post their thoughts or opinions about it through Twitter. There are so many neat ideas that people have thought of for using Twitter. I cannot wait to use some of them in the classroom and then have the opportunity to create some of my own ideas for how to incorporate Twitter.
Find me @: KeslieLangerud
After looking at 50 Ways to Use Twitter for Education I liked the idea discussed about using Twitter as an Opinion Poll. I think this would be a fun idea to use in the classroom. The teacher can post a poll topic and allow the students to twitter their opinion about the topic. This is helping students to formulate ideas and to support their opinion.
Using Twitter in and Out of the Classroom also had a couple of great ideas of how to incorporate Twitter in the classroom. I liked the idea of allowing students to get current information by asking other people on Twitter questions related to educational content or the news. This is really reinforcing the idea of social media and learning from those around us through the use of technology.
I am following so many neat people on Twitter:
MsSavvyScience: Her blog has so many great insightful comments about each of the 16 Things, therefore I knew I wanted to follow her on Twitter. I like that she updates her students' parents about important school information.
octobersmith: I had her as a professor last fall and she loved integrating technology in the classroom. Her Twitter account offers links to great education ideas she comes across and shares with other people on Twitter.
Education Week: I find myself constantly going back to read the new Tweets Education Week posts on their Twitter feed. They post topics about education in regards to new laws and news up-dates about education.
I know this is redundant, but I agree with others who have blogged about using Twitter to update students and parents about classroom news. It could also be used for students to communicate ideas with one another and ask for help. The link we visited talked about having students find an article and post their thoughts or opinions about it through Twitter. There are so many neat ideas that people have thought of for using Twitter. I cannot wait to use some of them in the classroom and then have the opportunity to create some of my own ideas for how to incorporate Twitter.
Find me @: KeslieLangerud
Thing 14: Podcasting and Bookmarking
Podcasting:
I have heard of Podcasting before, but have never really been interested in learning more about it. I think it is so neat that Governor Rick Perry and the Texas Education Agency put together a Podcast filled with educational resources called Texas Education on iTunes U. The Podcast that it offers are amazing. I found so many neat resources I can use in the classroom. I found that I was drawn to the Podcasts that discussed integrating technology into the classroom. I wish I could list them all, but I will discuss a couple that really stuck out to me.
1. Learning to Integrate Technology in the "mess" of a Real Classroom was the first video I watched. It documents education majors at Abilene Christian University who were given the challenge to go into a kindergarten classroom and experience what it is like to teach students how to create a digital storytelling project using an Ipod touch and a Macbook Pro. The purpose was to teach future teachers the importance of integrating technology into the classroom, the ability of the kindergarten students to take control of the acitivty (student centered), and knowing how to adapt their teaching when problems arise. This was such a great video. It was so neat to see the kindergarten students creating their own stories, giving input about their work, talking with classmates, and being proud of what they had created. This video really reinforced for me that teachers and students can effectively use technology in the classroom.
2. Researching the Benefits of Project Based Learning with the integration of iPads is the second video I watched. This second video also documented a future teacher at Abilene University who chose to create a project based research activity in a high school Physics class. It was so neat to see the students use their iPads to conduct their research. The ACU student really mentioned some great points, the iPad allowed the students to gain information that they could not get from a textbook, it allowed them to collaborate with their classmates, create semantic maps on the iPad, and even translate the information in another language for the international students! I believe in the effectiveness of iPads with students. I think they have so many different resources available on them and can really engage students if the teacher creates an activity that is focused and has a purpose. I wish I could purchase a classroom set of iPads.
The Podcasting really blew me away. I had no idea what a great resource it is for the classroom. I will definitely be using this to gain information for my future classroom! The possibilities are really endless with how technology can transform our teaching and how students learn in the classroom!
Bookmarking:
Pinterest is my new obsession! I had to create an account after hearing everyone raving about it in class. I love inspiration boards and that is what Pinterest allows me to create. My favorite board I created is for the classroom. I am following a pre-K teacher who has so many great ideas and always posts pictures and how-to projects for the classroom. People have posted so many photographs of items, events, ideas, etc. that have inspired them. It is an online community of people from all over the world, which makes it so much more interesting to me. Pinterest= "pin" what you are "interested" in!
Delicious.com is also a really neat website. I like that I can bookmark and tag websites that I find interesting or helpful. I have word documents full of websites that I have copied and pasted as a reference in the past. It was always so annoying to have to figure out which websites were for what topic. I like that Delicious.com takes the complicated aspect out of it by simply letting me bookmark several websites and they are all categorized in one place.
I have heard of Podcasting before, but have never really been interested in learning more about it. I think it is so neat that Governor Rick Perry and the Texas Education Agency put together a Podcast filled with educational resources called Texas Education on iTunes U. The Podcast that it offers are amazing. I found so many neat resources I can use in the classroom. I found that I was drawn to the Podcasts that discussed integrating technology into the classroom. I wish I could list them all, but I will discuss a couple that really stuck out to me.
1. Learning to Integrate Technology in the "mess" of a Real Classroom was the first video I watched. It documents education majors at Abilene Christian University who were given the challenge to go into a kindergarten classroom and experience what it is like to teach students how to create a digital storytelling project using an Ipod touch and a Macbook Pro. The purpose was to teach future teachers the importance of integrating technology into the classroom, the ability of the kindergarten students to take control of the acitivty (student centered), and knowing how to adapt their teaching when problems arise. This was such a great video. It was so neat to see the kindergarten students creating their own stories, giving input about their work, talking with classmates, and being proud of what they had created. This video really reinforced for me that teachers and students can effectively use technology in the classroom.
2. Researching the Benefits of Project Based Learning with the integration of iPads is the second video I watched. This second video also documented a future teacher at Abilene University who chose to create a project based research activity in a high school Physics class. It was so neat to see the students use their iPads to conduct their research. The ACU student really mentioned some great points, the iPad allowed the students to gain information that they could not get from a textbook, it allowed them to collaborate with their classmates, create semantic maps on the iPad, and even translate the information in another language for the international students! I believe in the effectiveness of iPads with students. I think they have so many different resources available on them and can really engage students if the teacher creates an activity that is focused and has a purpose. I wish I could purchase a classroom set of iPads.
The Podcasting really blew me away. I had no idea what a great resource it is for the classroom. I will definitely be using this to gain information for my future classroom! The possibilities are really endless with how technology can transform our teaching and how students learn in the classroom!
Bookmarking:
Pinterest is my new obsession! I had to create an account after hearing everyone raving about it in class. I love inspiration boards and that is what Pinterest allows me to create. My favorite board I created is for the classroom. I am following a pre-K teacher who has so many great ideas and always posts pictures and how-to projects for the classroom. People have posted so many photographs of items, events, ideas, etc. that have inspired them. It is an online community of people from all over the world, which makes it so much more interesting to me. Pinterest= "pin" what you are "interested" in!
Delicious.com is also a really neat website. I like that I can bookmark and tag websites that I find interesting or helpful. I have word documents full of websites that I have copied and pasted as a reference in the past. It was always so annoying to have to figure out which websites were for what topic. I like that Delicious.com takes the complicated aspect out of it by simply letting me bookmark several websites and they are all categorized in one place.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Thing 13: Using YouTube
I now understand why people are always uploading videos to YouTube. It is because creating the video and uploading it is so simple! I created a video of pictures I took while visiting West Texas. I thought if I was teaching fourth grade it would be a great video to show. It would give students the opportunity to discuss and compare the geography and life of West Texas versus Houston. I can even correlate Science with the video and have students discuss how Big Bend is located in West Texas and how people can continue to work on protecting this source of land. A unit on Native Americans that lived in this part of Texas can be taught as well.
TeacherTube is one of my favorite websites. If I want to use a video in a lesson plan, I will begin at You Tube, but I often always end up at TeacherTube. Teachers form a community. It does not matter if they are not in the same state or country, teachers are always collaborating and sharing ideas with one another. Teacher Tube is a perfect example of this. I have found so many great ideas to incorporate into lesson plans because seasoned teachers, as well as novice teachers have uploaded awesome videos onto Teacher Tube. This benefits students as well when a teacher has uploaded an effective video that can help students understand content. I also think that all students are excited to see their own work published. It gives them a sense of ownership and accomplishment. How neat would it be if their published videos could be shared online with other students around the world? I think students would really enjoy that because it would create a safe learning/student community.
TeacherTube is one of my favorite websites. If I want to use a video in a lesson plan, I will begin at You Tube, but I often always end up at TeacherTube. Teachers form a community. It does not matter if they are not in the same state or country, teachers are always collaborating and sharing ideas with one another. Teacher Tube is a perfect example of this. I have found so many great ideas to incorporate into lesson plans because seasoned teachers, as well as novice teachers have uploaded awesome videos onto Teacher Tube. This benefits students as well when a teacher has uploaded an effective video that can help students understand content. I also think that all students are excited to see their own work published. It gives them a sense of ownership and accomplishment. How neat would it be if their published videos could be shared online with other students around the world? I think students would really enjoy that because it would create a safe learning/student community.
Thing 12: Discovering and Using YouTube
I have used YouTube in the past to find videos for lessons, but I am never really 100% happy with the video choices that appear. I think that YouTube has great resources, but sometimes I wish the videos were of better quality and could be longer. I often have to refine my search several times before I find exactly what I want in a video for a lesson. At the same time though, I have found a lot of great videos that I have used in the past on YouTube and I would still recommend it as a resource for teachers. Teachers can still use parts of YouTube videos to create a TEASe like we did in Applications of Technology. Teachers just need to look closely at the videos they find and verify that they are reliable when using YouTube.
I chose a video about the last space launch conducted by NASA because I think it is a critical part of history. I have always loved the space program and I will definitely share its history with my future students. This video is neat because students can hear the people at the launch pad talking about the shuttle as it progresses into the sky. Students also get a first hand look at watching the process of the space shuttle taking off. Some of the terminology is higher level, but I think elementary students would still enjoy watching the video and talking about what is taking place.
NASA Video: Space shuttle Endeavour final launch
I chose a video about the last space launch conducted by NASA because I think it is a critical part of history. I have always loved the space program and I will definitely share its history with my future students. This video is neat because students can hear the people at the launch pad talking about the shuttle as it progresses into the sky. Students also get a first hand look at watching the process of the space shuttle taking off. Some of the terminology is higher level, but I think elementary students would still enjoy watching the video and talking about what is taking place.
NASA Video: Space shuttle Endeavour final launch
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