Final Post

I enjoyed this class very much. I feel like I gained much more knowledge about technology, and I feel like I have more tools to work with as a professional. I guess I could say that prior to this class I was not very tech savvy, but now I know how to create blogs, navigate the web a little better, and create my own website. Most of the artifacts we created in class I thought were only things 'tech-y' people could create. I was so unaware of all the fabulous tools available to me that were so easy to use. I plan to use the majority, if not all, of the tools we learned about in this class sometime in my future classroom.
These tools are not only great for making great visuals for students, but they are also less time consuming (most are) and are free, so there is not a reason to not create a lesson, project, or handout from these tools. From this class I also learned that I really want a Mac computer sometime in the near future. I like my PC but I really liked working with Macs also. I had never really used one before this class, and now I've grown used to using one and have become more comfortable with it.

Website

The website is still something I am trying to get used to and learn to use. I am happy that I now know how to create a website if I were wanting to in the future. This is something that I think I will use. I have seen many school websites that do not require their teachers to create a website, but I like them because they are very informational and are helpful to those who may not know the teacher well. Looking at the teacher's website before meeting them for the first time on the first day of class would be a fun/cool way for the student to learn who he/she will be meeting (as well as the parent), and I like adding class work to the website. I think if students saw some of what they were doing in the classroom online and available to others to view, they would be more appreciative of their work. Hopefully I will get much more practice with using this tool and get used to it!

Blogging

The blogger tool was new to me (as was many of the tools we used in this class). I like using this tool for collaboration purposes and would be a good way for teachers to stay connected, as well as parents of students. I like how you can add pictures, videos, and links to the blogs so they kind of have an interactive aspect. I would like to use this tool in my classroom to keep connected with the community and to let parents know what is going on in the classroom.

IMovie

The IMovie activity was by far my favorite. I enjoyed creating a "how to" video, and it was fairly easy! Teachers of all technical capabilities would find this tool easy to use. Teachers can be creative in what they want to do with their video and how they want to present it. I like this tool because it is similar to the Animoto tool we used with our Web 2.0 tools, but it is much more advanced.

Timetoast

This was one of the Web 2.0 tools that I disliked the most. I can't see this being used in the classroom very often, except for a project or two. This would be interesting to use during a time unit to have the students create a timeline about themselves. I remember making a timeline in elementary school about many major events in my life. It would be cool to convert that to a Timetoast timeline for a presentation. I also dislike this tool because of the limited time frame someone is allowed to make. If a history teacher were to use this tool it would be difficult to use B.C. dates.

Glogster

This was one of my favorite Web 2.0 tools because it is truly interactive. Using this as a presentation in the classroom would be fun for students and they would have a great time creating them. There's a variety of presentations that can be made with this tool and virtually any subject can be included. I see myself using this tool often in the classroom, but I believe I'd use it more often in an older elementary class. 

Inspiration/Diagram

I really like the Inspiration tool. I think I will find myself using this tool often in the classroom to bring together ideas, present new ideas, etc. The diagram I used was to present the idea of biomes to second graders. It did not include all the biomes, but it was just a basic idea. I like how you can add pictures and notes to the diagram and it can be sort of interactive. 

 

Animoto

Animoto is a neat tool; it's kind of like Picasa but a bit more advanced. With Animoto you can put a variety of pictures together and add music to your slideshow. This is a great tool to use for like celebrations, weddings, or to show a vacation. In the classroom, this could be used to present ideas to the class or can be used after a summer, winter, or spring break to show the students what you did and give them a little information about yourself (the teacher). This is another tool that I think is cool for projects, but not a direct teaching tool.

Picasa

Picasa is a neat tool to use in the classroom, but I would only use it as an enhancement to a lesson rather than use it to teach a lesson. This tool, I don't believe, would be very effective in teaching skills. However, I think it would be something neat to do with the class. Since all students probably don't have access to a computer or the internet, this could be a few day project with a group of students. Students could be provided with a camera, just like our project, to take pictures around the school. If there are no cameras available, they could browse the web for some pictures on a specific topic. Again, I feel like this is more of a fun, interactive tool rather than a learning tool.

Wordle

I really like the Wordle tool. I think this would be great to use in the classroom for a variety of reasons. This could be used with vocabulary words, science, reading, or anything one can think of! In a fourth or fifth grade classroom this would be a good project for the children. They could create an about me Wordle to share with the class in the first week of school Since the tool is pretty simple to use, it would probably only take some time in one school day to make this quick, fun project.

Interactive White Board

I really enjoyed the ActiveInspire project. I think this tool would be great to use in the classroom and would be more interactive and fun than just paper and pencil and keeping all the students at their desks. It was difficult learning all the many tools ActiveInspire has to offer. There seems as if there is a limitless amount of things you can do with this tool. I like how the program can be used with any grade, it is not limited to older or younger children, so I can create interactive lessons even for preschoolers. I will definitely use this tool in my classroom!

Scavenger Hunt

First off, the resume activity was harder than I had expected. I already had a resume ready to use; however I did not have it in the same format that was expected for this class. It was confusing on how to get the document onto Google Drive and I had to tweek it a lot. In the end, I finally got it in the correct format with all my info. 

The scavenger hunt was one of the more fun activities we have done so far. I liked getting out of the classroom to take pictures of a variety of objects pertaining to colors. Using Picasa and Google Presentation was an interesting task. It took me a while to get used to using the Google Presentation and figuring out what all I could do with it. I still don't feel 100% comfortable with using this tool, but I hope I will be able to have more experiences with using it.

Resource Wiki

I enjoyed looking up different resources for teachers and students to use in the classroom. While it was a bit difficult at first, I finally got the hang of it. I was glad to be able to use the knowledge I gained from the website evaluation activity to use during this activity to find suitable websites appropriate for the classroom. I want to spend more time on the resource wiki and go back through and see what other helpful sites the others posted and hopefully begin building a file of resources for my future classroom!

Monarch Butterflies

For my IBA I decided to develop an activity geared towards second graders that meets the criteria and standards of second grade science. The activity requires students to go to the National Geographic website to read information on monarch butterflies. While they are there, they can also look at pictures of the butterflies. Students are required to go through a slide show with various information on the butterflies and answer questions about what they read/learned. I chose this site because not only can students find information for this lesson, but they can also explore the website more and look up other animals they might be interested in. 

Since I had some practice making the IBA when we went over the rockstar activity, I felt more comfortable making this lesson. The hardest part was determining a subject to focus on and the standards. The questions for the lesson were fairly easy to come up with. The questions were simple and straight forward since they are geared towards second graders. There was a lot of information on the National Geographic site about monarch butterflies, so it was sort of difficult to choose what information I felt was the most important to form the questions from.

Aha! Moment

The biggest Aha! moment for me was when I was creating the IBA on Google Docs. Not only did I get to work with Google Docs a little more, I also gained some more experience in curriculum research and planning. The more I am able to practice with these web tools, the more I feel confident about what I am doing, and I will be more comfortable with using the tools in the future.

Google Docs

As I am learning more and more about the different applications teachers can use in their classroom, I become more and more aware on what I've been missing out on. Google Docs is an excellent tool to use to collaborate with other teachers. Teachers can use Google Docs to help each other with lessons and to bounce ideas off of each other on how to manage a classroom. Planning becomes easier with this tool since it is similar to a Wiki and several people can edit and add their own information. 


Google Docs is still a tool that I am learning to use. It will take some time getting used to but I enjoyed the experience of learning how to create a document. I like how only selected users can edit or add information to the document, and the options given for each specific document instead of a general allow/block all. I would like to use this tool in the future to collaborate with other teachers as well as use it in the classroom for specific lessons. 

Curriculum Standards

While exploring the curriculum standards, I looked up the standards for second grade reading. Reading as a classroom subject has become a new and growing interest of mine. I was intrigued to find out what second graders are required to learn. This is an area in which I had little prior knowledge. I am also shocked to realize that many children do not meet developmental standards. 


Content Standard 1.0 
The student will develop the reading and listening skills necessary for word recognition, 
comprehension, interpretation, analysis, evaluation, and appreciation of print and nonprint text. 
Learning Expectations: 
1.05 Develop and use decoding strategies to read unfamiliar words.  
1.06 Read to develop fluency, expression, accuracy and confidence.  
1.12 Read independently for a variety of purposes.  
1.13 Experience various literary genres.  
1.14 Develop and maintain a motivation to read.  


I experience the presence of second graders every day. While it is bound to happen, some standards are not as recognized as others. Many of the second graders at my work do not enjoy reading as a past time and usually have no motivation to do so. Since they have no motivation to read, there is no independent reading for a variety of different purposes. 

Is it reliable?

For my website evaluation, I chose a website that many of the children at my work enjoy playing: Coolmath.com. I have never really looked the website over to see what all the website had to offer and simply have trusted their judgement in saying that the website was "good". After researching the site and digging deeper into what it was all about, I learned that the children were right. The website offers many educational games for them to practice math skills. While watching the children play these games, I would not have known that the games were truly educational (we want them to only play games on the computer that will benefit them). 


I'm glad that I was able to evaluate Coolmath.com because now I feel better about what they are doing on the computer. The only downfall to the website was the confusing and cluttered layout. There are many, many links that I feel would take several hours to explore. I did however find many teacher resources and some educational standards were even included as a link! I enjoyed this activity because I found out that there is more to a website when you explore it a little more. I am guilty of clicking on and using information from the first page I come to when searching the web. Possibly now with more knowledge on how to determine if a site is reliable, I will find that information first. I will definitely want to use this tool before using any sites in my classroom in the future.

Course Expectations

Through this course I hope to gain a better knowledge of how to use technology effectively in the classroom. From the first class, I can already tell that it will be an interesting journey through learning about how to use certain websites, blogs, etc. I have already realized that I don't know as much as I thought I knew about the computer and the internet. I am amazed at how much I have learned from the first few short hours of class. 


I am nervous and at the same time excited about what else I can learn throughout the course. The hardest part of this class, for me, will be remembering the many new links and buttons. Since I am a PC user, I enjoy the time in class to experience using a MAC computer and exploring the differences between the two!


Since I want to work with preschoolers at the beginning of my career, it will be interesting to see how I can expose technology to the children in the classroom and how to effectively integrate technology into the classroom. I hope to be able to use what I learn through class at my current job with the youth I work with. 


Before the first class I believed that children today were too technologically involved (texting,video gaming, etc). As they might be, I realize that technological involvement is not always a negative thing. Teaching the youth how to effectively and creatively use technology can make a positive impact in their lives as well as those in their future and past.