Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Farewell Post



This is my farewell post to the EDM class. Thanks to Dr. Strange for helping us with technology and teaching us new things everyday. Goodbye to my Class B, we had a fun class and I am very excited to start our alumni blog together!

FINAL BLOG ASSIGNMENT! :( - May 2, 2010

In this post we are to cover 9 items, here we go!

1. I have learned everything mentioned in that question. Blogs, picassa, twitter, PLNs, how to make a video, ALEX, ACCESS, everything with Google and Google Docs, podcasts, etc. The blogs and Google Docs will be useful to me as a teacher. Google is a great tool to keep me organized and everything is in one place. I am excited about blogging and participating in our alumni blog!

2. I honestly think we covered more than I ever thought. I was really nervous about this class, but it really is not hard, unless you just do not do the work. I have no complaints, and there is not anything that we did not cover that I think we should have.

3. There is nothing that I am going to “try to forget”. There are some items that I was not a fan of, but it was still very useful to learn. For example, me personally, I will not be making podcasts for my class. However, it was useful for me to learn how and try it once to get experience. All the things we did was to get us using different ways to communicate and experience technology.

4. I don’t think anything “excited” me to the point where I was estatic. I did enjoy using wordle and random little gadgets like that. Nothing made me mad though ☺. I liked blogging a lot, and being able to express my feelings.

5. The only thing that was intellectually challenging for me was having to make a movie and interview. Thankfully, I had a friend who was a classmate to interview, but I was nervous and embarrassed if I had to interview someone I did not know. Nothing though was too hard for me, I think it is only hard when you don’t try to do the work at all.

6. I was never bored. With this class you cannot get bored, because you always have something to do whether it is commenting, blogging, or projects.

7. I think the only thing I would change, is updating the syllabus. Having the instructional videos were very helpful, but I was always confused about what days we did not have class and what dates went where. The workload is fine, I usually got done with everything early!

8. I think that I am at the “Good” level of being technologically literate. I am not “Great” because there are always things to learn about. But I think that I am pretty good.

9. Maintaining my technological literacy will be done through the use of our alumni blog, and my PLN. I also usually keep up with the latest “gadgets”, such as Apple products, etc.

Interview!!!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Blog Assignment for April 25, 2010

PLE
This 7th grader’s PLN is very good, I am amazed that she uses all of that and is good at it! I am in college and just now have heard of a PLN. But this girl is really impressive and everyone should go take a look.


Two questions:
1) What's your sentence?
2) Was I better today than yesterday?


These questions are hard to answer. Let me start with the second question. There are always times when I look back on my day and think that I should have done something or said something different. Sometimes I should handle a situation differently. But the past is the past and all we can do is move on to the next day. I personally believe that everything happens for a reason. We have to move on, and I am the worst at that. I worry all the time, but that does nothing for me. Was I better today than yesterday, sometimes yes and sometimes no? I always look back on my day, and I want to say that “Wow, everything went smoothly and there are no worries.”

To answer the first question, well I may not be able to do that. Everyone has a sentence; they may not now, they may need to find it in their own time. I honestly do not know one particular sentence right now for me. Everyday has the potential to be better than yesterday. Everyday we have time to think about situations and how to handle situations and resolve conflicts. Everyday is a new day, and it is up to you how you handle it!

Here is the link!

My final PLN post

Earlier this semester, I listed everyone I follow on Twitter. I still use that tool and I still follow those people. Now I have added an addition...Professional Blog! I am a part of a group professional blog, which will hopefully be like At the Teacher's Desk. It will be a place where I have a support group on my good and bad days throughout my teaching career. It will hopefully be a place where I can contrast and compare, and gets good tips.

My Group Professional Blog is the EDM310 Alumni Page

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Comments 4 Teachers! Week 13 and 14

My website was At the Teachers Desk .
"March 30 post- Are We Really Sure That Our Successful Students Are Really Successful?"
This blog was short and sweet but very interesting. Wm Chamberlain posted a quote by someone. “I've been in college for about 3 years now and it amazes me how i can pass classes without ever having to buy the books for them. I can just google any information i need and the informations is just as accurate.”
On April 8, I responded with this. “Hi! I am from EDM 310! I have even had classes like that, where I just have to study the night before and never buy books. Some of those classes I do remember things, but some I don't. In my classroom management class, we were talking about how we need to be teachers who don't just teach but we need to teach to learn. Our students should memorize items, but not just to write on a test and then forget. Our students should take what we have taught them and go with it.”

"April 13 post- Artcyclopedia: The Art Teacher's Best Friend"
There is a website “Artcyclopedia”, and if you love art or artists or museums, then this website is great! “It is a fine art search engine that allows you to search by the name of the artist, name of the art work, or even the name of a museum. It also has a list of clickable art movements that you can look at and get a quick overview.”
On April 14, I responded with this. “Hello, I am in EDM 310 at the University of South Alabama. I love this website now, I am a huge fan of art and this will allow be to get much of what I am looking for! I love to paint in my free time and I have been looking for new tools and sites.”

Comments 4 Kids Week 14

Click HERE for my Comments4Kids website .
I was assigned a child named Tauwhare in Room 15 at Pt England. The blog I left a comment on was of a history presentation. It was a video while speaking in front of a camera, the video was an animated drawing. It was really good!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Project 14- Substantive Presentation

This is my Substantive Presentation, Project 14. It is part of my Project 8.


Thursday, April 8, 2010

Project 8- Teaching Something

This is Project 8. We were to use any tool to teach something. I chose to use Google Presentations on how to keep art in school and why it is important. Enjoy!

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

April 18, 2010- Blog Assignment

This assignment was to post a blog on anything dealing with EDM 310. I chose to express my feelings about blogging. The way I am responding is, obviously through text, but also in a Wordle! In this wordle, I listed countries of the kids I have commented on and I have used adjectives to show what I think of blogging. Enjoy!

A Wordle Image on Bloggin

Week 13- Comments 4 Kids

My website this week is of Room 10 (3rd grade), the link to the blog is HERE . My post was on Calvin's video of him making butter and how to do that. He did a great job and referred to butter as looking like scrambled eggs. He did a wonderful job!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

April 11, 2010- Blog Assignment


Dr. Seuss
In Dr. Seuss, the Zax, it was about two stubborn individuals who do not want to change. As the world changes around them, they remain in their spots unmoved. Sometimes not changing is okay, other times you just have to roll with the punches. I don’t want to be a Zax, but sometimes it is okay. It just depends what you are being stubborn about. The link for the video is HERE.

PS 22
In the PS 22 video, I cried! Please go watch it HERE!!! It was so amazing to hear those kids sing. I even watched six of their other videos like “Run this Town”, “Don’t Stop Believing”, “Viva la Vida”, and “Halo”. They are so good. But here is my answer to the question of why it is good to post work online…it is good because for one it saves paper, and it is just so much easier. Rather than handing in a bunch of CDs or jump drive, we can just email or post to the blog. I have posted a Wordle to my blog, my Google Presentation, my Timeline, everything for this class! They all can be found on this very blog of mine.

Wordle!

A Wordle Image of My Blog

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Comments 4 TEACHERS!!!

My second teacher I was commenting on was Henry Jenkins. His link is Confessions of an Aca Fan

“Talking TronsMedia with Steven Lisberger”- March 19
His post was about his sit down with director Steven Lisberger, of “Tron”. He posted his videos of their meeting. It was very interesting. I would advise you all to look! This was my comment:
“Hello. I am from Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class at the University of South Alabama. This is a wonderful post. I am in awe of it. I am excited to see the new TRON movie. I am showing this post to my friends! Thanks for your videos and thoughts.”

The second post I commented on was on March 29, “More Talk of TRONSmedia”
His post was the same as the other post above, it was more of his video footage with his sit down interview with the director of “Tron”.
"Hello! This a great post! I am very interested in all the technology in movies and everything. This is very insightful."

His blog is very detailed and technology oriented.

Week 12- Comments 4 Kids (no week 11)

This week, my kid I was commenting on is in 3rd grade in New Zealand! His name is Taka. His first post of the year was a video about their Maori culture. I told him that he did a wonderful job and this was a great first post!
The link to the post is HERE

Friday, March 26, 2010

April 4, 2010 Blog Assignment- Kaia


As I read these posts, it is amazing to think where these social networks can take us. Technology is mind-boggling. The exposing of ourselves is sometimes hard to grasp. In Kaia’s blog, she said, “My daddy was trying to teach me that sometimes if we look closely at things, even if they are discarded and ugly, they can be beautiful, if we look at them right.” Think of how many people could come across our twitter accounts, facebook, and blogs. There is world that can reach us through the click of a button. Kaia’s dad’s blog also said something I liked, “I started to think about how much trust we ask that parents put in us as teachers… What is the value in this experience? Is the risk of exposing ourselves and our children online worth the connections that will be made and the lessons that will be learned?”

Children worldwide can learn through a screen. My blog post, for instance, can be found by typing it in on Google. Half of me thinks that is great and the other half of me does not like be exposed like that with the click of a button. Teaching and learning in the future looks like it could all be through the internet. That is great, and I love my online classes, but I personally like the interaction. I don’t want technology to take over everything. Sometimes I think things need to stay the way they are. It all depends on how we look at things.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Week 10- Comments for Kids

This week I commented on a teacher blog in Victoria, Austrailia. THe link to the Class Blog is HERE!!!

The post I commented on was about Science, things that float and sink. They found that foil, a sponge, a candle, a diet coke can and cardboard floated. But a can of coke, paperclip, plasticine and a screw sunk. The also learned about it from the Magic School Bus. I left a comment saying that I remember learning about floating and sinking. I told them that the Magic School Bus is a very effective way of learning. I also told them good job!

Week 10- Morgan Bayada (March 28, 2010)


Morgan Bayada
READ HER POST
As I was reading Morgan’s post, I really found it to be truthful and relevant to how we are today in school. She was honest about what she spent her time doing in classes. I have many classes like that and to be honest I am only taking 2 classes right now that I am focused in and really enjoy coming to everyday.

Of course there are time where we don’t feel good and are worn out. So sometimes we aren’t going to be focused. But when everyone isn’t focused in the whole class that is not our fault. That would be the class. I buy books for my classes and I still haven’t used some. But it’s too late to get my money back. She did mention about having a PLN. I agree it can be a great tool. My followers on twitter tweet stuff every hour, sometimes multiple things in the hour.

I liked how brutally honest Dan Brown’s video was. He is right, all the facts teachers give us is found freely on the internet, usually just by Google. I did find it funny about Dan's statement about dropping out of school because his schooling was interfering with his education. Dan is going at his own speed, but at the same time, jobs look for experience and education. At the same time, he seems more prepared than the average student. Weird coincidence.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Vocaroo!

This is my first voice thread. Please click on the button below.

My Disney Movie Timeline


For my timeline, I traced the history of Classic Disney movies. You know the ones, the characters at Disney World, the princesses, and so on. There are many other disney movies that I did not include. I just wanted the classic ones. You can click on an event to read the description. Most of them say they were released on the first of a certain month. I could not find the exact date, so I was only able to put the month and the year, the "1st" is just there.

Click here for Disney Timeline

Thursday, March 18, 2010

My EDM 310 Survey

My questions and results for my survey were:
Are you pleased with your GPA? 51% said yes and 49% said no.

Do you feel overwhelmed with school at times? 66% said sometimes and 34% said all the time.

How many classes are you taking? 46% are taking 5 classes, 31% are taking 6 classes, 20% are taking 4 classes, and 3% are taking 3 classes.

What subjects do you enjoy? There were multiple answers ranging from math, English, dance, edm, art, music, science, and history.

What subjects could you live without? These to were multiple answers, opposite of what they enjoy. Most who put English as a favorite, for example, put math for a dislike.

Do you think you have good study habits? 48% said it could be better, 46% said yes, and 6% said no they do not.

How much time do you spend outside of class doing things for school? 36% said one to three hours, 29% said four to six hours, 29% said six or more hours, and 6% only study less than an hour!

Are you benefiting from EDM 310? 86% said yes and 14% said no.

Explain your answer from above (benefiting from EDM). Why do you feel that way? I had a range of answers. People feel they are growing with technology, some don’t think it is all necessary and don’t think it is suited for their teaching career, but others have grown to like it.

How much time do you spend working on this one class (EDM 310)? 66% said two to four hours. 31% said five to eight hours. 3% said less than an hour.


This is my survey and its results! =)

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Project 6- Skype


I have used Skype plenty of times before this class. I used it while friend were gone or people who live far away. I have used it this semester for the same reasons, talking to friends and all. I have also contacted some people for school related questions. There really isn't much detail I can go into about how I have used Skype, but that is how I have!

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Comments 4 TEACHERS!!!

Teacher Comments: Post by March 21
Larry Ferlazzo is the teacher I have been commenting on. His link is: http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/
His website is blogs of websites he has found that helps with teaching.

The first post I commented on was his post on February 23, 2010, entitled “Discover the Real George Washington”. This is the comment I left:
“Hi Mr. Ferlazzo, I am a student at the University of South Alabama, and I am a student in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I found the website about George Washington and the timeline fascinating and I enjoyed looking at it! My class is commenting on teachers every week for three weeks and then we are posting about it on our blog.”
It is a timeline that you can interact with and click on objects. The link is “Discover The Real George Washington” .

On March 4, 2010, he posted “Getting the Most Out of Twitter”
"Getting the Most Out of Twitter " is short and helpful to all Twitter users–both new and old.
I left him this comment. “Hello. This site is very useful to me, because I am starting to use twitter in my EDM 310 class here at South Alabama. Thanks for the post.”

On March 9, 2010, he posted “The Best Sites To Learn About The Internet”
It was all these sites for computer and internet help, here is the link to his post so you can look! CLICK HERE .
I left this comment, “Thanks for these sites. They are all really useful and will help anyone and everyone! I think I'm computer literate enough, but sometimes I need help too.”

Week 9- Comments for Kids

This is the link for the class i commented on CLICK HERE . I had a student named Robert. The post i commented on was about a helicopter that came to visit the school. He actually video taped it and put it on his blog. I was really impressed at how much these kids knew how to do already.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Week 9- ALEX & ACCESS

ALEX
This is the Alabama Learning Exchange (ALEX), the website http”//alex.state.al.us/ is a huge resource that can be used by any teacher no matter what grade. The home page lets you choose between all different categories. There is a place for web links, courses of study, lesson plans, personal workspace, professional learning, and podcasts.

I am very unfamiliar with ALEX but it was so easy to get started. You really don’t have to know anything, just browse for yourself. You will come across great tools per grade level. There are so many different things to see; I can’t describe it. This can be used to reach student achievement because there is a place for lesson plans per grade per subject.


ACCESS
The vision of the State of Alabama will provide through ACCESS Distance Learning equal access to high quality instruction to improve student achievement through distance learning opportunities. The mission of Alabama ACCESS Distance Learning is to provide an infrastructure that delivers equitable, quality learning opportunities for all high school students. The goal of Alabama ACCESS Distance Learning is to provide equity through additional educational offerings for all Alabama public high school students.

Access is a learning support center. One of the centers is located at the University of Alabama. This is more for advanced students from what I saw. This website was a little confusing to me. When you click on ABOUT it tells you the goals and missions, but it still was over my head a little. I will probably use more of ALEX than ACCESS.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Week 8- Randy Pausch- Achieving our Childhood Dreams



Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture.
I really enjoyed watching this talk. He started by saying the lecture was about how to achieve our dreams and enable the dreams of others. He went through his childhood dreams, and most of it he went and did it. He really is an inspiring guy with a great head on his shoulders. He said, “The inspiration and the permission to dream is huge.”


Experience is what you we get when things didn’t go our way. We can always experience things. He said parents and mentors and such are what let us achieve our dreams. Loyalty is a two way street.


So…how do we get people to help us?
1. You can’t get there by yourself.
2. Tell the truth.
3. Be earnest.
4. Apologize when you are wrong or screw up.
5. Focus on others…not yourself.
6. Show gratitude.
7. Don’t complain; just work harder!
8. Be good at something, it makes you valuable.
9. Find the best in everybody.
10. Be prepared, “luck” is where preparation meets opportunity.


In the end, it’s not about how to achieve your dreams; it’s about how to lead your life. If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself. The dreams will come to you.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Week 8- Comments for Kids

This week i had a student named Hailey. The link to the website is CLICK HERE. The post i commented on was a poem that she wrote. And i thought it was sweet! I told her that and i told her to keep up the good work!

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Week 7- This is how we dream


Richard Miller: This Is How We Dream Parts 1 and 2
I’m not going to lie, this video was a lot for me to take in and comprehend, and I’m not very good at that. He was talking about incremental changes and fundamental changes. As he was talking, images and words were popping up on the screen. Some of it, I could do on my Mac and I don’t even know how. Richard E. Miller shows what can be done to change the “reading and writing with products” people to “multimedia” people.

An incremental change is how we have taken writing with pen and paper and going to the library, and we are now doing virtually everything without having to touch paper or step foot into a library book. As he was talking about this, a Mac laptop came up and showed someone with two Word documents and one Safari page open at the same time, and he could see all three. It showed him simply research what he needed and copy and pasting it into the document. He then went on to talk about collaborating.

In the second part, he talks about how he can compose writing on the web, and he shows his colleague’s tool, and it is an application on a Mac that searches blogs as they are written moment by moment. It looked really cool and pretty with all the colors and visual effects. But then he says we don’t have the way to teach what he just described to us in that video. He says “technology articulates our dreams and allows us to shares them with others.”

I think I am prepared to write with multimedia to an extent. I already do it for my schoolwork and papers. I have not had to use a library book yet for any project or paper in college. I do everything online. I don’t think I am going to make my students do quite as much as he mentioned. After all, I want to teach little kids. But if we do have a project, I will encourage them to use the Internet.

The Networked Student by Wendy Drexler
This video is a true story about a student with a teacher who is a student of connectivism, which is a theory that learning is through a social network of many diverse connections and ties.

The video said that we make connections with other people in those networks. It showed the cartoon character using Google. He then post bookmarks on Delicious and Digio. This video is actually very much like our EDM class. We are using all of these websites.

So why have a teacher? A teacher can offer guidance when we are stuck; they are “learning architect”. I don’t think that I am ready to be a teacher of a network student, but the idea kind of sounds nice. Middle School students I do not think I could handle by any means, but I think I could do this with high schoolers.

Michael Wesch
He started off talking about the book “1984” by George Orwell, which is quite political. But at the beginning he showed a picture of his classroom of about 200 and said they are not socially and politically engaged, they just aren’t there. He then flipped to a picture of “American Idol” auditions, which showed the exact opposite attitude than the class picture. There is something in the atmosphere or structure that makes us feel the way we do. There is a quote that he said by someone, “in the midst of a fabulous array of historically unprecedented and utterly mind-boggling stimuli…whatever”. He then gave the history of “whatever”, which I thought was funny. I definitely say “whatever” a lot. That is usually what I say when I am mad because the other person isn’t listening or something.

He says we are moving toward disengagement and only thinking about ourselves, and we are moving toward fragmentation. I do think people are becoming like that, and most already are. I am not going to lie; I didn’t understand some of this video. It went together but at the same time it didn’t. Maybe I didn’t see what I was suppose to. I do agree though with the social aspects he was talking about and what we are moving towards.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Week 7- Comments 4 Kids

This week I was commenting on student named Frankie in Ms. Kolbert's class. The link isCLICK HERE . He did not have anything written yet, so i just encouraged him to get started and that it may take some time, but eventually blogging will feel natural.

PLN- Personal Learning Network

Personal Learning Network

I have created my personal learning network using Twitter! It is very interested how it all unfolds. I was browsing through the class syllabus and opened up Dr. Strange’s PLN document. I learned how to set mine up and I found a teacher on that document, Beth Still who had 50 teachers everyone should follow on Twitter for their PLN. I started following all of those teachers, and I check my twitter throughout the day on my phone a few times a day. I don’t remember the teacher, but one of her tweets was about Google Documents and Google Earth. A lot of the stuff I can relate to and are doing in this EDM class. And some of the websites are interesting. I never thought I would get use out PLNs, but look at me now! I am not obsessed, but I am still learning and just browsing right now, but when I am a teacher, it will be very helpful!

Here is the list of all the People I am following on twitter is you want to follow also. These are their usernames. Type in on the Internet for the web address http://www.twitter.com/whatever their username is, or search for them in twitter by using the symbol @username.

karlfisch, kdumont, shareski, mwesch, mguhlin, chrislehmann, hdiblasi, isteconnects, kjarrett, LarryFerlazzo, jwindsor, budtheteacher, teach42, MikeGras, oswego98, Edu4U, lkolb, AngelaMaiers, ddrapper, bbarreda, plnaugle, jutecht, dstall, SuzanneWhistler, ScottElia, watcanz, wfryer, rmbyrne, mcleod, kellyhines, timlauer, woscholar, pgeorge, Astro_Mike, principalspage, canyonsdave, garystager, Web20Classroom, tomwhitby, paulrwood, lthumann, courosa, rickweinberg, HallDavidson, edutopia, bengrey, dianafingal, WendyDrexler, teachakidd, bethstill


Hope this helps! Don’t freak out about making a PLN, it is kind of fun and I am still getting used to it!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Week 6- Comments 4 Kids

For this week (2/15-2/21), I had a class blog to comment on. Click here for their link . The blog post I had for them was entitled "Healthy Workshops". They were learning different workshops such as yoga, aerobics, basketball. It looked like a lot of fun. This was not for PE, but for their class! I was really impressed with that. And that is exactly what I left for them in my comment. I also said to keep up the good work because I didn't get that as a kid. I even told them my favorite workshop would be the yoga!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Week 6- iTunes and Technology!

Alice Christie’s Website
On Dr. Christie’s website, I was immediately drawn to her Photography section. I know, you might think, “How can pictures be a resource to you?” BUT, I think pictures can be a resource because she also lists some resources for technology and cameras. Technology is a huge part in pictures because images can be changed drastically at the click of a button!

I like photography, and it can be useful to me as a teacher. Photography can become anything, literally. I can change a picture to where it will look nothing like the original. Pictures are useful in teaching, because it can give kids something to look forward too. At my afterschool care, my kids love when I take pictures of them and then show it to them. Kids are kids and depending on the age, you can either have fun with pictures in teaching, or you can teach kids how to edit pictures themselves. I want to incorporate art when I teach.

iTunes U
Here is a link that lets you learn about what iTunes U is CLICK HERE
I think iTunes U can be helpful, because some schools may post all their lectures online, which will help a student out. But also it can help professors because they can learn new things about how to teach or what to teach. I use iTunes a lot, I don’t use iTunes U a lot, but I think if you know how to use iTunes, then you are good to go.

I think iTunes U is very helpful for someone who uses technology a lot in learning. I don’t use it to be honest, I am more of a google person (oops), but regardless, everyone can find something useful for them. Itunes U is a great way to learn new things and help out with everyday learning.

Use for iPods in learning
CLICK HERE is the link where I found Apple’s article about how iTunes U and other apple products can be used for school. iPods can be useful because you can download podcasts. I download podcasts from church and you can just pop your headphones in your ears or listen to it in your car.

Duke University has an article about an experiment they did with iPods in instructions. The link is CLICK HERE . There is no better way explain it myself than just quoting what Duke said “Audio‐intensive courses reported that the iPod increased the frequency and depth of student interaction with audio course content through portable and flexible access offered by the iPod. Initial planning for academic iPod use focused on audio playback; however, digital recording capabilities ultimately generated the highest level of student and faculty interest. Recording was the most widely used feature for academic purposes, with 60% of first‐year students reporting using the iPod’s recording ability for academic purposes. “

Technology Literate Teachers
I will be honest, I have not use a wiki since I signed up, and it scared me to use it. I did not make changes or add to it, but I was scared. Isn’t that awful? But back to the purpose, I think that teachers should be technologically literate, but they don’t have to breathe and live technology. Some can only understand so much. I have my views on what one should be and I know what I will be when I start teaching. Some may like my ideas and others may not, but we are all different! I want to teach fourth grade. I don’t think I am going to be using twitter and skype and blogs with them, but if they learn how to do that on their own, then that’s great!

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Comments 4 Kids- Week 4 and 5

So last week for week 4 (2/2-2/9) I commented on a little girl Britni and her blog. She did so well and I cannot believe kids are blogging, i just started! This week I commented on Room 7 in New Zealand, I commented on the whole class blog on their posts for Feb. 4-9, so i think i did about 3 to 4 different comments. Then for week 5 (2/8-2/14) I left a comment for Sione in Room 7 saying I was impressed with her 2009 work. These kids surprise me because i thought i was up with technology but i can't do what they can and I am almost 20. Sometimes i feel old because these things weren't there when i was a kid.

This is a combined blog post for my Week 4 and Week 5 Comments for Kids.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Week 5- Wikipedia and Learning!

Wikipedia!
All of the teachers I have had in high school through now hate Wikipedia. I never really understood why until I came across one article myself that suddenly randomly mentioned hotdogs. I’m serious; I was researching something for school and then that popped up in the middle of the sentence. I have been told that Wikipedia is not the most reliable source, but if you see an icon at the top that looks like a lock then it is usually reliable because people cannot change or edit something that is locked. But who knows?!

I like that someone invented a scanner type thing to trace to see who changed things. I never use Wikipedia for school, I do sometimes if I’m researching something randomly and am desperate for any answer. I do not thing it is a trustful and resourceful website for anything important though.


"What I've Learned This Year" by Mr. McClung
I loved reading this post, because it can help me now! Be flexible, communicate, be reasonable, stay positive, listen to students, and NEVER stop learning. I love all those ideas. No one is perfect, and we shouldn’t expect that of our students. We are teachers, we have to help them and train them, and encourage them to be the best that they can be! Let’s communicate with our students and take an interest in their lives, they love to tell stories about their dog or something they ate, just random things. We never know, they may not get that attention at home. I hope I never get in a rut when I teach. I want to learn things with my students and always have fun. This blog really inspired me and I think it will help me now with my daycare!

Friday, February 5, 2010

Week 4- How does learning look in the 21st century?


I looked at an article on the Langwitches Blog titled "Take the Technology Out of the Equation". This article posed the questions, "How do we teach students how to learn? How do we motivate and engage learners? How do we create a climate where learning is valued, not test scores or a covered text book?" I want to inspire students and not just teach them, but help them learn. Teachers need to have common ground and the priority should be STUDENT LEARNING. The wordle picture above shows how learning looks in the 21st century.

I like this quote from the article as well because i love music. "Technology Integrators becoming 'conductors' in order to empower teachers to support learners."



So, the word technology scares some people, but others love it. The main priority thought is having students learn. Technology and traditional ways of teaching are something administrators are always going to disagree with. However, put that aside and as long as the students are learning, that's all that matters.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Week 3- Podcasts and such!

“Media Literacy in the First Grade” AND “Little Kids..Big Potential”
Those first graders are so cute and so smart! I could read in the first grade, but I never did anything technological. That just shows how far advanced technology has come and what kids can do. I hope those kids continue to keep up with what’s going on in the world. I am media literate, but I probably was not in the first grade.

The second video shows what all Ms. Cassidy’s class actually does. It is crazy that these kids Skype and have their own blogs and also make videos. These children are going to be in the top of their class if they keep on with their media literacy.

iPhone used by 1 year old
I love that video, because I am an afterschool care director and my kids ask all the time if they can look at my photos on my iPhone. One of my little girls Katie Ruth, who is 3, will unlock it, go to photos, she knows the album she wants and she will go to the picture. A lot of the times she will say “I want to see the white dress”, which is a picture of me and my boyfriend before prom; she knows specific pictures. My kids love to use it and they know how to slide the pictures and go to what they want and go back to the home screen also.

Podcasts
To be quite honest, I don’t have a clue as to how to go about making a podcast. My notes on these 6 podcasts were not very detailed, and I have my reasons for that. I like video podcasts so I can actually see what I’m listening to. The audio podcasts I couldn't really focus on, but that’s just me and I need to find a way to handle that.

I’m not quite sure what to say about all these podcasts. I did listen to ten minutes or so of each of them and they were informative. Podcasts are good for many reasons. I know that I have downloaded some from a church and I will listen to it in my car. Podcasts are good to also tell you how to do something, not just a discussion type thing. That is where I like a video podcast, because that way I can be looking at it while it is being talked about.

Making a podcast, or thinking about making one, kind of stresses me out. I’m not going to lie about that! I have never made one, but I’m assuming I will soon see a video about how to make one, and for that I will be grateful for! When I do learn how to make one, I am sure I will understand it in no time.

All of these podcasts I listened to do all have a purpose, and I think the whole reason that most people make a podcasts is to help someone, to be useful to others. It is a great tool to help someone with and I think that most people have yet to find that out. So I encourage you all to try new things with media, phones, computers, blogging, and technology in general!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Week 2- A Vision of Students...

Michael Wesch: A Vision of Students Today

I think this video captures most students’ college experience. For the majority of it, this video does capture mine. I like looking at stats and things like this video offered. At one point a student held up something that said all those hours they help up equal 26.5 hours. That is true sometimes, but students have to be efficient and effective to change that so they do have enough time in a day. Just yesterday I was subbing in a classroom, and I had some time to kill, so I made a little calendar with the days of the week and each hour of the day and made a schedule about when I work and when I study for each class. That’s what I have to do to stay on top of things and stay organized. I have alarms going off all the time on my phone reminding me to do stuff.

Certain things in this video I would change to fit me, such as I work four hours a day Monday through Friday, not two. Unlike some people, I do go to every class everyday and I sit and pay attention. I can’t learn if I am on Facebook or playing on my phone. I did agree with one sign that said they pay for hundreds of dollars for books that never are opened. It makes me sick when buying books, because most teachers require it, but we never use it or need it to study. I liked this video and thought it was a fairly accurate representation of a student.

"It's Not About the Technology" by Kelly Hines

Ms. Hines post was actually very interesting, and I have to say that I agree a lot with her. I think that there should be a happy medium with teaching and technology. I don’t think that technology should always be included in the education process, but I think that it is a big deal in this 21st century. My ideal grade to teach would be 4th grade. I have my views on how I want to teach them and I will learn as I go. I don’t want to smack them over the head with textbooks all day, but I also don’t want them to do nothing but sit at a computer. Therefore, I think there should be a happy medium.

Like Ms. Hines mentioned as one of her points, teachers have to be learners as well. I know that in my first year of teaching there will be many things I’m going to be experimenting with, and my class and I can just learn together and take that adventure. Teachers do need to be update and keep up with technology, it’s all about playing with technology and learning it as you go. In Ms. Hines second point, I like what she said and so I am going to quote it. “If a student has not learned, not matter how much effort has been exerted, no teaching has been done.” Teaching and learning are not the same thing, and I think that quote is self explanatory and I will always remember that.

In conclusion, I think that a teacher who is willing to learn will make a great teacher.

Karl Fisch: Is It Okay to Be A Technologically Illiterate Teacher?

His whole point of this blog is that people can’t be technology illiterate. And I definitely agree. You don’t have to be a computer wiz, but if you are a teacher you atleast need to know how to communicate in the 21st century. Parent who have no clue what is going on is part of the reason that their child can’t do well in school. Little kids today know so much more than their parents when it comes to technology. Not knowing how to use at least a little bit of technology can hurt when trying to find a job and be successful. We need to atleast be willing to learn; if we can’t learn, we cannot help our students learn and be successful.

Pretty much every job you come across has some sort of technology that you need to know. I am an upcoming teacher and I think I know fairly a lot about technology and I keep up with what’s coming out. Upcoming teachers are the ones that are going to watch these future students grow up and we are the ones who are teaching them things they will carry with them. Everyday there is always some new update on technology and we can’t stop that. It is just going to get more advanced and we need to be ready.

Gary Hayes Social Media Count

Oh my gosh, that kind of overwhelmed me when I clicked on the sentence because all of a sudden I see flashes of number increasing. That is just crazy. I wonder what that says about people? Hmm. As I sit and stare at the social media count change, it shows that the world is always going. It doesn’t sleep or take a break. As I looked at it, not once did a number just pause. People are blogging, looking at YouTube, signing up on Twitter and Facebook. Spending money on facebook gifts and virtual goods. What it means for me as an upcoming teacher, I definitely need to keep with all aspects of technology. I may not have to now everything about it or join in, but I at least need to know what is going on in the world. I will always need to be ready to learn. The world is coming out with newer and different ideas all the time. We have to prepare students for this.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Week 1- Did You Know?

Did You Know?
It is very crazy to think that China will eventually be the number one English speaking country. We never can really capture just how big our world is until we hear stats like these. Just 25% of India with high IQs is more than the population of America, I wonder what that is saying? Technology is so immense and endless and scientists and others are coming out with things that we don't even know exist yet.

By the time I have kids, the iPhone will probably just be an old cell phone. The rate of technology and how fast it changes is mind boggling. During Fisch's five minute video, babies were born and almost one million songs downloaded illegally. I'm kind of nervous to think about what all will change and what things will become when my kids are in high school and college. So what does all this mean? Technology never takes a break, as soon as we buy the new things an even better one will come out the next week.

Mr. Winkle Wakes
Mr. Winkle (retelling of Rip Van Winkle) awakes to a completely different world. Some people do not like change when it comes to certain things, I like certain things to remain the same. But, as we continue in our education, we need to stay up to date with technology. Mr. Winkle liked that the school he went to had not changed in 100 years, it was comforting to him and he felt like himself. He saw a computer, but it was covered in dust.

Even though we have all these resources such as iPhones and iPods and computers, we still need the basics, like Mr. Winkle wanted. We should still be able to think for ourselves. Yes, Google can answers all of life's problem, but some things such as reading and math, we should learn and actually use that brain we have.

One of my teachers mentioned the other day about how she used to have to stand in line to register on a piece of paper, now with the click of a button we have a class schedule. Mr. Winkle does make a valid point. Change sometimes is overwhelming, but I think it can be a good thing when we allow it. As a future teacher, I am beginning to think about how I should teach my kids and what are the best ways?

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
He made some excellent points. Evidence of human creativity, we never know what is going to happen next, there are amazing capacities that children have in them, and the unpredictability of it all is astounding. He said, "It's education that is meant to take us into this future that we can't grasp." I love that.

He mentions that it is okay to make mistakes, we are in a world that believes we can't make one mistake. Schools smother a child's creativity. He made a good point about how public schools don't focus on children's differences, they just teach one way and a child may be excellent at arts, but doesn't understand the concepts of math. Those gifted children who are creative are put at a disadvantage. I love the story of the girl he told who is a dancer whose mother thought she was sick, but the specialist said she's not sick, she has to move to think. Children have their own way of thinking and we need to encourage that and bring it out in them. A doctor can look at society intellectually, but a dancer can look at society and help others understand it.

Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
Vicki Davis's way of teaching seems fun. She doesn't seem overbearing leaving everything to the students, but she does make sure they are independent and comfortable in their technology. We should embrace technology like she has, I am trying to learn it all such as blogging and Google spreadsheets, but it takes time. I think she has done an excellent job of the way she does teach her students.

She allows her students independence and is there if they need help. She mentions new terms and the students are required to look it up themselves. Teachers are expected to know everything, but i think it is effective when a teacher doesn't know everything and can work with his/her student to find an answer.