Blog Post #15

I am beyond excited to start the process of having a classroom. From getting my teaching strategies organized to decorating ideas (Pinterest junkie, remember). I have every intention on having a class blog. Not only because of the learning potential of my students, but because I have three kids and the amount of papers they each bring home is insane. Think of how much money the schools would save if teachers would be required to have blogs, and save all that paper. My teaching will be fun, interactive, and hands on, and I will never stop learning and figuring out new ways to do things if things aren't working.

I have plans to not only use a blog, but also use tools like Prezi so kids can express themselves while learning and presenting. I also recently discovered TeacherTube where you can upload educational videos, or lessons that you teach. There is a vast amount of lessons being taught on that site for either the teacher to view for information.There are sites like Edmodo, which is a type of social media site for teachers. You can get many ideas and lessons from this site. You can also have a collection of videos for your class to view. You can use a tool like this possibly if you were going to flip your classroom.  Those are just a few tools I will use in my classroom.

I feel after I start on my student teaching I will get a better feel of how a teachers days is spent and what I can do in that time. I want my classroom to be simple, and uncluttered. At least that's how I envision it being. I believe a cluttered classroom makes chaos. If there are too many distractions then kids won't be focused on things they need to be focused on. I hope to teach grades third and up. That's just what I prefer, of course I will take anything I can get these days. I want my center's to have quality resources


Part 2: I was so worried I would never have enough to say to take up 5 minutes. Well, I was wrong to think that. Apparently I'm a chatty Cathy and I talked for 12 minutes!I had to shorten it, but I'll put the full version on YouTube!

Final PLN

It's no secret that I love Symbaloo, and I have got many other teachers and friends hooked on it. I think it has something to do with my need to be organized. Everything is there, and in it's place. I have found SO many awesome sites that I look at all the time. I also have found so many blog of teachers all over that I follow regularly. I found many things from Pinterest, and Twitter. I feel like with what I have already I could be off to a great start. I have learned so much about technology using these blogs.
My Symbaloo

Project #15

Blog Post #14

       This article is examining a new way to use textbooks. In a effort to see if college students are reading their text, professors are using CourseSmart, which is a type of E-reader, to see how much time students are reading their text. This program monitors how long the reader is open, and in use. This also allows professors to examine students study habits, and see if some sort of intervention is needed. There are a few technicalities that should be worked out, about students leaving the course open to make teachers think they are working on homework. Although, it goes on to say that this program will hold students accountable, and make them work harder knowing that their teachers are "watching" them, and their habits. The students ultimately don't want to give their teachers a bad impression of them.

My point of view as a teacher is that this could possibly be a good tool. Almost everyone these days has some sort of E-reader, whether it be on their phone, or tablet. This also would save students hundreds of dollars that are spent on text books each semester, that are usually not used very often. I think just being able to give our feedback, and ideas on how to help our struggling students is enough to give the program a try.  On the other hand, like the article said, there would be many ways that students could make the data unreliable .If they can come up with an idea like this, then there will be someone right behind them with an idea to overcome it. In my honest opinion, textbooks are boring and therefore hard to read and comprehend. I believe there are much better ways to learn and find new information.

As a student I would feel like this is a free pass. There are so many easy ways to get around this. Student are not dumb, and a majority of them are looking for an easy way out. I would however, want to be lead in the right direction to better my study skills if I was a responsible student. This would only work me if I was one to be truthful on the time I used the E-reader.

Questions for teachers:
How would you keep students from cheating by leaving the E-reader open?

What exactly will the data that's collected be checking?

How long will this program be studied and tested before significant results can be seen?

What are some specific way's this will benefit students?


Questions for students:
How do you think you will benefit from using the E-reader?

Do you think this will make you use technology more often?

Are you going to be more willing to do your required reading and homework, knowing a teacher can see the data?

I would add for the professors to always be aware of misrepresented data. Due to student error, and cheating. I challenge the teachers to come up with new ways to teach students. If a student is not engaged then challenge that student, and introduce them to new and interesting material to learn. Not only that, but show them different ways to learn. It's mostly the teachers job to help motivate student and keep them on track. Text books are not what teaches students at all, it's the material, various, and valuable sources, and teachers. Students all learn in a variety of different ways. Some may actually benefit from text books, but most won't. I never have.

Blog Post #13

Paul Anderson has been a high school teacher for 19 years, so he has had plenty of years to come up with great teaching strategies. The style he is passionate about is blended learning. The way it's blended is it uses three ways of learning and blends them together. The resources he uses are the internet, mobile, and the classroom. I like that he uses acronyms to help himself and his students remember things. That is one the things I use myself when learning new things. But, in explaining the cycle he uses in blended learning, he called it the 5 E's: Engage, explore, explain, expand, and then evaluate. This makes it very clear and easy to understand this concept.

I love that this allows children to learn how to learn on their own. Many people just don't know  how to do this. I believe that this day in age teaching is going to the next level! Mr. Anderson explained the six parts of his cycles and it included, asking good questions, the investigation, video lessons, elaboration, review, and summaries. After they go through the cycle they have a regular paper and pencil test. I like how he makes it so important to make sure every child understands the material before going on. The students are not even allowed to go on to their quizzes until teacher approves. He also makes sure he asks his students many questions to get an idea of what they know and if they are ready to move forward. These are awesome teaching tips! Too many times are made to fend for themselves if they are left not understanding. Mr. Anderson is such a great role model to future teachers.



Brian Crosby is a fourth grade teacher, and has been teaching for over 30 years. He values community service, he believe it is a powerful positive influence on students. He is a believer that having creativity will spark children's desire to learn. I like that he uses he blogs as a way to assess what the children know. After their science experiments they are required to answer in depth questions about the project then have a quiz. I like that he makes sure they have a understanding in the topic before hand.

I hope one day to have a project like High Hopes, that goes global! How exciting that must be for the students. That is something they will never forget, and to just think of how many people he helped.  This video also showed how amazing technology is by allowing a sick child to still be included with her classmates. Even five years ago that may have been impossible! It's moving so fast, and for the good.The most stand out thing he referenced in this video was talking about how the basics can  be addressed more effectively, and skills can be developed when learning is made in a meaningful way. That statement will be with me for a long time.

 C4K# 9
Tyson is a 4th grader from Nebraska. Tyson describes some of the food he likes. He also gave us some facts about Nebraska like, how the weather changes from sunny to rain very quickly. They also have the biggest hand planted forest. He explained his love for sports, and that his brother is much different from him. He asked about where everyone else is from, and is our state is famous for anything.
My response was that I am from Alabama and we are known for our beautiful beaches. I told his how lucky we are here to live only an hour away. I explained that I have never been to Nebraska, but him describing how nice it is makes me want to visit!
Tyson 

C4K#10
Jarrod is a nine year old student from Victoria, Australia. In this blog he wrote about a interview he did with his five year old brother, Tyler. Jarrod asked him to name some of his favorite games, and what his favorite things about school. Tyler said that he really enjoyed being with his big brother, and playing games together. Jarrod put together a sweet video about his brother life.
My response was that I loved that him and his brother are so close. And I told him I had one sister, and that I had three little girls. I told him his video was very sweet, and I asked him if he enjoyed putting it together.
Jarrod

C4T #4

  

Comment #1

Johnny Bevacqua explains in his blog post the importance of working collaboratively. He believe it promotes children to be creative and promotes deep learning. He also feels that competition between students promotes those similar benefits, but feels that competition, and creativity should always be used together.Some research was found that said if the focus was on competition then the work will be done fast. If it was done with cooperation then it will be done right.  Johnny says to teach student when to use both characteristic will teach them to be better role models.

I told him that kids should never be in a hurry to get their work done in order to "beat" another kid. That sounds like we are putting the wrong ideas in their heads about school work. Their goals should always be to get the work done, but right!

Comment #2

This post by Dan Kerr was very uplifting for me at this time of stress from deadlines and finals, along with managing a household with three kids.. He explains the importance of smiles. Smiles have the power to directly alter your mood. He said that the simple act of waking up with a smile will set your day up much more positively.  It will make you more approachable to your students, and fellow teachers. It will help make students feel welcome in your classroom, which will lead to incredibly happier children. 

I wrote about how much I need to read this post tonight. With being overcome with stress at times it's east to forget that it's almost over and I'm a little closer to my reward of being a teacher. I realized I need to make more of an effort in smiling more often not only for my children, but for myself. It's such a simple act that can go such a long way.

 

Blog Post #12

For our assignment this week we will be looking at links discussing various ways to make presentations in the elementary classroom. There are so many sites out there that are similar, but better than a typical powerpoint presentation. These sites are allowing children to use there creativity in a way that incorporates what they have learned about.

Prezi in the Classroom

Introduction to Prezi

Learning Prezi

Glogster Information

PhotoPeach Tutorial

You will come up with three ways to present in today's classroom. Write a blog post about the tool's that you have found. Then out of the three you wrote about, pick one and make your own presentation using the tool. The presentation can be on a children's book, or any subject pertaining to a grade level you are interested in. Make sure your examples of ways to present would be engaging and motivating to students.


Rebecca's presentation:

You can use prezi to promote research presentations in a way that engaging for students to not only make, but also watch. You can make you slides have more creativity in movement and look. You can add video, and audio to your prezi slides. Prezi is great for grades 5th-12th. But if you are looking for something for the younger crowd glogster is the way to go. Children can make presentations or the teacher can describe her assignments in a fun way. You can use to present book reports and class projets. Photopeach can use a combination of music,photos, and text to present a topic. It is also very interactive so group work is greatly advised for this program.

C4K

C4K #6

 In Abby's blog she talked about a Ted video she was assigned to watch. The point of the video was if you put your mind to it, then you can do it. The man in the video learned out to make a wind turbine from scratch. Abby explained that she would like to see school's use more renewable energy. Also, she would like to see it come from solar power or wind.
My response was an introduction from me. Then I told her she did a great job and her use of vocabulary was awesome. I agree school could spend a little more now to make them more energy efficient. That would save money in the long run, and it's better for our environment.
Abby

 C4K #7

Zion wrote a story about a man, and his dog Lucy going on a trip to the beach. They went to get ice cream, and was just having a great time. The dog got to play in the sand and the man got to do some surfing. The ownder left the surf board in the sand as he went in to change. All of a sudden Lucy grabbed it and started to surf! The owner was of course surprised and promised another trip to the beach very soon.
My response was questions on how he came up with  the story line, and that I enjoyed it very much. I asked if he liked having a school blog. I also asked his opinion on if it made learning easier of harder. I told him I had one and enjoy it a lot.

Zion

C4K#8

Colton is 14 years old and from Iowa. He skateboards and enjoys sports. He has pets and goes to water parks in Wisconsin every summer. He wants to be either a pro skater or business man when he gets older.
My response was that it is great he likes to stay active and keep his body in shape and strong. I told his I had never been to another country and that I was deathly afraid of heights so no flying for me! I asked if it was still cold in Iowa, and explained that here it was almost in the 80's. I told him to keep on doing great in school and sports.

Colton

Blog Post #11

Ms. Kathy Cassidy is a first grade teacher in Canada. Ms. Cassidy likes to use blogs as a mean to communicate things that are happening in her classroom. Her students can show their work on their blogs, along with various resources they use. Ms. Cassidy seems like she's such a fun teacher, and so smart. I love her view on children blogging in that the public are the children's audience. And that audience can help improve the students writing and spark new ideas in their heads.

In her skype interview with Dr. Strange and some EDM students she gave lots of useful information. She explained how teachers should always be technological literate and always be willing to improve their teaching style. Twitter truly is a great way to grow your PLN. I personally didn't realize the amount of really quality resources and ideas I would get. She has a great post on her blog about choosing the right people for you and your students to follow on Twitter.

She touched on something I wondered about, and that is how to keep kids as safe as possible in the internet. She explained to not use a child's last name, and no pictures associated with a name. When the students get online to play games it's a good idea to remind them to only stay on the middle of the page, and never click on any side links. I really enjoyed her ideas, and have saved many of her resources that I believe will help me in the future.

Project #14

Blog Post # 10

John T. Spencer's cartoon is basically saying that the papermate is related to a PC, and the Ticonderoga ( I had to look this one up!) is related to a Mac. In other words the Mac is the better of the two. PC's are cheaper than a Mac and are mostly for people that don't use computers a lot. Mac's are awesome for people in education or any other profession because there's so much more you can do on them! It's almost like he made the older man the papermate, and the younger the faster, newer Mac on purpose!

 John Spencer wrote a post about a conversation between a principle and a teacher named Tom. The principle was very clearly against any type of games being played by the students whether it be educational or not. The principle wasn't into integrating the use of technology in with the curriculum at all, and he is pretty set in his ways. I feel although Tom was told not to use the games, he was still trying to figure out how to incorporate it in his work. I feel like many people are set in their ways and are wary of things like computer games because they feel it's ineffective.

In this post Spencer tells his students about a trip he went on called a "pencil quest." He compared these quests to be like moving text books, and at the time he thought this was the best thing ever! Moving ahead to present time, he can't help but be embarrassed! This made wonder, like he did too about how it will be in 20 years. What new thing will there be? I can't all the things we will have available our use in education. It's very exciting!

Scott McLeod is super sarcastic, and I like it! I can't believe people didn't see this right away as sarcasm. He's simply explaining what would happen if you don't allow your children learn technology. The children that are around technology and grow along with it will always be ahead of the other students. I agree that children need to be monitored, but there are ways to make it safe. With my kids they each have a symbaloo page to themselves with educational sites geared to their age levels.

They love the new stuff I find everyday and a lot of the time they share with their friends. They are simply not allowed to click off their game to another site even though we have parental controls on. It seems like Scott McLeod knows his stuff too. He's one of the nation's leading academic experts in K-12 technology issues. He has many awards for his work in technology.

Project #11

C4T #3

 Comment # 1

Mathew Needleman explained the importance in teaching children today how to search and use the search engine tools. He gives great tips on using Google search that I didn't even know about. Like using the minus sign to eliminate certain search results. I love that he gave a cheat sheet to use. I saved it for myself. This type of information helps kids get a head start on learning how to do research, and find valuable information.

Response: I told Mr. Needleman  that I had to bookmark those great resources !  I thanked him on providing this information. It will help children learn how to use their time wisely and efficiently.

Comment # 2

Mr. Needleman provided some apps used for creative writing, fluency, and learning letter sounds. He narrowed his list of educational apps to meet the needs in literacy. There are fluency apps allow the kids to make stories along with recording their voices for them to recognize their mistakes.  The writing apps let kids create story books of movies. Apps like StoryKit allow students to  make a book to practice letter sounds.

My response: I told him I loved the idea about making the letter books since I have a passion for helping kids with their reading skills.  I feel like these apps make learning fun and easy. I told him I really enjoyed using imovie the few times I've gotten the chance.

Project # 12

Blog Post #9

 Mr. McClung's Reflection

Mr. McClung wrote a reflection after his fourth year as a teacher and he clearly was struggling emotionally. He stated how he had a high level of anxiety over what his fellow teachers thought about him, and his teaching style. I can totally relate to this. I can see my self being this way also because I feel when you're a new teacher it can be intimidating measuring up to veteran teachers. Just the feeling like you are being judged, and watched like a hawk. I'm even afraid of starting my student teaching because I have tendencies to be shy sometimes.

But, I do have faith in myself because I know this is what I'm supposed to do. Mr. McClung realized that the only thing important was knowing his students were having fun and thriving. He explains how it can get boring teaching the same information in the same way year after year. It is important to challenge yourself to think of new ways to make it fun and interesting for students and you the teacher. He got the chance to teach a new subject and it sparked his motivation up again to be a great and fun teacher.

Mr. McClung's First Year

I wanted to read about how his first year went mostly to compare it to his fourth, but also because I have anxiety about my first year teaching. I wanted to see how his went and what he learned. He was like most first year teachers in he didn't know what to expect. We will be known as " that new teacher" and all eyes will be on us (at least in our mind). But, hopefully I will leave the college life with much more confidence because I love what I'm doing.

His quote "No lesson is ever perfect. The lesson you teach and the one you plan are always different" is something countless educators have told me. It's probably the number one piece of advice I get most often. It reinforces the rule that all kids learn differently and that means I have to teach them different if need be. He explains to not expect the students to be perfect, and to realize our job is to keep trying to teach and encourage. Mr. McClung has a powerful last statement "never stop learning." I could not imagine anyone saying that they didn't want to learn anymore! Could you imagine how boring classrooms would be if the teacher wasn't willing to change, and improve? I know I can't.

Blog Post # 8

Richard E. Miller of Rutgers University explains through his videos how the way we learn and the way we are taught are changing rapidly. He talks about going from the typical reading/writing concepts to a listening/watching way of learning. My husband has a hard time realizing that learning through technology is replacing the regular textbook and pen/paper way. He says what I'm sure many others do, "I did just fine listening to lectures and writing."  He automatically thinks of video games and mindless internet searches as using technology. But I'm bound to show him the awesomeness of the internet.

I showed him the part in Richards video about how the same book that sitting unused on the library shelf is getting shared in every way possible on the internet. I had never myself thought about the infinite ways of sharing things online. Collaborative work is something I have high hopes for in my classroom. Sometimes the wrong people get in a group together, but once the right ones work together magic happens. I think working together with your peers is one of the best ways to learn.

I like his idea of pushing ideas into our culture. I feel so many people have no idea what's out there. Many teachers feel they are too old to learn all these new ways to teach. They have it set in their mind that there is only one way to do it. So sometimes pushing is what we have to do, so that others can see the new way to teach the children. I feel we are giving them a gift in preparing them because the world is changing so rapidly.

Carly's Post
In Carly's post she shows how imperative it is that we dig deeper in our quest for knowledge. Sometimes all we need to do is dig deep and the answers fall in place. This goes in hand with figuring out what your philosophy shall be. In Carly's assignment the students were to put together a YouTube playlist with all the aspects of what you want for your future classroom, and your future students. Getting a student to think about this, and actually do it can lead to some fantastic ideas about what that student truly wants for her classroom. This is a creative way to use multimedia to write out your views and beliefs on what you want out of being a teacher.

The Chipper Series
The video was the classic "I want the easy way out" scenario.  It featured Chipper, a college student who didn't like how her teacher was teaching so she drops out of school. Only to go out in the world and fail with many jobs. She even tried to start her own school and allow her own students the easy way out by letting them come to school only when they wanted. In the end, Chipper came back to the University and got her masters after realizing she had to work hard to accomplish her goals. These types of videos are a great way to get the message out about hard work. I hope to make some videos like these with the special project group I'm involved with. Students sometimes want things handed to them without them doing anything. I believe with the right tools and mentors any student can accomplish anything.

EDM310 is Different
This video was so funny to me! They were so dramatic and great. They acted out scenes where they were so upset about the amount of work they had and they didn't quite understand how to use the resources. But in the end they learned how to use the sites and it made their lives much easier. I agree that this class was overwhelming at first, because everything was so new to me. But you always have to push through, and stay ahead and it will be fine. Don't procrastinate! I need to learn how to not do that myself, it's a tough habit to break.

Learn to Change, Change to Learn
Something about this video excited me so much! Maybe it because I will be a part of the giant change that is taking place before our eyes. I am so excited and ready because this practically history taking place. To think of how much education will grow yearly is mind blowing. I love knowing that I can interact with teachers from around the globe, and learn new ways to reach my students. I love to believe that one day soon we can let students flourish according to their own strengths and not allow them to get behind because they are not "good enough" for a particular lesson. I can't wait to be a teacher.

Web 2.0.12 Scavenger Hunt
For our new social media site to find, I chose Edmodo. And I'd like to personally thank you for getting me hooked on yet another site! I have looked at this before but never dug around and wow is it amazing! This site makes it beyond easy to find information to related topics all while being able to share and talk to other teachers. It even shows you the other teachers teaching that topic at the moment. This site has a planner on it to plan out lessons, and add new stuff that you find in the site. Also, you can upload from google right from the site. This is wonderful for collaborating with teacher and sharing viable resources. I will actually show this to my 3rd grader for any future homework help, and it will be added to our Symbaloo.

PhotoPeach

This is a great site to use if you have a class blog. This site allows you to set up slide shows for the students to view, and also provides quizzes for the children to do. I posted about virtual field trips a few posts back and this would totally work for that idea. You can search just about anything on here to add to a blog or you can easily make one yourself. I will be using this for sure. I love new sites like this.

C4T Post 1 & 2

Post #1
I got Mrs. Ripp's blog this month, and I really liked her personality. She made me think about a lot! In the first post I commented on she was having a moment where she feels like she failed a student. She felt she didn't motivate this particular student enough when she had the chance. She began wondering when and if teachers should apologize to the students they can't seem to reach.
My comment to her was an introduction first. I asked her a question about how exactly do you control a classroom with out using rewards as motivators. I don't want my class to expect that. She gave a great link to more of her posts to read.


Post #2
Mrs.Ripp had an incident with a student where they didn't see eye to eye. But she said she deserved it. The issue was she admitting in the post that she wanted to be "right"  and she wouldn't back down. The student later sent her an email explaining why he was also stubborn about being right.
And she felt like this was a "gift" that he gave her in a sense of him finally opening up to her. This gave her a chance to redeem herself and become a better teacher because of the situation.
My response was I told her it was a wake up call to the fact sometimes things like this CAN happen. I told her these types of moments of feeling like a failure and then getting uplifted again is what make us good teachers.

Project # 8

Blog post #7

Randy Pausch: The Last Lecture

Even though I stumbled upon this video in the first week of class and found myself being very emotional watching it, the second time wasn't much better. Stories like his always makes me think about how I would act given his situation. It's amazing to me that he is so positive after learning he has only 3 months to live. Randy Pausch is motivational speaker and a awesome educator. His ideas, and the things he has accomplished speaks volumes about the type person he was.

One of his main focuses is making your childhood dreams come true. Not many people get the chance to or have the drive to make those dreams come to life. He says that road blocks are not there to keep us out, but there to make us work harder. I can relate to this in that I feel I have had many road blocks keeping from finishing school due to other responsibilities. I feel it's extremely important to push the people you care about to keep going and not give up. It's something that I will always strive to do with my future student to help them succeed.

Randy Pausch had many talents that he used in his life. He was an athlete who loved football, worked at Disney, and was a professor. He always used his talents and interests in things that were worthwhile. Randy gives us the advise to always be motivating, and have fun no matter the situation. Always to show dedication to your work and never give up no matter how many times you are told no.

This advise applies to everyone, but in his case it was to his children for after he is gone. This advise also applies to me as this is the advise I want to teach my students. I want to show a desire to learn no matter how many times they are put down.  To always be honest and simply be the best they can.  Randy Pausch is such an inspiration to me, and I can see why so many people cared for him.

C4K Summary for February

My first C4K is IBMurray05 and he is a 9th grade student in Mr. Cometti's class. The students were to post about their academic goals for the school year. In my response I praised him on his dedication to his studies.I let him know his ideas of doing a small amount of homework each night to help in procrastination inspired me. I told him to continue to do well and I shared the video on time management by Randy Paush.

In my second C4K I commented on Alyssa's blog, a second grader from Ontario, Canada. Alyssa is in Mrs. Balestrin's class and her post was on a sport she enjoyed playing called ringette. I had never heard of it so I asked her if it was similar to hockey. I explained to her it didn't get all that cold here like it does there. I told her it was great she liked to play sports, and that it kept her healthy and strong.

 My third C4K was with year two students in Mrs. Jenny's class. These students are from Auckland, New Zealand. They are just starting their school year so I wished them good luck! The two students I commented on was Kelly and Lucy. My comment included my well wishes for the new year, and I wished them good luck with learning how to blog.

In my final C4K I had a 10th grader named Lauren in Mrs. Martin's class. Lauren had to interview a classmate using video. I asked her how she liked blogging in school, and if she enjoyed interviewing her friend. I told her about my class and how we are learning to blog and  learning many more aspects of technology to incorporate in our classrooms one day.