Final Class Period!

Really appreciate the thought that we can always contact Dr. Boyer, even in the future when we have our own classrooms.

3 Ways I will integrate technology into Ella's Class:

• This is a third grade classroom and I will integrate technology in many ways. I will create a wiki that will allow me to post pictures, homework assignments, class discussions. This will allow the students to have access to what happened in the classroom after they leave and also allow the parents to see on a regular basis what their child is doign during the school day.
• Secondly,  I will have a SMART Board, I think allowing the students to be up and active in the lesson allows for a funner learning environment and the kids want to come to class more because of it I think. You can use one of these tools with any lesson.
• Finally, I will have my students have "penpals" from across the world. I think it would be a good experience for them to see how other students learn, and be able to become global without actually leaving their classroom.

I appreciated how Dr. Boyer allowed us to ask questions at the end of the class period about anything we had thoughts or concerns about.
I wish we didn't have to have lecture for this class, I don't feel like it is necessary.
I don't understand why they are changing the way portfolio is done, we finally just learned how to use Dreamweaver and now their changing it.
My attitude towards technology has changed over the course of this semester a lot. Before this class I had never put any thought into encoorporating technology into my classroom and now there are so many options I don't know if I can use them all! I throughly enjoyed this class, as it was a lot of work but I think that it was well worth everything! I was able to learn about things that I may never have before such as scratch. I really do think I will use this in my future classroom along with many other options I learned about from this course!
THANK YOU :)

Podcast

This is the one assignment I had so much trouble with! Wouldn't have been so bad if I wouldn't have erased my only copy of it! But thats besides the point. I wound up having to redo the whole thing, and I thing that it still turned out great! I actually found more information on the topic to backup my argument so that was nice. I still really like the idea of making a podcast for my classrooms, their really easy to make especially if you have the information that your going to use. For example, if your just going to record your classroom lessons of the day, then you just have to record while your talking in class. Thats not hard at all! So although, I had issues with creating mine; only because my computer crashed, I will still use podcasts in my classrooms because i think its beneficial for students. They already have ipods so why not?

End of Class Slip

Technology Integration:

Teacher integrates technology in her classroom:

• SMARTBoard; active lessons
• Engage students in coopoerative learning.
• Actively engage them/participation.
• Online Collaborative projects;
• Learn from students in different parts of the world
• Reaching out to experts in the field.
• Virtual Penpals (epals.com)
• Daily online blog
• Use for students AND Parents.
• Online Assignments
• Open classroom (trasnparent teaching, document what is going on in the classroom)
• Recognition- Student accomplishments and success.
• Students have their own blogs to share their opinions. (more intersted in writing)
• Being exposed to current events
• Sharing their perspectives - in and out of class, global citizen.
• Laptops in the classroom
• Having laptops in our classroom allows us to blog and do online collaborative projects.

Students get to enjoy a more collaborative learning environment and share their work with the world!

Some ways to get collaborative projects could be to reach out to experts in other countries via skype, and wikis. Bring them into your classroom!
Writing assignments become more meaningful to students when you give them a global audience (audience outside of school, writing for more than just the teacher).

Somethings we could do before technology:

• Send home assignments (write in the planner,newsletter)
• Collaborative projects (different grade levels, other schools in the same city)
• Effective classroom management plan can allow student engagment.
• "Open Classroom" sending home a newsletter, call home.
• Students keep a journal about current events by looking at a newspaper.
• Sharing perspectives (within our own classroom)

Things that we couldn't do before technology:

• World-Wide collaboration
• Active blogging
• Online (Only within the last 10-15 years)
• SMART Board and Laptops.
• Recognition of student work.

Could do better:

• Engagement/Participation - Not solely responsible but increases it.
• Cooporative learning
• Open Classroom - don't have to "kill all the trees"
• Could tweet, blog, maintain wiki.
• Collaborative projects.
• Sharing perspectives - can go beyond the classroom
• VERY current, current events.
• Assignments

Technology makes classrooms much more effective!
Which technology do I use? Trying to find the perfect fit between the most effective technology and what your trying to create takes some time and thought.

Reasons to use technology
1. Use technology to reinforce learning
2. Be creative in using different kinds of learning (homemade elmo, named it grover.) Creative ways of asking for funding.
3. Communicating with your parents all the time, not just for parent/teacher conferences.
4. How students can stay connected wtih other people of the world.
5. Teachers admitting they don't know everything.
6. Use technology that students already have.
7. Use technology to engage your students not to entertain them!

Distraction is not a new concept! Technology may increase this concept.

Should you use your personal technology in the classroom?

• No, don't put your personal stuff at risk! Seperate those two worlds!

Week 12 in class assignment

http://www.watchknow.org/Video.aspx?VideoID=20120&CategoryID=2595
Third Grade Online Video

http://www1.gcs.k12.al.us/~podcast/audio/christmas_08.mp3
Third Grade Podcast

http://www.exchange.smarttech.com/details.html?id=x773f0c21e79547458e18f84a5e9e55e0
Grade 1 and 2 Spanish Smart Board Lesson

http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/samurai768/1379954
Scratch project

http://www.primarygames.com/math/numbereaters/index.htm
Online Math Game

Chapter 10 Rethinking education

This chapter allowed us to consider all different aspects of technology in the classroom. I liked how the author's included their own opinions in this chapter. Its scary to think about all the changes that can be made just in the short time of me still being in school and also while i'm in the classroom teaching. How much will the technology part of this world evolve and change over the span of my career? But the thing is, is i'm in school now learning all this what about the teachers who aren't in school and are just thrown into a technology world like this. How do they cope with having to evolve technology into their classrooms? I know before taking this class I didn't know how to do a good portion of things I have learned. I didn't even have a blog or twitter, now I have both! Although, there is still so much to learn, after reading this book and taking this course I believe taht I am a step ahead of current teachers in the technology world. I am glad that I read this book and have a different perspective on technology and all the aspects it entails.

PSA

Our PSA really wasn't that hard. I think the hardest part was matching all of our schedules together to be able to film it. We figured out a topic no problem and it all fell into place. We sat down, filmed the video and then put it on the computer and made magic happen.
I think it was something new for me to do first of all, I made my youtube debut. That was pretty awesome I must say. But overall, I think this would be a good lesson for students to partake in. I feel like you could use any topic and its something that gets the students out of their seats and thinking about other topics. I think depending on what grade I teach, I will use this activity!

Out of class slip 11/11

Today is a work day! WOOOO.

Chapter 9 was presented today:

• Liked that they started wtih a quote, and explained the quote in their own words.
• Had a good idea about using scriblink, did a good job of exhibiting plan b
• Not equal distribution between talking.
• New Grouping.
• Assigning the perspective.
• Summary in 5 minutes or less

Its interesting in class when Dr. Boyer said that we are coming into the education community under a lot of scrutiny. We have to show and prove ourselves as to what how were going to be different and be able to interact technology into the education community. I think this is one of the things that TERRIFY me about becoming a new teacher. I am terrified that I will not be able to live up to the standards of a new teacher in todays world. I would hate to go through 5 years of school to not be able to ever get a job.
I think my last post said that I was overwelmed about this class because there is just oh so much do. Well because I was a productive student last week, I am well ahead of what is due, I need to continue working on my inquiry wiki but hopefully that will be complete by next week. I then will only have to focus on a PSA.
That being said, I am greatful to have a work day to catch up on anything else also.