This was a great class. At first I thought it was going to be overwhelming. After I settled in, I realized how fun it was going to be. I learned so many new things and gained a lot of self confidence in using technology in the classroom. My favorite thing was Google Docs. I had used it before, but through this experience, I realized many more uses for it. I am looking forward to doing some collaborative lesson planning using Google Docs. I also really liked the "creative" applications we learned, like the letter pictures on Flickr and the Mosaic maker.
I plan to continue to explore ways that Web 2.0 can be used in the classroom. It will also be helpful for my children on their school projects. I intend to continue to use the Classroom 2.0 Ning site. That has great information on it. And so many resources.
As for the format of the class, I think it was great. I liked the online aspect because it allowed me to complete the tasks when I had time, but still had deadlines that I had to follow. i could work at my own pace. The facilitators were very easy to get in touch with if you needed help. I will take a class like this again. I really enjoyed it.
Thank you for comments and encouragement on this class. I hope that there will be further offerings like this class.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Thing #23
Visit 23 Thingsters
Wow!! The last Thing! I had no idea that these resources were out there. I love that there are teachers that are willing to share good ideas and resources with the rest of the world. I was told that a good teacher "steals" ideas and implements them into her own classroom. I think this is true. This is why teachers plan together, to get and give insight into lessons.
There was so much information on the ning site. It would be hard to not find something useful. Any time you are having a problem, you can make a comment and get advice from people who have already been there. Teaching is a hard enough profession without having to completely reinvent the wheel. If someone has an idea or advice on how to solve a problem, teach a lesson better or better engage the students, then it should be shared. After all the purpose of teaching is to educate the future of our country. We need to all be together in that endeavor.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Thing #22
Finally, something I know about. I have been using Facebook for about a year.
It is important for educators to know about social networking sites because the students use them so much. So much of student communication goes on through social networking sites. I am not a fan of teachers friending students on these sites. I think that teachers personnel lives should be kept separate from students. But I know many teachers that do friend their students. It does allow for communication with the students.
Social networking sites give teachers an insight into trends, fashion and cultural, that students are participating in. It allows the teacher to be aware of what students are doing outside the classroom.
I like Facebook better than MySpace. I felt that MySpace was geared for younger people. I have even heard students say that Facebook is MySpace for old people! I like to be able to easily share pictures with family and friends as well as share what is going on in my life. Facebook has reconnected me with many of my old high school friends. It has been fun to catch up with them.
I am not sure that there is an educational use for social networking. This is primarily because I do not feel that teachers and students should be friends on them. I think this blurs the line between the teacher and student professional relationship. There are other ways to communicate with students outside the classroom.
It is important for educators to know about social networking sites because the students use them so much. So much of student communication goes on through social networking sites. I am not a fan of teachers friending students on these sites. I think that teachers personnel lives should be kept separate from students. But I know many teachers that do friend their students. It does allow for communication with the students.
Social networking sites give teachers an insight into trends, fashion and cultural, that students are participating in. It allows the teacher to be aware of what students are doing outside the classroom.
I like Facebook better than MySpace. I felt that MySpace was geared for younger people. I have even heard students say that Facebook is MySpace for old people! I like to be able to easily share pictures with family and friends as well as share what is going on in my life. Facebook has reconnected me with many of my old high school friends. It has been fun to catch up with them.
I am not sure that there is an educational use for social networking. This is primarily because I do not feel that teachers and students should be friends on them. I think this blurs the line between the teacher and student professional relationship. There are other ways to communicate with students outside the classroom.
Thing #7B
Google Reader. Love and hate it!! So much information and I am bad about checking it. I have got to get in a better habit.
I just read an article about ebooks out selling print versions. According to Amazon it has sold 143 Kindle books to 100 print books. Kindle is the Amazon electronic reader. I think this is interesting. I have a Nook, which is Barnes and Noble electronic reader. I really like it, but still love a hard copy of a book. The electronic reader has some benefits over a hard copy. You can get a book at any time of the day. You do not have to wait for a store or library to be open. Also, ebooks often are a little less expensive than print books. There is an environmental benefit as well. All the paper and production is not needed. People who have trouble seeing will enjoy the ebooks, because they can adjust the size of the font.
I can see why people do not want to switch to an electronic reader. but I agree with the article in that books are changing. People I have spoken to say they like the feel of a print book, the weight of it in their hands. But as with everything else that is changing, electronics is the way to go. Soon more people will own the e-reader and purchase the e-books. I feel that we will never completely replace the print version of books. After all, the ebooks don't look so good on the shelf as all the print books.
I just read an article about ebooks out selling print versions. According to Amazon it has sold 143 Kindle books to 100 print books. Kindle is the Amazon electronic reader. I think this is interesting. I have a Nook, which is Barnes and Noble electronic reader. I really like it, but still love a hard copy of a book. The electronic reader has some benefits over a hard copy. You can get a book at any time of the day. You do not have to wait for a store or library to be open. Also, ebooks often are a little less expensive than print books. There is an environmental benefit as well. All the paper and production is not needed. People who have trouble seeing will enjoy the ebooks, because they can adjust the size of the font.
I can see why people do not want to switch to an electronic reader. but I agree with the article in that books are changing. People I have spoken to say they like the feel of a print book, the weight of it in their hands. But as with everything else that is changing, electronics is the way to go. Soon more people will own the e-reader and purchase the e-books. I feel that we will never completely replace the print version of books. After all, the ebooks don't look so good on the shelf as all the print books.
Thing #21
I had no idea that you could do so much with Google. Very impressive. I spent time with the calendar. That is fantastic. You can use it to keep your home life and school life totally organized. I check my email a couple of times each day so it would be easy to use an online calendar. And I always forget when I have scheduled things for. I think I will begin to utilize this.
And of course as a geography teacher I have used Google earth before. I love all the things you can do on it. There are so many things you can do on it. Through Google Earth you can visit sites and buildings in there exact location. Students can see historical maps that show what an area was like. Students can see things that have past and things that are going on now. You have the ability to see the South African Soccer Stadiums. There are many uses for Google Earth in the classroom.
And of course as a geography teacher I have used Google earth before. I love all the things you can do on it. There are so many things you can do on it. Through Google Earth you can visit sites and buildings in there exact location. Students can see historical maps that show what an area was like. Students can see things that have past and things that are going on now. You have the ability to see the South African Soccer Stadiums. There are many uses for Google Earth in the classroom.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Thing #20
Google Docs is awesome. I was on the UIL Academic Competition planning committee at NMHS this past spring. We did almost all of our planning and scheduling through Google Docs. It made it so easy. We started by sending out a survey to find out what shifts people would prefer to work. We then were able to complete a spreadsheet that had all the competition names and how many people were needed to run it. We then took the information from the survey and plugged in the names. All people who were on the committee shared the documents, allowing us to fix and change things as they came to our attention. We were able to complete several lists of supplies and items that were needed for the tournament. It was great. Our principal could check how things were going at any time.
Google Docs can be used for scheduling purposes as we did for the UIL competition. You could also use Google Doc to collaborate with other teachers on lesson planning. Create a lesson, share it with the other teachers and they can make changes and revisions. It would cut out the need to find a time when everyone could get together to plan. Also, students could use Google Docs for group projects. All members of the group would have access to the document and be able to make changes and add additional information. There are countless uses for Google Docs. It allows input from a variety of people to ensure the best final product.
Google Docs can be used for scheduling purposes as we did for the UIL competition. You could also use Google Doc to collaborate with other teachers on lesson planning. Create a lesson, share it with the other teachers and they can make changes and revisions. It would cut out the need to find a time when everyone could get together to plan. Also, students could use Google Docs for group projects. All members of the group would have access to the document and be able to make changes and add additional information. There are countless uses for Google Docs. It allows input from a variety of people to ensure the best final product.
Thing #17
Podcasts.I have not used them in my class. I am not sure if I will begin to use them or not. There is much good information available by podcast. You can find stuff that will help in your classroom as well as stuff that is just interesting to you. I watched/listened to a few podcasts on Stuff You Missed in History Class. I loved it. Two women set you straight on some of the more obscure items in history that you may not be aware of. Right up my alley. I also watched a few podcasts about craft brews. Very intersting. I used itunes to search for podcasts. I like the way that it categorizes the podcast, making searching for what you are looking for easy. Again I am not sure that I will use podcasts in my class. I will have to continue to search to see if I can find things that will enhance my lessons.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)