Tool Reflections

Jing, PhotoStory, Wordle, Google Docs, and video resources were my favorite tools that I found very useful. I can see the TWE staff using Google Docs for ease of keeping up with calendar activities and shared team documents. I can see my students using PhotoStory. This would be a great opportunity to build collaboration, writing skills, and show their creativity.
Incorporating technology into lessons will be much easier now that I know how to use them and I think the students will be much more engaged because it will not sound like the same old thing. Just like the Activboard excited the teacher and students, I can see where the itouch, ipad, and netbooks will add to that excitement.
The unexpected outcome for me was that I found so many new ways to be creative in the classroom that I can actually do! I will most likely use Atomic Learning for a refresher when it comes down to implementing a certain skill, but knowing that I was able to create some new projects was very exciting for me.

Tool #11

Being a digital learner in the 21st century is very exciting but there will be some concerns. With the ever-changing technology there are some fundamental practices that need to be taught and practiced by all users.
Security and safety is a big concern. As educators we need to make sure that students are taught and practice how to be secure with their personal information. They need to make sure that they keep their passwords to the computer to themselves, much like they do their lunch number. They also need to make sure not to give out any personal information on the web because they really don’t know who is on the other end unless an adult is present and verified the receiver.
Another important lesson for computer users is communicating in a proper way. What you say and how you say it is very important. We spend a lot of time in elementary teaching the children the importance of being respectful and kind to one another and that needs to be continued when on the computer, whether it is in a blog, chat, or a social networking site.
Another important lesson is computer literacy. Technology is great and learning various programs will help make projects more interesting. There are many programs that students will be able to work on cooperatively to enhance their learning.
Just as teachers are demonstrating their new knowledge for many of the digital tools, for our students to become digital citizens, we need to see students demonstrate personal responsibility for becoming a lifelong learner.

Tool # 10

On-The-Go-Technology makes learning so much more available to everyone. How many times have you thought about something and needed an answer, but weren't near a computer or resource to solve your question? Well, with apps on your iphone or an itouch, it is only a tap or two away. I recently got my 1st iphone and now wonder how did I do without it. The convenience of being connected to so many sources is awesome. I needed to use my maps app and love the music app.
I looked at the Math Drills Lite app (it's free) and think it is a must for parent's to have on their phones. It would be great on the itouches at school, too. It uses graphically rich pictorial respresentation with facts and hints to help students master their basic computation.
Kids are naturally curious and with the wealth of information available on the ipad, itouch, or iphone, I think we have just eliminated the worry of boredom.

Tool #9

Jing is a neat tool for clarifying what you are talking about. Whether you capture a picture, map, or video, it helps bring a better understanding to what your message. This would be very useful in the classroom, but also as a homework tool for a teacher website.
Skype can add another dimension to the learning environment by sharing information online. Students can chat with other students from different schools, states, or even countries. Teachers can chat with students or other teachers. If a student has trouble with homework, the teacher could help explain through Skype. This could be another way to have a teacher-parent conversation if the parent cannot attend in person.

Tool #8

This is a very useful tool to both teachers and students, and relatively easy to use. This is a great teaching tool because teachers can use it to model to their students what the finished product should look like, or they can use it to have the students critique what could/should be done differently. It also helps to bring understanding to a lesson just taught or as a preview to a lesson about to be taught. It will add depth to a student's understanding.
I chose a video with Special Education students reading a poem with pictures that the students had drawn to go with the poem. This will helpful to let the students know what they can do and what is expected.
My 2nd video was students performing in reader's theater. I use these books in my class and it would be helpful for students to see what others have done. They can preview these videos to see what they like and possibly change to make it better.

Tool #7

I created this digital story based on some of the pictures that random people took at my daughter's wedding this summer. It was very easy to use, but setting it to music was tricky unless you used the limited choices that they gave you. I think this would be very easy and useful for students to use. A great way to show their creativity.

Tool #6--Wikis

I enjoyed looking at the Wiki sites to see how they can be used to communicate with teachers and students. For the students, they encourage student-centered learning, teacher-student communication, classroom interaction, and world-wide communications. Students can build web pages, embed images & video, and post documents, and even upload their homework before the dog eats it. Teachers can create class notes, scheduling, agendas, and/or interpersonal collaboration. I looked at some of the classroom samples in Wikispaces and was very impressed by the amount of information and activities that can be found on one classroom site. Google Sites! is another great way to communicate with students and teachers alike. It seems fairly easy to add attachments, information, and edit a document. It is a useful tool planning a large activity or project with several people or groups. Students can build and maintain their own websites and integrate all subjects. Wiki sites definitely make information more readily available and efficient for our professional use, as well as our personal use.

Tool #5--Delicious & Diigo

These directions were a little confusing because I didn't find the silent videos helpful. After several replays though, I was able to log in to each of the websites. I think this might be pretty user-friendly with a little more practice on my part. I like the idea of tagging the websites so that you can go from a broad range down to a narrow one. This would be useful to anyone doing research or just looking for a topic or concept. My two websites I bookmarked and tagged were http://funbrain.com and http://www.readinga-z.com. I like the efficiency of the research process.

Tool #4

I used Google Docs and it allowed me to create a calendar and share it with my teammates and others that could use it. The people I sent it to can use it for their own use and add to the calendar and share it with others. I could see where our school could use this calendar and it would eliminate the need for the weekly emails to Christina for the Tiger Tracker.

This is a very useful tool and could be used to create our TAKS Testing Chart so that it allows Special Ed teachers to view the accomodations for TAKS testing.

I used Google reader and really liked how I could get all the information I wanted in one place. The fact that I don't have to search for updates on posts will help simplify things. I have all their blogs in one page and I can keep up with them.

Tool #3--Trip Of A Lifetime

Trip Of A Lifetime

I enjoyed making this animoto video. It was very easy to use. There are many opportunites to use this program in the classroom, such as concepts (weather, biomes, seasons, geometry, etc), sharing about vacations, family, or celebrations. I think students will enjoy this because they can customize the background, music, and import pictures of their choosing.

Tool #3--Character Education Wordle

I used Wordle to create this. This could used as a tribes lesson for character development on a daily, weekly, or as needed basis. The whole concept of Wordle makes a neat layout for presenting concepts and/or reviewing lessons.

Tool #2--The PLN!

1. What are your thoughts about building an online education community and participating in a PLN? I think this will be very useful in many aspects. Teachers are always looking for new ways to teach, deliver, or present a lesson and this will allow teachers a new tool to communicate with fellow educators in the district or other districts. It will allow students to comment on lessons so that teachers can evaluate just what the students got out of the lesson, and possibly their imput/suggestions about the lesson.
2. What point stood out to you from the commenting advice? Comments need to have substance. If you comment you need to explain why it is that you liked it or dislike it....think of level 2 or level 3 of the questioning and Bloom's Taxonomy.
3. What five blogs did you select for your comments? (you may need to come back and add this information later by editing this post.)
Jill--Aggie Mom--WHOOP!
Poffenberger--awesome team mate!
Mario--SuperThorn3--very techy and helpful!
Millie--Super librarian!
Dancing Girl's thoughts--liked her title

tool #1

I think this will be a very useful site to communicate with fellow teachers and students in an interesting way. This will help students to express their views and creativity, and at the same time, teachers can see how well the students are growing academically and technologically.