CEDO 535 - Week 3 - RSS

I am looking forward to using my new RSS account.  I chose to go with Google Reader mostly because it seemed the easiest to set up and follow.  I chose to follow just 4 blogs to start since that is what the book recommended, but I know I will be adding more to my feed soon!  I am excited about using RSS because it will be a way for me to follow all of the blogs I have found and enjoyed, but don't have enough time to check daily.  I think this will be a great way for me to get more involved in the blogging world.  We will see how it goes after the first few weeks.

I uploaded my first few pictures to Flickr today as well.  To tell you the truth I am not sure how I will use my Flickr account in a school setting, but I am always open for trying new things.  I can see my class using Flickr when doing presentations and it will be a great tool to teach them about Copyrights, but other than that I don't know how we would use it.

I am excited to spend more time on Google Sites.  I created a Google Site for one of our previous classes, but have yet to do anything else with it.  At the TIES Conference, that I attended last week, I went to a class on how one area high school is using Google Sites with their 9th- 12th graders.  They have them create a portfolio site of their best work and then when they are seniors they sort through all of their work and pick their best work.  When they are applying to Colleges they are giving the URL to the school in order for them to access multiple samples of their best work.!  I thought this was a great idea.  I can see in a few years all College asking students to provide them with a link to their portfolio instead of submitting them electronically or in print form.  I hope to incorporate something like this in my classroom next year!

CEDO 535 - Week 2 - Wikis

I feel like I am getting a better understanding on how to use blogs in my classroom.  Truthfully, I keep this blog (because I have to) and we are doing a 6th grade events blog at school, but neither one of them feel like effective blogs to me.  I am hoping to change that as the weeks go on.  I do think blogs are a great way to get kids writing and collaborating, but I do feel like my kids still need lots of guidance when it comes to blogging.

Now when it comes to Wikis.... I am lost.  We do have a staff Wiki at school where people can share things they find interesting.  We have had it for 2 years and there are maybe 8 things on the wiki.  3 of which I have added.  I understand that Wikis are used to share information, but I never thought of using them with my students.  I liked a lot of the ideas in the book on how to use wikis an I enjoyed looking at some of the sample wikis available, but I don't think I would use both blogs and wikis in my classroom.  If I had to choose I would rather have my students blog, but maybe the more I learn about wikis and if I actually tried it with my students I would change my mind. 

Overall, I love all of these new ideas, but I don't have the time to implement them all.  I see my students for 30 minutes in technology every other day and 50 for reading.   We have so many things to cover in that short time frame as it is.  I have noticed this year with the blog we needed a few class periods just to figure out how to use it let alone the class time we need to contribute to the blog.  I wish I could do everything we learn about because I do think they are effective for students, but there is never enough time in the day!

CEDO 535 - Week 1 - Blogging

After completing the assignments this week I realized that I am not an effective blogger.  This is the first blog I have done and I thought I was doing ok since I haven't had too hard of a time coming up with things to write about.  After reading Will Richardson's book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and other Powerful Web Tools for the Classroom, I realized I am more of a journaler than a blogger.  I mostly just write my thoughts and opinions on certain topics and don't add any extra referencing or links to expand upon the idea.  I hope to get better at that as we go on.

This week I took a look at three different blog hosting locations.  The ones I chose were ePals, Edmodo, and Edublogs.  I don't have any experience with either of them and I was pleasantly surprised.  I just started a blog this year with  my 6th graders.  So far we are just blogging about what is happening in 6th grade and in the school, but we hope to be blogging about our book club books after Christmas.  The blog we are currently using is part of our school website and I am not very excited about the options it offers.  After researching other blog hosting sites some of the other sites allow alot more options that I would like to use.  For example, I like how in Edublogs you can have each student have their own blog that you monitor.  I think my students would feel more ownership over the blog if they each had their own instead of all contributing to one.  Some of my students don't contribute very much while others contribute a lot.  If they each had their own they couldn't rely on the other students to do it for them. 

Overall, I am excited about blogging, but I think I need to do some more research in order to become a better blogger.  I wish I had a day to just devote to looking at and searching other people's blogs.  I think that would help me become a more effective blogger.

CEDO 530 - Week 5

I can't believe we are almost done with this class!!  Even thought it has been a TON of work I have truly enjoyed creating videos and learning about the programs that are available.

This week I created a rubric using RubiStar.  I took a look at the other Rubric making tools that were suggested, but I felt RubiStar had what I needed to create my rubric.  Also, I have used it before so it was a lot easier then learning a new tool.  I enjoyed creating this rubric which I will be using to evaluate my students videos in a few weeks.  I haven't created too many rubrics for projects that include technology.  I am sure after I use this rubric I will think of other things I should've added to it.

As far as the Pecha Kucha goes... ugh!  This is not my thing.   I love doing presentations, I don't mind having to do timed slides, but I hate being restricted to 20 seconds on each slide.  I had a hard time getting what I wanted across in 20 seconds.  I also had a hard time getting my slide transitions to go fast enough in VoiceThread.  In the end I think it turned out ok, but I wish it was better and easier to do.

I did enjoy a lot of the readings this week on what to look for when buying certain technology products.  I don't know much about a lot of the technologies and usually just rely on our tech. director or a store associate to help me make the best choice.  After reading those articles I think I could do a lot of it on my own.

CEDO 530 - week 4

I had fun creating my Prezi this week.  I really enjoy using Prezi.  It was also exciting to take a look through the pictures I have taken this month and laugh at a few of them.

I am still struggling with the Pecha Kucha!  I don't like any of my original ideas and am trying to come up with a new idea to create.  Hopefully, it will click soon so I can finish that assignment.  I am excited to actually create the Pecah Kucha, but I seem to have hit a roadblock when it comes to brainstorming.

I liked the last part of the Presentation Zen book.  I have learned a lot of new things about how to create more appealing presentations, but I the whole time I have been wondering what I need to do differently when it comes to presenting them.  I am notorious for turning out the lights in order for the students to better see the smartboard.  I never thought about them not connecting to me when the lights are off.  I wish every presenter would learn about living in the moment and reading your audience.  Especially when it comes to recognizing when the audience is done listening.   This is really important in education.  When you kids are starting to tune you out it isn't worth it to push through the presentation.  You need to stop and pick it up at a later time.  I also agree that you should end every presentation a few minutes early and making the audience want more!  I hate it when people go over by 5-10 minutes.  I didn't learn anything the last few minutes because I am more concerned about getting out of there!  Overall, I am excited to see what we will be creating next week :-)

CEDO 530 - Week 3

I am really excited about new things we learned this week.  I really enjoyed using Animoto.  It was so easy to use and I loved the outcome.  I can see using this easily with my students.  I would love to have my students take pictures of activities throughout the year and then make an animoto at the end of the year with their favorite activities. 


I also enjoyed looking at the Pecha Kucha.  I think it is a great idea to only spend 20 seconds on each slide.  It makes the author narrow in on what is important and forces them to simplify their presentation.  I am looking forward to creating one.  I would like to create one for the beginning of the year slide show about classroom and playground rules.  I would like to show pictures of what to do and what not to do and then have short comments for each.  I was also thinking it would be fun to make slides of books I would recommend to my students and give a brief explanation of each.

I am struggling with how to use these two new digital story platforms in my reading class.  I can think of tons of ways to use them for social studies and my computer class, but not sure how to use them in reading.  Any suggestions?

CEDO 530 - Week 2

I feel like I should name this post overwhelmed!! After spending half a day on homework today and feeling like I haven't even made a dent in it I am a little overwhelmed!!  This is a lot to do in a week with working full time and having a family. 

On a positive note, I am finally feeling like I am understanding the purpose of digital storytelling and how I can use it in my classroom.  I have enjoyed watching other people's digital stories and thinking about what I would like to do.  I have book marked quite a few of the stories I like in order to show them as examples to my students.  I am hoping by half way through the year my students can all create their own.

One of the ways I am hoping to use Digital Stories in my classroom are with my students research projects.  Each year the sixth grade students have to pick an influential person in history and write a research paper on them.  They then have to present a 5-10 minute presentation to the class.  I would like to have each student create a digital story of their person and use that as part of their presentation. 

Another idea I was thinking of is having the kids make digital stories of their favorite experience in elementary school.  (after 6th grade they move to the high school).  These stories could be used at our end of the year poetry shop that all the parents and grandparents are invited to.

I am excited to make my own digital story soon so I can start to understand the process.  I also enjoyed playing around with voicethread this weekend.  I am sure my kids would love it!  Well, time to get back to work....maybe I will be in bed before 1 am.

Digital Storytelling - 530 - Week 1

To be honest I haven't done any digital storytelling.  Ever since starting classes last February I have been looking forward to taking this class.  I have heard about digital storytelling and know a few teachers that use it in their classroom, but I have never invested the time to do it myself.  I am hoping this class will give me the knowledge I need to make a video that I can use in my classroom.

I am also hoping to have my students produce their own digital stories.  After doing a little more research on digital storytelling I realized there are a lot of resources out there on how to incorportate them into your classroom.  Here are a few of the sites I found interesting:

The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling
Digital Storytelling Finds its Place in the Classroom

I have to admit I am a little nervous about having all of my 6th graders create a digital story.  I do think it is a great way for them to share what they have learned and incorporate technology into their projects.  Hopefully, by the end of this class I will feel confidant enough in my abilties to make a digital story that I can teach them to make their own.  Can't wait to get started!

Final Post - CEDO 525

Looking back over this course I have a lot of good tools I am taking away.  I did really enjoy the book and will use a lot of the resources it has listed!!  Hopefully, the next few weeks off will give me a little time to look at all of the amazing sites they have listed in the book.

The main thing I took away from this class is the ability to evaluate my lessons and find ways to incorporate technology while still using a majority of the instructional strategies we learned about.  After taking a closer look at my book club unit I realized I am doing a lot of the instructional strategies without even knowing it and by making a few minor changes I can add more technological components.  I can't wait to start this until in a few weeks!!  I am more excited to tech it and would guess the students are going to be more excited to do this unit with the technology component.

Overall, I enjoyed this class and am excited about our next class!!  I haven't done much with digital storytelling and can't wait to learn how to use it in my classroom!

CEDO - Week 5

The three instructional strategies we covered this week are Homework and Practice, Similarities and Differences, and Generating and Testing Hypotheses.  All three of these strategies are important in teaching and help by reinforcing student learning.

Homework and Practice

Homework and practice is used to help reinforce student learning and allows students to apply what they have learned.  Generally, practice is something done in the classroom.  The students are taught material and the practice they are given is used to help them master that material.  Practice helps students gain a better understanding of the material and gain feedback from the teacher on the material.  Technology could be used as practice.  If you are teaching students math facts they could sign on to the computer and play some math fact games.  We use Mad Math at our school as well as Study Island.   Homework is practice, but is generally done at home.  When giving homework, I believe, you need to keep in mind the students lives outside of school.  A lot of my students (6th graders) are involved in after school activities and don't have all night to complete homework.  You also have to think about if they have access to computers at home.  A few of my students don't have computer access and therefore I don't assign a lot of homework assignments that contain technology components.

Identifying Similarities and Differences

Identifying Similarities and Differences is a skill that should be used from Preschool to Seniors!  It is a great way to help students understand a topic better and learn how to categorize the information they are learning.  One way we identify similarities and differences in my reading class is through venn diagrams.  I put a venn diagram up on my Smartboard and the students have to fill it in.  Sometimes I will put up characteristics and the students will have to slide them into the correct circle for a certain character.  Identifying similarities and differences is very effective in character analyzation as well as comparing and contrasting two books.  Graphic organizers are wonderful tools to help you organize your similarities and differences.

Generating and Testing Hypotheses

Generating and Testing Hypotheses is something we all do without even realizing it!  It is important to help students realize the process behind testing their hypotheses.  By asking students to generate and test hypotheses they gain a better understanding of the material, apply what they already know, and become engaged in their own learning.  Technology can be easily incorporated when testing your hypotheses.  Students may want to poll other students using tools such as PollEverywhere, or in my classroom we use our Senteo system ( works with our Smartboard).  Students can evaluate their date by using Excel or Google Spreadsheets.  Overall, testing hypotheses is a great way to get kids to think critically and be in control of their own learning.

CEDO 525 - Week 4

I ended up watching all of the Clay Shirky videos that were posted for the week.  To be honest, he is not my type of presenter... I found the information a little boring and over analyzed, but there were a few take home points in all of the videos that I can relate to education.

First of all, in the video Institutions Vs. Collaboration


I found it interesting how he believes that due to collaboration on the web institutions are becoming more and more obsolete.  This is true in education as well.  There are becoming more collaborations that are forming on-line education that are making some schools and teachers obsolete.  I don't fully believe that collaborations will ever take over institutions.  There are sometimes that institutions will win out.  I agree that web collaboration has changed how we can access information.  His example of Flikr hit the nail on the head.  We can now easily access pictures about a certain subject from numerous photographers due to Flikr's tag feature.  People can also find numerous different types of information thanks to the existence of blogs and wikis.

The other video I watched was How Cognitive Surplus will Change the World. 

One take home point from this video was if you want productivity or positive results to decline give them a consequence.  I thought is example of parents picking up their children late from daycare was great!  He said that parents were told they were going to be charged if they picked up their child 10 minutes late.  The daycare providers thought it would encourage parents to be on time, but it ended up doing the opposite.  Parents actually were late more often because they figured they would just pay the fee.  I believe this is true in education.  If I tell my students they will lose 10% if their assignment is late some of them will just say well then take 10% off ... I don't care.  Or if I state, I need your assignment or it is a 0 they say give me a zero.  On the other hand, if I tell them I expect your homework is done on time.... for the most part they cooperate.  There were a lot of other good points in all of the videos, but this blog is getting a little lengthy as it is. 

Cooperative Learning

To me the purpose of cooperative learning is for students to learn skills from each other as well as learn to work with people whom have different ideas and thought processes then they do.  I use cooperative learning quite frequently in my reading class.  We do book clubs a few times a year where the students read books together and then have discussions about the book.  Overall, it has been a very successful project.  The students like working with others and they like the independence book club gives them.  This year I plan on using blogs to help enhance the students discussions!  I am hoping they will be more open if they are sharing on the blog versus speaking in front of their group!! 

Reinforcing Effort

Reinforcing effort is something I believe all teachers do without even knowing it!!  We are constantly encouraging and giving them praise.  I am hoping to use technology to reinforce my students.  We have Smart Response (Senteos) that I can give them immediate feedback.  I think it is easier to reinforce effort without technology... it is easy to write or say Great Job or I like how you did.....  Overall, Reinforcing effort is key to students success in school and to me whether it is done using technology or not it is just as effective.

Week 3 - Advanced Organizers

This week we took a look at advanced organizers.  We read an article about the benefits of using advanced organizers when teaching a new topic and then we took a look at three different advanced organizers.  I use advanced organizers quite frequently in my classes when introducing new topics.  The main ones I have used are KWL Charts, character webs, Kidspiration and Inspiration.  The new ones I explored were MindMeister, ExploraTree, and Education Oasis.

The first one I looked at was MindMeister.  Some of the things I looked was that you could drag and drop images from your computer or the web into your map, you can add notes, links, and tabs to your map.  The history view can be saved in order to show it as a presentation.  You can use MindMeister to invite others to collaborate with you on your map which would be great if you were using it in a classroom with groups of students.  Finally, a feature I liked was that it can be used on both I-phones and Android phones.  MindMeister does require a monthly fee and you can choose your level of accessibility you want to pay for.

The second one was ExploraTree.  ExploraTree is a free advanced organizer program with numerous options.  You can add and change text, shapes, and images.  It can be presented as a presentation and sent to groups to collaborate.  There are numerous maps already ready for your use including maps used to solve problems and apply thinking skills.  It didn't seem as user friendly, but is a good option if you don't want to pay a fee.

Finally, I took a look at Education Oasis.  This website didn't seem to have the capabilities to customize your organizers, but provided you with 58 graphic organizers that are PDFs.  you can download them and print them for your class.  Some of them can be written on before they are printed.

The reading we had last week on Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers; Non linguistic Representation; Summarizing and Notetaking were really important in teaching.  Cues, Questions, and Advanced Organizers are important to promote critical thinking and help students retain what they learned.  I use KWL charts frequently to find out what kids have know and what they want to know in order to gear my lessons towards their interests.  I also use Character webs to help students remember characters in books and help them to analyze each character in the story. 

Non linguistic Representation is something I use frequently for our vocabulary words.  I try to link pictures to the words so the students can better remember them.  We also draw pictures of what we have read that day in order for them to visualize what they have read.  I use Kidspiration and Inspiration to create picture maps of stories.  We also use the Internet to find pictures that represent what we are reading.

Finally, Summarizing and Notetaking we use daily.  It is important for students to summarize what they have learned each day.  We summarize what we have read or what we have learned.  It is important for students to pick out the key facts that we have learned throughout the lesson and be able to summarize what we have done.  Some programs we use for notetaking and summarizing would be power point, smart notebook, and Kidspiration/Inspiration.

CEDO 525 - Week 2

Our first assignment for this week was to read the article Feedback That Fits.  When I was reading through this article I realized how little thought I put into the feedback I give my students.  As a classroom teacher you constantly give students feedback.  Sometimes that feedback may be an oral comment to the class, a grade on a paper, a written note to the student, or a comment left on an assignment.  Giving feedback is a natural thing to do, but I didn't realize that the feedback I am giving could hinder the students' outcomes.

One of the take aways I took from the article was to Ask the students to evaluate their own work by asking them questions such as... What did you notice?....Why did you decide to do it this way???  By doing this, the students are evaluating their work as well.  I also realized how often I use general praises, such as, Good Job.  The article stated that general praises are really not effective for students.  Finally, I liked how they said you should always note improvements in your students' work even if they didn't meet the outcome desired.  This is something I need to work more on.  Overall, I enjoyed the article and will use a few of the points when I am giving feedback to my students this year.

Our next assignment was to look at a few online rubric and evaluation tools.  I have used RubiStar and Quia before, but I tend to forget to use them.  I like how easy RubiStar is to use and how you can use one of their already made rubrics or develop your own.  I like to use Quia for Chapter/Unit reviews on the smartboard.  The kids seem to really enjoy them because they get to play them on a big screen!!  For this assignment I looked a little more at Quia and realized there are a lot more features that I don't currently use.  Maybe I will try some of them this year!

***  I am not exaclty sure what we were supposed to do for this part of our blog, but I gave it a try :-)***

What is the purpose of asking students to set objectives.  I believe the purpose is to have students take responsibility in their own work.  If they have a goal they want to achieve they will more than likely work harder to achieve it.  Also, if they set the goal it is something they think they can attain versus the teacher setting a goal and the students getting frustrated  because they don't think they can complete it.

I can think of a time I asked students to set objectives and I was pleased with the results.  I have asked students to set a goal of what point value they would like to attain when using our Accelerated Reader tests.  The students each had an individual goal that they felt they could attain.  I liked that they were in control of their own success. Some students were reading lots of books and taking AR tests every week to obtain their goals. 

I can think of a time that I asked student to  Set Objectives  and I was not pleased with the results.  I have asked the students to set a goal of how many minutes they would like to read each week during I love to read month.  Some students set realistic goals.  Goals that were attainable, but not too easy.  While other students set goals that they could easily attain in a few days.  I need to find ways to encourage students to challenge themselves without stressing themselves out.

What types of technologies can I use to help students set objectives.  Students can set their own goals using Accelerated Reader programs.  They could also use spreadsheets to keep track of their progress.

CEDO 525 - Week 1

On to the next class.... I am ready to get going on our next class, but I have a feeling this class is going to be more like college courses I took years ago rather than the classes we have taken so far in this Cohort. 

One of our first assignments was to take a look at the Principles of Teaching and Learning.  I have looked at these before, awhile ago, but at the time I was thinking of them in relation to a reading/social studies curriculum.  Today when I read though the principles I was thinking about how they would affect my technology curriculum.   I think all of these principles should be used in planning a technology lesson as well.

One of the Learning principles that stood out to me was Students' Prior Knowledge can Help or Hinder Learning.  I think this one is especially true in a technology driven classroom.  Students use technology all of the time and most of them have learned how to use it incorrectly (examples: keyboarding, Internet safety issues, how to search the web etc.).  Some students might have a hard time learning the correct way to use computers.  On the other hand, because students do use technology so frequently their additional learning at school should be able to build on what they already know. 

All of the Effective Teaching principles seem to directly correlate it with technology.  When planning a lesson you need to make sure you have learning objectives and assessments.  It is also important that you adjust your plans to meet your students needs.  Some students might not have computer access and therefore you can't anticipate any prior learning,

Some of the points I found extremely interesting in the Meta-Analysis were the fact that students learn better when using technology in small groups versus on their own.  I would've thought that having their own one-on-one time with the computer would've been more effective.  I was also surprised at how much higher her Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Outcomes were when using technology.

I think this class is going to help me plan effective technology lessons, but I do think I am going to miss playing around with new technologies!!!

CEDO - 520 Final Post

This class has gone so fast!!!  I am really excited about a lot of the stuff I have learned.  I just wish I had more time to explore all of these amazing resources.

This week we have learned a lot about internet safety for both kids and adults.  This is a topic I think I need more knowledge about, but one that I don't actively seek information about.  I need to do a better job of keeping my identity safe.  I am also looking forward to sharing some of these new things with my students.  The sixth graders that I teach are very naive when it comes to internet safety and yet I know they use the internet all of the time.  I feel like it is my job to make them aware of the dangers that are out there.  Hopefully, now that I am the "technology teacher" I can focus on these topics. 

I am excited about our few week break and ready for our next class!

Fun, new tools....week 3

This week I had a lot of fun exploring new website tools.  A lot of them I had used before, but some of them were new to me.  I have never used Poll Everywhere before and I am so excited to use it!!  It did make me question our districts rule of no cell phones allowed in school.  If we allowed them to be used we could gain easy feedback by using the Poll Everywhere tool.  Of course then you have lots of other issues to deal with.  I am also excited about TokBox!  I don't necessarily know how I would use it in my sixth grade classroom, but it is a cool tool!!

I am sad that next week is our last week of class!  I do feel like I am learning about of new tools that I haven't used.  I have as enjoyed our classroom discussions.  It was very interesting to hear every ones take on homeschooling.  We have lost a few students to online school and I am still not sure if I am a bit supporter of it for younger kids.  On the other hand, being a teacher, I see the good and bad things that happen in the public school setting and it scares me to one day ( 4 years from now) send my son to public school.   I am excited for this week's discussion.

CEDO 520 - Week 2

I have enjoyed a lot of the tasks this week.  The articles/quotes we have been asked to read have been very thought provoking and I have liked reading my classmates reactions to them as well.   I have learned a lot about internet searches and website credibility this week.  I realized how much I have to learn about the internet.  For something I use multiple times a day I sure don't know how to use it very well!!!  I am excited to bring these new ideas back to my kids and coworkers!!  I can't wait to see what resources everyone puts out there in their annotated bibliography assignment... I have a feeling I am going to learn about some wonderful, new resources!!!  I have also enjoyed not having to do group work thus far!  I have enjoyed all of the people I have worked with so far, but it is really hard to coordinate all of our schedules when we are all so busy!!

CEDO 520 - Initial Thoughts

I am excited to begin another course.  I was a little unsure as to what this class was going to be about, but after taking a look at the rubric I am excited to get going on the work!!  I am familiar with Wikis, Blog and Google Docs, but I don't use them enough!!!  Our school has a staff wiki page where we post interesting websites or other resources we have made.  We just started it last year so it needs some work.  I was excited that we started this Wiki because I had heard so much about Wikis, but until looking at our class wiki (for CEDO 520) I didn't realize Wikis could be so advanced.  I hope to become more familiar with them during this class so I can share it with my staff in the fall. 

During the past three classes I feel that I have gained a pretty good understanding of Google Docs and Blogs.  Again I have yet to use them in the classroom and still struggle with how to use something like Google Docs with students that don't have e-mail addresses.  I would like to start a classroom blog for my 3rd-6th graders in the fall!! 

I did notice in the syllabus that we are going to talk about teaching kids how to be safe online and how to find credible sources.  This is probably the part of the class I am the most excited about !!  I feel like those are two of the most important things we need to teach our kids while using technology.  Kids are using technology daily and they need to know how to be save online as well as the fact that everything on the Internet isn't true.   I hope to gain knowledge on how to teach these concepts to my students. 

I am ready to begin this class and hoping to take away a lot of good information from it!!!

CEDO 515 - Final Blog Post

Overall, I think I explored a lot of different, new tools that I can see myself using in my classroom.  One of my favorites is NetTrekker.  I have been looking for a good way to have my students research the Internet and find valuable sources without having to sort through all of the junk that is out there.  I try to teach them skills to help them distinguish between good and bad websites, but for some of them that is very hard skill to grasp. NetTrekker is a great tool to help these students.  I hope to encourage my district to purchase access for the students. 

I also enjoyed using some of the Google features that I haven't explored.  I have used Excel Spreadsheets numerous times, but never used Google Spreadsheets.  I found it easy to use and very similar to Excel.  I could see using this with my coworkers.  I also really like using Google Sites.  As I previously stated, I have wanted to build my own website for personal and professional use, but I wasn't sure where to begin.  I found Google Sites to be user friendly and provide lots of options for users.

Finally, I really enjoyed our discussion about Software Evaluation.  Our district has been rather lax when it comes to the evaluation process for software.  As part of the technology committee,  I would prefer we had a rubric to use that adequately evaluated software that teachers would like to use.  There were a lot of great points made by my classmates that I plan on bringing back to our committee in the fall.

Overall, I feel like I learned a lot from this class and was forced (in a good way) to experiment with things that I "didn't have the time for" before!!

Google Sites and more

I am excited to work on creating a Google site this week.  It looks a little daunting, but something I can see myself using in the future.  I didn't even realize Google allowed you to create sites!  I need to keep up with this stuff a little better!!!

Overall, technology has greatly changed how I teach.  First of all, technology has given me many new tools to use to engage my students.  It has also forced me to change because kids are so used to using technology in everything they do.  I feel like in order to interest my students I need to reach them on their level. 

I can see myself using Google Sites in a few ways.  I would like to create our own classroom website.  We do have a 6th grade webpage, but isn't very user friendly and it doesn't have very many options.  I think it would also be nice for students to create their own website about a topic.  For example, in my social studies class they could create a website about the Civil War including documents they have created and links to other informational websites.     I am excited to play around with this Google feature this summer so I can teach it to my kids in the fall!!!

A nice break, but back to work

Truthfully, I am having a hard time getting back into the swing of things!  The two week break has been very nice.  I am officially done with the school year and starting to enjoy my summer vacation.  I almost forgot I had homework to do..... until now!

I enjoyed looking at the videos on Edutopia.  I am looking forward to playing around with the site some more to see what else is out there!  I also enjoyed putting together my google calendar.  I have been meaning to join the Google calendar clan, but have yet to bite the bullet.  It was really easy to use and was great that I could send share it with others.  I sent my calendar to my mom so she could know when I am around :-)

I took a look at two videos on the intime site.  Both were videos on reading activities that involved technology.  I think that this could be a really useful site if it had more videos available.  I didn't really find any that would be useful for me.  The few videos I watched had great ideas and used software that looked useful, but not something I have access to.  If more teachers keep adding to this site I could see where I would use it frequently.  I will have to look into adding to it myself!!

Well my homework is done for the week!  Time to relax and enjoy a few relaxing days!

Spreadsheets and more.....

Before I get into using spreadsheets I want to say I am really excited about using NetTrekker!!!  I have never used it before... actually I have never even heard of it until this week!  I have been playing around with it tonight and am really excited about it!  I hope it is something we can incorporate into our school next year.  The new feature for research ( igotta) that it offers looks amazing, but again it comes at a cost.... like most things.

Ok, on to spreadsheets.  I have used Excel before for numerous things, but to be honest haven't used it much recently besides for lists.  Now that our grade book is all online I haven't had much need for it.  I did truly enjoy playing around with writing formulas.  I thought Google Spreadsheets was easy to use and most of the features were the same as Excel.  I do think Excel is easier to use, but again I am sure that is just because I have used it for years.  Google Spreadsheets is still lacking some features that Excel contains, but maybe eventually it will get there.

As far as how I can use it in my classroom.  My students and I use our Senteos ofter and look at pie charts that their assessments produce.  It would be fun to have the kids do an assessment and learn how to create their own charts.  I can see numerous ways to use spreadsheets in Math and I think I could find ways to use it in social studies, but I am struggling with ways to incorporate it into reading...  Any ideas????

Using Word Processing and Internet Searches in the classroom

I am starting to feel confident in my ability to use online word processing programs especially GoogleDocs, but I still struggle with how I am going to use it in my 6th grade classroom.  Truthfully, I can think of numerous things we can use it for, but realistically feel like there are so many hoops I would have to jump through to get there.  I would have to get all of my students gmail accounts and access to Internet as well as much more.  I do think it would be a great way for students to collaborate together.  I also would like my students to use an online word processing program to be able to work on their papers/projects at school and then at home.  My students have student server folders, but they have a hard time saving to them correctly.  Using GoogleDocs could diminish that problem!

As far as or work this week with Internet searches.... this I am excited about!  I am guilty at not doing effective searches.  Now that I have learned more about how to search for something efficiently I plan on teaching my students these skills as well.  Hopefully, this will help students find what they are looking for without wasting time.  Well on to the next assignment.... it is beautiful out tonight.... with I had all of my homework done so I could spend time outside... I feel like I am a kid again :-)

New Class... CEDO 515

This week was overwhelming, but fun.  I enjoyed experimenting with the new graphics programs and presentation software, but also stressful!!  This time of year is crazy!!  We have 2.5 weeks left of school and between all of the work that goes with the end of the year, having a 1 year old, and all of this homework!!  I am already feeling stressed!!  I did enjoy playing around though!!  I just wish I had more time and energy to devote to it!

The presentation software that I used was glogster.  I truly enjoyed using this program and hope to use it in my classroom some day!!  It wasn't really a presentation software, but it was a nice alternative an something I can see my kids using as a visual aide. It reminded me of blabberize which I have used in my classroom before!  Here is my presentation if you want to check it out!!  I also took a look at a lot of the other presentation methods and was impressed with what was available, but I am still partial to power point.  I like the features of power point and I am comfortable with it, but it is about time I start exploring other options!! 

The graphics were fun to play with, but I am not sure how much I would use it in my curriculum!  I am sure my kids would enjoy playing with them, but I feel like it would be a lot of work to find ways to incorporate them into my classroom!

Overall, I am looking forward to playing around with stuff in this class!!  I just can't wait until I actually have the time to truly enjoy playing around with all of these new tools.... 2.5 weeks can't go by fast enough.  Time to get back to reading this weeks book assignment :-(

Sigh of Relief.....

I am finally breathing a sigh of relief.  This class has been a struggle for me, not necessarily in a bad way.  It pulled me out of my comfort zone and made me realize how important it is to understand how my computer works.  Each week I was nervous to find out what we were going to have to do next.  The alternate OS system scared me to no end, but once I had it on my computer and was playing around with it, I realized it isn't anything to be afraid of.  I think that is how I felt throughout most of this class.  Once I started to research the topic or play around with the program I realized how useful it was and how I need to be more aware of available software.  I believe I am a naive computer user.  I know what I should do, I know what is available, but I only use what I am comfortable with.  In many ways I am like some of my students that stay in their comfort zone instead of reaching for something better.  I do think this class has made me more confident in my computer skills and makes me feel like I can actually talk computers with techie people (my dad, my husband, father-in-law).  I know I have learned things in this class that will be used int he upcoming classes and I can't wait to find out what we are going to do next!

Computer Security

Quite frankly, the idea of computer security scares me.  I know all of the dangers, but I am also know I am not 100% proactive about making sure I am protecting myself from these dangers. In class this week I have learned a few free programs I can use to find risks on my computer.  For example, we ran a security audit on our home computer and even though we have antivirus software installed on our computer we did have 1 risk we had to fix.  I also learned some new antivirus programs to use for free like, Avira, and AVG. 

I do know that I need to be better about running our antivirus scans, backing up our information, and not entering personal information on line.  We have recently purchased an external hard drive to have all of our videos and pictures on, "just in case".  I also have started to use drop box.  Even though we have these back up options I know I am not backing my information up daily therefore, I am not using them how I should be.  As I do my security plan, it makes me realize how much I am leaving up to chance.  Hopefully, if I follow my plan I will become more secure when serving the net, and more protected overall!

Thoughts on Anti-Virus Software, Alternative OS, and more

So far I have felt a little overwhelmed with this class.  I don't know much about computer OS, RAM, hard drives, anti-virus software, etc.  I use technology in my classroom every day.  I can set it up and keep it running, but I couldn't tell you how it runs.  Talking about our computer tower was an eye opening experience.  I learned a lot about how our computer runs and also realized how much I didn't know.

As far as, Anti-Virus software.... I use it on our computers, but again I don't know much about them.  We use the standard, Norton, due to lack of knowledge.  I didn't realize how many options were out there and at no cost.  I am excited to learn more about them and find something that might better fit our needs.

I am also nervous about experimenting with the alternate OS.  I am scared to put it on my computer and risk the chance of losing everything.  On the other hand, I am excited to learn more about things like Ubuntu and others that I have never tried. 

Overall, even though I am slightly overwhelmed, I am excited about what I am learning.  A lot of people in my family and husband's family know a lot about computers so it is fun to actually be able to join in on the dinner conversations.

Computer History for Kristy...

It is hard to remember back to my first exposure to computers.  My dad is a bit of a computer junky so we have had computers in our home since I was a little kid.  I remember using them for games such as Oregon Trail, Number Munchers, and others. We eventually got dial up internet.  I remember my parents getting a second phone line so we didn't tie up the phone line while using the internet. 
I think I started to use computers for word processing around 7th grade.  In high school, we used computers for word, power point, and excel.  I remember using the internet at home for research projects and looking up stuff for college.  At the time, I thought what the internet provided was amazing... little did I know what was to come.  My freshman year in college I got my first Dell desktop.  It was a good computer that lasted me 5-6 years.  I remember saving on disks unlike our jump drives, dropboxes, and all of the user friendly tools we have now.  I now own a Dell laptop at home and a HP laptop at school.  I enjoy both of them, but would love to get an I-pad!!!  It is crazy to think back to how technology has evolved within the last 10 years.  I forgot that I had a life before facebook, wireless internet, touch screen computers, and e-mail.  If technology has changed this much in 10 years what will happen in the next 10 years?

One week down, many to go.....

I have officially completed my first week of grad school!!!  It seems like a daunting task to think of how many more weeks/months we have left, but if I learn as much as I learned this week, every week, I will be overflowing with technological information.  I started off the week feeling very overwhelmed by all of the work we had to do, but after starting the homework I felt excited and wanted to do more.  I wouldn't say I learned a lot of new information, although I did learn a lot from my peers, but it was more making myself use some of the tools that I already knew were out there.  I have known about google docs and blogging for quite some time, but never "found" the time to use them.  Now that I have, I can think of numerous ways to use them each day.

I teach 6th graders and even though they know a lot about technology I do feel like it is hard to find the balance at their age between using technology and over exposure.  I would love to use blogs in my classroom, but then all of my students need to have e-mail accounts to access them.  I am not sure I could convince all of my parents that their child has to have an e-mail account.  I do book club with my 6th graders and once a week we sit down to discuss the book.  I think blogs would be a great way to discuss the books more frequently.  Also, I think some kids today feel more comfortable saying things online (in text) instead of saying in verbally in front of their peers.  I could see, by having the option to blog, some of my students might become more active in our book club discussions.

As far as Google Docs, wow what a great tool!!  I wish I could've used this while in college!!  I can just imagine the collaboration that could've happened if we had this tool!  Again, this is something I could really see a use for in my classes, but gaining access, as we discussed in class, is a little tricky for kids.  I don't tend to assign a lot of group projects because of the fact that it usually ends up being one student getting stuck doing most of the work.  We do do some projects/papers, that this would be really useful for. 

I am really excited about the assignments this week.  I have never used social bookmarking and am really looking forward to learning more about it.  I am also really excited about learning ways to use web cams in the classroom.  I have used webcams in my personal life a lot and have always thought they would be a great tool in the classroom, but haven't found the best way to incorporate them.

Overall, week one has left me eager to learn more, excited to implement these tools in my classroom, and motivated to become a better teacher! * I can't believe I just wrote all of that.  I never thought I would be the blogging type*

The Adventure Begins.....

As I start the adventure of going back to school there are mixed emotions.  I am nervous about balancing school, work, and being a mom.  Trying to find extra time in my schedule to do homework and class will be tricky, but more than anything I am filled with excitement!  I have been wanting to obtain my masters in education for quite some time, but never found the program I thought fit me.  As a teacher, I love to bring new things into my classroom especially through technology.  I strive to find new and inventive ways to keep my students interest and excite them.  When I saw the course outlines for the MEIT program I knew it would be perfect for me.

I am looking forward to finding new formats to teach my students.  I think this program is going to force me to develop some curricular tools I have wanted to do for some time, but never found the time to do.  For example, I have always thought it would be great to have a blog and here I am writing my blog.  I am hoping to find new ways to keep in contact with parents and am hoping to start a blog for my classroom as well.  I am also hoping to become more confident in my technology abilities.  I seem to be the go to person in our school if they are having problems with their smartboard, computer, senteos, etc.  9 times out of 10 I can help them, but the one time I can't it drives me crazy.  I am really hoping to learn enough to be more of a technology guru for our building.

In the end I know that this is going to be a great adventure.  Not always an easy one, but one that I need and want to do.  I think in life sometimes we need to leap and hope to land on the other side a new and improved person.  I know this program is only going to make me a better teacher and a more confident employee.  I am so excited to learn from everyone involved in the program and implement all of my new skills into my job!  Let's get started!!!