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!!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
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!!!
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!!!
Saturday, June 11, 2011
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!
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!
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