Thing #23

Yes, my thinking has changed somewhat. I believe I am more courageous about using Web 2.0 for myself and in the classroom. I am willing to fumble around and see what I can create and explore. I see the effect it can have on collaboration, instead of separating students into their computer screen, it can really connect classrooms and created a free-flow of ideas and information. My biggest Ah-ha moment was in using the creative publishing and imaging tools for student work. I realized how easy they were to use and my brain immediately started matching curriculum goals with possible projects. I liked what one of the men in the last video said, about using web 2.0 with students for more bravery, creativity, synthesis, and collaboration then they would previously experience in the traditional classroom. I can truly see the value of that now. This process has taken a lot of the mystery and fear out of the web 2.0 and added a bit of wonder and excitement for me to see how it can impact my students' learning and personal development of their true potential. I anxious to get started in the trenches! Thank-you Ron, for such a fun and informative class!

Thing #22

Yes, we can't get Youtube in our school, it is blocked, but we can access Teachertube which I think is a great resource. Anytime a different voice other than mine is used, it seems to make an impression and students remember the material a little longer. I really like the TED website. If you ever need a lift or a kick in the butt, listen to one of those on a topic, they are interesting, funny, and inspiring.

Thing #21

Tweet, tweet, tweet! I can see staying in touch with friends and following certain businesses, and for that Twitter is interesting. But I find the format visually confusing and too many conversations listed out of order to make sense of some of it. Maybe it is my lateral side of the brain, but it is almost over stimulation, much like some kids magazines with word bubbles all over the place. Maybe I'm just showing my age, but twitter will take some getting used to. I would have to find some really important twitterers for me to use my Blackberry for it. Plus, I don't know what I would really want to twitter about. Who really wants to know what I am doing day to day?? I'd rather hear about your day than tweet about mine. :)

Thing #20

I really enjoyed this activity because I could make use of something I had learned about last year. Now I understand how to add tags and make use of the search using tags and using others' bookmarks on del.icio.us. My user name is ntownsen or wwwtrekker(not too original, but it was all I had at the time). I find this tool very useful. The tags make it very easy to search for those websites that other professional find useful, thereby already weeding out those other websites that are not recommended. It is like reading the movie reviews before spending the money at the theater. I am really excited to really use this tool. It is also useful in finding appropriate sites for students that are kid friendly and kid appropriate.

Thing #19

Yes! It all makes so much sense! I think about all my 1100 pictures in Photobucket and there are no tags!!! Oh what a mistake, it is hard to find any particular picture and I wondered just how do do tags in an effective way. Thank-you for these lessons. I have learned completely new things about Web 2.o, but I also learn more about places that I have dabbled in, but got lost because I needed some direction. I already have an account on del.icio.us, but didn't have a clue bout tagging and the ones I used are not efficient in finding anything. Thereby, that tool went by the wayside for a year. Now I can dust it off and reorganize using these great tips and also I'll be able to check out others' bookmarks more effectively. The tool will make finding ways to differentiate my curriculum a lot more productive.

Thing #18

I found these PLNs very intriguing and full of information. I joined Ning and MACUL and can't wait to find the time to post and explore. That is the key, finding time. I see how beneficial it is to belong to one of these PLNs. I feel like I only see the same educators with the same tired well-worn ideas. I feel very sheltered and isolated at times. This way, it is like opening the world of new ideas and fresh points of views. To be part of this and be able to breathe fresh life into my classroom, my team, and my students is a great plus. Hopefully, the team will be as open to these new ideas as much as I am. Maybe if each team member focused on topics that interested them and brought that to the table would help share the load of sifting through the mounds of information out there.

Thing #17

I had fun playing the travel game. Although I did not achieve the level that I thought I would. I think that the time limit got to me. I also tried the photo editor, Picnik, and found that really fun. I think that would be great in the classroom for students to use in illustrating their stories with their own photos. They all have their own digital cameras these days, and we have one to use in the school, so they coudl really be creative with projects. We just finished making a time-line of Michigan history. Instead of drawing, those students that are so inclined, could use edited photos to illustrate big events. Very cool.

Thing #16

Wow! I really enjoyed Sir Ken's talk. He makes a good point about creativity been taught OUT of our students. I know my own daughter would have done much better if she had been able to sing her way through school. Put anything to music and she memorizes it immediately. She writes beautiful poetry, but did her teachers ever tap into that creativity? Sadly enough, no. When I get back to my class, I will watch me students in a different light. I know I have one kiddo that can't sit still, is always sitting on his knees, and is a snap on the computer. Hmmm, I see some new opportunities there. I certainly do not want to be one of those teachers that is just a talking head as eluded to in the first video, but one who encourages creativity and student initiated learning.

Thing #15

Podcasts can be a great tool for learning in the classroom. I think elementary students enjoy listening to a different voice other than mine at times. I think I would be competing with those that produce ones with catchy music and funny voices, which would be optimal for younger students' learning. I found the podcatcher, Juice, easy to use. However, I found wading through and trying to find useful podcasts really time consuming, even on Podcast Alley. I do not agree that younger students can do this as they would be open to inappropriate content in some cases. If this was used too much in the classroom, I can see some administrators thinking that the classroom teacher was not doing his or her job...but I can see that a variety of tools, voices, and techniques are necessary to teach today students.

Thing #14

I find the whole idea of using student voices to create podcasts about what they have learned or stories they have written very exciting. I can think of many topics to have the students expound on and can't wait to try this in my classroom. Of course, I will have to settle on one or two for this year as I get the hang of it and work out the logistics. It seems easy enough, though.
I enjoyed listening to The Grammar Girl and think that link would be very useful as I teach writing and editing to my class. http://grammar.qdnow.com/
I also enjoyed the link to English Idiom and Slang because I tend to use some Idioms and the kids are always asking me about them. http://www.podcastdirectory.com/podcasts/10167
I also thought that the Podcast :Think Like a Leader" was very interesting and inspired me to continue on the path of, not only learning new techie tools, but continuing to try to implement them in my classroom.

Thing #13 comments

This was great fun to create a project and share it to a blog so easily. I hope you enjoy the pictures from my trip that I chose for the slideshow. I can see many uses for my personal use and also using it to have great fun publishing classroom projects. What ever the students create, we can show off on line as well as on display in the hallway. Many grandparents and relatives can share in the students' educational lives. Now that I played around with it, it will be easier and less time consuming to publish another project.

Thing #13 Zoho slideshow

A cutie to help you smile! from Slide (Thing #13)

Thing #12

I really liked the Zoho website. It was easy to build a presentation and it had some more interesting backgrounds than powerpoint. The presentation I have started is for our Curriculum night. I am excited to get it finished and get my message across using some new bells and whistles.

Thing #11

Google Docs was a great way to share my powerpoint presentation with my family, especially my daughter, who was able to edit it and produce a professional looking presentation for me. My email platform did not allow me to send her the presentation, but she could easily access it on the web to do the improvements for me. However, I did have to use Internet Explorer instead of Firefox to get the job done. I can see using it application to have homework and project assignments accessible without the hassle of attaching emails and wondering if households have the applications. And with libraries supplying access to the web, Google Docs is a great alternative to email attachments.

Thing #10

I experimented with both the PB wiki site and the Wikispaces site. I personally liked the Wikispaces site better as far as ease of use and simplicity. I found it looks cleaner, has a nice big edit button, and is easy to manipulate. Now, I know that might not appeal to everyone, but as I mentioned in the previous post, my fourth grade students would need it to be clear and simple to navigate. I have set up two activity pages for them to collaborate on. I can't wait to see how they do with it. I'm sure it will be fun and they will surpass my expectations.

Thing #9

I like the idea of students being able to collaborate on classroom projects and create something new. I liked the two wikis that our school has created. One is for fourth grade and one is for a writing forum for teachers. It is great to be able to add to the page as wee develop ideas and use provide feedback to my colleagues. I also like the fact that I can refer back to it at any time. My frustration is that unproductive comments can be left by individuals that put a damper on the community feel for all. I found a couple of collaborative wikis for curriculum ideas relating to math and science that were easy to use. I also liked the Polyvision wiki that I belong to as it has updates for the smartboard-type technology that I am using in my classroom. The menus were clear on the sidebar, and there was not too much clutter to sort through. The navigation was easy to see as well as the edit button and place for comments. I know that as an elementary teacher, having a wiki page for my students, it would have to be simple and clutter free, alas, very kid-friendly.

Thing #8

I liked getting the Michigan Department of Ed newsfeed. That will keep me current on the updates to the curriculum and political scene. I still find it confusing to get newfeeds that are really tailored to my interests or my classroom levels. Anyone find any that would be good for fourth graders?

Thing #7

I can see the usefulness of news feeds in studying current events in the classroom. Of course, reliable and reputable feeds would have to be found and used. That is the only frustration that I have felt with this activity. There is just so much out there, that I found it difficult to weed through all of the available feeds to find some that I felt useful. Then, some of the websites that I use, did not have the newsfeed capability, which was disappointing. I have a bunch of newsfeeds on the Google Reader and it makes it easier to receive more focused news for me, but finding news that is applicable to elementary ages is a bit more difficult.

23 Things #6

Well, the best thing about technology and teaching that I have had first hand knowledge of is "everywhere availability"! I am laid up in the hospital for 4 days and I am still able to get my assignments accomplished and communicate with my students and parents via blogs and my classroom website. I find it timely that we are discussing Fair Use Policies as I can distribute lessons, and information via the web so my classroom can function in my absence. I would consider that a Fair Use, wouldn't you? I was told by my Tech supervisor that I could not put a 30 sec continuous loop of pop music on my web page because of copyright infringement laws. (I, personally would like to see James Taylor and Earth Wind and Fire come for a visit. I could get their autograph :) But, I talked with my daughter and son-in-law who work in the business for a major corporation and they basically said the same thing as what I heard in the videos provided in this class. They assess risk factors for each instance of use. Here in education, it seems we have a little more leeway than big businesses and their corporate event productions. I am glad for the affirmation that this information has given me to keep the music on my website as it provides encouragement via music to my students. I think that it follows the Fair Use Guidelines and really enhances the music for what it was originally intended, just in a different way. As far as incorporating mass media into my teaching, I discovered TeacherTube.com which is a great resource for short videos. I can also see using photo mashup and current publications to have the students create articles or research project posters as assessments of their learning in current events or history and science. Rubistar.com is a great resource to make rubrics for such innovative projects.

23 things #5

I enjoyed playing around with Image Chef and incorporated the beach scene into my blog title. I tried to choose one that illustrated the journey that I am on, but also the immense frontier that the Web 2.0 is for me to explore.
As I mentioned before, my students can show evidence of their comprehension of a text by what type of pictures they create, mashup, collage, or create in any other way to illustrate that text.
I was intrigued by the Spell by Flickr, but could not figure out how to upload the title I spelled out on their front page. Maybe someone can send me a comment to help me out? I couldn't get the video to play. I am also in the process of creating a DVD album of pictures from my recent trip that will send a message of what Guatemala is like and what some of the needs of the Mayan people are. As I learn to communicate via this visual media, I envision my students creating a montage of their learning on certain topics of their choice. What a great way to assess their understanding and application of new knowledge!

23Things #4 Photo Sharing

The photo sharing idea is a great tool for anyone who has been on trips or special events. I already have an account with photobucket.com for all the photos my team and I took while on our trip to Guatemala. With all the photos in one place, we can pull the ones out we want and make our own DVD of our experiences. Of course, we have permission to use each others photos.
The idea of creatively messing with photos or images in sites such as Big Huge Labs is a wonderful way for my students to illustrate what they publish in a blog. I envision each student having their own blog to publish a writing piece and using photo imaging and sharing to become illustrators as well. We know that illustrators must have a deep comprehension of a writing piece, so this would be a good tool to increase students' comprehension skills and motivate students to write. In doing so, they see the connections between what is written and what is illustrated. Creative photo sharing could be a great tool to engage those students who are visual learners and have trouble putting words on paper. They could start with a creative photo and compose their writing around the illustrations. Very fun!

23 things #3

The hardest habit for me is to play. I have a hard time finding the time and the energy after working with students all day to indulge myself in an activity just for the fun of it. Unless I can count the weekly soak in a luxurious bubble bath. I understand the importance of play and relaxing activities, but they seem to be the hardest for me to schedule into my week. I have found that when I do take the time to play on the computer, I end up learning a lot of new ways to use different programs. Of course, I usually have some type of project that I need to accomplish that is the original motivation for playing on the computer. Time to explore and make mistakes is key for me.
The easiest habit would be to view problems as challenges. I am a problem-solver by nature and I've had enough problems in my life to be able to get over the "I give up" stage. I am not saying that the problems are easy, or the challenges are a piece of cake. That is hardly ever the case, but a lot of learning and creativity takes place in recognizing the problems and turning the brain around into seeing the new possibilities during the solution process. That is the skill I hope I can instill in my students.

Comments on Thing #1

Yeah! I figured out how to cut and paste into the blog and into the comments box from a word document. So you can view my comment on the Thing #1 page. I wonder how kids do it. They seem to have no fear when it comes to maneuvering around the computer programs and keyboard. I will say that most of what I have learned has been trial and error and just playing around with a program. It takes an initial investment of time and maybe a glass of wine, but I think I am a little more tech savey than some. I still have a lot to learn and I think that the more we learn, the more there will be to learn. So I guess we need a little of that "no fear" mentality of children as we explore this new frontier.

23 Things #2

Ok, so here I am again making another blog. This time it is for professional purposes and I am supposed to come up with really intelligent things to say. Even though I have another blog from my trip to Guatemala, I still feel like a beginner on this trek into the world wide web of information. I wrote a comment for the Thing #1 and can't figure out how to post it. Of course, to make sure it sounded intelligent, I first wrote it in a word document, and now I can't seem to cut and paste it into the comment box. Of course, I could just retype the comment, but that seems silly since technology is supposed to make life easier. SO, this blog will be a running record of how I progress in this land of technology. I get the big picture, but it is the little stuff that trips me up and makes this journey cumbersome at times, as all beginnings are.
Answers to question:

1. A good blog is interesting, colorful and easy to navigate. It should be easy to publish posts and comments to keep the flow of interaction going. The blog should also allow for creativity in placement of pictures, ease in uploading and downloading of documents, and ease in the sharing of information.
   
2. Right now it seems redundant to have a class web page and a blog page. On the web page I can supply all the information I need to for my students and parents, but the blog seems more like a diary, or a conversation rather than a tool for information.
   
3. Yes, blogs make it easy to self-publish and I see it as a tool for students to improve as young writers and also to be able to peer-edit as they comment on each others blogs.