Thing 11 (Winter Session 2011)

THING 11: Answer these questions on your blog

What is your "plan of attack" for the next school year?
How will you use what you've learned personally, professionally,
and pedagogically??
How will you share what you've learned with the other teachers
in your district?
What do you still want to learn about teaching and learning in
the 21st century and Web 2.0, and how will you acquire that knowledge?
How can we best stay connected as a "PLN" or how can you create a
PLN with your colleagues back at your building?

Remember to please take time to synthesize, reflect, discuss and process the many applications you used during this class. Think about where you've been, where you are, and where you're going with technology. Re-read your earlier blog posts and those of your colleagues.

Response: Well my plan of attack is to next year use more technology within my classroom. That was already a personal goal for me, even before you asked us. I enjoy using technology and I know that my students do too. So I am enrolling in other PD classes this summer to get me ready for the upcoming school year. I am also getting a new SMART board in my room, and I MOST DEFIANTLY want to use that! Obviously I am very excited!!!! Besides the students and I will have fun using it together...I wish they would of had those when I was a student in elementary or high school.

Well I plan on using Google Docs more often, and besides that awesome survey I created may actually be going out to my parents for next year. Hey, it saves the tress and I am a green kind of teacher! I would also like to get into the habit of using Delicious more often. I know that I will have to mess around with it, and it may take me a week or two before I am comfortable, but it is a good concept. After that I plan on trying to get the other lower ele. teachers to use it.

As for sharing what I have learned, well I guess I should lead by example and put my best foot forward. I have talked about using more technology in my lessons and teaching and I plan on sticking to that idea. I can do it, it will be difficult (at first), but once I get the hang of it things should be good! Besides if others come into my room and see me doing it, they will feel the need or drive to do it also.

I would still like to learn about how other lower elementary teachers apply all these really cool ideas in their classroom. I would just love to go observe someone for a day, because I know that I learn from seeing others do something. If you know of anyone who wouldn't mind me coming in to observe their tech savvy class, comment and I will get back with you asap!!!! -Thanks :)

Well I feel that leading by example is important, so if I commit, then I can get another to as well. The best thing for me to do may be too get our lower ele. then once we are all on the wagon we can get the upper ele. teachers to join in. Then hey if that goes well maybe we can get all the other Catholic schools in the area to join.

Well wish me luck!!! ;)

Thing 10 (Winter Session 2011)

Con't Thing 9 (Winter Session 2011)

REFLECT: On your blog, think about how you might use SlideShare in the classroom. Title your post THING 9. Would this be a good way for your students to share their own PowerPoint presentations with the world? How else could you use the resources on SlideShare? What problems can you anticipate, and how could you solve them?

Response: As for using SlideShare I think that I would most likely use it on my classroom wiki. I would most likely find some slides and post them not only for my students to look at when at home or during computer time at school, but I could post some for my parents.

If I had an older grade I would most defiantly use this for them when creating a PowerPoint presentation. Or couldn't they also use the Google Docs for that? If so either one would work, but I would most likely have them use the Google Docs that way I could monitor their progress.

Thing 9 (Winter Session 2011)

Education & Technology Quotes

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Thing 8 (Winter Session 2011)

REFLECT: On your blog write about your Google Docs experience. Please include the following:

What ideas do you have for how you could use this personally, professionally, or in your classroom with your students? Can you think of any possible problems? What are the advantages to working in the "cloud"? What are the disadvantages?

Response:
Since my students are younger I don't really think that I will be able to use this with them, however I do feel that I may use this a lot when doing work for my job. As I see it.....this sure beats carrying a jump-drive around on my neck all day. Besides I always worry about loosing the darn thing and having someone pick it up....that would not be good. As I see this, it is basically a "home" out there on the web where you can place all kinds of documents, and never have to worry about misplacing it or losing it. It is always there and waiting for you at any computer you wish to access it from. Well that sounds good to me. Just have to get used to using it now.

Only possible problem that I could foresee is maybe sending info to someone and then that person decides that they want to share it with the rest of the world. Then you may have a problem.

Another problem that I encountered when uploading my weekly note was, when it did upload the format changed and I do not like it as much as my regular note that I save on my jump-drive. There are definatly more features to regular Word on your desktop, and this I LOVE.

As for organization the Google Docs does look pretty easy to maintain, but I must say that my little jump-drive is pretty neat too. I know where everything is and in what folder. The organization most likely depends on the individual.

This is a wonderful tool when you want to share documents with other teachers in your building or district. This would be wonderful instead of getting the emails with attachments.

Overall I like the concept, and I will probably tinker with it and see which works best for me (Google Docs or my trusty jump-drive). Which will it be?????

Thing 7 (Winter Session 2011)

COMPOSE a blog post (title it THING 7) that includes your reflections on social bookmarking.

Response: Well lets just say that I love this idea of social bookmarking. I get frustrated sometimes at school when I am trying to remember one of my bookmarks from my home computer and I come up blank. With Delicious that is no longer a problem. I love the idea that I can be at another computer anywhere and pull up the addresses of those websites that I use often for school, or home. It is nice to not constantly have to sit at one computer and do EVERYTHING...change of background.

Another I idea that I really like that goes along with Delicious is that I can take a look at what other 1st Grade teachers look up for their classroom. This is a valuable tool.....epically if you come from a district that is huge and there are many of the same grade teachers.

I just can't wait to dive into this and start tagging more!!!!

Thing 4 (Winter Session 2011)

REFLECT on what you've observed and how it applies to YOU (both personally and professionally) and ultimately to your students.

WRITE a blog post on your Blogger blog in which you share your observations, feelings, questions and ideas of what "Web 2.0" and "Teaching & Learning in the 21st Century" means to you.

Reflection:

As I think back to when my family got its first computer, all I remember using it for was for research. I really don't recall anything else that we did on our computer. Then as time when on I remember my friends and I getting home from high school and going onto chat rooms and talking on yahoo or instant messenger. When college came around I remember getting my laptop, and as the years progressed I used my computer more and more. Now there is not a day that goes by when I am not on the computer, either for school or personal. Heck, I got my 1st blackberry for Christmas and lets just say that I love it! I love it because now I do not always have to sit at my computer and check my email or updates on facebook. My phone lets me know and I check it right away. Not to mention I love responding back to emails on my phone verses being on the computer.....I have no idea why.

So as I sit here and write about what I love about the technology in my life, I can't begin to imagine how my students must feel about it. I remember that my elementary school first got a computer room when I was in the 3rd grade. My students now have always grown up with this kind of technology and info at their finger tips. My niece who is 3 years old is constantly on the internet playing games........and let me mention again that she is 3. She knows how to start the computer and get onto the internet! WOW!!!

It is important that we, the teachers of today, continue to learn about what new technology is out there and then figure out a way in which to use/apply it within our classrooms. I want my students to enjoy learning, and what better way to reach them than to use what they know, are comfortable with, familiar with, and enjoy. The hardest part is teaching oneself to use it and then apply it. But as I have learned over my past year of teaching, an old dog can learn new tricks, you just have to be open to the experience. So here is my experience and yes I am listening!