Google Reader

During the summer semester for my Technology and Education class, I have been reading 7 blogs and keeping up with them through Google Reader.  I had not used Google Reader before to keep up with blogs that I like to read.  Even after using it for this assignment, I have found that I prefer to go to the blog web page.  In the past I have simply booked marked the blogs I enjoy and keep up with them that way.  I found that some of the blogs did not always relate to what I would be teaching.  I did find many good ideas from them as well.  Below is the list of the 7 blogs that I have been reading.

CoolCatTeacher Blog http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com

Will Richardson http://willrichardson.com

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org

Free Technology for Teachers http://www.freetech4teachers.com

A Media Specialist’s Guide to the Internet http://mediaspecialistsguide.blogspot.com

Mr. Salsich’s Class http://jmsalsich.edublogs.org

The First Grade Parade http://thefirstgradeparade.blogspot.com

My favorite blog to read was The First Grade Parade.  Even though I have been teaching sixth grade for 3 years, I loved all the ideas Mrs. Carroll posted on her blog. I had heard about this blog from a friend and was able to read many of the past posts.  I found through reading the past posts that Mrs. Carroll has a teacherspayteachers.com account and that you can buy the things activities that she has created.  I know that if I ever taught first grade I would definitely use her blog as a resource and potentially buy some of the materials she has created.

My favorite blog post from reading the different blogs was Visitors and Flags from Around the World  from Mr. Salsich’s Class.  In this blog post, the students drew pictures of the flags from the countries that their blog visitors are from.  I thought this was a neat idea because it allowed the students to see how the Internet connects people all over the world. It can also show the students that they can do something to help people anywhere in the world.

After reading all the blogs over the last month, I know that there are a couple I will continue to keep up with.  I like the blogs that are written by classroom teachers the best because they are sharing what is working for them and that gives me ideas about what I can do in my classroom. 

Social Bookmarks

I thoroughly enjoyed the social bookmark assignment.  I found many websites that will be useful in my classroom with many great ideas.  I love to be inspired by ideas from other people and then tweak what they did to fit my needs.  As a teacher, one thing I have learned is that I don’t have to reinvent the wheel and by bookmarking websites using Diigo that will help me keep ideas organized. 

            I had never heard of Diigo before this project but I know that it is a resource I will continue to use.  Before using Diigo if I came across a website I would want to remember or use again, I would just save it in “My Favorites.”  Diigo allowed me organize the websites with the tags that I created. Diigo reminded me of Pinterest but without the pictures.   I love the fact that I can click on the tag that I created for the website and I was able to see all the websites that were in that category.

            I found that after I had completed the requirements for this assignment that I continued to use Diigo.  I will continue to use it in the future because it is the easiest way to organize websites that I find useful.  Below is the link to my Diigo bookmark page.

http://www.diigo.com/user/Taylore6858?type=all

        After creating my bookmarks, I then used wordle.net to create a word cloud with all the tags I used to organize my websites.   I had never used Wordle before and I loved it as well.  I liked how I had to opportunity to personalize my word cloud by choosing the font and colors used.  After I created my word cloud, I had a couple ideas for how to use Wordle in the classroom and outside the classroom.  It is a website that can be used for many different purposes.  One way I would use Wordle in the classroom, would be to have the students create word clouds for the different parts of speech and post them in the classroom.  Below is my word cloud using my tags from the Diigo bookmark assignment. 

Digital Citizenship

Being a good digital citizen is as important as being a good citizen in society.  A good digital citizen is a person who is careful with personal information when on the Internet and considers copyright and fair use rules.  Being a good digital citizen means that a person is considerate of the work that others have done and posted on the Internet.  If you use someone else’s work that was found online, then you must make sure that you cite it correctly to show that the work is not your own.   A good digital citizen would also need to make sure he or she is treating others kindly when online; the saying treat others the way you want to be treated can also be applied when online. 

A good digital reputation would cite other people’s work, carefully posts information online, treats others fairly, and not plagiarize.  When looking at people’s work online whether it is in a blog, wiki, or webpage, you would want to look at how the information is presented.  How a person portrays him or herself digitally is just like how he or she acts in person.  When online a person must consider what they are saying, endorsing, or following.  Just like in life, a person wants to always make sure that he or she is putting the best foot forward and giving a good first impression.  A good digital reputation should be looked for just like looking for a good reputation in a person you would meet in person.

Thinkport.org simulations

            The Think Technology section of http://thinkport.org provides many simulations for teachers to use in their classrooms.  I did find that some of the links provided seemed to be more geared for the upper grades because of their content.  As an elementary teacher I could use those links as enrichment but I found the following two simulations would be the most valuable in my classroom.

 

From the Think Technology section of http://thinkport.org, I found that the Word Search Factory Lite would be valuable in teaching.  This website give teachers to opportunity to create math and vocabulary or spelling practice pages that can be customized for specific student needs.  I would incorporate this resource into my classroom during small group or when I meet one on one with students.  If a child is struggling with a certain skill in math, this program makes it easy to generate practice problems that are in that one area.  Students would also be able to use the spelling and vocabulary pages that could be produced as review. 

The other simulation that I found to be most valuable was student interactives from http://readwritethink.org.  This website provides a wide variety of interactive tutorials for students. Teachers can search by grade level, skill, theme, or capabilities.  I would use this in my classroom by having it as part of my technology center.  Students would have already seen the skill in whole group and they would use it in the center for more practice.  This could also be used as the independent assignment in class depending on which interactive item was chosen for the lesson. 

Software Review Online

There are many software review websites available online for educators.  I reviewed the following four websites: SREB EvaluTech, California Learning Resources Network, Superkids, and Education World.  Each website provided information on educational websites and reviews either by educators or program users.

            Superkids evaluated the largest number of titles and appeared to be continuously updated.  This website also provided a great index that showed the wide range of topics for the software that has been reviewed.  California Learning Resource Network also provided a variety of resources that had been reviewed.

            All of the websites offered reviews by site visitors. Educators and teams of people who had used the different software had done most of the reviews.  I would use each of the websites to learn about software that I am considering for my students.  The site that I would go to first would be Superkids because it tells why the programs would appeal to kids, how to install, and the system requirements. Using websites like these software reviews will allow teachers to make informed decisions about what software to use with students. 

Web 2.0 Resources

Concept map using http://bubbl.us
The bubbl.us website makes creating a concept map extremely easy.  The concept map can be formatted to fit your specific needs for your topic.  I enjoyed using it because usually pre-made concept maps don't fit my needs and creating them through other programs were more work than it should be.  With bubbl.us, I could add the information I needed and maneuver the bubbles were I needed them to be.  This program would be easy for students to use to create their own concept map.

Glogster
At first I found Gloglster difficult to use but the more I played around with it I understood it more.  The hardest part for me was embedding the video.  I liked how I could make the look of the page fit my topic or any topic.  This would be a website that I would use with students to create their own page about units.  I would also use Glogster to display the overview of a unit or concept on my teacher website or blog so that parents can see what we are learning in class and can have access to the same information.
http://taylore6858.edu.glogster.com/great-depression/

Animoto
Using Animoto was very easy and the website was easy to follow on how to use it.  There were 3 simple steps to create a video and it would be effective to use in the classroom because it would allow students to express themselves about a specific topic.  First select the music, the theme of movie, and then drop in the pictures that you want to use and then you're done.  The videos created through Animoto would be great to use to introduce a new topic in the classroom
http://animoto.com/play/FxxeR0MdCp1EZGCY8DcV5A

Classroomtools.net
This website allows you to create games for whatever topic you like.  All you have to do is enter the questions and then it automatically puts them into a game that students can play.  I found it difficult to save the games once the questions had been entered and saved.  The website also provides graphic organizers.
http://classtools.net/widgets/quiz_8/RFfQV.htm

Teach Me How to Study

Teach Me How to Study

Would this video demonstrate to students how studying is beneficial in a way they can relate?  How could the video impact the use of a peer tutoring program? Would students be less likely to call another student a nerd after viewing the video?