Blog #15

Final PLN

C4T#4

I left a comment on Aviva Dunsiger's blog post. Her blog post is talking about letting students do things themselves. I think that her blog post is very motivating and gives us hope that what we are teaching our students is sinking in. One of her fellow teachers had 2 students that were trying to get a slide show together. After running into many different obstacles, they never gave up. They worked together and communicated and in the end, their show was a success. They never got mad an never wanted to give up. That is very motivating to me. The teacher even admitted that he would have given up long before they ever finished. I think this is a great post so I am putting the link up to share it with you.  http://adunsiger.com/

Today, Aviva's post again talking about stepping back and letting students do their own work.  She had some video's posted of students counting out the coins.  She caught herself helping a student and wished that she had let them do it on their own.  With the next student, she did, and they were able to work it out on their own.  I think that Ms. Dunsiger is a great educator and I hope soon that I am able to record myself with my students as well.

C4K #3

C4K #10
After looking at Ms. Yollis's 3rd grade blog page, I am amazed at how she involves so many people for her class to communicate with. Our class blog has over 48,000 visits and their blog only has more than 3,800. Even though they don't have the traffic on their blog, it is still amazing that they have hit that number for a school in California. I also think it is really neat that she has the different time zones of friends that they blog with in other parts of the world. There are also great links that explain how to take great pictures and how to leave good and proper comments. I can see that Ms. Yollis takes a lot of pride in her blog. She will only let the correct and well written blogs be posted for her students to read. I think that is great. If the students are able to read the incorrect grammar and spelling, they might feel susceptible to use it. I have high hopes of having a blog for my class and will have the same requirements for my blog posts as well. I think that everything she does for her students is great.

In the blog post I was assigned for Mrs. Yollis, the students had done a skype interview with Georgia. I think that it is great that the students are able to communicate with other students in another state or even in different parts of the world. I think that skype is a great tool and will definitely use it in my classroom.



C4K#11
Today I left a comment for Eleva, a sixth grader in Auckland New Zealand.  She posted about the Rugby World Cup.  She is a very descriptive writer.  She described what she saw and had a link up to watch what she described and the video was right on.  She is a great descriptive writer and obviously likes Rugby.  I don't know much about the sport but it looks like fun.

Blog #14

Here are the top ten tips for using technology in the classroom.

1.  Use streaming video.  Take advantage of the free resources such as YouTube for your students.

2.  Use music more often.  Your students are always listening to music so why not add some of their favorites to the lesson plan. 

3.  Use teleconferencing tools.  Using Skype is a great resource that allows students to communicate with people all over the world.

4.  Create your own interactive exercises.  Make your lesson plans to fit your students.

5.  Use your interactive white board more effectively.  Use the free tutorials that are available to learn the basics and enhance your students interaction.

6.  Create your own podcasts.  There are several ways you can make a podcast of your day and post it to your class blog.

7.  Start a blog or a wiki.  The class blogs are my favorite.  They are a great way to motivate the students to do their best work and show it off to the world.

8.  Use social networks.  Facebook is a great way to create a closed group for the class to communicate together.

9.  Use internet tools.  There are a huge amount of free games and products for the students to use.  USE THEM!!!!!

10.  Make the most of your pupil's gadgets.  Have the students use their phone to record or use their iPod for the music in your next podcast.  

Additional Post #1

1.  I consider myself to be a very literal person.  I am gullible and believe almost everything that I hear.  While I realize that this is a bad habit, I don't look outside of the box as much as I should.  

2.  Since Christmas is right around the corner and I have 2 small children, Santa Claus has been mentioned a lot around me lately.  I would definitely add that one to the top of the list.  

3.  I think that we, as educators, can come up with games that involve metaphors.  I love to play games to learn and I think that the students can learn a lot from them.  I think that it would be fun to act out metaphors and have the students guess what you really mean by them.

4.  I think that metaphors can be used to add humor to something serious of for a fun way to learn and remember something.  Metaphors can be a lot of fun and show your creativity.

Blog #13

For blog post #13, I chose to read the article out of the Wall Street Journal entitles "My teacher is an app." I chose this because it seems like an article that I can relate to after taking this class. After reading this article, I have been made aware of some interesting facts about Cyber Schooling. Schooling done strictly by internet has increased by 40% in the past 3 years. That shows that it is definitely going to be something of the future. While the enrollment is up, the test results are down. There is also a decrease in the cost which also causes a decrease in teaching jobs.

I am against the full cyber education. I think that the hybrid classes are a great idea. It gives the students the freedom to have online classes yet they must still prepare for class. I think that the students should meet at least once a week to make sure that everyone is up to speed and understand what is being taught to them. It is amazing that this is what our future in education could be.

Project #16

Blog #12

This blog assignment really had me thinking.  I know this is what Dr. Strange would want.  I thought that a great blog post would be about the technology we plan on using in our classroom.  Out of everything that we have seem, what do we like the most and what do we disliked the most?  What would we do to change something that we don't like into something that we would like to use?

I think that the most favorite thing I have learned in this class is the importance of class blogs.  I think that the students learn communication skills which are important in life.  They always strive to write their best work, be the most creative and go above and beyond because they know that others all over the world can see their work.  I think it is great how we do our C4K and I will do my best to contact a professor from another part of the world to communicate with my class.  I also like using Skype in school.  Skype also enhances their communication skills.  I believe that I will definitely use these tools in my classroom.

Final Project Progress Report

Shelby and I are doing our final project together.  We are going to make a still frame movie on the Do's and Don'ts of EDM310.  We are going to take several different pictures illustrating what to do and not to do and make it into a movie.  We have hopes of future students watching our movie so they can know what to expect.

Project #15b

Blog #11

In the video Little Kids...Big Potential, I was amazed at how much the students know about technology.  Before taking this class, they knew more than me.  The blogs are great for the students.  I hope that the school that I teach at will allow my class to have blogs.  The students that use blogs love them and learn more and more from them with every entry.  It helps their writing skills, creative skills and use of technology.  Not to mention that they love getting the comments.  The wiki's that the students created were great as well.  I think it's awesome that the EDM310 students were a part of that.  Also incorporating their Nintendo DS into their learning is great.  They want to play them and are OK with playing games that they learn from.  I think this video was great and I hope to be that same type of educator.

In the Skype Interview, Ms. Cassidy seems to be really excited about her students ability to use technology.  I like her determination.  She is supported by her principal and other staff but she is the one that does this.  The students would not write on blogs, make wiki's, learn how to use their DS in an educational way and so on.  I think that what she is doing is great and it takes an educator like her to make a change in the future for the students.  I have high hopes of making a difference just like she is doing.  I hope that I have the resources for my class to have a class blog.  I think it is awesome for the students.  They strive to do their best because they know that others will be looking at what they have done and they want it to be their best and most creative work.  After so long, that is the work skill that they develop.  I think that Ms. Cassidy is great as what she does and should keep up the good work.

C4K Summary #2

C4K #5
I just left a comment for Ms. She's class in Auckland, New Zealand.  John-Amour did a video explaining how he  can take charge.  I talked about how important the timing of taking charge is.  You don't want to take charge of something at the wrong time and cause any problems.  I am sure that John-Armour will make great decisions about when to take charge.

C4K #6
I just watched a video made by Elizabeth in Ms. Burnes Room 10 class in New Zealand.  She made a video about the World Cup.  She did a great job and I hope she continues to show her creativity in making more movies and sharing them with us.

C4K #7
I just left a comment for Terry, an 8th grader in Ms. C's 7th hour class.  He likes to write and his interests are scary stories.  I left a comment wishing him luck in all of him future writings.  He seems to be very creative and have a humreous personality and I am sure that he will make a great writer.

C4K #8
Today I left a comment on Room 17's blog.  They play a game called Maui and Matau.  I have never heard of this game before.  It sounds like a fast paced game and also one that I would like to try.  I think it is interesting to learn the different games that people of different cultures play.  They have the same goal in mind but how they achieve them can be different.  I like it.

C4K#9
Today I left a comment for Mr. McClung's 8th Grade Class.  They have been discussing their thoughts and opinions on what the effects of the conference of Berlin will have.  They are also discussing how Africa and Europe became so imbalanced over time.  Thursday, they are discussing what happens next after Africa was cut up and divided.  I think it is great to read about other continents and countries and how they are tied in with other countries.

Blog #10

In the video "Do you teach or do you educate?", I answered the question before I ever watched it.  My response was an educator because I want my students to look up to me as a mentor and and someone they trust and want to learn from.  After watching the video, I was right.  I want to have a relationship with my students that allows them to trust me, believe me, believe in me and want to come to school because I make learning fun. After watching this video, I have the same outcome to the question yet my feelings are somewhat deeper.  I think that we should all want to be educators.  Otherwise, burp back teaching will never go away.

After reading "Don't let them take the pencils home.", it makes me realize that teachers often focus to hard on the problem.  As teachers, we have got to focus on coming up with solutions that have the students best interests at hand.  I am always trying to find the positive in things.  I think this is a great characteristic for a teacher to have.  I feel that it is important for us to keep as positive of an environment as we can in the classroom.  It will more than likely contribute to higher test scores.  If not, it can't hurt them.

C4T #3

Post #1

Mr. Arvind S Grover has  introduced a LMS in his blog called OpenClass.  It seems to be a great introductory LMS.  He mentions that there is not much room for flexibility.  I would assume that once you figure out how a LMS works, you would upgrade to a more efficient program that would better suit your needs.  This is a great starter program though.

Post #2

In this blog post, Mr. Grover discusses how we are so wrapped up in making healthy choices for children for Halloween that we don't take the time to consider their costumes.  Are they racist?  I had never really thought about that.  If you are going to go in costume as someone that represents another culture, make sure that you are tactful about it.  

Blog #9

In the blog post "What I have learned this year (2008-09)", Mr McClung makes some great points about being a first year teacher.  I really like what he said about the student writing that the teacher really cares because he listens to me.  What a motivation!!!  This is something that needs to be done for the respect that you are going to want from your students.  I agree with his points on flexibility.  You have to flexible when handling children.  They are way to unpredictable to know what will really happen next.  I likes his thought on setting reasonable goals for your students.  You don't want them to be discouraged for not reaching a goal, you want them to challenge themselves to where the goal is reachable with some hard work and dedication.  I couldn't agree more with the never stop learning post.  People are always making new discoveries, trying new things, coming up with new ideas or programs to make something better.  You will never know these things if all you do is go to the classroom, open the book, teach and go home.  Keeping up with the technological world that we live in is a constant learning process but with hard work and dedication, your students will shine and reflect from what you teach them.

In the blog post "What I have learned this year (2010-11), I can see how easy it is to get in a routine and forget about why we are here and what our purpose is.  He makes some great points about how to stay focused.  I can relate to his comments about knowing who your boss is.  I am always trying to please everyone around me.  I really like the comments about don't touch the keyboard.  I am a true believer in thinking that you will only learn it if you do it yourself.  My children get so mad at me because I will not tell them the answer.  I will help them find it but they have to do it.  I think that also teaches them the research skills that they will need to get through life.  You don't always have the answer right there, but can you find it?

Project #13

Due to time restrictions, we put our video in two videos. Please visit the link below for the rest of our video.

http://youtu.be/xWfOaNx3O8c

Project #11

Project #12

Blog #8

In the videos, This is how we dream Part 1 and 2, there is a lot of information.  I think that every time I watch a movie about technology, I learn something new.  Technology is changing and growing, not only daily, but every second.  There is no possible way to be fully updated on the web.  There are so many different teaching techniques that I can incorporate into my classroom by sitting at my desk and playing with some programs.  I want to make teaching different.  In several years, once I get into a classroom, the information and programs that I am learning now will be outdated and new programs will be around.  I do believe that knowing how these programs work today, I will be able to understand more about the programs of the future.  I am going to be prepared to write with multimedia and my students will be able to do this as well.

In Carly Pugh's blog post, she did a great job of demonstrating Dr. Miller's hopes for writing with multi-media.  She has great links to demonstrate what she is illustrating through her writings.  She is also a great writer.  She mentions that she likes to write and is creative.  You can see that in her blog.  She has a great way with words and getting the reactions that she is shooting for.  She shows a great passion for wanting students and others to love some of the stories an authors that she does.  She is able to understand the at not all people love to read like she does and is determined to make a difference and teach from an angle that gives the students what she feels they deserve.  I really liked her idea of having the students rewrite the ending to a famous story or novel.  That is a great idea and it will make them think outside of the box.  There will be no wrong answer, just their ideas and creativity.  I LOVE IT!!!!

In EDM 310 for Dummies, you are taught that you are not the only one, in the beginning, that doesn't understand this class and want to quit.  I know I did.  There is such a large amount of things to remember and work to do but it is all a great in the end (or at least half way through). I think that this video really puts into perspective that all of the hard work and dedication will pay off in the end and you learn so much.  Not only do you learn about the different FREE programs that are available to you, but you also learn how to use them in MANY different and useful ways.  The Chipper Series is a great example of my life.  I went to school and played and partied.  Now that I am a mother and a wife, I realize how important it is to provide fro your family.  I have had several jobs as a server and a couple of hourly jobs and they have paid just enough to provide a roof over our heads and food for the table.  While I am happy about that, I want more for my family and so I am enrolled AGAIN in school and will graduate with my degree in 2 years.  I have learned that you will get further in life if you go ahead in your education but, you won't be successful at it until you are ready.

In Learn to Change, Change to Learn, they do a great job of showing how technology is a way of life and it has been banned from schools.  We can not get away from technology.  It is how this world works.  I have the hope of incorporating technology into my classroom on a daily basis. The lesson plans, the learning tools, the games we play and other ideas.  You must also have that interaction time as well.  You don't want them sitting in front of the computer all day.  Have them make movies and experiment with technology so that they are still active.  I believe that when I am teaching, the technology not allowed in school will change.

Project #9b

The 50 States

Project #10

I really like symbaloo.  It is a quick and efficient tool that I will use in my everyday life as well as my career.  This is a great tool to help you find what you want in a quick matter.  I can't wait to use this tool more.

Blog #7

Wow!!!  What a great speech.  Randy Pausch is very inspirational.  In his speech, he starts by making people aware of his illness.  He has around 10 tumors in his liver and is given 3 to 6 months to live.  There is nothing he can do to change this so he plans on spending his last days playing.  Pausch hits on three topics:  childhood dreams, enabling the dreams of others, and lessons learned.
Pausch had several childhood dreams.  He wanted to be in a zero gravity environment.  He didn't want to be an astronaut, he just wanted to know what it felt like to be in zero gravity.  He wanted to be in the NFL, be an author in World Book Encyclopedia, be Captain Kirk, win the over sized stuffed animals at the fair and be a Disney Imagineer.  He at some point in his life was able to fill every dream except for the NFL dream.  He also says that he learned the most out of not reaching this dream.
Pausch was able to help in enabling the dreams of others.  He had a student that wanted to be a part of the new Star Wars Movies.  After being offered a job at another university, all of Pausch's students followed him but one.  The one who was helping with the sets of the Star Wars Movies.
Pausch has met many people and has many stories to tell about what he has learned from them.  He is happy to say that he has always had good bosses and he will never work for someone that he doesn't like.
There are many people that contributed to making Randy Pausch the successful and motivating man in the video that I watched.  I really enjoyed the video and hope that people in the work place view me in the same sense that he was viewed.

C4T #2

Week 1
I was just introduced to Angela Doucet Rand. She is using a program she has on her MAC called Diagrammix. She uses this program to learn basic verbal information. She hopes that the new upgrade that comes out will have more options but is happy with what she has now. I commented back telling her that I don't have a MAC but I am considering buying one when I graduate and start my career as a teacher. That program looks like one that I will want and need to invest in.

Week 2
On the next blog that I read, Ms. Rand was having a hard time staying focused on what she was reading.  She has since decided that when she is unable to focus, she goes to the gym and reads while walking on the treadmill.  She finds that if you start slow, hold on, don't wear headphones to drown out the talking and get your blood flowing, you are able to focus more on what you are trying to read.  You are able to read faster and process the information better.  She adds that the bonus of this is that her butt has stopped growing and her reviews are growing.

Blog #6

While watching The Networking Student, I am amazed at how much technology is going into teaching.  I have been out of school for several years now and I am not quite up to date with technology.  I think technology in school is great. The students really seem to adapt to it and seem to want to learn more because of the computer interaction.  When the question was asked "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?", the answer seems simple.  The teacher is there to help you know how to use the tools at your disposal to the fullest.  They are to teach you how to research, where to go, what to do, what to ask, and so on.  I think the teacher's job is very important.  It is very important for them to know all about the web sites they are leaching about.  If not, you could teach them a thing or two.  

While watching A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment (or PLN), I was amazed at how organized this student was.  She had everything this way because she wanted to.  She wanted to make her learning sites easy to access.  She has great things to say about the internet and what is available for students to use.  She made a great point about the amount of freedom that you have and how you must stay away from the social networking sites until it's time for that.  She is right.  You have access to information on ANYTHING!!!  It's a little scary but that just comes with monitoring what your class is researching and browsing for.  

C4K Summary #1

C4K #1
Week 1 C4K
I just left a comment for Adam, a student in Iowa.  He has plans of being a rapper and a doctor.  He wants to be a billionaire and is very true to himself.  He wants to be muscular and is scared of being sick and dying.  He likes to play videos and enjoys being a kid.  I think that Adam is a bright and strong willed student that will be very successful in life.

Week 2 C4K
I just left a comment for Evan, a student in Mrs. Kilgo's class. Evan was saying that he wants to go to Paris. I have been to Paris so I left some comments about my trip. I told Evan about the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and the food. I hope that one day he gets to go to Paris. It is truly a beautiful country.

Week 3 C4K
I just left a comment for Emily, a student in Mrs. Huebner's class. She was talking about how excited she is about going to to county fair that weekend. She says she like the french fries and all of the crazy rides. I wrote her back telling her that our county fair is in 2 weeks and I can't wait for the funnel cakes. I hope that she had a great time at the fair.

Week 4 C4C
I just left a comment for Eric. Eric is blogging about places in the world that he would like to travel to and why. I think it is great that he is aware of so many different places and what they represent. He has listed several different countries and things he wants to do there. For example, he wants to watch a bull fight in Spain, eat spicy taco's in Mexico, and see a kangaroo in Australia. I hope he gets to go to some of these places and has a great time.

Project #9a

Blog #5

Scott McLeod is a professor at the University of Kentucky and is the founding director of CASTLE, the nations only academic center that is dedicated  to the importance of technology in the classroom.  He has also received many rewards for his technology leadership work.  In his blog "Don't teach your kids this,stuff please?", I had a hard time understanding the sarcasm that he uses.  I agree with the message and feel that if students aren't given the opportunity to learn about technology at a young age, there is no reason to prepare them for the future.  Technology isn't going anywhere, it is only getting more advanced.  There will be a point that if you don't learn at a young are, I believe you will never catch up.  Let's start young so we have a better chance at success for the future.

The iSchool is a device using the iTouch platform.  It allows email access for parents, teachers and students.  There are several different apps for the iTouch that could replace school books, supplies, workbooks and other teaching tools.  Some of the apps are Chem. Touch, US Constitution, World Wiki, USA Presidents, Star Walk, Formulae, Recorder, Scientific Calculator, Notes, and Calender just to name a few.  School supplies cost about $600 per student.  The iSchool costs about $150 per student.
I think the iSchool is a great thing.  It gives us the opportunity to spend money in other areas.  I believe that the students will want to do more school work using this type of technology.  To learn more about the iSchool, you can go to their facebook page and voice your opinions.

In Eric Whitacre's video, there are many people singing together that have never been together.  That is what I love about technology.  Anything is possible.  I believe that in my lifetime, internet access will be a must.  There will not be other means of communication. I think that it is great that people have fun with it.  Technology can be a very fun thing and there are endless possibilities.

Teaching in the 21st Century is a great video that demonstrates that students can get anything, anytime, anywhere.  I really enjoyed reading the various questions that were asked.  There isn't a right or wrong answer.  The key to it is teaching the students where to go to get the information to form an opinion about a topic.  None of the questions that were asked could be answered by the average student.  They would have to be researched.  But where do you go and what do you look for?  This is up to us as teachers in the 21st Century to teach these research skills.

Project #8 "Put Me in, Coach"

Blog #4

After reading the blog from Langwitches, I am very impressed about the ideas for podcasts with first graders. I think it is great that the students were following along using the script.  Word recognition is crucial at this age.  This is a great idea.  I also thought the idea about starting at the beginning of the school year and podcasting with other students is a great idea as well.  It gives students the opportunity to hear the different accents spoken around the world.  I can't wait to incorporate this into my lesson plan.

After reading the benefits of podcasting in the classroom, there are some benefits that I didn't think of to podcasting.  I like the idea of taping a lesson and having it available for the students to watch later to study and review.  It can also help a child that was out sick know what was taught that day and helps them to catch up.  While reading stories, it gives the students to demonstrate emotion to help capture the moment of what they are reading.  The students love podcasting and it makes them eager to learn.

After reading 100 ways to use your iPod to learn and study better, I have a better understanding of the multiple tasks of an iPod.  There are so man y different sites to go to that focus on iPods and podcasts.  More  and more students are using ebooks and podcasts as a way of learning and more teachers are using the same tools to teach.  I think that it's great that these tools are so accessible to students so they are able to keep up with technology.  Anything that makes learning fun sounds like something worth trying.  

Project #6

Project #5

Blog #3

Peer Editing

I think that the amount of corrections depends on how you should edit them.  If what you are reading is well written and has a couple of mistakes, I think that they can be notified publicly.  However, if there are many mistakes, the material is poorly written and should almost be redone, I think you should send a private email.  If the problem continues, then they are showing that they don't care and you may publicly edit their work. 

I always edit my work and check for spelling.  No one is perfect and sometimes you can read something and know what it is suppose to say and that be what you read.  I know that it usually takes another set of eyes to proofread my work.  I don't want you to change my message, I just want you to make sure that what I have typed or written is spelled correctly and correct grammar is being used.  

It's not about the technology

Kelly Hines writes about the technology that is being used in classrooms today.  I really like the point that she is trying to make.  The whiteboards that are being placed in classrooms are not what is doing the teaching.  The teacher is still responsible for making sure that the students are still learning.  Kelly made 4 valuable points that I want to summarize for you.  1) Teachers must be learners.  That is a must.  Our students needs and requirements are always going to be changing.  So are the way they need to be taught to learn.  What works for one, may not work for another.  You must learn new ways to teach so that each and every child is taught what they need to know to progress.  2) Learning and teaching aren't the same.  Isn't that the truth.  You can't just teach to the students.  If they aren't learning, you aren't teaching.  The main focus is to make sure that each and every child  learns what they need to progress.  3) Technology is useless without good teachers.  That is true with everything in teaching.  Nothing that you use in your classroom is going to work if you aren't there to teach it.  4) Being a 21st century teacher without technology.  It's not the technology that the students need, it's a great teacher.  If you can teach without, then go for it.  The technology is there is you want it and is designed to keep the focus of the students.  Nobody wants to just be lectured.  But, if you throw some interaction in there, they will pay attention.  I agree with this post.  Teaching is what you do, not what you use.

Is it OK to be a technologically illiterate teacher?

Karl Fisch is a teacher that has some very strong opinions about if teachers should be technologically literate or not.  After reading his blog, I gather from what he says that he feels that teachers should be somewhat literate in technology and use it regularly in their lessons.  I like how he explains that it's OK for a parent to admit that they aren't good at math or computers with no problem.  Yet, they aren't as OK if they are illiterate.  Why is it OK to not be good with computers?  I guess it is what society has labeled as acceptable. 

I agree with Karl Fisch in that teachers need to use technology of some type in their lessons.  I believe that if students see certain programs being used, they won't be so scared of learning new things.  I really liked what he said about the Kindergartners today are the class of 2020 and we need to have 2020 vision.  That is so true and amazing to think about.  It takes the level of success up a notch.  I don't think that everything a teacher does must involve technology, but I do feel that it needs to be used more often.

Gary's Social Media Count

It is really amazing at the amount of technology users out there.  Some of the counts that are being calculated are for social purposes and some are for work purposes.  The technologically enhanced world that we live in is growing rapidly every second. This is just a piece of the technology puzzle that is out there. 

I am not sure what this means for my teaching career.  I think I will definitely have to use more and more technology in my lessons.  There are endless possibilities as to how far this will go.  I just hope that someone doesn't go as far as replacing teachers.  There is no way to know what the technology of the future will bring. 

A Vision of Students Today

What a powerful and true video.  I have learned that being a student is about the success in the long run.  I am aware that as a student, I am required to spend money on things that I don't think are beneficial to me now but, once I start my career, I am sure that there will be some relevance to what was required of me.  You can't focus on the present, you must lean for the future. 

I noticed that one of the signs said something to the affect of I am studying for a degree for a job that doesn't exist yet.  I think that teaching is the same way.  I don't think that teaching will be the same in 2 or 3 years.  Once I graduate and start my career, the technology that I am using now sill be outdated and there will be something out there bigger and better.  I do believe that my understanding of what is out there now will prepare me and give me the ability to learn the new technology in the future.  Whether we like it or not, technology is a part of our future and is growing everyday.

Project #3 C4T #1 and #2 Summary

Beth Knittle made a blog post on August 17, 2011 about "Where is the Learning?".  She begins to explain that in a Twitter feed, she read about someone thinking that if you watch, view, or are aware of something it causes a change in your behavior.  Boy, was that person wrong.  Yet that is still how some teachers are teaching their students.  She had a friend ask her to set up a program on her classroom computer so that they could watch video's on materials that she couldn't fit into her instruction.  The fact that the students had watched the film was enough to mark it off the list and say it had been done.  THAT IS CRAZY!!!!!  I responded back to her explaining that I feel the interaction between the teacher and the students is what allows them to learn and is very important to their success.  The discussions that come about can't be reached by a video.  The class will watch the video and when asked "What is your input on what you just saw?", there will be no answers because they were bored with learning it on their own.  I feel that she should make the time in her instruction to teach the material.  There has to be a way for it all to fit in.

On July 25, 2011, Beth Knittle writes her blog on what she says when people ask her what her profession is and her reaction to their comments.  Beth feels that students need to be treated like individuals.  She feels that she works with people helping them develop effective, efficient ways to access, organize, communicate, collaborate, create and share information.  I agree with her thoughts.  In my classroom, I will be teaching more that the basic subjects.  I will be teaching life long lessons.  I think Beth says it best when she says, " I teach people about learning".



Blog Assignment 2



While watching the Did You Know Video, I learned some interesting facts.  Some examples of what I learned are 1 out of 8 marriages met online, there are 200 Million MySpace users, there are 31 Billion google searches monthly, the number of texts sent and received exceeds the total population of the planet, there are 540,000 words in the English language.  These are just some of the facts that I learned and found interesting.  At the end of the video, there were statistics of what happened during that particular time frame of the video:  67 babies were born in the US, 274 babies were born in China, 395 babies were born in India and 694,00 songs were illegally downloaded.

My thoughts on the video are that some of the facts are negative and make Americans look bad.  I understand that there are negative facts in the world and that Americans are not number one when it comes to certain statistics but, when a statistic about Americans was displayed, the following statistic was who was better.  On the other hand, most of the statistics I found to be interesting and informing. 

Mr. Winkles Wakes was a very interesting video.  I never really thought about how much technology changes but how teaches stays the same.  The general purpose of teaching back when Mr. Winkles was going to school was to learn reading, writing, and arithmetic.  Now, 100 years later, the philosophy is still the same but it's up to the teachers to change, or update, the way it is being done.  Mr. Winkles said that when he went to the office building and to the hospital, nothing looked familiar or safe.  When he stepped into the school, things were just as he remembered them to be.  The desks were in a row, the teacher was in front of the class teaching, and all was the way it should be. 

I didn't like how the computer was is the back of the classroom with dust on it.  I feel that teachers should make learning as fun as possible and should keep up with technology.  Children want to be entertained when they learn.  They don't want to just listen to the teacher and watch a short film to finish up.  They want to have that interaction and discussion about what they watched and their thoughts about it.  Classroom interaction, I believe, is a huge part what makes a teacher and the students successful. 

What a great video.  Sir Ken Robinson is an amazing speaker.  I really enjoyed how he told his stories and the humor that he added.  I feel that kept the attention of the audience.  Some of the things that he said that stuck with me are about the children starting school this year.  They will retire in 2065.  Nobody has a clue what the world will look like then yet we are educating them for it.  How scary and true is that?  He also mentioned that creativity and literacy are of equal importance and should be treated with the same importance.  I feel that you can't have one without the other.  If you don't display both, you won't be able to truly illustrate the whole picture.  Kids are not scared of being wrong.  If you are not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original.  WOW!!!!  These are the things that we forget as an adult.  We had that as a child and lost focus of as we got older.  Adults are frightened of being wrong.  The workplace has made sure of this.  We don't grow into creativity, we grow out of it.  Or rather, we get educated out of it.  Sad but true. 

 I think that video should be a mandatory video to watch for any profession.  Not only does it focus on the education point of creativity, it also hits on the points that adults need to find their inner child and let loose.  If we were as worried about creativity as we are being right and perfect, I don't think that the problems we have today with parents/children interaction would be as severe as it is. 

Cecelia Gault is a fascinating child.  I think that if she was a student in my classroom, she would want to help and be very involved in classroom discussion.  She would possibly was questions that I didn't know the answers to and I would let her know that I didn't know but we would find the answers together.  She would probably have a different opinion or see things in a different view.  I am sure that I and the other classmates could learn a lot from her and learn how to think outside of the box and look at the big picture. 

She is going to go far in life.  I am anxious to see where she is in 10 or 15 years from now.  Will she continue her path of interviewing of will she be introduced to a new passion.  I am sure that whatever she decides, she will be successful in her journey.

Vicki Davis is very passionate about her belief that students should be educated in technology.  She uses several different types of technology to allow her students to connect to other students in different regions of the world.  She believes that using technology and not just pencils and paper, all students are given a chance to succeed.  She is not ashamed to tell her students that she doesn't know how something works.  Once the students are able to teach her something, they feel that sense of accomplishment from teaching the teacher. 

I can't wait until I am in my own classroom where I will have the ability to show my students that technology is for more that video games and making plans for the weekend.  It is a HUGE part of how we communicate and i feel it needs to be learned.  



Project #2

Blog Assignmnt 1

About Me
Hello everyone.  My name is Ashleigh Strasser.  I am 30 years old and I have just began my junior year at the University of South Alabama.  My major is Elementary Education.  I have been married to my husband Paul for 10 years now and we have 2 daughters Autumn, 9 and Summer, 7.  I also have a step daughter Shayna, 15.  We are very involved in our children's lives.  We coach them in softball and I am currently coaching my youngest in city league cheer leading.  We don't miss anything when it comes to our children.  I know that in a few years, they are going to want me to "leave them alone" so we are cherishing them wanting us as long as we can.  We love to camp or spend time on the water. Anything we can do as a family is bound to be a great time.  I was born in Fairhope and have lived in Daphne my whole life.  I graduated from Daphne High School in 1999 and attended Faulkner State Community College that fall.  Needless to say, it wasn't my time to attend college so I took off a school year to find myself.  In that year, I got married and had a baby.  Now, 10 years later, I am back at it again.  I graduated from Faulkner in May 2011 and started USA in the fall.  I am vary passionate about children and their differences.  It amazes me how smart they really are.  Children are brilliant individuals and I am very excited about getting my own classroom full of children ready and eager to learn. 

Randy Pausch on Time Management
I really enjoyed the video on time management.  Randy Pausch made many good points.  When he said we are bad at dealing with time and good at dealing with money, I disagree.  I consider myself to be opposite.  I deal with time better than money.  If I have $5, I'll spend $10 but give me and hour and I'll do it 30 minutes.  I guess it's all in how we do what we do.  My favorite quote was "Good judgement comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgement."  WOW!!!!  That really makes you think.  I feel that it is important to learn from you mistakes.  If you don't, you will never become a better or stronger person.  I believe that our strengths and weaknesses are based on our past.  We develop fears and we conquer them.  Another thing he said that I like is "You can always change our plan, but only once you HAVE one."  That is so true.  When you are making your class schedule.  You go through classes and make decisions and change your mind several times.  That is how I feel time management works.  You can adjust your schedule but only once it has been made.