Final Project!!

Our Final Project was too long so please watch both videos! :)

Project #16 Final

At the beginning of this course I was terrified! During this course I was stressed! Now that it's over I am really thankful for this course. Dr. Strange gave us the opportunity to be creative and expand our learning by how much effort we put into this course. For the future students reading this, you may get extremely frustrated with this class and might break down but if you explore more than what is expected you will really enjoy this class. I have learned that technology is not just our phones and Facebook, but it gives us a way to enhance our learning. Good Luck to everyone, thank you again Dr. Strange and a HUGE thank you to all the lab assassinates!! :)

Project #13 Collaboration

Our group, Scholars United, has worked very hard on both our projects. We have used many collaboration tools while working on these projects. Google has been the main focus for how we have communicated. Google Docs helped us communicate very well with each other. If you have ever used Google Docs, you know how easy it is to communicate. If you haven't then you should try. Google Docs lets you create a document which others can edit and you can view the document as they do it. You can share it with many people and it's a fast easy way to communicate large amounts of information. We also used Google Hangout. This is a feature similar to Skype, but on here we could have all our group members together and also share our screen for them to see what we are doing. Keeley made a video (shown below) that will show you how we used it to our benefit. I would strongly use both of these tools whenever I have the chance too. We did text and call each other it was mostly, "Hey check the doc" and that was it. I enjoyed working with Scholars United and I wish each of my group members and other classmates the best of luck in the future!

Final Report On My PLN

I have learned so many things this semester from taking EDM310. Without this class I would not have known how to; blog, twitter, edit movies, use all Google features, use the SMARTboard, and communicate with people all over the world. I know that technology is booming and we have to use it to our advantage. I was very uncertain at first about using all of these technologies and how I would use them in a classroom. I now understand that it's not about using all of them and being completely tech savvy it's using them to the best of our ability and wanting to learn new things.
Google has been my main focus these past few weeks working on our final projects our group has communicated threw many of Google's features. For Project 13 we had to create a lesson without meeting face to face. Google Hangout was the best communication tool we used other than text. Google Docs also helped us a tremendous amount because we all could type on the same page and know what we were going to do. The tools that I have learned from this class I have been able to apply in my other classes, and people ask how I know how to do all this. I like to learn new things but I never would have known about any of these if it wasn't for this class. My PLN has just began but it's far from being over. Over this corse I have signed up at many websites to receive emails about new tools. I'm excited to use these tools in my classroom one day.

Blog Post #13

For this blog post we were not allowed to use any type of technology for 24 hours. We were allowed to use only a house phone and see a movie only in theaters, everything else was banned. If it was powered by electricity or batteries, we were not allowed to use it. This assignment was extremely hard for me. My phone is like my security blanket, without having it the feeling is just miserable. My boyfriend goes to Auburn and there was absolutely no way that I could not talk to him for a whole day. My cellphone was broken a few weeks ago and kept freezing. I immediately took it to AT&T and got a new phone. All my school work is done on the computer, if I didn't do it for a day I would fall behind. Even at my daycare that I work at, we use computers to clock in, and walkie talkies for the playground. Technologies are such a HUGE part of our society today that if the power went out for a whole day I honestly think that the world would go crazy. We have been accustom to cellphones, computers, and cameras that without them we cannot function. Hopefully we won't have to face a no technology day again!

Project #15

C4T #4 April

I'm commenting again on Jenny She, she has not recently posted. I read one of her post titled, "Would Google Plus be useful in the Classroom?". I was very interested about her thoughts about this topic would be. I just learned about everything Google has to offer due to this EDM class. I have learned so much about technology that I never would have known. In her post she explains that she learned about Google "hang out" from a family member who was studying with her classmate. She further explains that by using "hang out" people will no longer have an excuse of being late or not having money to get to class. Simply long in and ta-da your there. Also on her blog was a link for useful tips on how to use Google+. I explored this website, and it explains how to use Google+ to the max. It also had a link to a teachers blog post, 10 Ways Google+ Can Be Used In The Classroom which was also a very interesting. This post helped me a lot since I am now starting to use Google+ a lot more.

My second C4T is Mr. Myles Webb. His latest blog post is about an assignment using a video camera to show us about Worm Bins. One of the students in this video is legally blind and they were trying to find something to get him more engaged. In the video they created two young boys, one blind, demonstrate and explain to us more about Worm Bins. This video is absolutely amazing to see the excitement students express while teaching others(us). This is the video that Mr. Webb posted.

Blog Post #12

This week, we are instructed to create a blog post in our speciality. I had many ideas on what I could do, I just didn't know how to make them possible. While searching for hours on the internet I stumbled upon a website called Story Jumper that really got my attention. The StoryStarter workbook is a tool for teaching students the creative writing process. The goal of the workbook is to coach students in building the 7 primary components of a story (Character, Challenge, Motivation, Setting, Obstacles, Climax, and Closing). Finishing the 7 steps will give students complete story arcs that they can then develop into rich, detailed stories."


This website is also great for teachers because they can set up a classroom account which will allow them to; manage and review students work and also enables them to share stories between the classroom and home. The teacher may also set a time limit for the students. When the students logout they are suggested to share their work with their parents. Teachers and parents can order the book that the child creates.

This website also includes a worksheet that teachers can print for students to get started writing their story. They also have side tabs which further describes how to write a correct story in case they forget. I created my first story and it took me hours. I loved it and had so much fun creating it. I can see where using this in a classroom would be amazing. I was completely zoned in on making my story. I used so much creativity and learned a lot just by making my own story. I figured out how to use pictures from the internet and after discovering this tool, using this website in a class would be wonderful. Just the fact that it gives students full creativity, and both parent and teacher access is amazing. This is my story I made called Exploration. Please make your own story, I promise you will have so much fun.

For my blog post assignment this is what I would do.

1. Create an account, the best part about this is it's free.
2. Make a book that you would read in your classroom that would cover a certain subject ex. math, history, science.
Make sure you put time into it, you can use pictures and information from the internet. These books are also printable for you to use in the classroom so do something your interested in.
3. You must have at least 14 pages.
4. Post your book on your blog for others to read.

Progress Report on Final Project.

For the final project my group, Scholars United, includes; Amanda Warner, Keeley Bryan, Travis Snyder, and myself. We are working on creating a video to illustrate the benefits of using various types of technologies in the classroom. Each of us will pick a subject that we will teach in the future, and pick which technologies will best enhance their lesson plan. We have selected our subjects and different types of technologies that will enhance our students learning. Our project is centered around the idea of motivating educators to incorporate technology in their classrooms, and to make known the connection between technology and student comprehension. So far we have used; Google Docs, Google Hangout, e-mails, text messages, and our class time to communicate through this project.

Creativity and Curiosity: My Thoughts- Special Post #12A.

1. Do schools in the United States systematically destroy (or inhibit) the development of curiosity and/or creativity in students? In my opinion, absolutely yes. The school system has a certain requirement that has to be met by all students and teachers. Children in the classrooms are not being allowed to think for themselves. They are told what, when, and how to do all activities the moment they step on school property. Teachers stress over the students test scores because low scores imply not teaching correctly. Even art projects have requirements they must meet to receive a good grade. In schools it's hard for children to think for themselves because they have to follow so many rules and act a certain way.

2.Can a curriculum be developed that increases the curiosity of students? At my high school we had a Leadership Class. You had to apply to be selected in this class. I joined my sophomore year and loved it. This class was designed to make ourselves better leaders and to get involved in the community. We did have rules that we had to follow but we also did many of our assignments on our own. I loved this class and I hated leaving it my senior year. Ms. Miller, my teacher, did an amazing job letting us find ourselves and what are strengths were. This class opened my mind to so many opportunities that I would have never known about. I learned so much about myself and others. This type of class would be a wonderful class to have in schools. We did all the work, the thinking, and producing, she gave us information on how to do it and where we could start. Everyone who took this class absolutely loved it, and gained so much knowledge from it.

3.Can a teacher's actions increase the curiosity of students? Absolutely!! Students feed off of others reactions and feed back. If they sense that the teacher could care less about the subject than they tune out. Why should a student care if the teacher doesn't. Students pay better attention when teachers show enthusiasm about the subject. Showing excitement to learn increases the desire to actually learn.

4.What would help you become more creative? What role would teachers and/or schools have in that process? The school system is so strict that teachers are just teaching to test. It's all about the test scores and students only learn what they have to, to pass the test. It's sad that this is how our school system is and anything not on the Course of Study sheet shouldn't be taught. The internet is such an amazing invention and extremely useful for everyone. My leadership class that I mentioned before really gave me the opportunity to express my creativity and involvement. Maybe a class like this in all schools would help expand creativity. Or even if students were allowed to create more projects to demonstrate what they have learned in that class as part of the final grade. It could be something on the computer like a powerpoint or even a physical object. Less instructions and force on how things should be. The school system needs to actually be involved with the schools and not in the office. They should see how a classroom is actually ran and not have the teacher worry about what they are writing on their notepad in the back of the room. Being involved and hands on lets others experience the troubles that both students and teachers have.

Hopefully we will soon express more creativity and students thinking for themselves, and not learning to test. Little steps eventually make big changes.

C4K Summary for April

We are doing a world blog challenge for three weeks. Alicia is my student that I have been following and blogging to. She seems to be a really sweet young lady and is excited about learning. My first comment to her started in March.

On April 2, she blogged about how excited she is to go to the nature room. She describes it as a science lab where they will build bottle rockets, have a spa day, and even dissect a sheep's brain. I responded by telling her how brave she is if she dissects a sheep's brain because I could never dissect anything. She said that she will post about her experiences in the nature room later this week. I cannot wait to read about what she learned and made. I asked her if she would tell me what she did and didn't like so I have some ideas when I teach. Very excited to read her response!

• This week is spirit week at Alicia's school and today, Tuesday, April 10, is Hawaiian day. She describes her outfit that she actually bought when she was in Hawaii. She explains that it's a family tradition to go to Hawaii for vacations. She asked for wacky ideas for spirit week. I was so excited to read this post because I have always wanted to visit Hawaii, and jealous that she has been. Spirit Week in high school was my favorite because it was also homecoming. I replied with many ideas that she could use for her spirit week that I used for mine. I cannot wait to read her reply on how the rest of the week went.

I am now assigned to a new student from Ms. Cassidy's 1st grade class. This is the post that my student G had posted;

"I WeT To Rjine Last Weekced and I Had To wat for (a half an hour)".

I commented back that I was sorry they had to wait so long but I hope they had fun on their trip. I also asked what all they did on the trip. I had to remember that this student is in first grade and learning, like myself, how to blog. Amazing how young we are teaching technology to children.

Blog Post #11

Watching the First Graders in Ms. Cassidy's Class was very amusing. I like to see that the students are actually learning how to use technology at such a young age. I also watched her Skype Interview with Dr. Strange, which was extreamly knowlegable. Her video was inspiring to see how an actual classroom uses the technology and they understand the importance of being safe on the internet. I liked how she is already teaching the children how to use blogs. It's a great feature that the parents can go and see their child's work at their convince. Parents love being informed with what their child is learning and for them to quickly see it improves communication with both the parent and teacher. A problem I might face would be the privacy of the children some parents might not want their child being publicized all over the internet. If a parent does have that concern I would do my best to ensure them that they are being educated and I will not post their picture on the internet. For my own preference, I would not use the computers with every assignment. I would also be hands on with pens and paper, to see where children mess up and not use auto correct. I really liked how they posted all their art work on their blog for the family to see. My family is very close in communication but not distance and it would have been awesome if everyone could have seen what I worked on. Amazing how we always keep learning. :)

Blog Post #10

In the video, Do You Teach or Do You Educate I was expecting more from it than what it turned out to be. Josh Bloom created this video in 2006 as probably a class project. Watching this video I didn't feel any inspiration to want to educate. I can tell he worked hard and spent a lot of time on the video, but it lacked the desire to teach. I watched the video twice just to make sure I didn't miss some powerful message but I was extremely board, and lacked focus.

I want to become an educator, I want students to be inspired by new information and think for themselves. Education is such a powerful tool that we, as American's, take advantage of it. I wish I would have tried harder in high school and paid closer attention to what my teachers were really telling me. I want to become an elementary teacher because I believe that the young minds hold the most power. As an educator I want students to feel like they can ask any question and not feel dumb. I want to demonstrate that the little subjects build on top of each other, like building blocks and that furthers our knowledge. It's hard for me to explain my passion for children and the joy I feel knowing that I'm changing children's lives.

After reading Tom Johnson's blog post titled, Don't Let Them Take The Pencils Home it brought to my attention again how much I hate taking test. Since I can remember, test have been used to see how much students know. I myself am an awful test taker, I get very nervous and forget everything when that paper is handed to me. All the school board sees is our test scores and ways to improve them. Some schools have been so low in grades that they talked about taking the extra involvement's like sports and clubs out of schools. To me, taking these things out of school will worsen the grade for the students have nothing to look forward to. Anyway, regarding Mr. Johnson's post about not letting students take the pencils home because it lowers test scores. He explains that pencils are for learning and by taking them home the parents can learn to in this low income community. People, not just children, learn everywhere they go. The saying, "You learn new things everyday" is completely true. No matter how old we are or where we go, there is always something new to learn. LEARNING SHOULD NOT STAY IN A CLASSROOM. As a teacher, I would want my students to take what they learn inside the school walls and express them outside. Also, use their knowledge outside of school and bring it inside. Learning never ends and it should never stop, especially if the pencil is broken, sharpen it and keep writing.

Project 13

Amanda Warner and I demonstrate simple tools, on how to use the SMARTboard.

Blog Post #9

This blog post is about Mr. Joe McClung's blog post about his reflections about his first years teaching. I really enjoyed reading his post because as pre teachers we want everything to be just perfect and to run smoothly. Teaching isn't about making everything perfect you cannot into a classroom and expect them all to understand what you say. The first post I read was his post in 2009, about his first year ever teaching. Teaching will vary from day to day and we just have to take the situation and make the best of it. In this post he mentions that not everything has to be perfect and that we have to be flexible and ready for change. I agree with him 100% on this there is no way that we can predict how students will react towards a lesson. He also states that we should listen to our students. Without listening to what they really say it'shard for them to understand what we are trying to say. Communication is extremely important and we have to be willing to listen to them for them to listen and respect us as a teacher.

The second blog post I read was his teaching in 2010. What stood out to me in this one was him saying that we (teachers) have to make ourselves look crazy for students to be excited to learn. Teaching is like acting, we have to make the audience want to be there and see what happens next. "Our students need to know that we have passion for our jobs if we ever expect them to take our subjects serious." This quote says it all, love what you do and give it all you got. He talks about so many great topics in his blog post, but another one that stands out again to be is being a control freak. I myself now am very organized, and like to have things done in a certain way. He states out how teachers have to write out there every move for a year and by having all the directions to follow it can be stressful. It won't all be perfect but by giving yourself simple breaks like students passing out papers can take some control off of the teacher. We cannot be a drill sergeant or they would never learn. By giving students some control of how the class works lets them feel equal and with older students that's all they want.

I really enjoyed reading his blogs and I think that when I start teaching I will make a blog about my adventures in the classroom. Really good idea Joe!

C4T #3 March

Mr. Eric Sheninger's PLN I am a student at the University of South Alabama striving to become a teacher. A class I am required to take is a class about technology and using it in the classroom. Before reading this post I was very uncertain about teaching. The technology is advancing everyday and I questioned my ability to remember all of these tools. After reading this post I understand now that it's not about how many tools you use, it's using them sufficiently. Teaching isn't about who can do it best, it's helping each other strive forward to help children succeed. I like that Mr. Sheninger let's his teachers use 20% of their time to work on a project they enjoy. It is very important to keep the teacher's mind fresh and exciting. I have enjoyed reading this blog post and I look forward to hearing more about Mr. Sheninger's success.

My second C4T was to Ms. Jenny She. Her blog is dedicated to record her experiences, reflections, learnings, and anything that matters to teaching. Her latest post was about photography and the beauty of the simple things in life like flowers. A quote that she wrote has stuck with me the rest of the day,"The happiest people don't have everything, they just make the best of everything." She went for a walk and took pictures with her iPhone of some flowers she saw. Beauty isn't always the biggest most elaborate things, the small things make the picture complete. I responded by telling her my passion for photography and how pictures last a lifetime. I really enjoyed her reminder about making the best out of everything.

C4K Summary for March

For the first C4K in March, I responded to a 4th grade boy named Brandon from the UK. He wrote a short story about wasps at Christmas, using lots of personification. His teacher commented and said for him to slow down, and for him to read what he writes. I told Brandon that I agree with his teacher and I too still have that problem sometimes. I suggested reading his stories aloud, you might sound silly but you always find things you miss.

My final C4K for March starts the blog challenge. I'm assigned to Miss. Alicia, who's in the 12th grade here in the United States. In her latest post, she talks about how excited she is about seeing the Hunger Games, and also wrote a short poem. I replied by saying that, I too am excited about seeing the Hunger Games and I wish I new more about it to understand her poem. I also informed her that I will be commenting on her blog for the next few weeks and I'm excited about reading her blog post.

Project #12 Book Trailer

I had no idea what a book trailer was or what it even did. On February 1, 2012, Cassie Skidmore and Emily Jeanminette worked with me on our first book trailer. We had a lot of fun putting it together and getting to know each other. We made a book trailer for Ruby Bridges by Robert Cole.

Since I enjoyed making a book trailer with my group I wanted to make sure that I could make one by myself. I can see where book trailers would be helpful in the classroom, especially for students to make them. I decided to make my own creation on, Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. This is one of my favorite books because the book lets you imagination run wild.

Project #11 Short Movie

For Dr. Vitulli's EDM301 class we have an upcoming puppetry assignment where we have to make our own puppet and make a puppet show. The puppet show is about opposites and is a kindergarten lesson. The children can watch the video, then re-watch and identify the different opposites throughout the video. Cassie Skidmore asked Alison Stacey and I if we would be in her group and I gladly said yes. We each created very unique puppets and made a short video, a parody to Paula Abdul's Opposite's Attract video.

I had already read to my K4 class earlier in the week and wanted to create my own short movie. I read The Marvelous Toy by one of my favorite children's author Tom Paxton. This book, as some may know, has a song that goes along with it here's the YouTube link for the Marvelous Toy Song. I love reading to my kids, and as you can see they are very good listeners and love books. I read at least two books a day to them during snack time. They are learning how to read and after I read this to the class some of them read the book themselves, with little of my help. I love seeing them get excited about learning new things and I know that teaching is where I need to be to help students excel.

Blog Post #8

This Is How We Dream

by Richard E. Miller

Richard Miller is an English professor at Rutgers School of Arts and Science. He has published several articles that, "concern's developing aphilosophy of consciousness that promotes transformative teaching and writing practices." He has spoke around the world on how literacy is being redefined by Web 2.0 technologies. In his videos This Is How We Dream part 1 and 2, he informs us how writing has changed in professions and culture. He shares the importance of reading and how we research, write, and publish information. He talks about two different kinds of changes that he believes are taking place, incremental change, and fundamental change.

In part one he describes incremental change, this is where we are working now. We no longer depend on pens and paper to write our papers, we use word processing. Our work space becomes our desktop, we can research the faster from the web than the library. He tells about an article he wrote in response on the one year anniversary of the killings of Virginia Tech. He never stepped foot into a library because all the information he needed was online. I myself in the twenty years I have been alive have never had to go to the library to find information. I have always found all my information online. Another incremental change that he shares with us is collaboration. We can now collaborate using this networking technology and to compose not simply with text; but to compose with images, film, sound, and whatever you find on the web.

Part two talks about fundamental change. Ideas don't belong to us individually, they belong to us as a culture. We as educators must share our ideas freely. The limits and restrictions are the ones we place on ourselves. YouTube is an amazing program that helps us visualize others ideas and pushes new ideas into our culture. He states that these changes need to be beautiful and compelling so it inspires curiosity, creativity, and collaboration.

Working together makes learning a lot easier and I don't think we should be afraid to ask questions. I have enjoyed working in project groups because I always learn how to do something new. I think I am prepared to write with multimedia, I don't realize it but I use it more than I think I do. My students will defiantly know how, young minds love to create and catch on faster. The change has already happened and will progress faster within the next few months.

Carly Pugh's Blog

Carly did an outstanding job in her blog post 12. Right away I can tell she is going to be a great teacher by her dedication to the post. The links were amazing to watch and really made me think about how the small things we do make a huge difference. I agree that multimedia will help enormously in the classroom. It allows children to create so many projects and by having fun you learn a lot more. I cannot thank Carly enough for sharing her idea about creating a playlist. I will for sure keep this in mind in my classroom.

The Chipper Series and EDM310 for Dummies

The Chipper Series was very interesting. I unfortunately have a slight problem with procrastination. I like to start things early but it takes me forever to finish some. I know that in this class and every class all work must be turned in on time. I must say I have done a really good job with planning time for school work with my busy social life. I like to get things done in a timely manner and I like to relax knowing that I have completed everything. I have thought several times if teaching is actually for me and I know walking into any elementary school that teaching and inspiring is what I love to do.

EDM310 for Dummies video does a perfect job showing the emotions that students have felt about this class, me being one of them. It's hard to realize at the time how much we have actually learned and continue to learn from this class. So many of these projects and assignments can be used in other classes as well. This class feels like there is so much to do and like it's never going to end but I am so thankful for everything I have learned. Teaching isn't about using every single piece of technology to teach it's about enhancing the learning threw technology. By making my own projects, reading others blog, and finding my own information, has given me the confidence and encouragement to teach what I have learned.

After watching these two videos I would most likely make a video on the importance of learning by doing. Creating a video that demonstrates how making our own projects, and learning new tools has helped me understan

d how they work in a classroom. I have watched so many videos about how to teach and be creative and I can now put them to use.

Learn to Change, Change to Learn

I agree with a lot of things talked about in this video. I myself have grown up in the technology age and wouldn't know what to do without my cell phone. Like they mentioned in the video all electronic devices are banned from the school. We don't write notes to the person sitting across from us we simply text them. Social networking is very important to not just students but to everyone. It gives us the easy accuses to fast communication around the world. School is just one of the many places that students learn. We learn from all of our surroundings and the places that we visit. I think that social networking has also played a huge role in the change of education. I myself am always on my phone and the internet looking for new ideas and new places to visit. As teachers we should accept this change and continue to expand from it like so many already have. You don't have to use every piece of technology just know some and use it to the best you can.

Scavenger Hunt 2.0

This assignment was created by Justin Cometti. First I watched the introduction video for Discovery Education Web 2.0 for 2011. Next I visited the home page of Discovery Education here they have so many great tools to use in the classroom and at home. Anyone can use this site; administrators, teachers, parents, and students.

1.) Locate a tool that is similar to Twitter/Facebook and provides a social platform for teachers, parents, and students. Create an account as a Teacher and write a paragraph or two about how you could use this site in your class room.

ThinkQuest helps students produce a blog which they can create and edit projects. They can also create games and communicate with people all around the world, just like Facebook and Twitter. What I like about this website is that a student can start a project and work with others around the world. Some of the projects are like a more enhanced PowerPoint. You can search thousands of projects that have already been created for more ideas. I think that given the opportunity to work with students around the world will give students the excitement to want to do projects, which leads to more knowledge. The ThinkQuest also has a competition which; engages students to solve a problem using their technology, critical thinking, and communication skills. I think this is another great way to motivate kids by offering rewards for amazing projects they create. These are their prizes:

• 1^st and 2^nd place team members receive a laptop computer and a trip toThinkQuest Live, a once-in-a-lifetime educational experience in the San Francisco Bay Area, California.
• 3^rd place team members receive a laptop computer.
• The ten schools or organizations that register the most Competition participants will receive $5,000 USD for educational purposes.
• All teams that submit entries will be eligible to receive certificates of participation.
• Teams that finish in the top 10% will be eligible to receive certificates of distinction.
• Students who are 18 and over and whose teams finish in the top 10% are eligible to apply for an internship.

I think that it's a great incentive to motivate children to have fun with technology and also further their knowledge.

3.) Find a tool to make-your-own comic strip. Create a comic and post a picture of it in your blog.

Making a Comic Strip

It did not give me the HTML code so here is the link to my comic strip, click here.

4.) Find a video tool that you have never used. Summarize some it's special features.

I have played on this website all day long and I created two videos. I first played around with Animoto. This is very easy and fun. I created this one about the highlights of summer 2011. With the free version you are only given basic features. The more you pay the more tools you are allowed to use.

Make your own slideshow with music at Animoto.

The second one I made with PhotoPeach. This one is also very simple and you also have to pay to accuse more features. I think I enjoyed this one more because it gave me more options than Animoto did. Both are great for getting students to demonstrate a topic. Here is the one I made with PhotoPeach some of the events this year in AOII. Zoom your mouse in to see the pictures close up or you can zoom out to see more than one.

Alpha Omicron Pi on PhotoPeach

Project 9b Prezi

Drugs on Prezi

Project #10 PLN

Before EDM310 I had never heard of a Personal Learning Network (PLN). With my MacBook my Safari organizes all of my top sites. I can organize the sites and delete the ones I no longer need. I did not realize how convenient viewing the sites made it easier to work. My homepage is iGoogle and this also helps me organize my work. I was surprised to find all the tools that Google has to offer. Before this class I only used Google to serf the web now I use it to create documents and presentations for not only this class but others as well. I like how I can open all my work from any computer using Google.

A Network that has inspired me is Blogger. With Blogger I am constantly viewing teachers, students, and other classmates blog. Their ideas and topics have furthered my desire to teach. Facebook was the only social network that I was aware of, but now I love to blog and tweet. Twitter has given me access to other educators and sites that I now constantly view. I have found many informational videos as well threw YouTube that has changed my mind about technology. Facebook is great to keep in touch with friends but I find that Twitter is faster and easier to communicate.

My PLN is just beginning now that I have experienced technology networks. In my documents I have a folder for each of my classes. EDM by far has the most websites saved that I have enjoyed reading and plan to use. I have explored many websites threw the use of this class and I plan on furthering my use of technology and my networks. Having this type of technology helps students and teachers connect to one another around the world. It creates an easy way to ask questions and new ideas of teaching and learning. I'm excited to extend my PLN and promote the effectiveness that is has to offer.

C4T #2

His latest post was about his excitement about teaching chemistry. His school does not offer mandatory curriculum therefore he is free to experiment. He is teaching his students from the Operation Primary Physical Science (OPPS) curriculum. I wish him the best of luck for this is his first time teaching chemistry! He has lots of ideas for the students to be very hands on this semester. This is Mr. Noschese blog.

This is the comment I left for Mr. Frank Noschese

Hello Mr. Noschese,
I, like Erica, am also a student at the University of South Alabama majoring in education also in EDM310. I find it strange that your school does not have a mandatory curriculum for chemistry. I glanced at the topics you are planning on teaching from the OPPS curriculum and it looks like your students will enjoy learning about them. Atoms is a very cool topic to study and it’s amazing that you only have 11 students in your class. It’s a lot easier for students to learn material with a small class rather than having an average of 30 like I did in my high school. Science is such an interesting subject to learn if you have a teacher who presents the information in a fun way. It seems to me like you are doing just that! I like how you will be doing a lot of hands on projects, it makes understanding science so much easier. Good luck to you and your students! I look forward to read how this semester went for you!

Emily Nadeau

• Mr. Noschese newest post expresses his thoughts challenging Silicon Valley's formal reasoning skills. Analytical thinking that cannot be cultivated by pausing and rewinding video or playing Math Blasters. He addresses the transitions from concrete to formal reasoning. He also states that interactive engagement courses outperformed traditional courses in learning. He explains Karplus learning cycle and the stages; Exploration, Invention, and Application, to further develop students reasoning skills. This post was extremely detailed and he provided all the links where he received his information.

My response:

Mr. Noschese,
I’m a student at the University of South Alabama inspired to become an elementary teacher. I enjoyed reading your post and it made me think a lot about the way I will teach in my class. I am not completely tech savvy but I do find that technology increases my learning. I’m a full time student with a part time job, I have an extremely busy schedule and half of my classes are online. I strongly dislike the online classes because I feel like I am not learning anything just simply doing busy work. I understand topics better when I am around people and can have conversations. I agree that some online programs give students the freedom to create and figure out topics themselves, but not every subject should be taught from a computer. When students are creating projects and they have to find all the information themselves that’s when they learn the most. By creating fun projects and games it makes learning enjoyable. Traditional learning can be extremely boring sometimes. It’s hard to focus when your constantly listing to a teacher talk about something you can care less about. By interacting, we engage ourselves in the subject and want to know more. I know from experience that finding my own information to create a project, furthers my knowledge about the topic. Since K5 I have always received instructions for homework and questions to study for the test, constantly receiving instructions. I have mixed feelings about this technology teaching. I know that when we find the best way to incorporate technology into the classroom students will be more engaged.Thank you for posting this topic, it has made me think a lot about the use of technology in a class.

Emily Nadeau

Post #7

After watching The Networked Student I strongly disagree with their idea of the role of the teacher. Students today are using technology as a tool for learning and social networking. We are being taught now as future educators we will only be helping students find sources on the internet for them to educate themselves. I want to become a teacher to teach students, to encourage them to learn and fulfill their dreams. I do not want to walk around the room and tell them what site to go to learn math, science, history, and english. The internet gives us full access to everything we want to know. We can watch videos online so we can further our understanding how things work or other instructions. I love having all the answers I need with just a few clicks.
Having all the answers a few clicks away could also be a problem. Will students actually learn the material or will they simply copy and paste? It really is amazing all the tools and programs that we can access to create projects to show our learning. I think incorporating technology in our teaching is fantastic. It allows students to find new sources, pictures, and create a project that they are proud of. While students create projects it really helps them understand what they are learning. When children are having fun and exciting about projects they don't realize how much they are actually learning rather than just reading a book.

As a future educator I need to be open to new ideas of teaching and communicating. I have mixed feelings about how technology is the center focus. I myself love the computer and find new sites that are great for teaching and learning. I don't want to become a teacher to simply guide the internet. Teachers put thousands of hours making lessons plans and coming up with new ideas to teach. While having all the subjects online I think this will cut down on the planning. I want to always be hands on with my students. Having the computer makes it easier for visual learners like myself to understand. It is hard to understand what I will actually be doing in the future but I know that I want to help children learn and inspire others no matter how high the ropes are.

After watching A 7th Grader's PLN it really made me think about how strong technology really is. It amazed me how you can organize links and i noticed on hers that anything associated with school was on the bottom. I loved how she created a biology report using technology. With every subject especially science we can find so many videos, post, pictures, and games that help us further our knowledge. I do like technology and everything it has to offer, but again I don't think that we should fully rely on it. I really did enjoy watching this video a lot.

Project # 8 Podcast

C4K Summary for February

My first C4K in February was to a boy named Barien. He is in Mrs. Diaz 5th grade class in California. She has told them several times about the importance about not telling all their information on the internet. They are not allowed to use their real names, tell their age, where they live, school name, or anything personal. I commented on his most recent blog about how much he loves his school. I told him that I am glad he loves his school, friends, and teachers. Barien said that in his school they feel like a family. I encouraged him to stay positive about school and to never give up. He seems really excited about school. I can't wait to read his reply.

• For my second C4K I was assigned to a girl named Sydney in Mrs. Hubener's 5th grade class in Sioux Rapids, Iowa. Sydney wrote many things down that she enjoys doing. I think they did a lesson on poems that day and created one about themselves. Her first line read, "I am cute and I am happy and silly". I loved that this was her first line it shows her personality very well. Throughout her writing she said many fun things she likes to do and eat. I also read her teachers blog, she is extremely organized with what is going on in her classroom. I look forward to reading her reply!

• My third C4K was Erick, a 7th grade student in Ms. Sedgwick's computer class in Winnetka, California. His last post was of a chart about how much he thinks items are worth during Christmas. I read some of his other post like papers he has written and he seems to really like school and soccer. He enjoys hanging out with his friends and playing video games. I told him about our class and how we are learning to blog as well. I hope he enjoys school and continues to learn. From the impression I received from his page he has a lot of potential to succeed. I was not able to post directly to his blog but I posted on the class blog as a whole. Hopefully he will reply.

• My final C4K was a 5th grade student in Iowa. The names were not given only initials "FK" I am pretty sure it's a girl. Her most recent post was, "I Wrote This to My Parents and Now They Want to Go on A Cruise". I really enjoyed reading her post because I love going on family vacations. She explains in her note that her and her siblings would be really good and get along with each other. How going on another cruise will bring them closer together and make more memories. I really liked how she loves her family. Many of her post include her family and lots of candy. I encouraged her to always be close to her family and to enjoy every vacation and make the best of everyday with them. Her Blog was very cute and girlie with pinks, purples, and lime green. I am really looking forward to her reply.

Post #6

Noticing Randy Pausch's Last Lecture video was a little over an hour long I was thinking what could this man possibly have to say for an hour, it is probably going to be so boring. I was completely wrong; it didn’t even feel like an hour I was so engaged in this video. In this video he talks about inspiration to dream and how he made all his goals come true. Dr. Pausch did some amazing things in his lifetime and he touched many lives working towards his goals. He speaks about many things we need to hear to get motivated and push ourselves harder.

Brick walls are there for a reason they push you to work harder for your goal and show your dedication. When you have someone telling you that you cannot do something work harder at it and prove them wrong. You will not get everything you want but when you work hard enough for it others see that and they help you achieve your goal. Students who stay in on the weekend to read and work more than required usually end up with a better grade because they push themselves. Teachers who stay late after class or up late at night working on projects, lectures, or extra assignments usually love what they are doing more helping to educate kids. When we reach a point where we think we can’t go any further keep trying. When you’re at a stop sign you don’t stay there forever you pause and keep moving forward.

Where does complaining really get you? No where if anything it pushes you further from what you planed to achieve. Pausch explains that at times we can complain but when you have said it once push yourself to work harder. Cherish feedback that you receive both positive and negative. “When you start screwing up and nobody says anything to you that’s when they have given up on you,” stated Pausch’s little league football coach. I find that quote completely true we should always help people become the best they can be. When a student does not understand how to multiply the teacher doesn’t give up no matter how frustrated she may get, she works with them longer and tries different ways of explaining it.

When you screw up sometimes the hardest thing to do is apologize. We should apologize more often nobody is perfect and we need the help of others to survive. When you meet somebody you don’t like give them time to impress you, we all have different strengths and weaknesses. Think of your co-workers or your classmates, you judge them how you think they are by the way they look. Everyone has bad days but we should look for the positive in everyone, it makes you feel better when you know you can go in with a positive attitude.

Pausch found that when you don’t give students a bar for them to meet they exceed the expectations. This was one of my favorite things he talked about and I completely agree. By saying, “That was good but I know you can do better” we work harder for that strong positive feedback. When you are given it on your first task you try less and less because you already did your best. It is weird how our brain works and how we crave for that positive assurance. We all have room to improve ourselves and I know after watching this video I have tried to follow his ways of teaching. During this video I laughed and I cried. It is amazing how the little things in life are the ones we remember and cherish forever. I strongly encourage everyone to watch this video. Think about the way you say things and the tone in your voice it’s a small thing but it makes a huge difference. I really did enjoy watching this video and I hope that you take the time to watch it as well. Trust me it did not seem like an hour at all.

Project # 9a

Blog Post #5

Who is Scott McLeod? He is a creator, and is expanding our education of how we teach. Dr. McLeod put issues into a new perspective that creates you to think about what he is really trying to say. He is also an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Kentucky. Founding Director of the Center for the Advanced Study of Technology Leadership in Education (CASTLE). He has received numerous national awards for his technology leadership work. One of his blog post,"Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff" was an extremely sarcastic post about why children shouldn't use technology (computers) in school. Dr. McLeod is very intelligent and continues to further our education about technology and how it's helping our students learn.

• Travis Allen made a video when he was seventeen ISchool Initiative about how technology should belong in school and all of its advantages. He named this project ISchool. His thoughts about ISchool are students will no longer need books, paper, and even pens. Allen explains some of the Apps that the IPad already has for school use. Some include U.S. Constitution, World Wiki, Chemical Touch, USA Presidents, Star Walk and basics such as calendar and calculator. These Apps are very interesting and give students a ton of information that would not fit into books. The Internet has so much information that would not be accessible threw a book. With technology and YouTube we can visualize and understand things better. I agree with the cost of school being outrageous Allen stated that today the cost of one student is $600; the cost of one student in ISchool would be $150. The financial problem that the schools are facing today is very troubling. I have mixed feelings about all future education being taught strictly by technology. What if the service is slow and you cannot connect to the Internet? How would you then teach your class? I do like the use of technology it really enhances the learning but I don’t want to solidly rely on technology.

I watched Lux Aurumqueand what we can do with technology is absolutely astonishing. This video is made up of 185 people who have never met singing Lux Aurumque. The way Eric Whitacres collaborated this video is just amazing. It’s a mixture of art and technology. In today’s world we cannot do anything without the assistance of Internet. Our life literally revolves around technology, without it we feel empty and disconnected. I myself live on my phone it has become my security blanket. This video right away gave me chills, the music the people and the way it all fell perfectly together. It takes art, learning and every subject to a whole new level. I feel overwhelmed by all the new technology and how it all works. Are children in the future going to experience playing outside or will it be taught? I do love the assistance of technology but again I do not think we should solidly rely on it.

• Kevin Roberts Teaching 21st Century Studentsvideo makes you think about the future generation. Technology offers a lot of great tools and sources. We are using a lot more technology in the classroom than ever before. Roberts explains that that teacher’s are no longer the source of information but the filter. This ten minute video has some good points but it seems to last forever. If this video were shown in a classroom students would drift off after five minutes. He is expressing that we will no longer be teachers and educators but helping students find how to learn. I do not like that way of teaching. I know we will forever use technology but we should keep it as a tool not as the teacher. Soon students will stay at home and teach themselves by Google. I want to become a teacher to teach students to see them understand it and help them create new ideas. We can do so much with technology I am afraid that too much might be a bad thing. Whatever we do now to change the way we teach and learn the upcoming generation will not know any difference. Just like the way we were taught using a white board and books, today’s students use SmartBoards and Google. The main goal is for students to excel their learning and keep creating.

• The Reading Rocketwebsite has a lot of great reading resources for students, parents, teachers, and principals. It has lots of great ideas for teachers to use in the classroom. Parents can also visit the site and find activities to do at home with their children. I really liked this website and found so many great ideas that I can use in the classroom. One of the activities I found very useful for a classroom is Shared Reading. First you discuss what you think the book is about and students can write down questions or comments they think it’s about. As you read the book aloud students throughout the book can make predictions about what’s going to happen. When you finish you can have the students individually rewrite the story using their own comments and answers to the question. I really like this idea; students have to use their listing and comprehension skills. If students have questions or didn’t understand a part in the book independent reading would be a great idea.

Another great resource I found Semantic Gradients helps with vocabulary. This deepens students’ understanding of words and enhances their vocabulary. Select a specific vocabulary word for the week. Students can create a list of similar words throughout the week in other subjects. At the end of the week you can arrange the words in a ladder and write beside it what the similar word means. This lets students think about what words really mean. Giving students the opportunity to find new words and for them to discover what they mean helps them understand words better. Kids love feeling smart and how they can teach others.

I strongly recommend this website for all students, teachers, and parents. You can always improve your reading skills. Check it out for great reading activities.