Blog Post #4

We are learning how to podcast and these are some links that will help myself and others podcast.

Judy Scharf link gave me a lot of information on how to set up my podcast and also how I can use it in a classroom. A podcast is a mix between "broadcast" and "IPod." It is like talking on the radio, you can use it from any computer or MP3 player. This website gives easy step-by-step instructions how to create and submit your podcast. She includes handouts given to her students to make sure they understand how to complete a podcast. This website has a ton of great information about podcasting. I encourage everyone to check it out. It makes learning enjoyable.

I next read Langwitches-Flat Stanley Podcast . A project that this teacher created enhances the children's understanding with the words. She recorded her students out of order as they read a story. She later used the SmartBoard for them to edit the story to play in the right order. Hearing the sentence over and over helped the students recognize the words and understand what they mean. I never thought about this but this would be great with any age group.

The final podcast I read was, Podcasting with First Grade. This podcast was very similar to the Flat Stanley I read above. This teacher, names are not provided, used podcast with a class of first grader's which used their, listening, speaking, comprehension, and technology skills. They read a story and recorded there questions for each chapter. Giving children the chance to hear themselves boost their knowledge of what they actually sound like. I think using podcast in a class room is a great idea. Like this teacher observed, "Shy and quiet students were coming out of their shell." While using podcast they can edit their sentences and always re-record. I will defiantly use podcast in my classroom.

Project # 6

Project # 5

Blog Post # 3

1.

For this weeks post my first assignment was to watch and read presentations about peer editing. These are the links; Paige Ellis' Blog , What is Peer Editing? , Peer Edit Perfection Tutorial , Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes . All of these links are very helpful for explaining how you should and should't peer review. Always give complements, nobody likes to be put down.

2.

Watching Technology in Special Education showed me that technology really is making a huge difference in our world. In this video we see how computers have help the way these students learn. Some have problems speaking, writing, and reading a computer can help with some of these things. The teachers who teach children with disabilities do an amazing job!

Technology is a wonderful tool! With any class you have to know what the struggles are in your class. Every child acts and learns differently. I cannot explain how I would use computers in my class because I need to understand them first. Overall I would use it in a way to embrace the learning and lots of pictures and colors.

How the IPad Works with Academics for Autism is such an amazing video. Braden is in 3rd grade with autism and he uses the IPad for more than playing games. The iPad is like todays LeapFrog. Braden can count shapes and see and hear the number at the same time. He also uses the iPad for writing. His parents can write a word and he can write it below just like on paper. The disadvantage with paper sometimes is you scratch words out and the paper begins to look messy. With the iPad you can simply click on the eraser and you have a clean sheet. In the video Braden demonstrates how to use the following apps; Toddler Counting, My First Words, and Kids Writing Pad.

For my classroom I would use the Word Wizard app. This app will let children hear the sounds of letters and words with text to speech capabilities. You can also make spelling test on this app which I think would be wonderful to use in a classroom. Some of the apps can be expensive but this one is only three dollars!

3.

Gary Hayes Social Media Count changes every second and the numbers keep increasing! It's amazing how many people every second are expanding their use of technology. On this site you can view the options of social, mobile, games, and heritage use of technology. It also gives you timeline of now, +1day, +1 week, +1 month, +1 year. Literally every second some use of technology is increasing. Is this a good or bad thing? We spend hundreds of hours viewing pointless websites that doesn't have any contribution to our life. We simply waist time when we could be doing other things to make us motivated.

Technology will no doubt be a main source for not only mine but any classroom. I have said many times that technology should be used as a tool and I still firmly believe that. The booming of technology is just starting and I am excited and nerves to see what new things will be created. It will be hard for students to grasp the concept of the old world. Life before technology was invented. In history will we still teach students about Indians or anything before the 1900's? This is a question I will have an answer too when I begin to teach. We are creating history every day, what will be created tomorrow?

4.

In the video, Vision of Students Today students of Kansas State University show us facts about how we spend our time and money. Two of them stood out to me 18% of my teachers know my name and I have an average class size of 115. Will class sizes increase? In college I have found out that it is completely different from high school. From elementary to high school the teachers are there for you. They give specific assignments and pretty much give you everything you just have to do the actual work. In college you don't go to the same classes Monday-Friday you make your schedule for what's best for you and it's up to you to go to class or not. You no longer have someone holding your hand guiding you the way. Students have a hard time adjusting to these changes.

Why should students spend hundreds of dollars on books that we don't even use? I have spent over $800 in the two years I have been a student and while they do offer buybacks it's a ripoff. They come out with new editions that cannot be sold back and then what do you do with the book? When you do sell them back they do not give you much at all.

With a computer you have an enormous amount of distractions. It is hard staying on task when you can simply open a new window and not do your work. How can we fix this problem? It will probably be fixed by will power. Technology is extremely helpful but it is so hard to determine if it's good or bad.

Blog Post # 2

1. Dr. Strange: Did You Know?

For this post I was assigned to watch Did You Know by Dr. Strange. It is a remake video based on Karl Fisch and Scot McLeod Did You Know? Both of these videos are extremely interesting! I would have never guessed that China will soon become the number one English speaking country in the world. A lot of the facts are about how fast the world is relaying a lot on technology and how it is changing every two years. How is it that technology is changing so fast? How are we going to be able to teach kids what we are also trying to learn if it changes every two years. Computers, cell phones, all them are booming at an enormous rate.
We are living in exponential times. "India has more K-12 honor students than ALL of the K-12 students in the US!" That is extremely embarrassing the United States is not taking education seriously. What is India doing different that the US is not? 25% of the population of India with the highest IQ's out numbers the entire population of the US. What can America do to improve the education that is being taught? Both of these videos have outstanding facts about technology.

2. Mr. Winkle Wakes

Watching, Mr. Winkle Wakes was in it's own way very interesting. At first I thought this video was pointless what man sleeps for 100 years? When thinking deeper about it the world has changed tremendously! Thinking about my grandparents I know that they are having trouble with all the technology and how to work a computer and even the new phones. The old saying, "it's harder to teach old dogs new tricks" is absolutely true. How are we learners and educators of the future going to be able to adapt to the new technology? Will we be driving cars? What will they look like? Will we even have to drive at all or will they drive themselves? If they do drive themselves will that cause more or less accidents?

What will our future hold for us? As educators we will have to learn at a much faster pace to teach our students what they should learn. I am actually scared about all the technology. It is an amazing tool to have but what will happen to the old America? Will morals still apply or will they be completely different. Will children get the same amount of activity or will obesity become an even bigger problem. I have all these questions about technology but they will not be answered until the technology is already here.

3. Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity

I found Ken Robinson's video absolutely amazing! I laughed along with the audience at the things he said. I completely agree with him that children today are being taught out of creativity. Being creative is such an important part in a child's learning and a great way to express themselves. I work at a daycare with four year olds and I love it. They say and do some of the funniest things. It's amazing how their mind works and how they can pretend to be in the forest or queen of the world. How is their imagination so powerful and strong? I wish sometimes I could lie on the floor and play with Barbies for hours. I also agree that we are trying to only to teach facts. What happened to learning new things? Now teachers are teaching what they have to so the kids can do well on the test. I cannot stand that way of learning. You don't hold the knowledge for a long time just until you finish the test.

Wrong. What is being wrong and why is it so negative? Why is it that a teacher can say, "Their are no stupid questions" but other children still laugh? I myself always ask why and how. I don't want to know just the answer I want to know why it's the answer and why it couldn't be this. We learn something new everyday no matter how big or small. I also liked in the video how he talked about the difference in times about having a degree. How if you had a degree you were almost guaranteed a job. Now you have to work so much harder at getting a job even if you did graduate from college at the top of your class. Hopefully I will be a fast learner in the technology world and be one of the lucky ones and get a job.

4. 21st Century Learning

Watching Century Learning I disagreed with the thought about learning only being online. Teacher are mentors but I believe that a child should not sit in front of a computer all day to learn. Children need to interact and get to know their classmates and know how to hold a conversation. Children should not learn every subject from a computer. I have online classes and I absolutely hate them. I am very hands on and have to listen to someone talk, even if I do almost fall asleep. I want to be able to ask questions right then and have an answer. While on the computer I do not have that advantage. It also takes away their ability to express their creativity. If everything is taught online what will happen to future jobs? Will the childs imagination be destroyed or improved?

I would hate to know that I was sending my child to school to learn only by the computer. How will children be able to write their name if they have only typed. Will grammar be a subject? Who knows what kind of technology will be used to correct grammar. I totally disagree with fully online teaching. Yes, technology has helped us learn but too much can hurt us. I love seeing and doing art but with an online class how will they do art projects? Hopefully fully online teaching does't happen because I think it will hurt our children's motor skills and dealing with society.

5. Vicki Davis: Hardness Your Students' Digital Smarts

Part of me disagrees with this Digital Smarts video. Ms. Vicki Davis teaches her students how to use wikis, blogs, podcasts, digital storytelling, virtual worlds, and other digital tools to connect her students with other people around the world. I agree that students should want to learn and it is a great feeling when a student figures out how to do something on their own and they can teach their classmates about it. Students don't always want to be sitting in a desk taking notes while listing to a teacher. Sometimes we tune them out and start thinking about other things. By having a computer class you HAVE to have technology. Just like if you were in an art class you would need art supplies. Our world is focusing more on technology than ever before and I do agree that we should know more about it and what it can do.

On the other hand, I do not think that we should solidly teach every subject on the computer! Ms. Davis said, "While teaching students on pen and paper only some will succeed". While that statement is true to an extent by teaching solidly by the computer has the same effect. Not all students will succeed by learning on the computer. If someone told me that there would only be online classes given at the University of South Alabama I would transfer schools in a heart beat. It is the hardest thing for me to learn online. Hopefully the school system will see that yes technology is a wonderful teaching TOOL it should not be the only way of learning. Good luck to all of us trying to become educators, or as some would say mentors!

C4T #1

I listened to Mr. Eric Langhorst's podcast about how he watched his Twitter feed about the State of the Union Address before he watched it for himself. He talked about how Twitter is very popular and how the older generation thinks that we are not as social. You can have conversations you have never met and follow people who's interest are similar to your own. It is amazing watching an event on TV and reading what people have to say about it.

Hey Mr. Langhorst,
My name is Emily Nadeau I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I have been assigned to your blog, I look forward to reading and commenting on your posts.
I am new to twitter so I haven't experienced all the conversations yet. I agree with the statements that students should stay in school till they are 18. Myself being only 20 I enjoyed school and I think when teens want to drop out they are hurting themselves in the long run.
I also agree with you how this age is social. The media and technology has brought us closer together. If it wasn't for technology we wouldn't know half the people or accomplishments by others.
I am excited about getting to know twitter and teaching myself about technology, it is being used more and more in the classrooms and will help me teach.
Speaking of teaching, do you use technology in your classroom? If so how do you use it and do you think it helps the students learn better?
Thank you,
Emily Nadeau


Mr. Langhorst does all of his post by podcast, recording his thoughts for the viewer to listen instead of reading. I commented on his podcast about an antique radio from the 1930's that he restored. He was very descriptive on how he did it, where he found the tools, and the background of the radio. He restored the radio by replacing the inside with an MP3 player and external speakers. The following is the comment I left on his post.

Mr. Langhorst,

I found this post very interesting! I never thought about restoring an antique radio by using an MP3 player. I laughed when you said that y'all put it in the bathroom to hold towels for storage. My mom would probably do the same thing. I like how you see things in a different view as a history teacher. Many people would trash objects like this but you used your creativity, I admire that. I also think that it's a great idea that you download old music, shows, and speeches from Eisenhower to match the vintage feel of the radio. This a perfect idea, like you said, for a history teacher to put a small one in the classroom. Students would get a better feel, and idea about the way America used to be. You have some great idea's! Thanks for a great how-to post!!
Emily Nadeau
These are the pictures from the antique radio post.

Project # 1

Blog Post #1

About Me- Emily Nadeau
My name is Emily Nadeau and I have lived in Mobile my whole life. I love being able to drive down to the beach for the day. I attended South because I wasn't ready to leave my family and the scholarship helped too. I still live at home with my parents and sisters. I am an aunt to a beautiful baby girl name Raleigh. I love spending time with my family and boyfriend when I am not busy studying for my classes or working.
I'm a sophomore and I know I made the right choice by staying. On campus I am involved in my sorority, which I love, CSA, and Diamond Girls. I enjoy being involved it keeps me busy and gives me a great opportunity to meet new people. I am a very positive happy person and I love life.
I have always wanted to teach, I have admired all my teachers. I work at a day care in the afternoons working with four year olds. I love my job, I have worked there for two years and most days they make me excited about teaching. After I graduate I would love to teach first or second grade.
I am excited about this class and I hope to meet everyone!! :)


Randy Pausch- Time Management
Time is very precious and should not be waisted but it is waisted more than anything. I myself am bad with managing my time it takes for hours to do things that should only take minutes but I find myself being distracted from what I should be doing. I liked how Mr. Pausch talked about the "why's". Why am I doing this? What will happen if I don't? I make many to do list but hardly ever complete them. I liked how he said, "you can always change your plans, but only once you have one"! With school, work, family, boyfriend, church, and friends, my life is pretty busy and I always have a plan. I now need to make sure that I am doing what I don't want to do first and the fun stuff later. As for Randy Pausch I know that he will continue to remind people of the importance of time. 

FIRST POST!!!!!