Thing 23 - I MADE IT!!

What a journey! I can't believe all I have learned. I never realized how much was available on the web to use to enhance my instruction in the classroom. I'm looking forward to exploring these 23 Things in more depth and incorporating them into my classroom. Many teachers in my building are taking this course so it will be nice to have a network of people in my own building to collaborate with and encourage each other to try new things.

With the way education is changing, all teachers need to step outside the box and learn new things and meet the needs the learners. This is just the first step for me and I'm excited to learn more!!

Thing 22 - Online Video

Our school district has recently been able to start using YouTube in our classrooms. It has been very nice to use. One of my collegues (who is also taking the 23 Things) finds videos for us to watch in science. I love the short clips to introduce a topic and hook the kids. I have found that the online videos enhance my instruction. It much better than listening to me talk all hour!!

I have used YouTube, TeacherTube, SchoolTube but I have not used TED. I searched the site but had a hard time finding something that I could use in class. My internet signal is not very strong so I am just posting and will check TED out more thouroghly later.

Thing 21 - Twitter

I am not a big fan of Twitter. I really am not interested in hearing about what my friends and family are doing every second of their lives. I had a Facebook account briefly but didn't really want to share my daily routine with others.

After taking this class, I realize that there may be other uses for Twitter than sharing daily occurrences. I'm not really sure how I could use this in the classroom. I'm not sure how some parents would react to their children getting involved in Twitter since some parents won't allow their students to have Facebook accounts. I would have to research it some more.

As for a Personal Learning Network, I'm not sure if I would use this. It seems like there are many other ways to connect with other educators without using Twitter. I have found other social networks when exploring del.icio.us that seem like they would be just as beneficial as using Twitter.

Since all of this is so new to me, I suppose I should step out of the box and try something new...who knows, maybe I'll have a Twitter account in the new future!

Thing 20 - Bookmarkiing with del.icio.us

I really like using del.icio.us. I created my account and my username is kslot. I didn't really know where to start to look for sites that I wanted to book mark so I looked at other people's bookmarks. I kind of felt like I was stealing or being lazy but it sure saved me a lot of time. I spend so much time searching for sites that are never really that useful to me. After a half hour, I bookmarked several science and math sites that I will be able to use. The tag thing still has me alittle confused. I don't know if I will remember what I tag things. I have just been using some of the tags that are recommended. I think I may have used too many tags for some sites. I may have to go back and edit what I have done to make things simpler for me!

Thing 19 - Social Bookmarking

I've heard other teachers talking about delicious but I never really knew what they were talking about. This is awesome! Often times I have bookmarked sites on my school computer but then spend hours looking for the same site at home with no luck. Delicious would aleviate this problem. I also like the idea that you can share you bookmarks with other people and you have the ability to look at others bookmarks. I struggle with finding good stuff online so being able to see what others have found useful will save me A LOT of time!!! Since I haven't really used this before I don't know how difficult the taggin will be. I can't wait to start using this...

Thing 18 - Personal Learning Network

I spent some time exploring Ning. I found a few math and science networks that looked interesting. People had posted different labs and games they created to use in their classrooms. What a great way to share ideas and lessons that have been successful with other teachers. Much of the content on the middle school science networks didn't really pertain to what I teach. It would be great to create a PLN for Michigan Science teachers or Science teachers in Kent County. What a wonderful opportunity to share what your doing with other teachers or bounce ideas off other teachers.

There would be the potential to create a PLN in the classroom but I think you run the risk of anyone being able to join and posting inappropriate content. I did notice that there we some networks that were invitation only so that might be more appropriate for classroom use.

All of this is very new to me. I am going to have to explore more to find other networks or possibly create a network that would be beneficial to me.

Thing 17 - More Web 2.0 Winners

I can't believe all that is out there to use in Web 2.0. I chose to explore .Docstoc Amamzing all of the documents that are available that I could use in my classroom. I found many documents that I could have used last year when I needed additional practice for my algebra students. I am definitely going to bookmark this site for future use!

Thing 16 - Teach Digital

After watching these three videos, I've realized that education is stifling students creativity which inhibits student learning. When I think about it, we really are. Over the last few years, I have really been evaluating the way I've been teaching. I know that I need to make some changes in the way I teach. I've been trying to be more hands on with my teaching and allowing students to participate more in their learning and giving them choices to demonstrate their learning. Giving up that control in the classroom has been somewhat difficult for me, but I've realized it is so beneficial for the students and it is more exciting for me as a teacher. This class has presented many more ways that I can engage my students in their learning as well as teach them how to use technology that they will use in the future. I really think it is important to encourage students to be creative thinkers because we can't predict what the future holds and what our students will encounter in the job force and real world. I think what these three videos are trying to say is that we need to help students become better thinkers so they are prepared for the future.

Thing 15 - More Podcasts

Okay I was wrong on my last post...there are several podcasts on science, but still on many math podcasts. I think that podcasts, specifically videocasts (is that what a podcast is called with a video??), would be benefical in math. Many times students forget how to do problems when working on their homework at home. What bettere than to watch the teacher go over examples so the student can complete his/her homework!!

My principal is a big proponent of technology. He has been encouraging us to incorporate as much technology as possible in our classrooms. I would love to use podcasts and I am very interested in creating my own...but I just need to learn how!!

Thing 14 - Podcasts

Podcasts are great tools to use in the classroom. I would love to learn how to make podcasts of lessons I've taught so students who are absent can listen to what happened in class that day. Student who are struggling in class could also listen to an explanation of a particular concept again.

I really liked coleycasts. It was great listening to students summarize what they have learned. What a great assessment tool!! http://www.mrcoley.com/coleycast/coleycast33.htm

There are so many podcasts to explore. It seems like there are a lot of podcasts out there that focus on Language Arts & English. I wish that there were more that dealt with math or science.

Thing #13 - Sharing Your Vision

Here is my lame attempt at a slide show. I checked out 3 of the 4 tools. I wasn't able to access Thumbstacks. It was fun making a slide show once I figured everything out. I like how you can add music to go along with the pictures.

If I felt more comfortable posting pictures of my children on line, it would be a fun way to share pictures with friends & family. Any of these would be great tools to create presentations to share with others. Last year, one of the teachers I work with used slideshare to post a powerpoint for our students. It was very helpful for those kids who didn't finish the project and needed to work from home. I definitely think that these tools will enhance teaching and sharing of information with students and parents.

Thing #12 - Productivity Anywhere you have a Browser

I explored two of the sites. I looked at Knowtes and thought that this would be a great way for students to study vocab for a unit. I signed up for an account but couldn't make a set of cards because I don't have access to my science or math files to get vocab lists and definitions. I did play around with 30 Boxes. I liked this also. I created my own calendar and thought that I could create a calendar for each of my classes with what is being covered in class, homework, and upcoming tests, quizzes, and due dates. I could then attach the calendar to my classroom blog for parents/students to view. Personally I could use this to keep track of meetings, appointments, etc.

Thing 11 - Online Productivity Applications

With the little time that I have spend working with Google Docs, I love it! I often times get very frustrated because I have started to work on something at school but then do not have the document to work on at home. I either forget to e-mail it to myself or forget to bring my flash drive home. I've also left things on my home computer that I needed at school. Google Docs would eliminate this problem.

I think it would be nice for students also. Many of my students do not know how to attach a document to an e-mail, so they copy and paste their document and put it in an e-mail when turning something in to me. By working in Google Docs, they would not have to do this. They could also work on something at school and then work on it at home, library, mom's house, dad's house. It would elminate A LOT of excuses. I am going to encourage kids to use this next year.

Thing #10 - Creating a Wiki

Creating a wiki is very easy! I created a wiki for my classroom. I just listed supplies that are needed. I'm sure I will change the site but this is a start! http://slotsciencemath.wetpaint.com/

I can think of a few ways that I would like to use this in school. I was thinking that I could use this in Inspire for students to have book talks about books that they are reading. I think it would be really nice if we could do this school wide. I definitely will use it on our team.

I am not really sure how I would use it in math or science yet since we are using new texts next year. If there are labs & group work in in science, I would like to use a Wiki for kids to complete or share information on labs. I'm thinking it might be a good tool for kids in math also. They would be able to ask questions when stumped on a problem. They could also share various ways that they solved problems.

I think the ways to use this is endless...

Thing #9 - Wikis

After reading the information about Wikis, it seems like they are very similar to Blogs. The one thing I don't know that I like about Wikis, is that others can post. I guess that is one reason I would not use it to post important classroom information. Many of the wikis that I checked out were more like blogs. For example, I checked out this wiki where the science posted classroom happenings, worksheets, and informational videos. It didn't seem like there was any other postings aside from what the teacher posted. (http://bergmannscience.wikispaces.com/)

I loved this Wiki (http://booktalk.pbworks.com/). I could see how we could use this in our school. It would be cool to have kids discuss books through Wikis. We could give kids opportunity to do this during Inspire (out first hour during the day). I would be much better than doing a book report.

This is a great wiki also (http://scientificinvestigationsunis.wetpaint.com/), one that I think I would want to create for my science classroom. Often times in class, students do not finish their labs. They don't always have the opportunity to meet with their lab partners to complete the lab. A wiki would be a great way for kids to communicate with each other about their lab reports and completing them. I also like how the teacher says that you must have all your work in order because anyone in the world will be able to see your work. I think this would make some students put more time and effort into their work.

After seeing some Wikis, I have changed my mind about Wikis. Earlier I stated that I didn't like that others could post. Now I see how beneficial Wikis can be for students.

Thing #8-More RSS Feeds

I had a really hard time trying to locate feeds taht I wanted to follow. I guess because this is really my first experience with looking for useful news info on the web, I really didn't know what I was looking for. When I would search for things, I would come up with feeds that I nothing to do with what I was looking for. I need to spend some more time exploring this with someone who has more experience and can guide me to sites that I would enjoy following. Although all of this was a struggle, I though RSS Mountain was the easiest to use. (I actually found a few feeds that I was interested in following).

Thing #7 - RSS Feeds

I guess I signed up for a Google Reader account earlier because when I was going to sign up I was already following 3 Blogs! I added a few other things to follow, like Mlive.

This is a nice tool to have so you can keep up with local/world news. Since my husband is a sports FANATIC he would love this! Instead of continually watching various sports stations to find out scores, he could subscribe to some sports sites and receive updates without having to waste time watching TV.

This would benefit kids and parents. They could follow classroom blogs to keep up to date with recent posts. My teammate, who teaches World Studies, could have kids subscribe to mlive or other news sources to get articles for their current events. I'm sure there are many other ways that this could be used in the classroom but I will have to do some more exploring and more thinking!

Thing #6 - Copyright in the Digital Age

Wow...this is sure a lot of information that I don't know if I really understand. The only thing that I ever heard about copyright info and technology was that you could show a movie/video and charge kids to see it. Other than that all this fair use is new to me. It seems like a good thing, giving teachers the option to use cetain things without being penalized. I'm sure that I have broken a few rules that I'm unaware of! I don't think that I will incorporate instruction on media usage in my classroom. I think this would be an excellent topic for the computer teacher to add to her curriculum.

Thing #5 - Flickr Photo Mashup Fun

This is great. I am thinking of so many ways that kids could use all of these They could make vocab cards, trading cards for main characters in books, magazine covers promoting a book that they are reading, comic strips for topics in science, just to name a few. It is fun!!

I created a trading card/vocab card of The Necessary. While in DC for the Inauguration we visited Mt. Vernon. One of the many interesting sights we saw while touring Mt. Vernon was The Necessary.

Thing #4 - Flickr

North Shore Oahu
Originally uploaded by rick_goethals

Okay...I finally figured this out (I hope!) I started exploring Flickr 3 hours ago. It's so cool. I set up an account but I am hesitant to post my own pictures, especially of my girls. Anyway, I found a picture of a beach and tried to post it from my blog. Didn't work! I have now spent the last hour trying to figure this out. I read some help info and think I figured out how to post a picture from the Flickr site. Here's hoping it works...keep your fingers crossed. If it doesn't work, I might just throw my laptop across the room!!!

Thing #3 - 7 & 1/2 Habits

The easiest for me is Habit #1, Begin with the end in mind. I always set a goal for myself and try to achieve it. It doesn't always work in the time frame that I would like it to but the task is eventually completed. In my teaching I always look at the standards that need to be taught before I begin teaching a unit. This helps me stay on track and focus on the important concepts the students need to learn.

The hardest habit for me is #4, having confidence in myself as a conpetent, effective learner. I am always second guessing myself. I wonder if I'm doing things the right way. I'm continually worried about what people think about what I've done or created. Many times I look for reassurance from my coworkers when I am unsure of what I am doing. What I really need to work on is my confidence. Most of what I do is good. I just need to realize that I am capable of doing quality things without having to be reassured by others.

Thing #2

After looking at some blogs, I think that a good blog is organized, is easy to follow, and has a lot of interesting information. I really think that blogs enhance websites because it allows people to communicate giving their opinions and feedback to thinks posted on the blog. This is an excellent way for people to get free advice! I definitely think that Blogs are an easy way for people to self publish. For someone who has little experience using technology it is very easy...if I can do anyone can!!

After seeing the two videos I am amazed at how quickly education is changing. In order to keep up with the changing world we really need to change the way that we teach kids. If we are preparing them for the future we really need to evaluate what we are currently doing and make some changes. I always thought that kids could learn the way I did but I realize I have to change my way of thinking. I am so excited to learn new things so I can share them with my teammate and we can use them in our classrooms next year.

23 Things - The First Thing

There are so many things in technology that I'm unfamilar with. I hope to learn what new technology I can incorporate into my classroom to enhance my teaching and make learning more engaging for my students.