Thursday, August 19, 2010
Christmas in August!!
As I type, my fellow teachers are getting their i-touches and netbooks! There's so much excitement and a bit of anxiety over these new devices. Everything is brand new! Each classroom teacher's box contains the devices, as well as microphones, cables and software. It's pretty cool!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Post tools reflections...
My favorites tools were Jing and Screencast, Animoto and Google Docs. I can foresee many uses for these tools. As for my students, I want to use more videos in my instruction of reading strategies, and have kids practice different skills on the iTouch. To showcase their learning, I would like them to create books on Bookr and comic strips on Bubblr.
My thinking about the learning that will take place in my classroom has been transformed. As I mentioned throughout my posts, teaching is not just talking AT the kids, and it cannot take place in only one dimension, such as paper and pencil. Technology has become a venue for what I've been calling "teachnology." This term I've coined for my blog and posts means that technology has taken the teaching and learning in the classroom to new heights. Whereas I was once reluctant to embrace technology because I didn't think myself tech savvy, I'm now experiencing a paradigm shift. I feel learned and more confident in my skills. There are now so many different ways to share information and therefore, to gain information. We as educators are teaching by modeling how to gather and share information, while our students are gaining knowledge from us, each other and the WWW.
Surprising outcomes from the 11tools? Certainly a few. I appreciated how the course was online, and you could pace yourself however you wanted. You could also choose how extensive you wanted your posts to be. Having that flexibility make it manageable and more enjoyable. I chose to make my posts elaborate for myself because I was learning so much! I did enjoy all the learning, and was surprised at all the new things I had never heard of before. I wanted to get the most out of these tools to increase my knowledge of "teachnology" as well as use the finished products in the future. Nonetheless, it did take me numerous days and hours to complete the tools, and I'm thankful to summer vacation for that!
I'm proud to be finished with these 11 tools and to say, ' "Teachnology" is here to stay!'
My thinking about the learning that will take place in my classroom has been transformed. As I mentioned throughout my posts, teaching is not just talking AT the kids, and it cannot take place in only one dimension, such as paper and pencil. Technology has become a venue for what I've been calling "teachnology." This term I've coined for my blog and posts means that technology has taken the teaching and learning in the classroom to new heights. Whereas I was once reluctant to embrace technology because I didn't think myself tech savvy, I'm now experiencing a paradigm shift. I feel learned and more confident in my skills. There are now so many different ways to share information and therefore, to gain information. We as educators are teaching by modeling how to gather and share information, while our students are gaining knowledge from us, each other and the WWW.
Surprising outcomes from the 11tools? Certainly a few. I appreciated how the course was online, and you could pace yourself however you wanted. You could also choose how extensive you wanted your posts to be. Having that flexibility make it manageable and more enjoyable. I chose to make my posts elaborate for myself because I was learning so much! I did enjoy all the learning, and was surprised at all the new things I had never heard of before. I wanted to get the most out of these tools to increase my knowledge of "teachnology" as well as use the finished products in the future. Nonetheless, it did take me numerous days and hours to complete the tools, and I'm thankful to summer vacation for that!
I'm proud to be finished with these 11 tools and to say, ' "Teachnology" is here to stay!'
Tool 11: "Attention, citizens of the digital world!"
Wow, after reading a few of these resources, I've become aware of how much this topic encompasses. At first, I wanted to simply post that what my students need to know about digital citizenship regards etiquette, safety and a learning purpose (adapted off Cool Cat Teacher's chart). While I think these are key, they act as umbrella categories with many more subtopics educators need to teach and share with students to prepare them for the digital world.
Etiquette: teaching the concept of digital citizenship to elementary students might be a bit abstract. I would start with something concrete, something they know, and connect the new learning to it. For instance, starting in first grade (if not earlier) students learn about what makes a good citizen. Among other things, good citizens show respect to people and property; they act responsibly and practice empathy. In other words, they treat others as they would like to be treated. I would connect this with digital citizenship. In order to be a good digital citizen, anyone who uses the technology to interact with others must exercise the same principles - show respect, act responsibly and practice empathy. I would use examples of how a person might be a good digital citizen or a bad one, and have students come up with their own examples.
Safety: another key element in being part of the digital world, and of the physical world, is safety. As much as we need to learn to look both ways before crossing the street, and develop good judgement and problem solving to not walk through a certain part of town at night, digital safety must be addressed. As our students have powerful technology tools in their hands, our teaching of safety must be proactive, precautionary and current (we must be up-to-date on what can be harmful to students).
Purpose: "teachnology's" purpose is to engage students in order to enhance learning. I want my students to understand this purpose - that the digital world is accessible to them as a means through which they can wonder and discover new things about the world. With the teaching/learning purpose at hand, teachers need to foster creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills so students have the tools they need when venturing the digital world independently.
As the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) and Performance Indicators for Teachers encourages educators to promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility, let us remember that this is a lifelong learning process for students to be involved in year after year.
Etiquette: teaching the concept of digital citizenship to elementary students might be a bit abstract. I would start with something concrete, something they know, and connect the new learning to it. For instance, starting in first grade (if not earlier) students learn about what makes a good citizen. Among other things, good citizens show respect to people and property; they act responsibly and practice empathy. In other words, they treat others as they would like to be treated. I would connect this with digital citizenship. In order to be a good digital citizen, anyone who uses the technology to interact with others must exercise the same principles - show respect, act responsibly and practice empathy. I would use examples of how a person might be a good digital citizen or a bad one, and have students come up with their own examples.
Safety: another key element in being part of the digital world, and of the physical world, is safety. As much as we need to learn to look both ways before crossing the street, and develop good judgement and problem solving to not walk through a certain part of town at night, digital safety must be addressed. As our students have powerful technology tools in their hands, our teaching of safety must be proactive, precautionary and current (we must be up-to-date on what can be harmful to students).
Purpose: "teachnology's" purpose is to engage students in order to enhance learning. I want my students to understand this purpose - that the digital world is accessible to them as a means through which they can wonder and discover new things about the world. With the teaching/learning purpose at hand, teachers need to foster creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills so students have the tools they need when venturing the digital world independently.
As the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) and Performance Indicators for Teachers encourages educators to promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility, let us remember that this is a lifelong learning process for students to be involved in year after year.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Tool 10: ilearn iblog ishare
It boggles my mind that technology has become so advanced. In my lifetime, computers have evolved from a big and heavy box to an interactive touch screen that fits in my hand.
Because I do not own an "igadget," I borrowed my brother's iTouch. At first, I couldn't image what elementary age students would use these for besides playing games. However, the more I "played" with the free educational apps, the more I enjoyed myself. I installed and explored: ABC Phonics, BrainPOP, BrainBox, BrainTap, Stars, Brainscape, the Italian and French 24/7 Tutor, and finally, the IQ Test. My favorite ones for the classroom were BrainPOP, where you can view videos from different subjects (there's a great one on main idea), and Brainbox. Brainbox was so neat! It has different timed activities for math and language: fastmath (practice + - x facts), fifteen (put numbers 1-15 in order), sudoku, sequence (recall letters in alpha order), wordsort (tap words in alpha order), and wordbuilder (build as many words as you can with the letters given). Kids can practice all these skills at the "tap" of a button.
My WOW moment happened as I learned how to use the iTouch - I realized that they can be a powerful tool in your classroom. These mobile devices are easy to use, move around and has accessibility to many education apps. To me, it portrays how "teachnology" has become something we need to embrace. These "igadgets" are great to differentiate instruction as they meet different learning levels and styles, while adding a whole new dimension to teaching (what paper and pencil?). It's "teachnology" in action!
P.S. for my personal use, I really enjoyed the free language tutors. Ciao! ;)
Because I do not own an "igadget," I borrowed my brother's iTouch. At first, I couldn't image what elementary age students would use these for besides playing games. However, the more I "played" with the free educational apps, the more I enjoyed myself. I installed and explored: ABC Phonics, BrainPOP, BrainBox, BrainTap, Stars, Brainscape, the Italian and French 24/7 Tutor, and finally, the IQ Test. My favorite ones for the classroom were BrainPOP, where you can view videos from different subjects (there's a great one on main idea), and Brainbox. Brainbox was so neat! It has different timed activities for math and language: fastmath (practice + - x facts), fifteen (put numbers 1-15 in order), sudoku, sequence (recall letters in alpha order), wordsort (tap words in alpha order), and wordbuilder (build as many words as you can with the letters given). Kids can practice all these skills at the "tap" of a button.
My WOW moment happened as I learned how to use the iTouch - I realized that they can be a powerful tool in your classroom. These mobile devices are easy to use, move around and has accessibility to many education apps. To me, it portrays how "teachnology" has become something we need to embrace. These "igadgets" are great to differentiate instruction as they meet different learning levels and styles, while adding a whole new dimension to teaching (what paper and pencil?). It's "teachnology" in action!
P.S. for my personal use, I really enjoyed the free language tutors. Ciao! ;)
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Tool 9: "jing's so swell, jing's so swell, jinging all the way..."
I have really enjoyed using Jing and Screencast to take pictures of my screen. Jing took pictures of the different sites I visited, adding visuals to my posts. This tool will be beneficial in the classroom when making a video or a print-out with pictorial directions for an activity students need to complete on the computer. In addition, it will make the assessment of online participation easier since students can "jing" their score screen at the end of an assignment, activity or quiz.
I personally use Skype daily to talk to my parents, who are currently overseas. It's been wonderful to video chat with them - see and hear them live (and for FREE!!). It also allowed me to get a glimpse of where they live as they moved the camera around to capture their surroundings. For the most part, the connection is good and the image and sound clear. Although we're worlds apart, it's prevented distance from hindering our communication!
Skype can have a similar effect in the classroom. Students have the opportunity to broaden their horizons by "traveling" to a new place or "meeting" a new person from a different part of the district, state, country or world. They would be able to see and hear things that they might not otherwise have had a chance to experience. Read-alouds, interviews, collaborative learning and research, mentoring, online pen pals or buddy reading are some of the other ways Skype could be utilized to enhance education. Oh, the possibilities!
I personally use Skype daily to talk to my parents, who are currently overseas. It's been wonderful to video chat with them - see and hear them live (and for FREE!!). It also allowed me to get a glimpse of where they live as they moved the camera around to capture their surroundings. For the most part, the connection is good and the image and sound clear. Although we're worlds apart, it's prevented distance from hindering our communication!
Skype can have a similar effect in the classroom. Students have the opportunity to broaden their horizons by "traveling" to a new place or "meeting" a new person from a different part of the district, state, country or world. They would be able to see and hear things that they might not otherwise have had a chance to experience. Read-alouds, interviews, collaborative learning and research, mentoring, online pen pals or buddy reading are some of the other ways Skype could be utilized to enhance education. Oh, the possibilities!
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Tool 8: streaming knowledge
Videos are a great way to stream knowledge into the classroom - whether it be new knowledge (as an introduction to a new unit) or gained knowledge (a review at the middle or end of a unit or lesson). Through videos' visual input, students develop a better perception of what they are learning and the world around them, while concepts they know are being reinforced. Besides, kids just enjoy them! :)
I started off looking for videos on TeacherTube and SchoolTube. It was difficult to find results because my searches all involved reading intervention skills (reading strategies, word work, critical thinking). I ended up using Blinkx which showed results from the 2 "Tube" sites, and a few more, but still nothing I could use with my students. So I changed the topics I was searching.
I found this cute site by Scholastic called StudyJams. It has math and science videos and interactive step-by-step tutorials. I could use these for math intervention or to support a science article read in small group. Here are some of the videos I previewed:
Fractions would be a great as an intro or review for 4th and 5th graders.
This one is called Aquatic Ecosystems and explains well the differences between freshwater and saltwater ecosystems.
Finally, I thought I would give YouTube a try, so I ran the same searches to see what I'd get. To my surprise, I found several phonics videos that I can show my emergent readers! YAY!!
The one below was cute but moved a bit too fast to show students - I would probably show a snippet each day I taught a new reading strategy for the kids to see it in action.
Reading Strategies: First Grade (first found on SchoolTube)
I started off looking for videos on TeacherTube and SchoolTube. It was difficult to find results because my searches all involved reading intervention skills (reading strategies, word work, critical thinking). I ended up using Blinkx which showed results from the 2 "Tube" sites, and a few more, but still nothing I could use with my students. So I changed the topics I was searching.
I found this cute site by Scholastic called StudyJams. It has math and science videos and interactive step-by-step tutorials. I could use these for math intervention or to support a science article read in small group. Here are some of the videos I previewed:
Fractions would be a great as an intro or review for 4th and 5th graders.
This one is called Aquatic Ecosystems and explains well the differences between freshwater and saltwater ecosystems.
Finally, I thought I would give YouTube a try, so I ran the same searches to see what I'd get. To my surprise, I found several phonics videos that I can show my emergent readers! YAY!!
The one below was cute but moved a bit too fast to show students - I would probably show a snippet each day I taught a new reading strategy for the kids to see it in action.
Reading Strategies: First Grade (first found on SchoolTube)
Tool 7: storytelling to learn
I used Photostory to make a movie called, "Where do WORDS come from?" I was very excited to make this movie, considering the results I've seen from fellow bloggers. Its content is very important and useful in teaching reading intervention strategies, especially when it comes to working with younger students. I thought it would be easy to drop several pictures into a frame, but again I found myself struggling. I ended up making each multiple-picture frame in Powerpoint first, saving it as a jpg so I could import it later on Photostory. Long story short, I was a bit disheartened after working so hard because I felt that I was basically making a powerpoint slide. Here's the result...
I would use this in the classroom for any presentation or project, whether individual or group work, where students can digitally display what they've learned. It would be great for a simple video on American symbols, insects, or plants.
Tool 6: wiki wiki wiki!
I'm half way to the finish line!
From what I understand, wikis are a simple way to gather, store and share information. What a great way for kids to share and celebrate their learning. If I were teaching a new unit, I would ask students to write down what they already know about the topic. As the unit develops, kids would add new learning, thoughts and reflections on the wiki. It would be so neat as a teacher to see what different things students took from the same lesson!
Children's Book Reviews was a great wiki to help teachers choose/preview books. But also suggests the creation of a wiki for kids BY kids. In other words, students in your classroom can write book reviews on a wiki and as other students read the same book, one of a similar genre or a new book, they can edit and add their personal thoughts.
I can see students as early as first grade using a wiki to brainstorm writing ideas. Students in the intermediate grades can use wikis to do group research projects on numerous topics: animals, habitats, Texas or American hero, etc.
Similar to Google Docs, teachers will benefit from a wiki when planning school events, field trips or just planning for the week. In addition, it's a great tool to quickly gather input from your peers, or do a poll or survey without having to email back and forth, or chase people down.
From what I understand, wikis are a simple way to gather, store and share information. What a great way for kids to share and celebrate their learning. If I were teaching a new unit, I would ask students to write down what they already know about the topic. As the unit develops, kids would add new learning, thoughts and reflections on the wiki. It would be so neat as a teacher to see what different things students took from the same lesson!
Children's Book Reviews was a great wiki to help teachers choose/preview books. But also suggests the creation of a wiki for kids BY kids. In other words, students in your classroom can write book reviews on a wiki and as other students read the same book, one of a similar genre or a new book, they can edit and add their personal thoughts.
I can see students as early as first grade using a wiki to brainstorm writing ideas. Students in the intermediate grades can use wikis to do group research projects on numerous topics: animals, habitats, Texas or American hero, etc.
Similar to Google Docs, teachers will benefit from a wiki when planning school events, field trips or just planning for the week. In addition, it's a great tool to quickly gather input from your peers, or do a poll or survey without having to email back and forth, or chase people down.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Tool 5: digging diigo!
Hi again,
I've spent last night and this morning exploring delicious and diigo. I think I spent so much time trying to understand these sites because I feel I don't know much about technology, and I want to take full advantage of these tools. Here are my conclusions:
I joined both sites (I had actually joined delicious because I was trying to send my comic strip from Tool 4 to a safe place - hehe, I didn't want to loose it). I tried a few different tags, but wanted to try 2 that were the same on both sites to see what results they would come up with. I tried the tags "reading strategies" and "word families."
Delicious was easy to navigate and manage, but didn't show as many results for my searches. I bookmarked these sites:
Reading Rockets: Classroom Strategies
Arcademic Skill Builders: Online Educational Games
Diigo's layout was even more user friendly. The links were cleaner and easier to read. They definitely had more matches result from my searches. I joined a group called LearningwithComputers, and bookmarked these sites I liked:
Word Way
FreeReading
I look forward to trying the highlight and post-it tools on diigo for my personal use, and also with my older students. It will be a great way to learn, practice and work together on their reading skills.
I've spent last night and this morning exploring delicious and diigo. I think I spent so much time trying to understand these sites because I feel I don't know much about technology, and I want to take full advantage of these tools. Here are my conclusions:
I joined both sites (I had actually joined delicious because I was trying to send my comic strip from Tool 4 to a safe place - hehe, I didn't want to loose it). I tried a few different tags, but wanted to try 2 that were the same on both sites to see what results they would come up with. I tried the tags "reading strategies" and "word families."
Delicious was easy to navigate and manage, but didn't show as many results for my searches. I bookmarked these sites:
Reading Rockets: Classroom Strategies
Diigo's layout was even more user friendly. The links were cleaner and easier to read. They definitely had more matches result from my searches. I joined a group called LearningwithComputers, and bookmarked these sites I liked:
Word Way
FreeReading
I look forward to trying the highlight and post-it tools on diigo for my personal use, and also with my older students. It will be a great way to learn, practice and work together on their reading skills.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tool 4: cool is an understatement!
First of all, let me just say "hats off" to The Common Craft guy Lee LeFever's videos, as well as the other video tutorials. They explain things in plain language, and are very helpful!
Now, Google Docs and Google Readers are TOO cool! Why didn't I know about these years ago? How long have these tools been around? These guys are going to streamline my life!
Google Docs - you're my new best friend! I've created so many schedules, contact/budget spreadsheets, and articles, in the past that required an exchange of emails and lots of time passed. Now, Google Docs will save me so much work and time. I've created a Google Doc with my teaching schedule on it.
I'll be able to send it to the other intervention teachers at my school to ask for their input, as well as to my principal and assistant principal. This will also be helpful in planning school events, or getting feedback from a committee without having to hold a meeting - how exciting!
I subscribed to the following sites with my Google Reader:
Becoming a 21st Century Learner
Live 2 Learn & Learn 2 Live
Superthorn2
Renee's Blog
Word Work
I can see how these tools will increase efficient communication and collaboration between teachers - whether it be in team planning for an event or lesson, sharing insights over a professional piece discussed at a staff or literacy team meeting, or reading up and engaging in educational discussion. As a direct result, students will benefit from higher quality instruction from their teachers.
Now, Google Docs and Google Readers are TOO cool! Why didn't I know about these years ago? How long have these tools been around? These guys are going to streamline my life!
Google Docs - you're my new best friend! I've created so many schedules, contact/budget spreadsheets, and articles, in the past that required an exchange of emails and lots of time passed. Now, Google Docs will save me so much work and time. I've created a Google Doc with my teaching schedule on it.
I'll be able to send it to the other intervention teachers at my school to ask for their input, as well as to my principal and assistant principal. This will also be helpful in planning school events, or getting feedback from a committee without having to hold a meeting - how exciting!
I subscribed to the following sites with my Google Reader:
Becoming a 21st Century Learner
Live 2 Learn & Learn 2 Live
Superthorn2
Renee's Blog
Word Work
I can see how these tools will increase efficient communication and collaboration between teachers - whether it be in team planning for an event or lesson, sharing insights over a professional piece discussed at a staff or literacy team meeting, or reading up and engaging in educational discussion. As a direct result, students will benefit from higher quality instruction from their teachers.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Blog eye candy!
After being on the computer so long (and probably looking cross-eyed), I have to share this CUUTE site I stumbled upon - Shabby Blogs (courtesy of Fairy Principal). It has the purtiest backgrounds and accents, and totally reminds me of scrapbooking - which I loOOove. As I browsed, I felt like a kid in a candy store. If you need a break from working on the 11 tools, check it out. I'm definitely going to be using this site in the future for my personal blog. Here's a sneak peek... Enjoy!! :)
Tool 3: mashing up fun!
Phew! Here are my two mash-ups.
I used animoto to create the following short video, all pictures courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons. It took me many hours to find the pictures I wanted, download them, and arrange them into the video. It didn't help that my computer was slow... But I'm very happy with the results and now making future videos will be a cinch! I will definitely be using this with my students as we review short vowel sounds, and I even thought I could change up the video throughou the year with images my kids have picked! I think they'll love it!
Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.
The second mash-up I used was by trial and error. I had a few ideas but none of them worked out. It was hard to find a site that would upload pictures from my computer; most required direct uploading from Flickr. I tried using Bookr to make a book called "Where do WORDS come from?" (I haven't given up yet - see Tool 7) but couldn't add more than one picture per page. Then, I thought of making a pictorial map of the American Symbols with Mapper, but couldn't find a way to start it (is it by going to Flickr API?). So I started on a similar site iMapFlickr, but once I discovered I was going to have to create sets of pictures on Flickr, I gave up. Sorry, this is after being in front of the computer 2 days straight! :)
Finally, Glogster was, in my opinion, the most user friendly. But because I needed something with several frames, I ended up using Bubblr.
Reading Beyond Words
I've spent lots of hours exploring and playing with these sites. I'm glad I know how to use them all, but hopefully this post will save one of you some time! Have fun!
I used animoto to create the following short video, all pictures courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons. It took me many hours to find the pictures I wanted, download them, and arrange them into the video. It didn't help that my computer was slow... But I'm very happy with the results and now making future videos will be a cinch! I will definitely be using this with my students as we review short vowel sounds, and I even thought I could change up the video throughou the year with images my kids have picked! I think they'll love it!
Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.
The second mash-up I used was by trial and error. I had a few ideas but none of them worked out. It was hard to find a site that would upload pictures from my computer; most required direct uploading from Flickr. I tried using Bookr to make a book called "Where do WORDS come from?" (I haven't given up yet - see Tool 7) but couldn't add more than one picture per page. Then, I thought of making a pictorial map of the American Symbols with Mapper, but couldn't find a way to start it (is it by going to Flickr API?). So I started on a similar site iMapFlickr, but once I discovered I was going to have to create sets of pictures on Flickr, I gave up. Sorry, this is after being in front of the computer 2 days straight! :)
Finally, Glogster was, in my opinion, the most user friendly. But because I needed something with several frames, I ended up using Bubblr.
Reading Beyond Words
I've spent lots of hours exploring and playing with these sites. I'm glad I know how to use them all, but hopefully this post will save one of you some time! Have fun!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Tool 2: I am part of a PLN!
Wow, there were some strong statements in this tool that described what a teacher's role will be in a networked learning community in the future. In sum, teachers will be expert learners whose job is NOT to teach, but to help others learn through modeling and collaboration (Ten Big Questions for Education). Do you think this statement also applies to teachers in physical learning communities today?
1. I believe there are many benefits to building an online education community, especially as the world is becoming more virtual. By participating in a personal learning network (PLN), one has access to inumerous resources and knowledge in any field of interest. That makes PLNs attractive and effective to a learner - you look up and learn new information about something that's of interest to you, and you can also share your knowledge for others' benefits. I realize that I'm part of a craft PLN because I love to follow blogs and websites that present such information. Being part of a PLN sounds like having access to a customized database of knowledge with limitless sources! Therefore, choose the members of your learning community wisely.
2. What stood out to me from the first article was that as a blogger you can and need to invite participation from your blog followers. One can only become an active PLN participant when they interact with the blog content and engage in discussion by commenting. The commenting etiquette on the second article made me realize that commenting on a blog is very much like a face-to-face conversation; it requires meaningful thinking, purposeful words and mutual respect.
3. These are the blogs I've commented on:
Becoming a 21st Century Learner
Norton Tigers
Live 2 Learn & Learn 2 Live
SuperThorn3
K-Bil Tiger Cubs
Check them out - they're worth your comments!
1. I believe there are many benefits to building an online education community, especially as the world is becoming more virtual. By participating in a personal learning network (PLN), one has access to inumerous resources and knowledge in any field of interest. That makes PLNs attractive and effective to a learner - you look up and learn new information about something that's of interest to you, and you can also share your knowledge for others' benefits. I realize that I'm part of a craft PLN because I love to follow blogs and websites that present such information. Being part of a PLN sounds like having access to a customized database of knowledge with limitless sources! Therefore, choose the members of your learning community wisely.
2. What stood out to me from the first article was that as a blogger you can and need to invite participation from your blog followers. One can only become an active PLN participant when they interact with the blog content and engage in discussion by commenting. The commenting etiquette on the second article made me realize that commenting on a blog is very much like a face-to-face conversation; it requires meaningful thinking, purposeful words and mutual respect.
3. These are the blogs I've commented on:
Becoming a 21st Century Learner
Norton Tigers
Live 2 Learn & Learn 2 Live
SuperThorn3
K-Bil Tiger Cubs
Check them out - they're worth your comments!
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Tool 1: becoming a blogger!
Hi everyone,
So I have decided to revamp my whole blog. I had started a personal blog a while back and was planning on using it for this course. Well, I've changed my mind and created one solely for educational purposes. If you've been following this blog or commented already, my apologies. :)
I can now say that I've spent lots of time creating this blog. Don't get me wrong, I've actually enjoyed choosing all the different design elements: the templates, background, font, colors and layout. There are also a number of gadgets (the sub titles/sections on the side of the posts) to choose from and you can arrange them however you'd like. I found the process quite addicting!
For those of you who are just starting, don't be intimidated. I don't know much about blogs, but it wasn't hard. You just have to explore and play with the different tabs. Besides blogger.com offers step-by-step directions, as well as video tutorials to help you get started.
Creating an avatar, which is like a digital paper doll, was interesting. It was fun choosing the different features for my character, and adding my own voice to it. I can see how avatars are used to protect a person's identity online, but personally, I could do without it.
As an intervention teacher, I can incorporate blogs as reflective or assessment pieces at the beginning and end of lessons. It will give me great insight to know what previous knowledge my students had of a particular subject, as well as what they were able to take away from the lesson. Blogs will also give students a chance to solidify their learning, as they put into words their understanding of what was learned.
So I have decided to revamp my whole blog. I had started a personal blog a while back and was planning on using it for this course. Well, I've changed my mind and created one solely for educational purposes. If you've been following this blog or commented already, my apologies. :)
I can now say that I've spent lots of time creating this blog. Don't get me wrong, I've actually enjoyed choosing all the different design elements: the templates, background, font, colors and layout. There are also a number of gadgets (the sub titles/sections on the side of the posts) to choose from and you can arrange them however you'd like. I found the process quite addicting!
For those of you who are just starting, don't be intimidated. I don't know much about blogs, but it wasn't hard. You just have to explore and play with the different tabs. Besides blogger.com offers step-by-step directions, as well as video tutorials to help you get started.
Creating an avatar, which is like a digital paper doll, was interesting. It was fun choosing the different features for my character, and adding my own voice to it. I can see how avatars are used to protect a person's identity online, but personally, I could do without it.
As an intervention teacher, I can incorporate blogs as reflective or assessment pieces at the beginning and end of lessons. It will give me great insight to know what previous knowledge my students had of a particular subject, as well as what they were able to take away from the lesson. Blogs will also give students a chance to solidify their learning, as they put into words their understanding of what was learned.
I am now part of the blogosphere!!
Hello friends,
You've found your way to my professional, or instructional, blog. This blog is a result of an online professional development course called 11 Tools for the 21st Century Learner. The course is sponsored by my school district in an effort to provide educators the training and knowledge of educational web tools that can be used in the classroom. I will be posting 11 tools, as well as a reflection piece at the end. Here we go...
You've found your way to my professional, or instructional, blog. This blog is a result of an online professional development course called 11 Tools for the 21st Century Learner. The course is sponsored by my school district in an effort to provide educators the training and knowledge of educational web tools that can be used in the classroom. I will be posting 11 tools, as well as a reflection piece at the end. Here we go...
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