Topic 16 Wikis and Podcasts

I have only had a little bit of experience with podcasts. In one of my other classes the instructor posted a couple of podcasts on blackboard. I like listening to learn about something instead of just reading it. There are so many different learning styles that we are going to have to accomodate as teachers. Podcasts are a useful way for students who are audio learners to utilize their preferred learning method. Students also have the option of reviewing content as necessary.

It would be fun to challenge students to do a group project and make it a rule that they can only communicate through their wiki. I am excited to incorporate this type of technology into lessons. Children today learn so much differently, and they need mor than just lectures and worksheets.

Forgotten Topic 5 Yetc resources

Oops!! I forgot one of my topics. The YETC webpage has so many helpful resources for teachers. There are worksheet templates, lesson ideas, and application how-tos. I worry about burning out and not having new inovative ideas for lesson plans. This site is a great place to go to re focus and get new ideas.

Healthy Hearts Lesson Plan

For my lesson plan 2 I did a lesson for 5th grade about basic heart functions, keeping your heart healthy, and how to find your target heart rate. My technology tie in was having the students read articles about your heart, aerobic exercise, finding your pulse, and calculating your target heart rate zone- and then ansering questions. Then the students go to the gym to participate in physical activities like jump rope or running in place to get their heart rate up.

I really enjoyed listening to everyone's pesentations as well. You all had great ideas that are classroom ready!

Website Evaluations

I discovered a lot about the credibility of educational websites by filling out the evaluation forms. It was surprising to find out that a website that I thought would be great for kids didn't really measure up. I had also never really checking for a page author. It was also interesting to find out more about the content of the website by researching the company that sponsored the website.

Topic 9 and 10 Word Processing and Spreadsheets

In this lesson we learned how to use google docs. Using google docs is a great way to do a group project where group members have difficulty meeting. I was in Wendover for this class and I thought it was so neat to be able to look at the same document as everyone else and view their comments. I thought that the links that were posted in the google doc were so helpful. It is important for students to know how to use word processing programs and spreadsheets. I know that I will be using many of the sites that were listed in the google docs in my own lessons in the future.

Topic 8 Web Quests

I titled my last blog incorrectly, it was supposed to be topics 6 and 7. I really enjoyed our lesson about webquests. I think this would be a great way to give your students something fun to do that is outside the normal lesson with lecturing and doing worksheets. I liked the webquest about planting a class garden and determining if the food it produced would be enough to feed the students in the school. There are so many different ways that a webquest can make learning fun for your students. I can't wait to create lessons this way in my own classroom.

Topic 7 and 8 Power Points and Copyright

Prior to taking this class I had not given much thought to using power points in my classroom. Now, I can't wait to use them. I think that using power points in your lessons will give students something more interesting to look at instead of just listening to the teacher lecture.

I was really surprised at how little I know about copyright. It is so important to respect the rights of others when you are planning lessons for your students. I also never knew that you are only supposed to use 10% of someone else's work.

Lesson Plan 1

The lesson plan I chose to do was called the letter hunt. It is a lesson that is meant to help teachers assess how well their new kindergarteners understand and know their alphabet. I started my lesson with a book called Miss Spider's ABC, written by David Kirk. After reading the book and having a little discussion about the letters the students get to go on their letter hunt. The students have to find objects that start with each letter inside the classroom, or outside on the playground. Lastly the students get to present their findings from their letter hunts.

I took this picture when we were on our way to go camping for the weekend. I thought it would be fun to edit the picture so you could really see the cheese on her face. I really enjoyed the learning about Picasa, and I think I will definitely use this program again to fix my photos.

Topic 3- Blogs

I am new to blogging. I have really enjoyed reading everyone else's posts. I think this is a great way for our class to learn about each other and to also get different perspectives about technology. I have always liked the extra knowledge that can be gained from reading posts on the discussion board in blackboard, but this puts a whole new personal and fun twitst on learning.

Topic 2 UEN

I think the UEN website is a great resource for teachers. The lesson plan creator is a useful tool. I also enjoyed looking through all of the lesson plans that are available. I like that you can create your own personal uen page. I think having my own page to reference my own curriculum resources and utilize the lesson plan and rubric creators.

Topic 1- Today's Students

After watching the video clip in class I was very surprised at the percentage of educators who do not teach using technology. I love all of the new gadgets that are used in today’s classroom! The smart board and Elmo are both excellent tools to engage students in lessons. I also think that having the amplification system in the classroom is an essential tool to have. Students love to use the microphone, and I think it really helps to increase student participation and attentiveness. The methods children use to learn are very different than that of previous generations, as educators we have to embrace technology in order to teach our students effectively.

Here is my blog! I'm excited about this class and hope to learn a lot :)