Oh my goodness, I can't believe I survived this technological venture!! I'm not going to lie, computers have always been very daunting things to me - but after using 23 Things, I am feeling more confident than ever about Web 2.0!
I think my all-time favorite was exploring Google Drive. I love that I can create a powerpoint presentation online that will automatically be saved! And the best part about it - now I don't have to go and purchase Powerpoint for my computer!
Of course, this course has impacted my lifelong learning goals because I never thought I would ever try to tackle the things that I managed to do through this blog. Make a video? Did it! Design some posters? Did it! Set up a RSS feed? Did it! Amazing - this blog has given me the confidence that I needed to continue to explore and navigate the internet.
I was surprised by how easy some of these tools were to access and use. I will say, thought - I did NOT enjoy opening up so many accounts for things that I feel like I will never use again. Then again, never say never, and I completely understand why this blog calls for us to do so as engaging learners. Sooooo, I guess it is necessary to create accounts on different things in order to explore and learn about them properly.
Now that I have a new perspective on technology and new things that I have access to (because I've opened up so many accounts), I plan on using as many of these tools as possible in my future classroom. If these things are important to my students, I want to use them as much as possible so that I can connect with them on every level.
Thank you, 23 Things! You have opened up my eyes!
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Things #23 - Creative Commons
Creative Commons is a very important thing to know if one chooses to share and participate in numerous things online. It is a way to give credit to those who originally produced the idea, or shared it originally. By acknowledging someone as the original creator, you give them credit as well as thanks for allowing you to take their idea and run with it.
I found this on the Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers blog site:
I found this on the Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers blog site:
CREDITS
Thing #22 - LiveBinders
The titles of my binders are Books: Personal and Professional Material, Teaching Resources, and Author Webpages. You can visit my binder titled Author Webpages here.
I really enjoyed exploring the different ways teachers use LiveBinders in their classrooms. Many of them used it to create a collection of student work. I think I may do that, and then parents have the opportunity to visit the binder and see their child's work.
I really enjoyed exploring the different ways teachers use LiveBinders in their classrooms. Many of them used it to create a collection of student work. I think I may do that, and then parents have the opportunity to visit the binder and see their child's work.
Blog #21 - Animoto
Cruisin'
Animoto was fun. I'm not sure if I'll ever use it again in my life, but you never know. At least I know it's out there if I'm ever interested in creating a free 30-second video, or paying to create a longer one for my classroom.
Animoto was fun. I'm not sure if I'll ever use it again in my life, but you never know. At least I know it's out there if I'm ever interested in creating a free 30-second video, or paying to create a longer one for my classroom.
Thing #20 - YouTube
I found a School House Rock video on pronouns! I remember watching this video when I was in elementary school.
Obviously, youtube can be very useful in the classroom. It allows the teacher to use other types of instruction besides just lecture or via text. Some children learn best visually, so a video would be a good addition to any lesson plan. I like the variety that can be found on youtube.
I also enjoyed exploring PowToon. There, you can create your own animations or presentations, or explore other people's creations. This could be useful in the classroom if I ever decide to create my own animation to help students understand certain concepts. Although it is a neat tool, I will probably stick to YouTube and TeacherTube if I want to explore different videos to use in the classroom.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Thing #19 - Social Networks
When I started EDUC 5540 at the beginning of the semester, I opened an account with Pinterest. I've been a fan ever since. Facebook and Twitter are not my favorites; however, I really enjoyed browsing some of the educator social networks posted, like TLNing (Teacher/Librarian) and Good Reads. One of the best uses of social networking for educators would be sharing ideas, which are very important in professional growth and development. Later, when I'm not as overwhelmed with all this technological stuff and I'm not in college any more, I might join more social networking sites for educators so I can get some fresh ideas for my future classroom.
Thing #18 - Twitter
I never ever wanted to create an account on Twitter. I can't believe I did it - and I ONLY did it for my grade. Period. Here is the link to my profile.
It is important for teachers to understand social networking because it is what their students use on a day-by-day, hour-by-hour, minute-by-minute basis. In order to teach properly, a teacher must know their student - so understanding that social networking is part of everyone's life (especially a young person's life) is a very valuable piece of information.
What I've learned about Twitter is that I could have probably lived forever without it - and I probably will after today. It seems like a giant vacuum, sucking up everyone's time because they get drawn into reading up on what people are doing - like going to the grocery store.
However, I started following educational things, and I even added PBS, and some neat pictures and quotes popped up. I can see teachers encouraging students to follow certain things in order to serve educational purposes... maybe like a museum or something like that. That would actually be really neat... okay, maybe Twitter isn't all that bad.
It is important for teachers to understand social networking because it is what their students use on a day-by-day, hour-by-hour, minute-by-minute basis. In order to teach properly, a teacher must know their student - so understanding that social networking is part of everyone's life (especially a young person's life) is a very valuable piece of information.
What I've learned about Twitter is that I could have probably lived forever without it - and I probably will after today. It seems like a giant vacuum, sucking up everyone's time because they get drawn into reading up on what people are doing - like going to the grocery store.
However, I started following educational things, and I even added PBS, and some neat pictures and quotes popped up. I can see teachers encouraging students to follow certain things in order to serve educational purposes... maybe like a museum or something like that. That would actually be really neat... okay, maybe Twitter isn't all that bad.
Thing #17 - Delicious
I'm not a big fan of Delicious, which is a shame because I was really looking forward to how delicious it was going to be. I did find a few neat things, like EduDemic, when I typed in "Educational Technology" into the search box. Even though I don't see myself ever having the time in my personal life to use such a thing, I believe I may incorporate this into my classroom. Maybe...
Or maybe Delicious just isn't my favorite bookmarking site. Who knows... However, I can see a lot of potential bookmarking sites have for educational purposes. Since the majority of students are on the computer when they get home from school, or are on their iPhone, it would be nice to have a way to connect their homework with a bookmarking site, even if it's just having them drop in and explore things that the teacher has tagged for five minutes. They would probably be more likely to actually do something like that (since it's connected with the internet) than, say, read a text book.
Or maybe Delicious just isn't my favorite bookmarking site. Who knows... However, I can see a lot of potential bookmarking sites have for educational purposes. Since the majority of students are on the computer when they get home from school, or are on their iPhone, it would be nice to have a way to connect their homework with a bookmarking site, even if it's just having them drop in and explore things that the teacher has tagged for five minutes. They would probably be more likely to actually do something like that (since it's connected with the internet) than, say, read a text book.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Thing #16 - Getting Organized
Out of all the "start" pages, I really enjoyed Symbaloo. It was easy to use, and I like that all I had to do was find the button, or square, with the tool that I needed and then I simply click on it. I have always wondered if something like this existed out there... If I ever do make Symbaloo my permanent homepage, it'll probably be far into the future when I've become more comfortable with such things. I understand it's supposed to make your life easier; however, these blog assignments are overwhelming me. I feel like I'm on overload at the moment. Once things calm down, then maybe I'll decide whether or not it is the right thing for me.
As for the online calender, I already have one with Google. I'm happy with it and I don't plan to change. I tried to explore 30 Boxes and Upto but they required that I create an account; quite frankly, I'm tired of doing that when I know I will never use it ever again...because I'm content with Google. I like it too, because if I ever need to share events that are coming up with my students' parents or with fellow teachers, I can.
Oh my, I love the PDF converter! And the most amazing thing about it - it's free! I never knew this existed, and I could have saved myself so much headache these past few years if I had known it was out there. It's nifty because I only have Pages on my Apple computer, so when people send me Word documents, sometimes it de-formats things or I can't see them at all. With the PDF converter, I don't have to worry about that problem any more. I would definitely recommend this to anyone with the same problem.
As for the online calender, I already have one with Google. I'm happy with it and I don't plan to change. I tried to explore 30 Boxes and Upto but they required that I create an account; quite frankly, I'm tired of doing that when I know I will never use it ever again...because I'm content with Google. I like it too, because if I ever need to share events that are coming up with my students' parents or with fellow teachers, I can.
Oh my, I love the PDF converter! And the most amazing thing about it - it's free! I never knew this existed, and I could have saved myself so much headache these past few years if I had known it was out there. It's nifty because I only have Pages on my Apple computer, so when people send me Word documents, sometimes it de-formats things or I can't see them at all. With the PDF converter, I don't have to worry about that problem any more. I would definitely recommend this to anyone with the same problem.
Thing #15 - Wiki
This was not my favorite thing to do. I added a shot of my Flickr thing that I did a while back onto the APSU 23 Things Sandbox only because I was so proud of myself that day for figuring out how to do it on my own. However, I think changing the work of someone else is silly and annoying. I understand that it can be used for creative purposes, especially in a classroom. For example, I really enjoyed looking at the book lovers wiki, but I don't think I'll ever use it. It's too overwhelming, and there is too much going on. I find it very frustrating and I'd just rather not even bother with it. I'm a grump when it comes to wikis.
Thing #14 - Flowcharts vs. Mind Maps
Today I discovered a very useful tool: gliffy! It was an example of a flowchart, and I love it! I wish I had known this existed - I could have used it a million times. I can see how this would be helpful in the classroom as a teacher. I could totally make charts for the students to give them a visual of facts that they are learning.
After playing around with a flowchart (gliffy) and a mind map (bubbl.us), I have discovered that I do not like bubbl.us and I do not plan on using it in the future, even though I've already created an account. It was difficult to use and very frustrating, and it did not explain how to do anything properly (and if it did, I didn't get it - I like directions to be big and bold and useful, especially when it comes to technology). However, I am very happy to have discovered gliffy.
After playing around with a flowchart (gliffy) and a mind map (bubbl.us), I have discovered that I do not like bubbl.us and I do not plan on using it in the future, even though I've already created an account. It was difficult to use and very frustrating, and it did not explain how to do anything properly (and if it did, I didn't get it - I like directions to be big and bold and useful, especially when it comes to technology). However, I am very happy to have discovered gliffy.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
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