Thing #24

To be honest, I expected  this exercise to be very difficult and that I would not actually enjoy it. I was so wrong! I loved many of the new things I have learned about, particularly how to write a blog. My favorite exercises were probably learning about calendars, RSI feeds, blogging and ways to compile all off my information in one location. I found that all of these directly influence my future career. The best part is I never would have thought to use any of these things before this class. I never had the slightest clue about technology, and almost zero desire to learn about it. Doing these 23 things changed my opinion on many things about the internet, and I am glad that I know about so many new and free sources of information out there that I can really put to use inside of my classroom.

Thing #23

On the about page of 23 things it says that it is based on Learning 2.0-23 Things. And that idea in turn was based off of Abram's article 43 Things I (or you) might want to do this year and the website 43Things.

Creative commons takes the fear out of using information off of the internet. Creative commons is a copyright free zone, publishers of work offer up their ideas with no penalty for someone else using them, basically relinquishing their own rights. I believe it is a fantastic thing for the teaching community and the learning community alike.

Thing #22

Half of this semester I have been scrambling for a way to keep up with the large amounts of work that seem to continue piling up in front of me. But how can you organize such a vast amount of data. It is simply too much. That is why I love livebinders. Things may be hectic right now, but at least I know when I am a teacher a site like this can have my back and keep me organized. The three sections I developed are web 2.0 tools, strategies, and experiments. The last one is just for fun. I plan on having all of my students do experiments and it will be great to have a source that I can pull from for in class experiments. I really love this site for teachers and college students alike. I believe I will begin using this next semester to keep me a bit more organized.

Thing #21

Old friends is the video I made on Animoto. I absolutely loved the layouts you could use for this. The layout that I picked gave a very old nostalgic look to many of the photos which made the perfect theme for these pictures. It is a very easy to use program, and I can see children using something like this as a side part to a powerpoint presentation they would be doing for an experiment. Perhaps it could be used for the pictures of their procedure. I may even use this myself for future science projects of my own.

Thing #20

I do not know if a college student exists who does not love Youtube. Likewise I don't know any children who wouldn't love it. I believe that Youtube is a site that children would be happy to visit if they were told to by a teacher. I am currently in an online course that sometimes requires 30 minute videos on youtube, and I have to say that I love coming home to write discussions on those. The video I put below is one of my favorites from a teacher that shares my opinion about youtube. This is one of many videos he has on the lessons he teaches to his sixth grade class. These videos serve as a study guide for children in a fun way that will make children enjoy learning about even the phases of the moon and tides.

http://youtu.be/HkvlrWpsnuQ

Thing # 19

Previous to this, I was not a member of any online teacher based social networking. I am now currently a member of teacherpop though, and I do like the idea of teachers coming together sharing ideas and providing feedback to one another. I think that this creates a community of learning, and provides the ability for new teachers to use lessons that have already been tested and approved. There were a few other sites that interested me besides teacher pop. As an avid reader, I enjoyed goodreads.com and I really love Yelp. Yelp is such a great site to explore the area that you are in. I plan to move out of Tennessee when I become a teacher. Yelp is a fantastic way to learn the hotspots of the area in order to fit into that community better.

Thing #18

I know I am going to sound like a stick in the mud here, but I do not think that it is a good idea to have the children in my middle school classroom using facebook or twitter. I think it is a great way to stay in touch with other educators inside of the school system, though. You can stay up to date on all the things going on inside of the school, and gain many new opportunities a teacher might miss out on with it, like conferences being held, or learning or team-building exercises that may be taking place on the weekend. I think it is a way to stay in touch with the community as well. Knowing what is going on in your community, can only strengthen your understanding of what students may be going through in their school lives.
Now, as to the children. When I was a child, I got grounded. I got grounded a great deal. Facebook and myspace were off limits at all costs. In fact, myspace was one of the things that would get me into trouble. Do I want to put my children in a compromising position because of my actions? No. Do I override the parents saying they cannot access a social webpage? No. There are too many risks that could hinder the education of my students. I would not take that risk. Instead, I would prefer to sign them onto a blog where I could post all manner of entertaining things having to do with our class sessions, and not be at fault for anything that occurs on a social site like facebook. Also, they would not have an excuse as to why they could not do their work, unlike with facebook where they could say their father or mother would not allow them to access it.