Final Blog Post: Technology in the Classroom and the Future

When I first signed up for this class I had no idea what to expect. I was just taking it to fulfill the education major requirement and figured it would probably be somewhat interesting. Then I got the syllabus online. I couldn't believe all the technology equipment we were required to have and programs we were supposed to download. I thought this class would be challenging because I didn't know about (or even heard about) very many of the websites and programs. I thought that this class would be irrelevant because I wasn't used to using much technology besides email, facebook, and blackboard. I didn't think that there could be so many new technology advances that would be useful to my life, let alone in a classroom. I really had my doubts about this class but I'm very glad I took it because it has really changed my point of view.

After the first class I could already see that this class was not what I had expected at all. We were learning how to set up blogs (which I had never done before) and I started to get the concept of using technology in the classroom. Students today use the computer all the time and educators need to engage their students with activities that are relevant to the time period we live in. If you can't engage students in the classroom then they aren't going to be active learners and retain very much of what they are taught. I think that preserving some traditional teaching strategies is important but I do feel that teachers also need to have alternate strategies that are more up to date. This EDST 221 class has given me so many tools that I will definitely use in my future classroom.

One of my favorite technology tools is Smartboard. I hope that when I'm a teacher I can have one in my classroom. It can be used to make lesson plans with activities in every subject imaginable. These lesson plans can just be shown to the class like a power point or you can have the students actively participate and complete games and different activities to learn concepts. I would also use it to organize class jobs or make a class seating chart. Another technology tool I would use would be an igoogle page with podcasts. I would use this to organize all my personal stuff and as well as use it to show parents what is going on in the classroom. I would podcast about things in class or assignments and post it for parent and students to view. I have learned about so many different technology tools and I will use a lot of them but these are my favorites.

This class has been an unexpected but very positive experience. I'm glad that I took it and tried out all the different activities because it has really opened my mind. I wasn't very open to the idea of using lots of technology in the classroom but I realize now that it can be very useful, easy, and help students learn. As our society changes, the styles of teaching need to change as well. It's important for educators to want their students to succeed and teachers need to give them all the available tools to succeed.

Thank you so much Marilyn for opening my eyes to all that technology has to offer. I will definitely take many of these websites and activities into my future classroom. I think this class has been one of the most useful and applicable I have taken.

Web 2.0 guru

I really liked the web 2.0 guru site, it has so many links to helpful websites to use for the classroom. I went to quizegg and I thought it was a very easy and interesting. I would use it to make a "get to know you" quiz for the 1st day of school or test the kids on topics learned in class.

ebistro.com

I think the concept of ebisrto.com is really clever. The website has links to useful tips for how to incorporate technology into the classroom. The different links are organized like a restaurant menu with sections like "Specials" for new updates and "Entrees" for the most used technology tools.

Technology activties for the classroom

Technology Projects as a Teacher
1. Create online games (ex: jeopardy, who wants to be a millionaire, word search...)
2. Voice thread for speeches and projects
3. Art Project with Big Huge Labs
4. Create Smart Board Lesson
5. Create XtraNormal Video for first day of school
6. Create googlesite for classroom (parents and studets)
7. Create News Letter on GoogleDocs
8. Create Wiki to collaborate with other teachers/groups
9. Create digital photo story to share about family/life
10. Create Wordle for art project
11. Create StoryBird for young students
12. Create online cartoons for newsletters
13. Digital Video Project

Possible Future Projects
1. Create Digital Video Story to tell class about yourself
2. Create a vioce thread to show your understanding of new spanish vocab
3. Create XtraNormal video of favorite thing you learned in history yesterday
4. Create Mosaic of your favorite animals
5. Create News Lettter of everything we learned in the week to send home to your parents
6. Create a Wikispace with 5 partners about dinosaurs
7. Create a MixBook Album about internet safety
8. Create a jeopardy game about addition and subraction
9. Create a crossword puzzle of this weeks spelling words
10. Create a Google Earth Tour of our favorite place to visit or wish to visit

Rubric for final project

Here is the rubric my PLN made to evaluate our final portfolios. It was very easy to make and we tried to incorporate different aspects of grading criteria.

classroom website, weebly.com

I played around on the weebly.com site to make a classroom website. I thought it was very easy to use and I added an announcements section, lunch section, and what's on the agenda for class today. I would use this website to make a website for my future classroom.

newsletter

fotobabble.com

This is the podcast I made with fotobabble.com about classroom rules. This website was very easy to use!

Podcasts

Today I made a podcast with different class announcements. I think that podcasts could be a useful tool but I probably wouldn't use this to make my own announcements because I would rather just speak directly to my class. I would have the kids podcast and show it to their parents. I also might podcast for the parents like a newsletter about things that are going on in the classroom. I made my podcast on Garage band but I couldn't figure out how to upload it onto my blog because there wasn't an option to upload a sound/podcast.

wikispace

http://jenmeadows.wikispaces.com/ Here is the link to the wiki space I made with my PLN. It is all about technology in the classroom, and the different activities we have done in this class. I used this website one other time with my Spanish class to make pages about different Spanish-speaking countries. I thought it was fun and a good way to present material. I would definitely use this website with my future classroom for different projects and activities.

proprofs.com

I really liked this website a lot. It was easy to use and there are a lot of different activities and games you can make. It also let you play the games and then edit them if necessary. I think students would really enjoy these games.

proprofs.com

Weather/ Seasons word search game » free word search

classtools.net

I made this interactive timer at classtools.net. I would use this in the classroom to time kids while they get their supplies for the day out or use it during silent reading time to monitor how long the time is. This website has a lot of interesting games and activities that are very interactive for the classroom. I would definitely use it in my future classroom.

voicethread

I liked the voicethread website. I would use this in the classroom to have students record reports or answer a question of the day. This is a very new concept to me but I think students would enjoy this.

Favorite Weather

Glogster

I like this website. I put up a video, image, and facts. I would definitely use this in the classroom with my lesson plans for the day.

rubric maker

I really liked the rubric making website. It was easy to use and I would definitely use this in my future classroom. I was always graded with rubrics and I think it's a good way to keep track of grades.

google earth

I had never used google earth before and I really like it. It would be a fun option to have for kids in the classroom. They can have fun looking up their houses for a fun filler activity, or you could make a tour of important landmarks around the world. It is a very engaging activity to use in the classroom.

dumpr.net with flickr

I went to dumpr.net and uploaded a picture from my computer and it made a sketch of it. I really liked this website because it's a fun way to change your original pictures. I would use this as a teacher to make coloring activities for the kids in my class.

named spelled out with flickr

bighugelabs.com

I went to bighugelabs.com and made a jigsaw puzzle from a cute picture I had on my computer. I really liked this website because it was easy to use and had so many activities. I would definitely use this website in my future classroom. Teachers could really benefit from this website because it has a lot of activities that help students stay interested.

pageflakes

I really like both pageflakes and igoogle. I think both are useful and I could see myself using one in the future to organize all my stuff and keep me updated on things.

study help websites

I would use studystack.com now as a college student. They have lots of useful flash cards that are relevant for many of my classes. Flash cards are helpful and a great way to study. I think it could be helpful for elementary students if the content is at their level. I would tell my students to use it.

quizlet

http://quizlet.com/1847839/test/?mult_choice=on&ignore-case=1&prompt-def=1&limit=5 I used this website to make a math test for young kids. This website is useful for making quizzes and flash cards. It is another website that I would definitely use in the classroom. I would make flash cards to help students study and learn concepts.

webquests

I had never heard about webquests before but I think they seem very useful for a classroom. The teacher can control what the kids can do on the webquest and it can be targeted to help teach specific concepts. I could see myself making and using one in my future classroom. I can't really see any disadvantages in using one.

webquests

http://www.literacy.uconn.edu/34webqu.htm I like this webquest because it has lots of different websites/online lesson plans/ activities that are directed at grades 3-4 and a good variety. If I taught one of those grades I would definitely use it.

http://www.sentex.net/~brenwood/Links/webquests_K6.html I like this one because it had different websites sorted by subject and grade level so it's easy to use.

http://www.owen.k12.ky.us/trt/elementarywebquests.htm I liked this one because it had activities and they were very specific to help children learn specific subjects.

I would use any of these in my classroom in the future.

wed based bookmarking

I think using a bookmarking system for the internet is a smart idea. I also make bookmarks of important/ interesting websites that I know I will use in the future. It also really helps me stay organize and remember to do certain things like check my bank account online. I liked the ibrii.com website the best because it was really easy to use and I could see myself using it in the future when I'm a teacher. If I found something interesting that I wanted to show my class I would save it or transfer it into my blog.

alternative search engines.

I really like bing.com, it reminded me a lot of google but I think it was easy to use and got good results for searches. Another search engine I like is mugurdy.com. I liked how this one showed you a picture of what the website looked like so you could find a relevant search faster. I thought I would like dogpile.com also but I thought it gave me results to a search that weren't what I was looking for at all. It seemed to just give you random websites that had a word from the search not a relevant website.

readfresh

I really like the readfresh website. I think it would be very helpful as a teacher to keep up with blogs and news. I googled blogs about education, and found some really useful blogs that I would definitely use as a teacher. One was even directed towards future teachers so I can read it now to get ideas. Another blog has just a bunch of websites that are helpful for teachers.

livebinder/simply box

I tried to sign up for an account on both of these websites but neither would let me. My internet browser would not allow the content from simply box. When I tried to sign up for a livebinder account the website said that both emails I tried to use were already in existence, when they weren't. I'm not sure why it kept doing this because it looked like a good website that would be helpful in the classroom.

differentiation

smart board technologies

I had never used or really heard of the smart board application before this class. Smart board has so many different uses in the classroom. I liked how you can make a seating chart and switch it whenever you want, I also like the activities that students can participate in because it makes learning more proactive. I played around with smart board and made up my own lesson plans for a future classroom. I added things like a job chart, so students can learn a sense of responsibility, and a to do list so that the students can see what is going to happen that day. I had activities planned for each subject (math, science, geography, english,etc.) and most were activities that students could participate or just watch but would keep their attention. I think it's important to keep the students engaged so that they are active learners and not just listening, and probably zoning out. I could definitely see myself using smart board in the future with my class. The only draw back I can see is that it uses a lot of my computers power and my computer forced quit the program a few times because it was too much for it to handle. Other than that I think it's a good program for all teachers to have.

interview with teacher

I interviewed my math teacher with another PLN member to see how he feels about technology in the classroom.

1. Scott prefers to use just the blackboard in class to lecture but he uses the internet to email students and update his blackboard website.

2. He feels that technology can take away from the lesson because he isn't very tech savvy so he becomes frustrated and disorganized.

3. The biggest misconception he feels about technology is that people think you need technology to learn. Scott feels that although calculators are a useful tool students should learn to do math without them.

4. He feels that a big hurdle is how expensive new technology is.

5. It's a great way to keep in touch with students and get announcements out to the class.

6. His biggest inspiration for using technology in the classroom is the students. They have grown up using a computer and prefer to communicate with over email.

7. Scott sees technology being much more prominent in the classroom in the future. He doesn't know if he himself will use more technology but other teachers and younger generations will.

zoho.com vs google

I had never heard of zoho.com before but it seems like a useful tool. The website offers many features like a personal organizer, spreadsheets, slide shows, and a chat feature. I could see myself maybe using this in the future but the only draw back is that you have to sign up. I could see myself using google over it just because google is free and doesn't require you to sign up for anything.

slide.com

This is a slide show about classroom rules, this would be very helpful in my teaching career.

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websites with activities that I can use in the classroom

http://www.kidzone.ws/math/kindergarten.htm

This website has lots of different worksheets to help kindergartners learn math. I would definitely steal some of these to use in my classroom.

http://www.teachablemoment.org/elementary.html

This website has lesson plans for teaching different concepts from the disaster in Haiti to how to be an active listener. These lesson plans are well laid out and seem easy to use.

http://www.science-teachers.com/

This website has teaching tools for science classes. It has flash cards, crosswords, and other fun activities that will help the children learn in an interactive way.

critique of blogs

http://www.postrank.com/feed/52e9653411a952dc1619737288ebfe36

This blog is all about different websites and activities online that can be helpful in classrooms. It was nice that it was updated at least once a day too. If I was a teacher I would read this blog and get ideas for my own classroom.

http://www.postrank.com/feed/2f297e559bdf2ab1f7d291bfab795ec7

This blog was interesting because it was more about his personal opinions about things. He decided to get rid of the comments on his blogs which I thought was interesting too.

http://www.postrank.com/feed/2fe50447f81332f1f22a48d3dcc4f42a

This blog could be interesting but it is not updated very often. This teacher seems to want to get into technology in the classroom but doesn't know how. I think it would be good if teachers could blog about what they do in class and their ideas about teaching in today's world.

what makes a good blog?

A good blog should have the following:

• sticks to one theme and is focused
• good spelling and grammar
• is inventive and creative
• maybe includes pictures/ activites
• causes the reader to think
• be updated every so often
• open to feedback
• give feedback to other bloggers
• open minded and fun!

Story bird

I made a story bird that is meant for young kids around kindergarten age. I want to teach kindergarten and I think they would like to watch a story like one of these.

cartoons in the classroom

Our group made this cartoon depicting how the younger generation knows a lot about technology and the older generation is used to using only books. I think a making a cartoon in a classroom would be a really fun way for kids to learn while still being interested. For example, you could make a funny cartoon about classroom rules that would help kids remember the rules instead of just telling them and boring them on the first day of school. Cartoons could also be used to teach concepts like how the body's digestive track work.

igoogle page

I just made my first igoogle page. It was really cool and I like that I get to personalize it with themes and widgets. I picked widgets that would keep the kids interested like a pet turtle and trivia, and I also kept some things for me like a to do list and new announcements. I think igoogle is a good teaching tool to keep children engaged and interested. It could also be used to show parents what is going on in the classroom.

dream technology classroom

21st century teaching

We're talking about some of the technology essentials to have a classroom. For example, digital camera, flash drive, video camera, projector, laptop, smart tablet, etc. I think all these tools would be helpful to engage students. All children learn differently and for some it might be more helpful to watch a power point about the topic rather than simply reading about it. I think that it's important for teachers to know how to use technology because children today are being bombarded by media and it's important for teachers to help students learn about technology from a young age.

Although I believe that technology is important, I think that school shouldn't completely stray away from books and other traditional methods. I think it's important for students to know how to take notes from reading.

I have and actively use facebook to keep in touch with friends and network. I think it is a useful tool however, I think that allowing to use this in class can be semi distracting. Younger students would probably struggle to focus on what the teacher is saying with the distraction. Maybe if the school could somehow regulate what students look at or do on facebook then it would probably be better.

We're sharing our videos in class. I love everyone's! I'm so glad I got to make one and learn how to use imovie!

First day of class!

I did not know what to expect when joining this class but I think I'm going to really like it. I can see why using technology in a classroom would be helpful. Throughout my education, technology has always been a helpful tool to enhance learning. We used computers starting in about 3rd grade to play educational games and learn to type. We used computers sporadically throughout elementary school and middle school. In high school, we used computers to type papers and do research. Some teachers also used an "elmo" instead of an overhead projection. I think in the future technology is going to become an even bigger part of education.