Final Exam

I have to say that overall, I've learned so much from this class. Before this I thought I was doing a pretty good job of integrating technology into my teaching by just using videos and games. I see now that there is so many more tools out there that can be used. I think that even if I wasn't going to be teaching in a class where I know the students are going to have computer access, I think I could find ways to use some of these tools. That's a big step for me because I always felt so limited in what I could do (plus I just didn't know about a lot of this stuff).

My favorite parts are the social bookmarking, which I think I will be using A LOT, learning about wikis, and finding new tools that I didn't know about (OK there's not much I didn't like, especially now that I've had a chance to digest it all LOL). I still am a little overwhelmed by the blogging thing. There are so many! I have to try to remember to check my Google Reader more often because I do think there are some really good blogs. (How do you end up with a blog that so many people read? I just can't imagine people really wanting to read what I write.)

There's only one thing I would change about the course. I would move the social bookmarking part closer to the beginning. As we go through the course, we find so many useful websites that it would be nice to be able to bookmark them and see what others have found as we go.

I really am excited about what I've learned and I can't wait to find ways to fit it into my teaching!

Task 12

I used to always tell my husband that I'm not good at sales. I don't tell him that any more because whenever I get excited about something he tells me I'm a natural sales person because I share so much information about whatever it is. I think this is going to be a similar situation, he just won't be on the receiving end this time.

I've already shared some of what I've learned with my mom, who has been a high school math teacher for over 20 years. She often says that she has a hard time finding tools online that are useful for her to use. I was talking to her about wikis, but I also had a hard time think of ways she could use it (especially because many of her students don't regularly have access to a computer). I also told her about TeacherTube, which I think she might be able to find some uses for. I also want to talk with her about social bookmarking, because it seems that she might be able to find some good tools on there.

I also plan to share ideas with the teacher I will be co-teaching with. I'm actually really excited to show him some of the things I've found to see what we can actually use. I think it would be really cool if we set up a Delicious page together so we can have a network of resources we can both easily access and share. Also, I believe we already have a class blog, so now that's not quite so intimidating for me.

Task 11

Not only am I new to Paideia, I'm also new to kindergarten and 1st grade and to co-teaching, so it's really hard for me to say what I will use. I don't really know what to expect yet. I think the teacher I will be working with will be open to any of my ideas, but I have no idea what tools are going to fit into our classroom.

BUT I can say some of the tools that I think I'd like to try. I think Kid's Vid could be so much fun, and the site looks simple enough for younger students to use. I think it would a great option for a project. I also think it would be cool to have a classroom wiki. I think I may be focusing on teaching math, so maybe I could use it for open ended problems, where the kids could contribute their thoughts on how to solve the problem.

I also think Sharendipity would be a lot of fun to use. I love using games as learning tools.

I'm really excited to find new ways to integrate technology into my classroom!

Task 10

So many tools, so little time! I love tools that make my job easier. It's even better when they're FREE. Since I'm not made of money, I try to avoid tools that cost money. However, I have paid for one or two in the past, but it has to be really worth it. One that I loved was Lesson Planet. It has lessons for every age, every subject, and just about every topic you can think of. And what I really like about the lessons is that most of them include hands-on activities. I've also used United Streaming before, and there are some really great videos on there.

Some other free tools that I've found, but haven't used are:

• Sharendipity where you can create educational games and other learning tools
• Kids' Vid This site gives kids tools to create videos in the classroom (it looks really cool)
• Web Poster Wizard This FREE tool allows educators to create a lesson, worksheet, or class page and immediately publish it online

Task 9

So first off, I have to say that I wish I'd known about social bookmarking a long time ago! Especially since I am currently out of town and may not have needed to drag my laptop with me to do this work. I think this will be amazingly useful for me. This seems like it could be more useful than doing a regular internet search. I'm excited to put this into my internet routine!

Task 7

I think that I could see myself using a Wiki. I like the idea of collectively sharing ideas all in one place. Being that I will be teaching a K-1 class, I wasn't sure if it would be something that I would really be able to use, but then I looked at the wiki of a first grade class that used their wiki to create a class story. What an awesome idea! The kids could add to it at home and then the class could discuss what was added the next day. I like that the wiki can be as simple or complex as you need it to be. I saw some that are definitely more complex with multiple pages, which was a little more intimidating to me. But once I saw the more simple ones, I realized that I can probably handle using one in my classroom.

Task 6

When it comes to teaching, I'm not shy about going to the internet for ideas and resources. So I always love finding out about resources that I didn't know existed. I have discovered YouTube as a resource, but, of course, you never know what you'll get when you go there. Until now I had never heard about TeacherTube. I think this will be a website I will return to. I also visited Flashcard Friends, which I was really excited about. But I was a little disappointed when I looked at some of the flashcards for younger children. When it comes to vocabulary, I think there needs to be pictures. So I don't know how useful it will be.

Task 5

So my first thought is Information Overload! But I did find some blogs that I think will be pretty useful. So You Want to Teach is a blog that may be useful when you get to the middle of the year and you're frustrated. It seemed to be a pretty positive blog and that it had things that I think we teachers sometimes forget (such as why we are teaching). Another blog I thought was pretty informative was Smart Classroom Management. I know I'm always looking for ways to make my classroom management better, so this is one I will probably keep up with. I also subscribed to Education Week just so I can stay up on all the politics of education.

I had a hard time finding any "just for fun" type blogs to follow. If those were the only type of blogs I followed, I probably wouldn't ever check my feed, because it's just not important enough.

Task 4

So this RSS thing is kind of cool. That fact that you can get everything that interests you all in one place is pretty helpful. I've used RSS feeds before, but it got to the point where I would just forget to check it, and then I stopped using it altogether. I guess I'm just not a news junkie. Usually if it's not on Yahoo's front page, I just don't know about it, and that's been working pretty well for me. But we'll see how this goes. Maybe I will find it more useful this time around. Well, if I'm actually using it for work stuff, then I could see how it would be more useful.

One of the blogs I found that I liked was called Motherlode, which is about parenting. There were some pretty interesting posts on there. One that caught my attention was called 'A New Term for Lousy Parenting.' There were some pretty strong opinions in it, and I could see both sides, but I'd have to agree with the people that say that the blogger's term "ghetto parenting" is going to be perceived in a racial context.

Task 3

Blog writing is, I think, a pretty unique form of writing. It's really kind of an 'anything goes' type of writing. But what I like about it is how I feel like I really get to know something about the writer from it, whereas with other forms, you don't get such personal knowledge. When someone blogs, he/she is really putting himself out there. The difference between blogging and other writing, though, is that when that person puts himself out there, he gets immediate feedback from readers. The blogger will know if people love or hate his ideas, and people are not always nice when they respond to ideas they don't agree with.

I really liked reading the blog from the teacher who doesn't give homework. I thought the initial blog and all of the comments were very thoughtful, and I feel like blogs like that could be very useful to me as a teacher. I think that having a place where professionals can share thoughts and opinions with people they would never get to meet otherwise is an awesome thing.

For students, I think blogging can help to reinforce their ideas, but also get perspectives that they may not get otherwise, such as thoughts from other teachers and students. Not to mentions teachers and students who may live in different places.

Task 1 - Thoughts about Web 2.0

I have to be honest. Before starting this course, I really thought I would be brushing up on things I already knew pretty well. After reading 'A Day in the Life of Web 2.0' I quickly realized I was WRONG. As I was reading the article, I was more and more amazed at how the web could be used.

I think it's exciting, but also a little overwhelming because there's so much I don't know, and will I really be able to integrate Web 2.0 into my classroom?

In the schools where I have taught in the past, most of my students didn't have a computer at home. So any technology that I wanted to use was pretty much limited to what I could do in the classroom, which was not much and was rarely very interactive. It was mostly me using the technology as a teaching tool...In other words, it was more of a Web 1.0 situation. In the future it seems that I will be communicating with students and parents in a whole new way. Homework assignments will be given differently, hopefully in ways that will encourage a deeper level of thinking from the students and will give me a better insight as to what the students really know. Parents will really be able to have an intimate knowledge of what is going on in the classroom, which hopefully will help them to support their children's learning even better.

I think that with cell phones and video games and computers being the norm for so many kids, education really has had to change to be able to engage kids in the classroom. It doesn't really work for a teacher to stand at the front of the class and lecture kids all day. I think that by bringing Web 2.0 into the classroom, students will want to get involved because they will be doing things similar to what they already like to do.