There were so many things that I learned while keeping this blog. The image generators were an entirely new things for me. I had no idea there was such a thing as 'wikis' outside of Wikipedia. LiveBinder is not for me. Pinterest (my favorite time waster) has a Teacher Hub. Animoto exists and it's quick and easy and fun. I am terrible at making flowcharts and I need to continue working on those skills. Remember the Milk is a great app.
Learning is should never be static. I have always been a non-traditional student. My first attempt at college was a miserable failure and I dropped out. My return was via a night school program while I worked fulltime. I added law school as an "older" student at 29. I worked on my first master's in an accelerated evening program while I worked full-time. Now I'm working on my second masters again in an accelerated evening program. My scenic route though education has taught me that I'm never going to be finished learning. Of course, there have been times that I was ready to throw in the towel but I've stuck it out. That idea, keep sticking it out, is the most valuable takeaway from my education.
I thought I was more tech-savvy that I really am. Now that I've been learning about all the things I don't know I am not at all tech-savvy. Between this blog and what I've learned in the 5540 class my tool chest is much expanded from where I was when the class started. In order to keep up with tech information I am starting a new board on my Pinterest account to attach links and information I come across.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Thing 23
23 Things was based off the concept of 43 Things. This is attribution was posted on APSU 23 Things with the following notice:
*Note: This project is loosely based upon the website 43Things (which allows you to set and track personal goals) and the Stephen Abram article titled 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006).
I think it's important for students to understand that it's okay to use another's work (with permission) so long as credit is given. Perhaps I am a Pollyanna but I like to think most people don't do things when they know others wouldn't approve of it. On the other hand most people, myself included, are the tinist bit on the lazy side when it comes to seeking out permissions. Creative Commons makes it very easy for students to do the right thing. As a teacher I would encourage my students to use Creative Commons for the image and information searches. As a person, I would hope to lead by example.
*Note: This project is loosely based upon the website 43Things (which allows you to set and track personal goals) and the Stephen Abram article titled 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006).
I think it's important for students to understand that it's okay to use another's work (with permission) so long as credit is given. Perhaps I am a Pollyanna but I like to think most people don't do things when they know others wouldn't approve of it. On the other hand most people, myself included, are the tinist bit on the lazy side when it comes to seeking out permissions. Creative Commons makes it very easy for students to do the right thing. As a teacher I would encourage my students to use Creative Commons for the image and information searches. As a person, I would hope to lead by example.
Thing 22
Unfortunately, I finally found something in this project that I detest and, I'm sorry to say, that it's LiveBinders. I found the site to be unwieldy and complicated. On the whole it seems very counter-intuitive so I was fairly frustrated trying to get it set up. I can't see a circumstance where I would use the program after completing this course. My binder can be viewed here. I prefer to organize my links through favorites, Pinterest and downloads. I think the concept is great and the purpose wonderful but I'll keep searching for different vehicle.
Thing 21
I had never heard of Animoto but I wish I had sooner. Putting the video together was super easy and fairly quick too. Here's a link: fish. The pictures are from a trip we took to the TN Aquarium in Chattanooga.
This tool could be used by students to create mash-ups of photos found, or taken, for a particular subject or discussion. It would also be a fun extra credit exercise.
This tool could be used by students to create mash-ups of photos found, or taken, for a particular subject or discussion. It would also be a fun extra credit exercise.
Thing 20
I found a good video about political parties. It's embedded below.
I think a quick video can be a wonderful jumping off point for a class discussion or to further explain a point in class. Honestly, I had quite a bit of trouble embedding the video and locating the video I wanted through the upload function. I highly suspect that it's "user error" rather than a site issue. So, while I was incredibly frustrated I fight there was clear value to its use.
From other tools, I found Esfresh which allows you to collect music clips and see other peoples playlists. That could be great for adding background to scrolling presentations. I also found PopScreen which is a bookmarking site for videos. That tool could be helpful in the preparation of lesson plans when you are wanting to save news clips, videos and the like to be used at a future date.
Thing 19
I think most of social media rules should be, although they not be, common sense. Nothing good will come from friending your students on Facebook. My privacy settings are fairly high and I keep on top of updates to keep them high.
Nothing good will come from having any sort of private chat or text. It is much too easy to the situation to become uncomfortable for all parties. I love the idea of Edmodo. It provides all the good things about Facebook and Twitter while minimizing the downsides.
I am a member of both Tasty Kitchen and Yelp. I use the recipes from TK pretty often although I don't post many often. I pay close attention to Yelp reviews and occasionally add my own. I am a regular ready of IMDB since my partner is a huge move fan and I never know what he's talking about. I am also member of a few personal online groups. One is for foster and adoptive parents which is a wonderful, wonderful resource. The second is small group from a BabyCenter birth board that all had the same birth month who ended up losing our babies. There's about 20 of us that have become incredibly close and talk with each other daily. The focus is no longer our lost children but our everyday lives. It was a lifesaver then and a wonderful bonus now.
Nothing good will come from having any sort of private chat or text. It is much too easy to the situation to become uncomfortable for all parties. I love the idea of Edmodo. It provides all the good things about Facebook and Twitter while minimizing the downsides.
I am a member of both Tasty Kitchen and Yelp. I use the recipes from TK pretty often although I don't post many often. I pay close attention to Yelp reviews and occasionally add my own. I am a regular ready of IMDB since my partner is a huge move fan and I never know what he's talking about. I am also member of a few personal online groups. One is for foster and adoptive parents which is a wonderful, wonderful resource. The second is small group from a BabyCenter birth board that all had the same birth month who ended up losing our babies. There's about 20 of us that have become incredibly close and talk with each other daily. The focus is no longer our lost children but our everyday lives. It was a lifesaver then and a wonderful bonus now.
Thing 18
My twitter feed is https://twitter.com/tt_img. I set it up during the 2012 election because I'm an elections junkie. I'd say I'm following a well-balanced group of people from both the right and left. I also follow a lot of news organization and political blogs. And, it's a guilty pleasure, but I follow quite a few celebrities for the gossip too. What I don't do is really follow anyone I know personally or put out my own thoughts or original tweets. I mostly use it as a tool to get up with the news.
I did a quick search of "education" and found (and added) at least 20 new feeds to my following list. Most of the them are main-stream educational ones but several are from the reformer camp. To me, it's important to consider what out of mainstream arguments have to say. Sure, some are going to be way, way, WAY beyond anything I'm willing to go but that doesn't mean good ideas can't come from there. For example, I think the unschool-movement is completely out of left field and, under most circumstances, does a disservice to children. That said, I think their point that all too often children's interest in subjects are encouraged not nearly enough is well taken. Following that type of feed would allow to see those types of points.
As with most things discretion and common sense go long way. Certainly I'm not responsible for what other people tweet but I am for what I re-tweet. I'm so responsible for any original content and who I allow to follow my page. I think, overall, it would be a great way of communicating with students and parents but care should be used.
I did a quick search of "education" and found (and added) at least 20 new feeds to my following list. Most of the them are main-stream educational ones but several are from the reformer camp. To me, it's important to consider what out of mainstream arguments have to say. Sure, some are going to be way, way, WAY beyond anything I'm willing to go but that doesn't mean good ideas can't come from there. For example, I think the unschool-movement is completely out of left field and, under most circumstances, does a disservice to children. That said, I think their point that all too often children's interest in subjects are encouraged not nearly enough is well taken. Following that type of feed would allow to see those types of points.
As with most things discretion and common sense go long way. Certainly I'm not responsible for what other people tweet but I am for what I re-tweet. I'm so responsible for any original content and who I allow to follow my page. I think, overall, it would be a great way of communicating with students and parents but care should be used.
Thing 17
The assignment was to create an account with Delicious and see what information we could find using the search "educational technology." This was my first time and the site and I really liked it. The screen wasn't cluttered and navigation was fairly easily to follow.
I found several interesting article. One that I thought tied nicely into our course of study was discussing how to use Facebook in the classroom. Another that I particularly liked went to EduHound which had links to a ton of different activities.
I think this site could be useful for linking, researching and sharing information in the classroom. It's definitely a site I'll be returning to for future exploration.
I found several interesting article. One that I thought tied nicely into our course of study was discussing how to use Facebook in the classroom. Another that I particularly liked went to EduHound which had links to a ton of different activities.
I think this site could be useful for linking, researching and sharing information in the classroom. It's definitely a site I'll be returning to for future exploration.
Thing 16
I've used Mint in the past and I like it pretty well. There is always concerns that your personal info can be stolen since you're storing it online but, honestly, anyone trying to skill my credit cards are gong to be hugely disappointed in how little they get I'm not overly worried about it.
I downloaded "Remember the Milk" (RtM) to my phone and I like it a lot. You can write to-do lists in Notes but they don't transfer from day to day so they aren't as useful as they could be. RtM allows you transfer from day to day and prioritize so you know what must be done and what should get done. RtM allows me to modify, have set weekly tasks, plan the week in advance and have the wonderful sense of satisfaction of checking it complete. Of all the option, I like this one the best.
I use my phone calendar and I would truly be lost with out it. I'm in the 'if it's not broke, don't fix it' category with most things. If you haven't set up a calendar I think an online one is great to start but I don't think I'll be switching out from what I currently use.
Lifehacker is a pretty good site too. There's lots of instructions for just about anything. I end up there a lot when I'm googling how to do something.
The personalized start-up page was not a big hit with me. I have Windows 8 which is a similar concept and I try to have as few tiles as possible. Mostly it's just an aesthetic dislike with me rather than an issue with functionality
I downloaded "Remember the Milk" (RtM) to my phone and I like it a lot. You can write to-do lists in Notes but they don't transfer from day to day so they aren't as useful as they could be. RtM allows you transfer from day to day and prioritize so you know what must be done and what should get done. RtM allows me to modify, have set weekly tasks, plan the week in advance and have the wonderful sense of satisfaction of checking it complete. Of all the option, I like this one the best.
I use my phone calendar and I would truly be lost with out it. I'm in the 'if it's not broke, don't fix it' category with most things. If you haven't set up a calendar I think an online one is great to start but I don't think I'll be switching out from what I currently use.
Lifehacker is a pretty good site too. There's lots of instructions for just about anything. I end up there a lot when I'm googling how to do something.
The personalized start-up page was not a big hit with me. I have Windows 8 which is a similar concept and I try to have as few tiles as possible. Mostly it's just an aesthetic dislike with me rather than an issue with functionality
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Thing 15
It may sound silly but I had no idea there were any other wiki besides 'Wikipedia'. "Everyone knows" that you are not supposed to cite Wikipedia as an authority but there is no such rule against reading it. When I am trying to find out more information on a topic I often start with a Wikipedia entry which it great for background information and reference cites for other material. Beyond that, I didn't know that wikis were a thing.
They are a thing! They are a great thing! I spent a big chunk of time wondering around http://resourcesforhistoryteachers.wikispaces.com/. They are chock full of information for all grade levels. In particular I liked poked around the political science and economic links. I think I've said this in other posts but the amount of material available is almost overwhelming. For just about any subject there are teaching resources for the taking so long as you are willing to put in the tiniest bit of effort. I'm sure once I'm in the classroom I will find a million and one things to do but there are lesson plans for all subjects and wiki sites are a terrific place to start looking at a few.
They are a thing! They are a great thing! I spent a big chunk of time wondering around http://resourcesforhistoryteachers.wikispaces.com/. They are chock full of information for all grade levels. In particular I liked poked around the political science and economic links. I think I've said this in other posts but the amount of material available is almost overwhelming. For just about any subject there are teaching resources for the taking so long as you are willing to put in the tiniest bit of effort. I'm sure once I'm in the classroom I will find a million and one things to do but there are lesson plans for all subjects and wiki sites are a terrific place to start looking at a few.
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Thing 14
I'm almost embarrassed to admit that prior to this Thing I hadn't heard of the term 'mind map'. I can see how something like that would be good for brainstorming ideas. It could also be very useful in determining how to organize a presentation or research paper. The flow chart is always a useful thing when it comes to organization or teaching a linear topic. Here's a flow chart:
Next, I tried a mind map:
I can definitely see how both of these tools would be very useful in the classroom. They are, however, tools that I need more practice using.
Next, I tried a mind map:
I can definitely see how both of these tools would be very useful in the classroom. They are, however, tools that I need more practice using.
Thing #13
This post's assignment is to look at Google Drive and create a document, drawing or presentation.
Here's a drawing that I did:
Here's a drawing that I did:
I thought Google drive was just as easy to use as Word or OpenSource or any other document service. I looked at Zoho but you needed to create an account to look around. I'd prefer an option of 'test-driving' before signing up for yet another account.
Google Drive could be very useful in the classroom. Students would be able to work on projects together, from accessing shared Drive, thus allowing class-time to be used on other projects. It could also allow for real-time editing of projects and teachers. Students, for example, could turn in rough drafts, see the editing done by the teacher, and then modify immediately without the hassles of emailing documents back and forth.
Monday, September 2, 2013
Thing #12
If I counted it out I probably google upwards of 20 times a day but that's probably a conservative estimate. When I'm too lazy to look in the official statute book I will search for "Kentucky Revised Statutes." When I need a new recipe I'll immediately google one. It is my go-to resource. I think it's utterly amazing that we have the world at our fingertips for the searching. If I need to know some random fact about some random thing it's just waiting to be searched. I fairly certain once I'm in the classroom and someone has a question my response will be "Let's google it!"
I set up several Google alerts. Some are for the EDUC 5500 class like "bilingual education" and "school to prison pipeline." Those will be particularly useful in the next few weeks while I work on my topic presentation and research paper. But I did set up a news alert for "cows". I have a theory that cows are the placid, easy-going bovines harmlessly grazing in the field. What they really are sinister beings plotting our demise one or two people at a time. I read (and post to Facebook much to my friends' chagrin) all the articles I come across about 'cows gone wild'. I'm sure my friends will be thrilled to find out I won't be missing any future news stories.
I also explored Google Books. I wanted to see if I could use phrases to pull up books or poems. My grandmother and then mother used to say an old nursery rhyme to us when we were little so I typed in "there's a wise old owl in the tree". The first link is for the Northwest Journal of Education, Volume 15, page 13 published in 1903. Here is that link: http://books.google.com/books?id=fukBAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA2-PA13&dq=%22there's+a+wise+old+owl+in+the+tree%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=NQElUvqfAsissQS8-4CoDg&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22there's%20a%20wise%20old%20owl%20in%20the%20tree%22&f=false. When I typed in "the wise old owl in the tree, in the tree" a link to an storytelling resource was the first site. Here's that link: http://hive-arts.org/resources-links/some-favs-fingerplays-nursery-rhymes/autumn-near-the-hive/. The version from the hive is slightly different than my grandmother's and mom's but here is it copied from the site with my remembered changes. It's said very quietly until the "WHO" which is said much louder. No matter how many times we heard it, we always jumped at the correct time.
A wise old owl in the tree, in the tree.
And he sits quite still all the day
His wise old eyes look at you and me
In the most surprising way
And when all the world goes to sleep at night.
And there isn’t even a ray of light.
Mr. Owl hoots up sets his wings for a flight
WHOOO says the owl in the tree.
I think these sort of tools could very useful in the classroom. Google alerts could be set up for current events projects and research projects. Google Books has a great wealth of material which could be used for the same.
I set up several Google alerts. Some are for the EDUC 5500 class like "bilingual education" and "school to prison pipeline." Those will be particularly useful in the next few weeks while I work on my topic presentation and research paper. But I did set up a news alert for "cows". I have a theory that cows are the placid, easy-going bovines harmlessly grazing in the field. What they really are sinister beings plotting our demise one or two people at a time. I read (and post to Facebook much to my friends' chagrin) all the articles I come across about 'cows gone wild'. I'm sure my friends will be thrilled to find out I won't be missing any future news stories.
I also explored Google Books. I wanted to see if I could use phrases to pull up books or poems. My grandmother and then mother used to say an old nursery rhyme to us when we were little so I typed in "there's a wise old owl in the tree". The first link is for the Northwest Journal of Education, Volume 15, page 13 published in 1903. Here is that link: http://books.google.com/books?id=fukBAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA2-PA13&dq=%22there's+a+wise+old+owl+in+the+tree%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=NQElUvqfAsissQS8-4CoDg&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22there's%20a%20wise%20old%20owl%20in%20the%20tree%22&f=false. When I typed in "the wise old owl in the tree, in the tree" a link to an storytelling resource was the first site. Here's that link: http://hive-arts.org/resources-links/some-favs-fingerplays-nursery-rhymes/autumn-near-the-hive/. The version from the hive is slightly different than my grandmother's and mom's but here is it copied from the site with my remembered changes. It's said very quietly until the "WHO" which is said much louder. No matter how many times we heard it, we always jumped at the correct time.
A wise old owl in the tree, in the tree.
And he sits quite still all the day
His wise old eyes look at you and me
In the most surprising way
And when all the world goes to sleep at night.
And there isn’t even a ray of light.
Mr. Owl hoots up sets his wings for a flight
WHOOO says the owl in the tree.
I think these sort of tools could very useful in the classroom. Google alerts could be set up for current events projects and research projects. Google Books has a great wealth of material which could be used for the same.
Thing #11
I used Technorti and BlogSearchEngine.org to look for feeds. Both sites were easy enough to use and fairly self explanatory but I liked BlogSearchEngine.org best. Technorti brought up plenty of options but they were all general. The tags were nice but not tagged for what I was looking for. BlogSearchEngine.org came back with options closer to what I was looking for in blogs. I found several politics news feed, both conservative and liberal like Reason and Slate, and I also found several teaching blogs that look interesting. My favorite was a link that led to a Pinterest board titled "Creative Teacher Blogs" so it's the best of both worlds there. When I used Google Blog search and typed in "teaching high school government" it was mostly posts ranting about the uselessness of teachers and the evils of teachers' unions or extolling the benefits of unions. I just closed the tab and went back to the other two options. On unrelated to class searches I found an recipe site for clean eating that looks good.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Thing #10
RSS feeds could be a huge timesaver. I spend a lot of time reading political blogs and an RSS could save me time from looking at each individual one. On Feedly.com I signed up for ED News, Edutopia, Free Technology for Teachers, Lisa Nielsen: The Innovative Educator and Teaching Blog Addict. While I was there added the additional political site feeds of Huffington Post, NY Times, Slate Webzine and Instapundit. So much of government is keeping yourself aware of political activities and court cases so the information in one spot would be a big asset.
Thing #9
Thing #9 is using sign generators to make postings. I have seen these signs on the internet or blogs but I had no idea how to make them or even where to go to make one. Using the generators was fairly easy and quick so that is a definite plus. I would hesitate to point my students to the generators only because some of them are inappropriate. These signs could be fun reminders added on the class website or used to add interest to a presentation. Here are few that I made...
Thing #8
The assignment for Thing #8 was to use mash-up tools from Flickr to make fun new images. I had no idea that these applications were available. I used the Mosiac Maker using various tags. For the most part I liked it very much but didn't like the inability to switch out specific pictures. This is what I "made" when I used the tag "statehouses."
My bike's first visit to mainland US, 2. Inside rotunda, New Jersey state house, 3. Massachusetts State House, 4. Pair of Pegasus, 5. Oregon State Capitol Rotunda, 6. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-55_7_9.jpg, 7. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-69.jpg, 8. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-71.jpg, 9. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-52_3_4.jpg, 10. King & Doty, 11. Snowing Monday in Madison, 12. WI statehouse dome at night, 13. View from Great Dane14. Not available15. Not available16. Not available
I used Spell with Flickr to create this:
For the most part I'm fairly open about sharing photos on social media. Normally I'm just uploading pictures of my dogs, food, a funny sign or the like. As a foster parent I am not allowed to post pictures of "my" kids. Once they are officially mine my friends should prepare for a massive photo bomb of two years worth of photos.
For the classroom these tools could be very useful for adding interest to presentations, scrolling pictures on a smart board, and adding interesting content to a teacher's website.
My bike's first visit to mainland US, 2. Inside rotunda, New Jersey state house, 3. Massachusetts State House, 4. Pair of Pegasus, 5. Oregon State Capitol Rotunda, 6. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-55_7_9.jpg, 7. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-69.jpg, 8. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-71.jpg, 9. 2011_05_29 Evening walk & cake-52_3_4.jpg, 10. King & Doty, 11. Snowing Monday in Madison, 12. WI statehouse dome at night, 13. View from Great Dane14. Not available15. Not available16. Not available
I used Spell with Flickr to create this:
For the most part I'm fairly open about sharing photos on social media. Normally I'm just uploading pictures of my dogs, food, a funny sign or the like. As a foster parent I am not allowed to post pictures of "my" kids. Once they are officially mine my friends should prepare for a massive photo bomb of two years worth of photos.
For the classroom these tools could be very useful for adding interest to presentations, scrolling pictures on a smart board, and adding interesting content to a teacher's website.
Thing #7
Flicker is wonderful way to district yourself when you should be studying or reading or just about anything else. The site is easy to navigate, the tags are relevant and the images are searchable. I did several searches of related topics and each returned appropriate content.
One of my favorite photo essays are the pictures of Detroit ruins and, more specifically, the Detroit Book Depository. The amount of waste, inefficiency and fallen dreams are all encapsulated in the photos. I did a search for it on Flickr and these are two that I found that I really liked.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31003735@N02/2933551137/
One of my favorite photo essays are the pictures of Detroit ruins and, more specifically, the Detroit Book Depository. The amount of waste, inefficiency and fallen dreams are all encapsulated in the photos. I did a search for it on Flickr and these are two that I found that I really liked.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31003735@N02/2933551137/
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