Smartboards a Smart Choice for the Classroom

Smartboards
This is a short little video that adresses a few of the ways that smartboards can aid student learning. There are a few new ways here that I haden’t even considered. Watch, you could learn something new!

The Many Uses of KidPix in the Classroom

This site provides information for teachers on how to use the Kidpix program in the classroom. The kidpix program allows students to create graphics, moving pictures, animated pictures, and slideshows. This site breaks down ideas for using this program for students from Kindergarten through third grade. These are wonderful ideas for a program that is FREE!!

Using Snappy Scanners in the Classroom

The article, “Snappy Ideas for Using Scanners
in the Classroom” I discovered a plethora of ways to use scanners in the classroom. Some of the ways include, scanning in great drawings done in class to project them for the entire class to admire, tracking hand size growth over time, creating a classroom slide show, and turing a scanner into a microscope. Really cool and easy ideas for an affordable piece of technology

Using GarageBand in the Elementary School Classroom

This article gives teachers great ideas for using the Apple technology called “Garage Band” in the elementary school classroom. The article outlines how to use the program, where to get support, and provides a section just for suggestions for teachers when using the software. The article also outlines several unit topics that you could cover using the software. These include podcasting, creating raps, increasing reading fluency, and recording creative writing pieces. This article was very insightful and it provided many interesting ways to use technology in the classroom

Sesamestreet-Interactive site

All kids love the television show Sesame Street so why not let them participate in interactive educational games with their favorite characters. This site features over 60 educational games, 10 videos, and assorted music which are all focused around Sesame Street characters. There are some very good items that will easily meet the various areas of the state standards.

KiddiesGames.Com- Unique Interactive Games

This site is unlike any other that I have seen and it would be of assistance to any early childhood teacher. The site provides a variety of sign language games, baby games, spanish games, french games, books, videos, music, and much much more all for free. For an added bonus the site is available in both french and english. The only thing I don’t like about the site is that some of the baby games are taught using a breastfeeding concept….which is a little weird!

Bobinogs Early Childhood Interactive Games

This is a great site for any early childhood teacher who is teaching their students about basic life skills. The animated games/videos on this site teach students how to wash thier hands, clean up, share, to select appropriate cloths for the weather, to take care of a pet, and many other basic life skills. These games are so clever and the really break down tasks into simple easy to understand parts. This site is a must for any Early Childhood Educator!

Using a Digital Camera in the Primary Classroom

This is an extremly practical site that shares the many ways that a teacher can use digital cameras in the classroom. The site provides step-by-step instructions on how to introduce students to the digital camera. The instructions are followed by 15 amazing and practical examples of how to integrate the camera into lessons. This is a great site that really makes using technology seem easy.

Using technology in the classroom

This article entitled,”Using Technology In Your Classroom” talks about how important technology is to the educational curriculum. The article shares information about why teachers should use document cameras, smartboards, and amplification systems to meet the diverse needs of all of thier students.

Using iPods in the Early Childhood Classroom

Finding ways to use technology in the early childhood classroom can sometimes seem difficult, but this site provides great ways to creatively integrate iPods into the early classroom setting. This site brings to light many non traditional ways for teachers to use iPod technology for purposes other than just listening to music. These ideas include the iPod shuffle Pre-Reading program, podcasting, listening centers, books on tape, teacher recordings of lessons, and books, and of course for listing to classroom music. This site makes the idea of iPods in the classroom seem easy

Great interactive games and printables from The Kids Page

This site has a great combination of interactive online games, online jigsaw puzzles, board games, memory games, sports games, strategy games, printable games, and other printables for all ages of students. It is really a one stop shop for any type of action packed game and best of all they are all free.

Prongo- Interactive Games

This website has a great collection of interactive games for students. The site has games for three age ranges of students ages 3-6years, 6-9 years, and 9-12 years. There are math games, word puzzles, and entire themed units. This site would be a great addition for any teacher from Preschool-6th grade

Making Old Mac Donald New

This is a chart that I used with my students while we were learning the song, “Old Mac Donald”. As you can see I typed out all of the words and then created a display for the students. I think this would be way more efficiant it I created a smart board program that lit up each word of the song as it is being said. This would help the students track the text while singing the song. This program could easily be paired with an audio tape of the song. I think that this would make the song more of a teaching tool rather than just a song.

Teachers Technology Mistakes- Blog Reflection

On the highly contraversial educational blog The Blue Skunk Blog I found a post called “Seven stupid mistakes teachers make with technology” that i found pretty interesting. In the blog, the author states that he believes that the biggest mistakes that teachers make with technology are not backing up data, treating school computers like home computers, not supervising studnents that are using technology, acting like online communication is private, ignoring students interests in technology for educational gain, and thinking that someday technology will go away. I do agree with the author on this issue teachers need to supervise students that are using technology, put safeguards in place for internet use, embrase student interest in technology, and understand that technology is never going to go away so they must need to learn how to use it to be a successful teacher.

Pirates in the Classroom- Blog Reflection

On the blog Learning.now I came upon a blog post called “The Live Piracy Map: A Treasure Trove for Student Discussion”that I believe is a great idea for teaching students about current events. The blog post talks about turning the hot topic of piracy into a lesson on history and current events. The blog suggests using google maps and google earth to trace the roots of current day pirates while learning about why their actions are so serious. I just think that this would be a fun and interesting topic to adress especially with the use of the google technology.

Laptop training- Blog Reflection

While looking at a vido post called, “One-to-One Laptop Training in Whiteville” on the blog The Junk EduBlog I was thinking this has to be a joke. In the video there are teachers taking a course on how to operate their laptops. In the video the instuctor teaches the teachers how to turn on the computer, how to turn up the volume, how to plug in a microphone and headphones into the computer, and many other aspects of basic computer usage. After watching this video my thoughts were…..are you kidding me…teachers who don’t know how to turn up the volume on thier computer in 2008….rediculous! Thats about all I can say about that!

The Interacive “Big Red Barn”Activity

This was a chart I did for my Preschool practicum to accompany the book, “The Big Red Barn”. I think that this could be easily done in the same format and with the same results as a smart board activity. Basically it would be a matching game where student would have the same pictures and words but they would have to match them up by dragging and dropping them into the correct places. At the time I did this activity with 4 year olds. My only concern with making it an interactive activity using technology is that it might be too advance for the age group.

Technology and Research Projects- Blog reflection

On the blog Kathy Schrock’s Kaffeeklatsch I found a truly interesting post with a vido called “The Networked Student”. In this video and post the author walks the viewers through a research project that uses 21st century learning techniques. In the video the student chooses a topic, researches the topic, posts his sites in a social bookmarking network and then looks at other sites provided by others on this same topic. Next, the student researches blogs about his topic and then subscribes to those blogs to recieve the most up-to-date information from those blogs. At this time the students uses all of the research collected to create his own blog which allows him to share his information with others. I won’t go through the entire process because it is quite extensive, but this is a really great post that causes you to look at research papers in an entirely different way.

PBS Kids Interactive Website

This is a wonderful interactive website which provides hundreds of free interacive games which are all based on core subject areas. We used this site everyday in my literacy practium and the students really enjoyed it. As a bonus the games are all centered around PBS televisions shows such as Super Why, Sid the Science Kid, Sesame Street, Curious George, and many other student favorites. This site will definately make any teacher popular with their students.

Technology and Letter Formation

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In my Kindergarten classroom we created this display that was based on the book “Pumpkin Town”. The students wrote lower case letters on Jack-Be-Little pumpkins and upper case letters on Big Moon Pumpkins and then we attached all of the pumpkins with Raffia and then displayed them in our pumpkin town. While trying to figure out how to incoorporate technology into this lesson I quickly decided that technology was not appropriate for this lesson. When it comes to teaching letter formation you really have to have the students use a pen or pencil to fully gauge whether or not they can successfully write a letter. When using a smart board to write the letters do not flow and there is more chance of formation error. I think that technology should only be implemented after students fully understand the concept.

Adding technology to “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom”

This was a great activity that I created to accompany the book, “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom”. The activity was great and the students absolutly loved it, but the integrated technology class really has me thinking about a way to do the same activity with technology. I think that the best way to make this activity interactive would be to create an interactive game on the smartboard where the students can select the letters with the pen and then drag them over to the tree. I think that this change would be great and it would really eliminate the time associated with creating and maintaining an activity with so many pieces.

Using a Wiki to promote collaboration-Blog Reflection

On the blog Moving at the speed of Creativity I beame particularly interested in a post called “Dr. Z’s Creative Cookbook for Collaborative Communication.” In this blog post, the author promotes the use of Wiki pages as a means of collaboration among students. He believes that using a wiki pages allows all studnets to work together on a project while promoting their individual strengths. Basically he believes that each person works individually and in unison to achieve a goal. Collaboration examples that are given include the ability to have multiple access to the Wiki, the ability for studnets to edit work at the same time or at different times, promotion of revision skills, and the ability to communicate using a form of technology. I have to agree with the author that using a Wiki in the classroom could be a great way to get students to collaborate. I can see how a shy student who always takes the backseat on projects could really shine with this type of activity because the face to face interaction would be reduced. Most students these days are also online all the time so why not give them a good reason to be online.

The school of the future-Blog Reflection

While reading a blog post on Weblogg-ed called “What is the Future of Schools?”, I was shocked to find out that there are an overwhelming number of students who are choosing to recieve all of their education on-line without even ever being in contact with a teacher or school. This is very disturbing to me because i feel that a lot of the school setting is focused not only on education, but on socialization and interaction. I just really worry that these online schools will cause students to be socially inept and unable to deal with basic interactions required for every day life. In the blog the author states that one online school has over 1000 teachers working for them and there is is over 20,000 people waiting in line to become part of their program. If this is the school of the future then I am definately worried!

Interviewing and Technology

I had my first interview with a school local district on Thursday and I was surprised that one of the the four questions I was asked was about how comfortable I feel with technology in the classroom. Of course with all of the classes that teach us about technology in the classroom at Washburn this was an easy question to answer. To my surprise, my interviewer told me that a large number of teachers are not as comfortable as I am with technology. He also stated that most districts only want to invest in technology if they know that it will be used, so the ability to intergrate technology into the classroom is of great importance to them. At that time I was just thankful for all the experiences I have recieved so far because it made me look really good in the interview.

How far is too far when it comes to politics in the classroom?

When I saw this clip on the news last night I was completly shocked to see this teacher bring her political views into her classroom.  Watch this and see how you feel about the attitude that this teacher gives a student who has a different political view than she does.  

How did children get so out of control?

A friend of mine brought this video to my attention the other day and quite frankly it makes me sick.  It seems that in this day and age some children have no respect for authority and no concern for anyone but themselves.  Things like this video, where a seven year old talks about hating his mom, smoking cigarettes, and then steals and wrecks a car makes me scared for the day that I bring my own child into this world. Watch and see what you think.