C4K Summary for March

Celicia

         My fifth C4K was for Celicia, a fifth grade student in Mrs Goerends class. She had to write how her life would be different without the first amendment. She tells how the first amendment makes it OK for her to have a freedom of speech, religion, assembly, and press. Celicia shows that this important to her because she can be friends with everybody.
         When commenting on her post I told her its great that she appreciates diversity. I then asked her to think how much different her life would be without it. I also asked her how would she feel if her freedom was taken away from her would she stand for her country.

Jake
         My sixth C4K was for Jack, a seventh grade student in Ms. Lentine's class. He told how he believed William Kamkwamba was successful in his first attempt in his homemade windmill that produces energy because he was able to create energy. I believe he has made an adequate observation, although I believe he may have misread his assignment. I believe the teacher wanted him to see that it was experimentation that made this possible so I made sure to include in my comment that Kamkwamba was successful but I'm sure he made many attempts before coming to his final product. He also believes that one way to make school better is to allow everyone free time during the day for fun and games to help relax. He feels that telling his teacher will help broadcast his idea. I believe telling his teacher is a good idea but I also told him he should benefit from technology and use his blog to spread his ideas around the world. I also told him that fun time is good time but we can also learn while having fun. I then asked him to give some exciting games that could be useful during class time

Isara
         My seventh C4K was for Isara, a seventh grade student in Miss. King's class from Pt England School, Auckland N.Z. In Isara's latest blog she gives her opinions on why we have Easter Eggs. She tells of how she thinks eggs are a a good symbol of life since hens and lizards lay eggs and this gives new life. I was sure to tell her that I believe she is on the right track and she has a good idea as to why we use eggs for Easter. I also challenged her with the question, What other items could we use for Easter that could possibly resemble some of the same things.

Project #11

Project #14

Blog Post #11

Little Kids, Big Potential

         Mrs. Cassidy's first grade students show how they use blogs, webpages, wikis, videos, Skype, and Nintendo DS to learn as a team. When the students spoke of using blogs they included that they get better at writing with every blog post they make. By using blogs they have also learned how to comment on blogs in a positive way. I feel that I would use blogs within my classroom because they teach concepts that are important and would make it interesting for students to learn and interact with each other through the internet. I would also like to have a class webpage so that my students can easily access topics that we are currently covering at their convenience. It would be fun to use Wikis so that the students can interact with children of the same ages in other countries and be able to compare their different lifestyles. Videos would come in handy within my classroom when the children would like to post their accomplishments on the class webpage. I feel that if positive comments are left on the videos the students would have the desire to continue to work hard. I love how Mrs. Cassidy uses Skype to allow her students to interact with experts. This is like having an on campus field trip. Nintendo DS is a great way to show the students how to share with one another. Allowing the students to use "games" to learn could possibly grab attention of the ones that are less likely to listen during lectures.
                  

Blog Post #10

Adventures in Pencil Integration It is clear that he is using pencils to resemble the "I'm a Mac, I'm a P.C." commercial. It's obvious that the Ticonderoga is suppose to be the number one pencil and paper mate is suppose to be the cheaper made pencil. So this cartoon is saying that the cheaper made PC is more likely to break down. The Mac is more expensive and only the "HIP" people buy these computers. I feel that at the end both pencils will get the job done. I agree that the Mac is more expensive and they offer more but I have to say I am happy with my cheap PC. It has served its purpose and will continue to until it "breaks."

"Why Were Your Kids playing Games?" is where a teacher and principal were fussing between memorization and keeping students engaged. The principal continues to shoot the teacher's ideas down that helps gain the attention of the students. The teacher continues to defend himself with why he is using drawing and games to help students understand what they are reading. The irony of the principal saying no to this idea is that he makes sure to say that he has an "Open Door Policy." To me I would think that this could also mean that he is open to new ideas. Unfortunately he would rather stick to "burp-back" education instead of the students actually learning the topics being discussed by using interesting games.

"Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff, Please" is someone looking down on technology and list the downfalls that could happen but whats the odds? Really? ...teach them the appropriate way to technology and then they will lead the way .This post reeks of sarcasm but definitely gets the point across. If parents are so concerned with whats on the internet then they should try and find out what is out there. Many people kick new things before they try it. There are upgrades in technology daily. So within a week who can say that it is really all that new. If more people would try and keep up with the changes then they will discover that technology is only here to help. If it can benefit us, why not use it? We shouldn't hold our children back now, now is the time to allow them to explore with new advances as much as possible. It will be beneficial in the long run!

I have been assigned to post on Scott McLeod's Dangerously Irrelevant two separate times now. Just by looking over his blog it is very clear that he stands behind technology in education. After looking for a little more information I found that he is currently on leave from University of Kentucky. He is the founding director of CASTLE. CASTLE stands for Center for the advanced study of Technology Leadership in Education. CASTLE is dedicated to schools administrators technology needs. Scott McLeod tries to spread his thoughts on technology issues daily through his blog Dangerously Irrelevant.

Blog Post #9

What I Learned This Year

          I decided to pick the first and last post by Mr. McClung so I could compare his outlook on teaching between the years.
          In the 2008-2009 version of "What I Learned This Year" Mr. McClung first discusses how a teacher needs to keep the students in mind over his or her superior. The comprehension of the students is what the teacher is aiming for while winning the acceptance of his or her superior while doing so. Do what you came to do and everything should fall in place. The second thing he discusses is that plans don't always work out. Yes you may have worked hours or even days on lesson plans but things change. The delivery of the lesson and the students process will always determine how the plan goes. I believe he is trying to say to allow the change to come in. In doing so, you can teach yourself to prepare for new situations. The third concept he talks about is communication. "Communication is the pathway to building that much desired rapport with fellow teachers." He says that it may seem simple but it actually hard to develop relationships with teachers and students around but as a teacher you need this to succeed. Fourth he says we need to stay reasonable. It is o.k. to challenge our students but don't become disappointed in them if they don't meet your expectations. If the student is working to their full potential be happy. Encouragement works much better than disapproval or signs of disappointment. The fifth concept he discusses is don't be afraid of technology! This is so true in so many ways. Technology will not hinder us it will only help us as teachers. The internet opens up so many doors to new possibilities. Sixth his point made is always listen to your students. I believe showing interest in the smallest things children say can help them open up with the more important issues they are dealing with. He tells of how a student said,"I know my teacher cares about me as a person when he. - Listens to what I say." This by itself moves mountains. It is important to show your students you interested in everything they have to say. The seventh issue he brings up is to never stop learning. As teachers we owe it to ourselves. Why should we not continue learning if we are teaching students to learn. We need to set good examples.

         In the 2011-2012 version of "What I Learned This Year" Mr. McClung says "You Gotta Dance With Who You Came To Dance With." This is an important concept when becoming a teacher and an adult. Sometimes adults get lost in their self image and of what others think of them. Mr. McClung had problems with being a pleasing others he lost touch with why he was a teacher. Sometimes you have to back away from the situation and center yourself. After doing so Mr. McClung realized that he started off with a simple question of "Is the Kids having Fun?" He says, "As long as I stick to this rule and remember who I really work for then I should never divert down the wrong path." I completely agree with him. I believe it is crucial to stay true to yourself and remind yourself your purpose as a teacher. "Challenge Yourself" is also a topic of his 2011-2012 post. He tells of how he had sunk into a comfortable spot within his career so he reused many lessons causing students to become bored. He became lazy and his creativeness was slowly disappearing. He was offered an opportunity o change his routine up. With accepting the new grade level and the new subject he came out of his trance and wanted to put the effort into his teaching again. He is basically trying to get across to teachers that you should not be afraid of change. Especially if it will better you and your students in the long run. Challenging yourself only means to push for your best. What's wrong with your best? NOTHING!

Project #12

Blog Post #8

How We Dream

         In "How We Dream Part I", Miller tells of the incremental changes of going from pencil and paper to using laptops. He discusses how our work space is now on the desktop of our computers and with a simple click of a button we can open research from around the world. When writing with media people can now work together over a network to create print, sound and visual documents without ever meeting in person.
         I often use the information presented in "How We Dream" on a daily basis. I can't think of the last time I actually stepped foot into a library to research a topic from reference books. Media makes research much easier and convenient than before. This video also made me realize how much I rely on my laptop over pencil and paper. It is so much easier to use Google docs for projects being made by more than one person. I no longer have to stress about meeting times or places.
         In "How We Dream Part II", Miller tells of how fundamental changes happen before our eyes. He believes that by using social media our culture will be more accepting to new ideas. As educators we should be open to share our knowledge and ideas with others around the world. The information we submit to the web will last longer than the information in books because people will do away with books when the web is ever going.
         I believe that in a simple way we can think of social media as our way to contributing to our future. The more information that we can share with others the more education we can spread. I know that for me teaching someone something new is the most important reward at the end of the day. I believe that if you can see what the happiest city in the world is at any given time then anything is possible. Just take the time to seek the endless opportunities social media has to offer.

Carly Pugh's Blogpost 12
         Carly hit the nail right on the head when creating her assignment. Reading and watching her you tube playlist I realized exactly what Miller meant by his hopes of writing with social media. Each and every one of her example videos were entertaining and educating. She demonstrated social media by including print with videos throughout her post. I enjoyed watching The Crazy Ones, Creativity, grease spot and Six Questions

Chipper and EDM for Dummies          Chipper is obviously in denial. This video shows what the average person accomplishes in EDM as far as deadlines go but it also shows how the average person will only get out what they put into the course. The more time a student prepares for the class the more the student will learn or educate themselves. If students could really buy the EDM for Dummies they would realize that the key to EDM is to learn to learn. Once a student is able to tackle this concept the rest of the assignments are easy. Yes they are time consuming but in the end the students learns more from doing it on his or her own than to just burp back the information given. I think for this class I could or would like to help other students with time management. Time management plays a big role in being able to teach yourself online since it is so easy to get side tracked!

Learn To Change, Change To Learn
         I understand the fact that classrooms of the past were set up to resemble the average factory but what is mind boggling is the fact that classrooms are still set up this way. We are now in the twenty first century we as teachers must incorporate the technology at hand instead of the situations of the past. I phones and I pads should be allowed in school. Children should broaden their knowledge with technology by using their everyday gadgets. Teachers should realize that the times have changed so our educating techniques need to change also. Teachers should allow students to explore the possibilities with new web tools.


Scavenger Hunt, Web 2.0 and Web 2.0 Tools

My Edmodo is much like Facebook. Its a social network site that allows teachers to easy access to parent communication, teacher communication and told to use within class time. I classified myself as a teacher when I created my profile. In doing so I was able to open numerous ideas I can use once I am a teacher. I will definitely use this tool in the future!!!

Poll Everywhere allowed me to create my own poll. After experimenting with the tabs on this site I realized I was able to add any question to my poll I wanted. Once you decide on your question you can chose an open ended answer or a multiple choice answer. If choosing a multiple choice question, you can add pictures to the answers for your poll. As a teacher I could use the feedback from this tool to help me prepare for my students.


Pixton is a cool way to make comic strips. When creating the comic strip you can choose from eight different types of comics. The next step is to create your comic and this site makes this simple. You then publish your work. I believe this would be a helpful tool in a classroom to get the attention of students. This could be an extra way to get the point across.

C4T Post #2

                  
Reaching Out to the Community

         Ms. Lara Bishop's blog told of how her pre-k students helped reach out to the community for the holidays. The four year old's families contributed food for families in need. She discusses how this project is good way to teach the students compassion and to be considerate of one another.
         When reading this I felt that more teachers need to focus on aspects like this. I told Ms. Lara how proud I was of her students for reaching out to the community and I plan to accomplish this within my classroom one day.

Dr. Strange I Owe It To You

         When going back to "The Jungle's" page I realized Ms.Lara must be busy with her pre-K students since there were no updates so I chose a post instead. In I owe it to you, She explains how she learned new teaching techniques from Dr.Strange that she would have never thought of. She also explained how she has introduced her pre-K students to computers. I feel this will be so beneficial to them in the long haul. The earlier we can teach them the easier it will be for them to make transitions through new technology.
         Her class is truly an inspiration to me! I look forward to using the tools Dr. Strange has introduced me to, to find my own ways in teaching my classroom like Ms. Lara has done.

Blog Post # 7

Randy Pausch's last lecture

         Randy Pausch was a family man. His lectures was one way he could teach his kids even after he was gone. In the Last Lecture Randy Pausch discussed different approaches one can take throughout life. I believe the three main topics he tried to cover was childhood dreams, empowering others dreams, and lessons learned.
         Pausch begins his lecture with how important dreams are to young children and their future. As educators we must realize how significant a child's dreams are to them. Teachers can help encourage students branch off of their dreams and make even bigger ones. He tells how we should always show students we believe in them but not to expect too much because that could be detrimental, Instead give them motivation to better themselves.
         There are many ways teachers can inspire the students to dream big. Some of the ways he discussed was to teach values to everyone. Students need to know to be honest, sincere, and noble. I think that teachers should focus on this daily. Some students look to them because their home lacks these values. Also students should know how to take criticism. Constructive criticism should only make a student better not worse. So showing these students how to make themselves better can help them accomplish their dreams.
         He spoke of how road blocks are not there to keep us out but to make us work harder. Living life we realize disasters happen but its then we realize how strong we are. He also talks about students hitting a brick wall. This wall is eh end for the ones who don't try hard enough.As teachers we all want our students to succeed so we have to destroy the walls built so the students can have vast dreams.
         Watching his video made me appreciate the time I have on Earth. He is an exceptional motivational speaker. I always want to be the best I can be but now I want to try even harder!

C4K Summary for February

Graham's Blog

          My first C4K was for Graham, a ninth grade history student. He talked of the differences that could have been made during World War One if they had modern hospitals at the time. He used humor throughout his blog since it was suppose to be a comical blog post.
          My comment included that I enjoyed reading his comment about modern hospitals in WWI. I have never heard of the disease Dysentery and now since reading his post and researching I completely understand his humorous comment of “more men wouldn't be caught with their pants down”. I told him that I believe his post was not only informative but interesting and to keep up the good work!

Trent W's blog

          My second C4K was for Trent W., a second grade Canadian student from Mrs. Balestin's class. He wrote about his exciting experience playing hockey. When commenting to Trent I congratulated him on his win. I also asked him what other sports he plays.

Ms. She's Class blog

         My third C4K was for Ms. She's Room 6 in Pt England. First I wished all the students a good school year on the class blog then I commented on Pare's Blog and Paiheretia's blog. On Pare's blog I told her that I was also starting a new class which was EDM 310. I told her I hope she has a wonderful time in room 6. On Paiheretia's blog I noticed that her parent had commented on how good she was doing in reading so I congratulated her in her accomplishments and that I have a daughter the same age as her so I know how hard shes working.

Labron's Blog

          My fourth C4K was for Labron, a tenth grade English student from Bay Minette. He didn't have his assignment listed but after looking on other blogs I realized he had to list ten lies told to him in high school. I didn't agree with some of the things listed. Instead of being negative I just reminded him teachers are trying to change the world one step at a time. His coach wasn't lying when saying his ball team will win state championship but rather he was trying to show the team he believed in them.

Project #9

I decided to use Symbaloo for my Personal Learning Network. Symbaloo helps organize and make sites easier to access while teaching myself connectivism. I grouped my emails together, my social networks together, and miscellaneous together. I have found that Twitter is a useful tool in finding resources to use in teaching. Reading teachers post made me realize that helping each other can really make teaching easier.