November 18, 2014 Blog 10

Hello everyone! This is our last and final blog post of the semester. I wasn't sure on what to expect when I first signed up for this class. I knew that it was required to get into the teaching program but I also love to learn the newest ways of technology in order to teach myself as well as my students one day. I was not expecting to learn as much as I did in this class. Starting from the first day of class up to now there has been a huge amount of information jammed in my brain. It has been a long and stressful semester but I would have to say that this class has been very interesting and I am so glad that I took this class regardless if it was required or not. My favorite parts of this class I would say was learning about gamification. Every week we would have different levels to complete and in those levels was where we learned about different techniques and ways to teach children. For example, Jing, learning about the Flipped Classroom, and the content curation. To start off Jing is a free screen casting program that allows you to take pictures and screenshots of the computer while recording your voice in order to make a lesson plan or in order for the students to learn while getting to see visuals as well as listening to what was recorded. For my Jing presentation I decided to do one through Pinterest I found interesting pins that I found was connected to the topic we had to write about and then I would take screen shots as well as scroll down on the page as I was recording myself. Also learning about the Flipped Classroom I found was very interesting and something that I would consider doing myself when having my own classroom because it gives the students a different way of learning rather than being lectured everyday about the same old boring stuff. Lastly, learning about the content curation I found was very interesting and will be useful in the future. This is because it pretty much gives you the chance to not be disorganized and have little sticky notes all over the place and be able to have all of your information in a certain place. For example you can have a certain study that you want the students to learn about and have a whole bunch of information there together for them to see. I am excited to see what the future will have for myself in the next couple of years and hope to teach my students and others all of the information that I have learned in class this semester!

October 30, 2014 Blog 9

Hello everyone!

This is our level 6 on the Techteacher game and for level 6 we had to learn about prezi. After looking at different prezi's 3 that I found interesting and neat were the mathematweets, superbowl trivia, and the basic chemistry. These three prezi's stood out to me because they were very interesting and were done well. To start off the mathematweets was interesting because it gave you a video of what twitter is and then it gives  an in-depth presentation on what exactly twitter is, how it is used, and what it is used for. I like how it showed pictures, gave a video, and how it is organized into different sections of what it can be used for, etc. Secondly, the superbowl trivia prezi was interesting because it first shows you slides of asking who is going to be in the Superbowl then it gives you answers of who the certain players are by showing pictures and what not. It pretty much gives you questions then the answers throughout the whole prezi about what the Superbowl is going to be about. Lastly, the basic chemistry prezi is interesting because it shows you the element in big letters so it stands out then all around the background it shows smaller words which as you go through the prezi it explains what that specific atom is in detail. Also like your basic chemistry information, what matter is, what an atom is and with showing and defining what they are it gives you each individual details of what they are so you can take your time when studying about basic chemistry.

October 22, 2014 Blog 8

Hello everyone!

I want to start off by saying that I feel that ALL teachers should "flip their classrooms." Before I watched the webinar and I read about flipping your classroom and saw the image that showed a side by side picture of your "traditional classroom" that said the on blackboard lecture today then the picture next to it which was your "flipped classroom" had said activity today on the blackboard. I find it so inviting and interesting when teachers take the actual time to explore and find new ways that can teach their students in a different aspect rather than being lectured all day not wanting to go to school. I hope that one day my students will wake up everyday and say "I am excited for school today!" After watching the webinar was a whole bunch of awesome information. One tip that stuck out to me from Todd would be that he uses Google Forms for the students who have internet at home who can go home and answer his questions and everything is organized and put together. Also if the students do not have technology or do not feel comfortable with technology they can just write it down on paper. A question that I have for Todd would be, out of the majority of your students what do parents feel about their students working in a flipped classroom? After reading about it and watching videos I would most definitely give it a chance. Being that there are standards and every year it is getting more strict on how and what teachers need to teach their students. Many teachers probably get overwhelmed and scared that most of their students will pass their state tests. After watching the video though he said that 96% of his students had passed the math portion of their test. I find that awesome because I know for many students math is hard and not exciting to learn. Although, having your classroom flipped can give the students a chance to learn about subjects that they may not find interesting, in a whole new aspect of learning. Below is the picture that I found very useful if you have never heard of what "The Flipped Classroom" is and want to get a quick understanding of what it is.

October 17, 2014 Blog 7

Hello everyone!
This week in class we have been working on the Tech Teacher Game and the levels that we have completed so far are 1 through 4. In class last week we had completed levels 3 and 4 which was skills on collaboration and communication. Communication and collaboration are two important skills to have in life regardless of the job you have, although for teachers it is a must. For level 3 we had to work with Twitter, Content Curation, and Jing. These are three awesome ways to use both skills, especially Jing. I was a little confused and nervous to use Jing because I have never heard of it before and wasn't sure how to use it. After watching videos and reading about it I had created my own video that was about spelling for first graders. It allows you to record your voice as well as use the computer to highlight certain objects and what not depending on what you are talking about. According to ISTE, communication and collaboration is important and useful because students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. Communication is a lifelong skill to have because with good communication skills you are able to interact with others and talk about certain ideas or what not. These skills are good to have also because you are able to contribute to team projects and it seems as though today there are endless amounts of ways that people can communicate whether it be online or in person!

October 9, 2014 Blog 6

Hello everyone! When I first was looking over the class schedule and looking at the different things we would be learning about I saw something called Gamification which I have never heard of before. I was curious as to what it was because it was going to take up about 4 classes! Yesterday we were introduced to it and I believe that it is an awesome resource that teachers should be using with their students. For those who do not know what Gamification is the application of typical elements of game playing to other areas of activity, typically as an online marketing technique to encourage engagement with a product or service. There are tons of different games that are able to be played for all different ages and different subjects. It is a neat way to learn the certain material with individual practice, it promotes collaboration, and even to apply learning. There is something that is called badges or rewards and that is what students can earn to get experience points. Students who have completed what the teacher has asked can earn badges and you can relate that to Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts when you do a certain duty and complete it you then earn badges. The whole purpose of Gamification is for students to get a better understanding of the subject and topic they are learning about through non-game contexts. We did something in class yesterday that was a part of the first level and it was called BrainPop! There were tons of different games for all different subjects that are challenging yet intriguing for the students to use. One common technique is to increase engagement by rewarding users who accomplish desired tasks. With that being said the question was do I feel that Gamification is just another fad? No, I feel that it is something that should be used by all teachers in regards to helping their students learn the material in a different more modern aspect! Below I have posted a link if you were interested in learning more about Gamification and what it has to offer.

Learn Gamification in 60 seconds

October 1, 2014 Blog 5

Hello everyone! Tonight in class was very interesting although it was very overwhelming at first when we were put into groups and had to create a website all over again! The good thing was once I started creating it I remembered back to how we did it in the beginning of the class. Towards the end of the class we learned more in depth information about YouTube and Google+. There are many advantages to using both. Most people know what Youtube and Google is but there was a lot of stuff that I had never even had a clue was possible. I'll start with Google+... once you connect to Google+ you are able to have circles, hangouts, post photos, and more. A circle you could relate to Facebook in the sense where the people in your circle are your "friends." You are able to make different groups of circles such as, family, friends, work members, and you can even great a group. Tonight in class we created a circle with all of our classmates which I thought was a good idea. If we have any questions or want to get to know someone more you are able to through the circle. Another neat thing that Google+ offers is a hangout which is pretty much the same thing as skyping. You are able to video chat with many different people at the same time and say you are working on something for school and you forgot what was said, not to worry because it is recorded! It is saved and then put into your Youtube account.  Google maps allows you to see restaurant and other business reviews from people you trust right in Google maps. Google play is where you can search for your favorite music, books, movies, with the help of the people through your circle. Your Google+ account can be as private as you'd like it and everything you post gives you the option to either let it public, or for only certain people in your circles, or for only yourself. Now, almost everyone knows what Youtube is but I bet a lot of people know what exactly Youtube has to offer. For anyone who has a Youtube account can have channels, playlists, and video tabs. Youtube channels can be customized by the background and color scheme of a channel along with controlling some of the information that appears on it. YouTube channels can also display favorite videos from other users, activity streams, comments, subscribers, and other social networking features. I hope you have learned something new about Youtube and Google+ because I know I have tonight! Below is a video that can give a quick overview of what Google+ offers. Hope you enjoy!

September 24, 2014 Blog 4

To whom ever it may concern,

We all may know that technology is taking over the way we educate our students. When children get the chance to use some sort of technology at school to help them learn it invites most students to want to do more. iPads are a good investment because there are hundreds of different ways that can help all types of students to learn from pre-school to college students. A reason that iPads are a good resource for learning is because many of the students may have access to them out of school which they could practice doing it at their own time. Using an iPad could help kids learn about the keyboard and make kids write more. Students would not have to keep getting up to sharpen their pencils, which distracts the teacher and students. When you make a mistake the iPad can help you with it. When people have messy handwriting, their work looks neat and is easy to read on the iPad. The iPad in the classroom brings education to life. Children have endless access to valuable information such as a dictionary and thesaurus, which previously were only available in printed format. Interactive technology makes learning more engaging and memorable. Tools such as audio and video recorders can change the way that learning takes place and homework is completed. There are unlimited amounts of free resources that are out there to help students better their education. I am hoping that you find interest in this letter and hopefully this changes your mind in ordering iPads for the school! Below I have posted a video that just shows an example of how fun and exciting it can be for students to learn how to write and learn the alphabet. Hope you enjoy! 

                                                                   Caitlin Foley