One last thing :)

YAY I did it! I completed Learning 2.0- 23 things for teachers and it sure does feel good. I have learned a lot!  23 things has really opened my eyes to all the technology that is available to me and others right here on the internet, there are so many possibilities for my future classroom. I am still no expert on the 23 activities that I have just BEGUN to explore but I truly believe I have a good foundation.  I look forward to exploring some of these things further and one day using them to educate young minds. One day I will be Mrs. Goodman, the educator but today I am still Heather the student. Thanks for helping me get one step closer the dream :)

Thing 23 :)

Without creative commons there might not be a 23 thing, which give credit to:

                *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).

Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers is based on Learning 2.0 - 23 Things, a staff development program for the Mesquite Independent School District. That program was based on the Learning 2.0 program that was designed by Helene Blowers and adapted by the California School Library Association and others. Content and style for Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers has been borrowed and duplicated with permission, under a Creative Commons License.

Creative commons making it easier for people to share their works and allows others to build upon these works, as long as they follow the set copyright. Which is great news for educators, look at sites like Flickr that allow anyone to use pictures (according to its copyright) which can help enhance lessons. I would be lying if I told you that I fully comprehend CC, I find it a little confusing, and it’s just something I need to learn more about. Especially as a future educator it’s important to understand the rules of copyright.

Thing 22; 2005’s Word of the Year

I must be living in a cave, prior to my technology class I had no idea what a podcast was. I had heard the word podcast before but just had no clue what it was.  I am so glad that I know what it is now, after some searching I can say there are some great podcasts out there and some not so great ones, but just like anything what one person may like another person may hate, to each their own! I really like the idea of having students create a podcast about a subject they have learned about. My standard is second grade science; life cycle and I originally went on a hunt for a podcast on that. During my search I found a second grade podcast entitled “Discovery through a Scientific Lens” it is a “news report” that covers the vocabulary, life cycle and other facts that have been learned during a turtle lesson. I think it’s a great way to review a lesson, a great way see what your students have learned and a great group project.  

Thing #19; Socail Networks, Something for everyone

I had never really thought about social networking outside of Facebook and MySpace, who knew there was this online world where one can “meet” up with others who are passionate about something or have a common interest.  I signed up for Teacherpop, so far it seems similar to Facebook but is a network of teachers, I am excited to be a part of this community as I further my education and one day teach I am sure to find this network of people to be very helpful. I also signed up for bakespace, I am a big time foodie I love to cook and I love to eat! LOL. I thought since it’s coming up on the Christmas season and I find myself getting prepared to bake LOTS and LOTS of cookies I figured you can never have too many recipes.  I have browed the site briefly and I have found it very user friendly. I plan on exploring these networks more and contributing to both.

Thing # 21 ....... And the golden globe goes to......

Ok so I don’t foresee winning an award for my little video but I Loved creating it. Animoto was quick and easy, I chose to upload pictures from my Facebook account, chose music that was offered through the site and hit create and presto in a matter of moments there was a video of my family. My only complaint was unless you buy Animoto Pro you don’t have access to all of the features. Other than that this was fun to make.  As a teacher I could use sites like this to make a video of my students at the end of the year to recap all of the fun we had during the year.  Enjoy :)

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

What’s on the tube? YouTube that is……. Thing #20

YouTube is a GREAT resource; yes there is fluff on this site just like on most sites but still there is something for everyone. It’s a great source for both students and educators. For students they can find help for every subject for example if I missed class because I was sick and we started a new lesson on fractions I could find videos on YouTube on fractions and then I could begin the assignments I missed while at home sick, instead of waiting until I returned to school and this way I wouldn’t be as far behind and could go to my teacher with question that would help clarify. Teacher can use YouTube to enhance lessons. I have used the site for some of my assignment in class to add in teaching life cycles which is the standard I chose.

I chose the following video because I thought it was very informative. The video is 10 reasons for YouTube video’s in your classroom.  Since this blog has been about how the different applications can enhance your lessons/ Classroom I thought why not search how YouTube can be used in my future classroom. The video is good; it’s nothing “flashy” it’s right to the point.  I can definitely see myself using YouTube in my classroom.

Thing 18; Final something I don’t have to sign up for!!!

I thought everyone had a either a Facebook or Myspace account, if not both. I mean even my 70 year young Grandmother has a Facebook account.   I happen to have both However I haven’t logged into my Facebook in what seems like forever.  Anyhow Social networking sites like this are GREAT, being a military wife has moved me away from my family and my childhood friends so I find Facebook a great way to keep in touch.

I also use Facebook to keep in touch with past teachers and to network with fellow Saint Cloud High school alumni and Valenica Community College alumni, I hadn’t added Austin Peay yet so I took this opportunity to add it to my schools, this is my first semester here.

So I think social networking is great and as a teacher I think it’s important to be in the know but it’s important to be aware of your audience.  As a teacher you might want to have two accounts one for your personal life and one as an educator. I love the idea of students being able to keep in touch with me and seeing where my students “end up”. Technology can be great!

Tag this :) …. Thing 17

I love the idea of Del.icio.us. It’s like someone else has done all the hard work for me and I can simple use a tool bar to search for anything my little heart desires.  In reality it’s a great concept but what I consider a great website about a subject maybe junk to someone else.  If you over look that It’s a great resource for a teacher or for my future  students, I could look at websites that are bookmarks to help me brainstorm about future lesson plans and for my student I could tag website to share with my students.  It can help to save time.  

Can you teach an "old dog" new tricks? ; Thing 16

On teaching this “old dog” a new trick ; I begin by creating my personalized homepage.  I chose iGoogle because of all the wonderful things Google offers. Previously I had been using Yahoo as a homepage, I know you can customize it but I have never taken the time to do so. Once I created my new homepage I actually set it as my homepage, which was weird at first since I have been an avid yahoo user for so long. To be honest at first I found myself falling into old habits, I would barely glance at my homepage before I would navigate away to some other site but once I “got the hang of it” I have found that I like my new homepage that has all of my favs right there in one covenant place. It sure does cut down on time. So its here to stay!

As for the calendar and to-do list, I can see their appeal HOWEVER its not for me.  I am old school, I keep an organizer/ agenda that I carry around with me and add as needed.  Having them on the world wide web can allow for easy access from anywhere, which is great and as a teacher I could use one of these programs to keep my classes activities/important dates where the student or their parents could access it to keep the student on track.  Which is great but it just seems like too much work for me right now, it’s a lot easier and convent to tote around my agenda and a pen so I guess you just can’t always teach an old dog new tricks :)

Wiki wiki wiki....... Thing # 15

When something sounds sOoOOoOoo simple it’s normal to good to be true. I found this to be the case with this “assignment”.  I am a fan of Wikipedia, it’s a great website full of a lot of information that is constantly updated you just don’t get that with those dusty old encyclopedias.  The only problem with this is anyone can add or delete information which could lead inaccurate information. For example I am a far cry from a history buff; frankly my lack of knowledge in this subject is quite embarrassing. So if I were to add or edit based on my own educated guess I assure you I would be spreading inaccurate information.  Let’s say I thought the south won the Civil War, don’t worry I know better,  but the point is millions could easily access this incorrect information and believe it to be true because EVERYTHING you read online is TRUE, lol. Well back to the assignment……. My attempts to adding to the sandbox were frustration to say the least, but wiki’s could be very useful in the classroom for projects like a classroom encyclopedia or a “group” study guide, note sharing, ect the list can go on and on. Wikis allow students to work together to lean with technology. However wikis are no good to me if I can’t figure them out!  I’ll have to keep trying.

Going with the Flow........ Thing # 14

This Blog was a lot of fun to “investigate”. I started my journey with flowcharts and I experimented with Gliffy. This website is VERY user friendly, well so far.  It’s as simple as drag-and-drop shapes, choosing colors and inserting text.  The possibilities are endless with this website one can use it for anything from flowcharts, to floor plans to diagrams. This is a great website for both students and teachers.

I also played around with Bubbl and all I can say is………. WHERE HAS THIS WEBSITE BEEN ALL MY LIFE! I experimented with this site to make a mindmap. I found it easy to you, the hardest part form me was deciding what I was going to create my “map” around.  I defiantly will use this site in the future to help organize my notes for studying purposes.

Zoho WHAT?!?......... Thing # 13

​What is Zoho? is it just a funny word? Or s it more

Zoho is................. Documents, Power-points presentations, Calendars/ planner, Spreadsheets, Chat rooms and much more. Its like Microsoft deluxe available through the worldwide web. I know the assignment was to explore writer but I spend some time exploring the applications offered through Zoho. As a  future teacher I found this website exciting! There are a lot possibilities for Zoho in the classroom ad students. As the teacher I could use Zoho to presentations for students who miss class or to lead an online discussion in a chat room. 

Having these programs online allows for easy access for students. With programs being updated constantly having these applications online allows for a student to extremely comfortable with one "version" of a program opposed to having to learn different programs at school and home. This eliminates zip drives and "lost" documents through email. benefit is for students who can't afford  these programs can access them from any computer and they can pick up were they left off without all of the hassles.

​In short, Zoho is an application that I could see using as a future teacher HOWEVER I would want to spend more time getting acquainted with it.

*note* After MANY attempt I tried to sync my Zoho with this blog to share with you what I had written in Zoho (the above) but I can't figure it out. It seems simple but I must be missing something. So here is what I created in Zoho, sorry about the sizing that's how it pasted over.

Thing 12; Google ROCKS!

What did we do before Google? Other then actually doing my laundry, cooking dinner and running my daily errands Google can do EVERYTHING in between and it can help you to do things in a more efficient matter.  Each of these tools could easily help in the classroom but for the purpose of this blog I am going to talk about iGoogle and Google calendar.

I must admit I have used Google for the standard search but I have never really explored everything Google has to offer.  IGoogle is a great way to have a lot of personalized information all on one convent page. It was simple and quick to set up. I did the 30 second set up, picked a background, and added my interests.  I love that I could link it to my Facebook, keep up with the top news stories, weather, view new recipes and I can have cute little turtles swim around my homepage.   It’s a great way for a teacher to have a lot of information right at their fingertips anything that helps you be more efficient.

That brings me to Google calendar, which I could add to my IGoogle. Google calendar is an easy online organizer that one could share. In the classroom a teacher could keep all important school dates, test, homework dates, field trips, birthdays and any other dates you choose on their calendar for easy access for the students and their parents. Or  Google Calendar could be used on a more personal level to organize our agendas and help with planning meetings with administrators, parents, and fellow teachers.

With google the possibilities seem endless, what can I say Google Rocks!

Thing #11; Define a good feed.....

If you need an expert on finding a bad feed, I think you can safely say that I am your girl. I tried all the suggested search tools and used the suggested key words “school library learning 2.0”  out of Google Blog search, Tioix.net, Syndirc8.com, and Technorati I found Google Blog search to be the easiest to use. However I found that just like doing a search in the popular search engine you will be giving a lot of feeds that aren’t really relevant to what you were looking for.  I found a blog I found interesting through Google I thought I had subscribed to it successfully but then when I went to my reader I realized I must have “missed” a step. Hunting down the same blogs again was painless and took no time at all.  I found a few blogs that I found appealing so I guess it wasn’t all a waste but I think this exercise my require more “play time” because I don’t feel like I have mastered the task of finding good feeds.

Thing # 10 The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

The truth is I find myself to busy to spend a lot of time on the web besides working on homework, and I'll admit it check my Facebook I don't have enough time in the day to do a lot of browsing. Google Reader is PERFECT for me, the busy mom, the military wife, the student, the future teacher, the chief, I am all of these things and with Google reader I can go and have all of this wonderful information for a the "different" hats I wear. I am still checking out all of my subscriptions but the one I wanted to share is TeacherTube. Teacher Tube is an online for sharing instructional teacher videos.  Google Reader has numerous subscriptions for teacher from things like lesson plans or just blogs about classrooms. It a GREAT resource to help a teacher find new ways to teacher subjects or could be great for a the student to have so much information tailored to their liking (maybe even about subjects studied in school ;) ) conveniently on one location. 

Thing 9; Lets Generate

 

The above image was created by using immagechef  It was very easy to use and fun to do. You could pick any set of words and symbols to create a mosaic. I picked the words; dream, grow, learn, play, and smile and various symbols.  I had the words created into a heart using various colors.  I think as people you need to dream BIG learn as much as you can, play hard and smile during the tough times.  You could use this website to create multiple things to use in the classroom or for personal reasons.  Either the student or a teacher could use this to create something to put in their blog, like we did, or as a post on facebook or twitter.



















The above image was also created at imagechef. I thought it was a fun way to put a qoute on my blogs.
http://www.imagechef.com/

Thing #8; Let's Mashup

I chose to use Spell with Flickr (example above) and Big huge Labs (example below) . They were both  easy, fun and  I could see getting addicted to these "tools".  

Spell with Flickr

There were various styles of letters and I think it can be useful for both school and personal projects. As for using it in the classroom you could have your students use it to make one word to describe themselves or maybe just to personalize their desk with their name, which can help you to learn your student’s names.

Big Huge Labs

Like I stated about it found this application to be easy to use. However I did have a hard time uploading my creation onto my blog. There are a lot of creative, cool things you can do with your digital pictures. In the classroom you could use this along with pictures of your students and at the end of the year create something to look back on all the different activities that were done during the year.

  

Photo Sharing

Photo sharing online can be such a blessing. I am miles away from my family so its great to be able to upload pictures for them to view or order. I do try to watch what I post publicly of my children since you never know who is on the other end viewing the pictures.

Thing # 7; Handprints

The picture above is my oldest daughter Hallie working on a welcome home project for her Daddy.  I started this blog browsing photos on Flickr. I used the key word handprints.  Maybe it’s the mother in my but there is something so simply and beautiful about a child’s handprints. As an educator you will leave your mark on so many children and sometime more of a mark then you know. BUT the children also leave a mark on you, the teacher. For me that is what the handprint symbolizes.

I found some GREAT picture on Flickr. I enjoyed browsing. However I had some issues with the copyrights. I found it a little confusing. I emailed one user about a picture and never got a response. Then I found another image but it would take 3-7 days to see if the user would allow me to use the picture for my blog so I decided to upload my own pictures.

Compared to photobucket I would have to say I would rather use photobucket. I like that on that site I can also edit my images, unless I am missing something I couldn’t do that on Flickr.

Flickr or another image hosting site can be a great tool for a teacher for finding images for PowerPoint or activities. It could be a great tool to let the student use maybe with a webquest or their personally assignments.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/32311656@N06/5024613900/

Thing 6; Information Overload!!!

Note to self, you should listen to the direction. If the directions say start with ONE, just pick one.  After I was done overwhelming myself I took a step back. I had heard of some of the sites mentioned on the web 2.0 list, some I use quit frequently but when I saw Skype on there I laughed to myself. I just started to use Skype this year but other than talking to my husband I really don’t know anything about it and the only reason I can do that is because he can use Skype to call me on my phone, technology is neat!

So after spending sometime checking Skype out and doing some research I learned the Skype can be very helpful for the classroom. I read about using Skype to having guest speakers in your classroom, you could have anyone from the author of a book your reading to someone from a different culture you’re learning about. Or how about sharing a performance whether it be parents whether it be to watch a demonstrating of a science experience or another class watching a class project Skype can do all of that and more. I even read about a fourth grade student who has leukemia and couldn’t make it to class so she joined her class everyday via Skype.  How cool is that?!?


http://www.skype.com/

Thing 5; School 2.0 and Remembering Oregon Trail

Web 2.0 defined: Information overload from anywhere around the world. From school, to home and at your local Starbucks, It is more things than you could learn in this lifetime all at your fingertips all with the click of a mouse.

School 2.0 Defined: The evolution of the classroom. It’s trading in those worn out textbooks for e-books,   its typed assignments instead of your handwriting on paper with a pencil or pen, its saying goodbye to those poster boards and hello to Power Points.  Its Smart boards in place of chalkboards, and blogs and social networking brought into the class room.  In short, it is implementing the latest and greatest technologies into the classroom.

Do you remember Oregon Trail? I can remember playing that game in computer lab. When I think about how far we have come in the classroom really it just makes me feel old. Thinking back to those big massive computers with their big black floppy disk makes me laugh. I have traded that in for a laptop and a zip drive.  Technology is great and updating our schools with the latest and greatest is just going to help us advance as a society. It’s astonishing to think about the information our children will have at the fingertips. I do however wonder about those schools that can barely afford books let alone updating their technology.  I believe in the school system we are only as strong as our weakest link. Maybe there are some exceptions to this rule all in all I think it is the truth.  So we really need to make sure that this technology is standard in every classroom.

Thing 4; Leaving my mark

We grow up being told “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all”. I believe we need to be reminded of this simple fact when you are talking about the blogging world maybe it’s because we forget that it is an ACTUAL person sitting behind a computer just trying to share their thoughts on different subject matters.  We all have opinions; sometimes it is best to just keep ours to ourselves. I think this whole having the “world” read my thoughts has kept me away from the blogging world. I think a blog can be so personal and to put myself out there in that way seems a little intimidating.

Now I do realizes this post is meant to tell you why commenting is a good thing, and I consider comments on a blog to be a great thing, when done with a little common sense.  When a person does put themselves out there for the world in a form of a blog they want people to read what they are writing and to have people converse on their blogs can be a huge form of flattery. Comments can be beneficial to both the reader and the writer. Sometimes someone else’s point of view can take the “blinders” off.

                                                                           Leaving my mark


People from my class.......

1) The first blog I chose to comment on was Asante Pugh post Thing # 2. This post was about her experience creating blog and avatar. Asante mentioned have some issues creating her blog because of the distraction of her children. Being a mother of 2 I completely understood how helpful kids could be.

2)I chose to comment on Holly Brown's post Thing #12. Holly mentions that she hadn't realized all the things that Google could do. I commented on this blog because I related to it, i too had never realized all the wonderful things Google could do.

3) Sarah LaBean's blog caught my eye because she was the first in our class to finish 23 things. I wanted to congratulate her on her accomplishment.


4) Coach Ski’s blog make you feel like you know him, that’s what leads me to read his post.  When I saw the picture he chose for thing 7, a simple smiley faces with words around in on post its, entitled Happiness…only when shared.  It’s a great way to look at life. We should all relish in each other good fortunes.


5) I sit next to Megan Antz in class to I thought I would check out her blog. I fell in love with the quote she chose for her blog so I let her know that I liked it


People from other classes......


6)  Kawana Atkins left a comment on one of my post and that lead me to prows her blog.  Just like this post talks about blogs bring a sense of a community. I enjoyed Kawana’s post thing # 5, it sounds like she has big plans when she gets into a classroom. 


7) I noticed that Jason Longon had just started his blog so I thought I would leave a comment of encouragement. In his thing #1 Plus he had mentioned that habit # 4 was the hardest  habit and that had seem to be a common theme so I wanted to let Jason know that he wasn't alone.

Thing #3; Blogging in the classroom

Writing a blog as a teacher could be beneficial in many ways but the focus of the blog would depend on the grade level you are teaching. So before I continue on I am going to fill you in a on a few things, you already know I am an elementary education major what you don’t know is my DREAM grades to teach would be kindergarten/first grade. I think it’s important to know that for this exercise. For those grade levels I wouldn’t have my student’s blogging, my blogs focus would be between teacher and the parents. At this pacific age levels could blog to help parents have a place where they could follow what activities are being done in the classroom. I could take photos and put up reminders of things to bring to class on a specific date. If parents are kept up to date with what is going on in class I believe it is easier for them to continue the education at home. Another thing A blog could help parents with all the up and coming dates all in one place and dates that affect their kids and only their kids, unlike the schools website which would have dates for the whole student body these dates could include anything thing from P.T.O meetings to the date of the latest fieldtrip. Blogging for the classrooms sounds like a great idea!

Thing # 2; Thoughts on creating this blog and my avatar.

Naming My Blog

I think my name is self-explanatory. This is my journey to becoming a teacher. Everything I am currently doing here at Austin Peay is just another step closer to the dream, being an educator.  I am happy to announce setting up this blog was simple and not complicated at all. When I was told that I would have to blog I imagined it to be one headache after another but so far so good! Maybe technology isn’t so scary after all, MAYBE.

My Avatar

I like to think of her has my virtual Barbie. I enjoyed changing her look a thousand times and then I left her as she is now, a slight depiction of me. Blonde hair, green eyes and even her clothes something I would pair together. I put a smile on her face because I am a glass half full type of person that sees the good in most things and she is holding a computer since you can imagine since I am a student I spend a lot of time near my laptop.

Thing # 1; Lifelong learning

I have always enjoyed learning and I have wanted to help spread that enjoyment with young minds. We are all lifelong learners in some sense. To explain which the 7.5 habits are the easiest and which are the hardest I am going to apply them to my life. I am a student at Austin Peay majoring in elementary education with the goal to graduate in 2013. That covers the first two. I have a goal and I am here attending classes. Though I am taking sophomore classes here at Austin Peay I have enough credits to be a junior, just not in education. When I transferred to Apsu from Valencia community college the curriculum was so different from Florida to Tennessee many of my classes didn’t apply. I could have looked at this as a setback but I truly believe it to be a blessing. Who can have too much education?!? Exactly no one and that covers habit number three view problems as challenges. Now I wish I could say I was a master of all of the 7.5 habits but I must admit that I am not. Habit four talks about be confident in myself, I have a hard time with that and I seem to always be second guessing myself. I need to learn I have gotten this far and that with a little faith I can conquer the world. The second of the habits that I have to work on is using technology to my advantage. Technology makes me a little nervous. So far this blog thing isn’t as scary I thought it would be I found it rather easy so maybe I am on the road to triumphing over that fear.