Technology Integration: What I've Learned

 

Throughout this course I have had a lot of ups and downs writing papers, writing in discussion boards and especially making my Web Quest. At first, while looking into what a Web Quest even was I saw some really nice put together ones and some very quick thrown together ones. I knew this would be an amazing tool to use in the classroom for any age child. I could also tell right away that this is something that I would want to use in my own classroom.
I worked hard to learn the ins and outs of making a Web Quest. This way, in the future when I decide to make one for my own class I wont spend nearly as much time trying to figure out how to put it together. I watched many videos on Youtube.com and looked at many other Web Quests to see what other options are out there that I could use on my own Web Quest.
I really liked all of the new technologies I learned about in this class. It feels as if its a whole new world of learning when we get online with an objective and start digging for more information.  The video making and word clouds are great tools in learning and had me wanting to know if there are other sites that do similar things but offer different choices. I asked around the school I work at and found many other sites that do very similar things but have more options, such as Tagxedo.com offers word clouds but unlike Worddle.com the word cloud creator can choose the shape of the cloud, and the size and colors of the words. This allows for much more creativity for students.
By making a Web Quest and adding other links and sites for students to go to, it helps instructors to connect with state standards. The standards are there to help support teachers make lessons that give a child as much education as they can get from it. State standards help us see where a child is at or how they are doing in the education world. It is very important that we have these standards to help the teachers lead the students to success.
One of the most reoccurring questions I noticed in discussion boards was "What if a child doesn't have access to a computer or internet at home?"  I think that as often as this question comes up in the boards for this class it comes up one hundred times more, at least, in schools. How do we plan a program online when not all kids can access it at home? I believe this is where teachers need to get creative and flexible with their time. If a teacher knows of a student in their class with out access at home they need to make time during or after school hours that kids can do this work.
All in all, I liked the class and learning about all of the resources that are out there for students and teachers alike. I loved making the Web Quest and I have gained some incredibly useful knowledge in this class. I will incorperate many of the things I learned in this class into my own class in the future by creating Web Quests and having the kids make videos and word clouds. If it was fun for me to make I'm sure kids will love it!

Equal Access to the Digital World!

 

What does it mean to provide equal access to the digital world? I believe that this means we are able to provide students with equal opportunities to learn and succeed. In today’s world technology is everywhere. Our phones, laptops, tablets and computers all provide us with the opportunity to learn. More and more teachers are handing out some homework that needs to be completed on the computer through and online program. I believe this trend is going to grow more so overtime.

There are many education based programs that are geared towards children and learning such as Edmodo, Brain Pop and Skillstutor.  Schools seem to be very eager to pick them up and everyday are incorporating them into classrooms and assigned homework lessons. These are all great learning tools but what if your child doesn’t have access to a computer at home? 

This is where it can be tricky. Most schools now have a computer lab or laptops that travel from class to class. Teachers need to help students that don’t have technology at home find time to do the assignments in school. It can be during down time, having some time put aside specifically to do this work or even before or after school.  After all, in the school walls is the best and for some the only place for a child to gain equal access to the digital world.

Social Media Today

 

I know that as parents we do all we can to protect our kids. We stay up until they get home, we make sure that they call us to check in when they are over a friends house, and so on. And with our kids now on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter it can make our check ins a bit more difficult and it becomes much more than just calling and checking in. We now have a harder time checking to make sure our kids are safe and being treated correctly. 
As many negatives as there are with social media there are just as many positives. If our kids learn how to treat and act on social media now hopefully there shouldn't be to much to worry about down the road. For this reason I have chosen to start a class page on Twitter. This will be a place where we can past fun videos and links to educational sites. This is also a place we can post pictures and share our thoughts and feelings about fun field trips with the class and activities we are working on in class.
I have added a tab at the top of our WebQuest page. Hover over the tab until the drop down box appears and click on Twitter. I have added some more information for parents and students about twitter and should be read and watched before venturing on to our Twitter page. A have added the link to our twitter page at the bottom of this post as well as on the Twitter page. 
See you on Twitter!!
Mrs.Randolph's Twitter Page

Animoto

Animoto is a fantastic way to make a video slide show with music that you can choose using photos that relate to the topic that you are working on. This allows you to have an interesting visual to go with your research. This tool will help you add a fun perspective to your projects and connect a visual picture with the research you have done in an original and creative way.

Try our slideshow maker at Animoto.

Educational Value of Wordle

A wordle is a cloud of words that are associated to what you are learning about. When words are typed into a text box it creates an image with

the words. This is an important part of education because it helps you visually see the words again and in a fun way. When a wordle is made there is an option to change the layout, this allow you do decide which words you feel are more important and need to be larger versus the words you feel play smaller rolls on the subject that should be smaller. By creating your own wordle and changing the layout will not only help you visually see the words repeatedly but will also help you use and identify important words in reading and writing.