Do You Voice Thread?

Check out my lesson plan about the Underground Railroad using "Voice Thread."

https://www.getbackboard.com/view/3z6MfM8aB1

My Journey Doesn't End Here!!

Well, even though this is the last night of Teaching With Technology, my Web 2.0 journey certainly does not end here! We presented our projects tonight and I really learned so much from my classmates. Actually, I don't know what I am going to do with my free time when I am not in this class anymore!

For my project, I decided to research the programs Haiku, Yugma, and VYew. As any other virtual classroom, I found these programs very useful for collaborating with students, uploading lesson plans, hosting webinars, and giving students instant feedback. Let's face it, we live in a world of instant gratification. Elementary school is much different today than when I was there! I remember that it would take the teacher such a long time to give us feedback after taking a test or other assessment. Well, with Web 2.0 programs such as Haiku, Yugma and VYew, this doesn't have to be the case, nor will it be! You can set up your virtual classroom to give your students instant feedback through discussions, journals, and blogs. You can also give your students a secure and spam free place to post or send messages. As the teacher, you can write one student or the entire class. On Haiku, you can poll, drill, and examine what your students know. Then, you can sit back and let your computer do the grading! Also on Haiku, a resource library is coming soon! This is a place to share your content or use ready-made content supplied from third party providers.

Overall, I had a wonderful experience taking this class! I loved working with Dr. S. and my fellow peers. Web 2.0 provides us with SO MANY tools to use in the classroom, that the walls of isolation truly are being broken down! Remember, teachers do not have to be in this profession alone. There are so many tools that we can use to collaborate with each other....so let's take advantage of them!!! It would be a hug disservice to both ourselves and our students if we didn't!

Below is the link to my presentation on Slideboom:

http://www.slideboom.com/presentations/75800/Using-Haiku%2C-Yugma%2C-and-VYew

Virtual Classrooms

Virtual classrooms seem to be the way of the future! Recently, I read an article and wrote a review about how teachers feel isolated because they do not have time to reach beyond the four walls of their classrooms. With Web 2.0, these barriers of isolation are slowly being diminished. Now, teachers are able to share ideas with other teachers online, upload lesson plans, ask for advice, and receive feedback. Let's just face it, time is a teacher's worst enemy. As a fifth grade teacher, I know that I am constantly against the clock. However, Web 2.0 makes it so much easier for this professional dialogue to occur. Teachers should never have to be in their profession alone.
For my final project, I decided to look more into virtual classroom sites, such as Haiku, Yugma, and VYew. Honestly, I never knew that these sites existed! After researching them, I found that teachers can use these sites to upload lesson plans, post discussion forums, give students immediate feedback, host online classes with a live chat, and utilize an online gradebook. They actually remind me a lot of the Moodle site that we use for Teaching with Technology. Again, I think that these sites will help to break down the barriers of isolation that teachers are feeling. In this sense, this site will also foster a collaboration amongst students because they can work together on a similar project, give each other feedback, and provide each other support. I believe thaty Virtual classrooms are the way of the future, and it would be interesting to see more teachers incorporating these sites into their classrooms.

Ahhh...The Possibilities!

When I first discovered all that Web 2.0 had to offer, I was so excited! I am certainly learning more and more everyday....I want to use EVERYTHING I find, but I know I have to narrow down my choices to the ones that will be the most useful at this moment in time. For one of our assignments, we had to search through TONS of Web 2.0 tools and choose two of them that we would use in our classrooms (very tough choice!!!). One tool that I liked in particular was OpenZine. OpenZine is a tool that teachers can incorporate into the classroom for students to construct an online magazine. Once the magazine is created, students can post it on the site for others to view and comment on. They can also collaborate with peers and share ideas. I recently finished up a "Feature Article Study" with my students. They had to create a feature article in Writer's Workshop, and then they typed it on Microsoft Publisher. With OpenZine, they could have created a title and cover to their "magazine." Instead of having a traditional publishing celebration, we could have brought out the laptops, and students could have shared their work with each other using this OpenZine tool. The students would have LOVED this idea!
Another web 2.0 tool that I would incorporate into the classroom is DoInk. DoInk is a place to enjoy art and animation, and make your own. Students can draw and animate online, as well as collaborate to share work. I am currently finishing up a Civil War Inquiry Unit with my students. One of their final task options is to create a graphic novel. Many of my students want to choose this option, but they are worried about making the pictures. I believe that DoInk will allow children to be creative with drawing, in a non-intimidating way. Maybe next year I will utilize this program to make a virtual graphic novel! This would definitely engage them and raise their interest level a whole lot!
Our next assignment was to construct a lesson plan using a Web 2.0 tool. I decided to use the program "Voice Thread" to construct my lesson around. This program is a wonderful discussion tool because you can make a slide show and students can comment by either typing their response or recording it. I think it would be neat to have students make their own Voice Thread presentations, and then have them go on to other student's sites to comment. What a wonderful way to collaborate!

Web 2.0 Word Splash!!!

Check out my group's Web 2.0 word splash or word cloud that we created. These are all words that represent Web 2.0 and its endless possibilities!

Don't Be Fooled! Stay Informed!

Keeping students educated about Internet safety and Cyber Bullying is such an important piece of our job! What students don't know WILL hurt them! Making a lesson plan about these topics have really opened my eyes to the lack of awareness some students have. How are they expected to know the potential dangers of the Internet if no one every tells them? It is so easy for a student to get caught up in a situation where he/she wants to share personal information on the Internet just because everyone else is doing it. What many students do not understand is that what ever they post on the Internet can be viewed by anyone in the world! It is our responsibility as educators to make them aware of this, and the potential dangers that can be caused because of one wrong move. Also, many students may think it is "cool" to Cyber Bully another student by saying mean things, spreading rumors, or posting an inappropriate picture. Students need to understand that this is a serious offense that can turn into a potentially dangerous situation. The websites that Dr. S posted for us to view are wonderful resources for teachers to use in the classroom. Many of the websites are interactive games that include questions about Internet safety for students to complete. The more we talk to our students about the dangers of the Internet, the better their web experiences will be! Our children should not be afraid to explore the web, that is why we must keep them informed! Below are some of the sites:

Disney Online
Bad Guy Patrol!
Get Creative (video about Creative Commons)
i Keep Safe
IPL Teenspace
Cyber Citizen
Wired safety
Internet Detective Home

This is Not Goodbye!!

Well, this is my last blog entry for Literacy and Technology....however, it's not goodbye!! Technology is such a big part of my life, and now that I am aware of the Web 2.0 tools that I can use in my classroom, I will constantly be exploring to find the most useful ones! I have grown so much this semester, and I now feel more confident about incorporating technology into the classroom. There are so many interactive things you can do with technology to motivate and intrigue your students! Take blogging for example! Eventually, I would love to set up a blog for my students to be able to express their thoughts on. This collaborative tool will also help to promote literacy skills in the classroom. I plan on having my students make a podcast by the end of the school year for their Civil War Inquiry Project. It's so exciting to see the students ready to experiment with new tools in order to better their learning.
Overall, I enjoyed taking this class! Dr. S, you have taught me so much about the creative tools that are right at our fingertips!!! I didn't know about or understand half of them until now! This class has broadened my horizions as a teacher, and I am grateful for that! I would LOVE to learn more, so I am taking the course "Teaching with Technology" Summer I semester. Hopefully my "toolbox" will grow!
So again, it's not goodbye....It's actually a fresh start to a whole new approach of teaching!

Here is the link to my final project on using blogs in the classroom to improve literacy skills:
http://www.slideboom.com/presentations/63715/Using-Weblogs-in-K-12-Content-Area-Curriculum-to?pk=acd4-ff4d-a965-fb44-6648-6c4d-049e-de67