The End is Near!

Wow! This semester is coming to an end already.  I have so much work to do this last week.  I can't believe all of our papers are due and finals are a few days away.  This has been a crazy semester.  I am glad that it is almost over and we all can enjoy our summer vacation.  I learned a lot about technology in this class.  I thought I wasnt going to be able to figure out how to use a lot of the programs that we used but I was able to do it all and have fun with it.  I feel like I have a lot of new websites and tools now that I can use in my own classroom some day.  I also was able to learn about a lot of cool new sites that I can use for myself as well.  I feel that I have come a long way with how much I know and can do with new technologies.  After doing research and practice using new programs I feel much more confident using the computer and that I can do so much more with technology now that I know so much more about it.  Im also glad that I had a chance to take an online course incase I ever have to take one again.  Blogging has been a lot of fun too.  I hope that I posted some helpful websites and good information for everyone to use.  I hope everyone has a great summer!

V-trips: What a great idea!

I love V-trips.  I was able to find a lot of them online.   I think they are a great tool to use in the classroom.  Schools are limited in the amount of field trips they can go on.  I think that students learn a lot by actually experiencing things that they are learning about.   V-trips are a great way for students to get a chance to visit places they cant really go to.  A lot of the V-trips have a lot of interesting infromation and graphics that make it feel like you are actually there.  It's a great way for students to learn by doing hands on activities.  They are good to introduce a topic or end one.  I definitely will use them in my classroom.  I think they are wonderful and that students really could benefit a lot from them.  

Field work Lesson

I did a really cute lesson for field work that I figured I can share with everyone.  The class is learning about bats this week.  I work with preschoolers and we are talking about birds this week.  I had the little ones draw a picture of what they would want to do if they could fly.  We talked about characteristics of birds and why we cant fly.  They had a good time with it.  So when the teacher told me that her students were learning about bats I remembered the lesson I did with the preschoolers. The classroom Im doing my fieldwork in is K-2 special education room.  I started off by asking them What they know about bats?  They really knew a lot and were very excited to share all about it with me.  Then I asked them what we have in common with bats?  We also talked about why we are different and how bats and birds can fly and we cant.  I then asked them to think about what they would want to do or where they would want to go if they could fly.  They colored a picture and then wrote one sentence about their picture.  I had them use fun sticky letters to put their name on it.  I wanted them to stay focused and have fun with the activity.  They really seemed to like it and enjoy the activity.  I made a class book with all of their pictures and showed them all the wonderful creations that all of them had designed.  

Using games to teach

Students have a hard time sitting still all day at school.  I think its important for teachers to incorporate games into their lessons.  I am working on my social interactive lesson plan for my methods class and we had this smartboard assignment so figured it was a good time to blog about games in the classroom.  I think this is a great idea to keep kids involved in lessons.  Students usually enjoy helping their friends too.  There are a lot of great games out there that involve the students in groups and really get them thinking.   They have a chance to learn from their peers and help them at the same time.   It breaks up the long day for students and keeps them motivated.  Games are a great fun way for students to learn.   I found a really cool hollywood squares game online for older students.  For those of you teaching middle or high school this is  a great tool to use.  I definitely will use games when I have my own classroom.  

Social Networking

Parents and teachers have to keep a close eye on students.  There are a lot of social networking websites out there that can be very dangerous.  They could be a lot of fun for kids but only if they are used safely and with adult supervision.  I dont think its important for teachers to use social networking in the classroom.  There are too many risks.  If students are using these websites inappropriately at school the teacher and the school can get in big trouble for that.  I just dont think its worth it.  There are plenty of other ways that the teachers can incoporate technology into their lessons.  I use facebook and I'm still always very cautious.  You never know what people are doing on all those websites.  I understand that some kids just want to talk with their friends and do all the other fun things the site has to offer but its very important to be safe when doing so.  

Podcasts, Podcasts, Podcasts!

I think podcasts are a great tool to use in the classroom. They can be used for so many different things. They are easy to make and great for students to use. How many times are students doing their homework and they get stuck on a question? Teachers cant be with their students all the time but podcasts can help. By creating a podcast about a topic that you just went over in class and assigned homework on you will be helping your students. Students can refer to the podcast if they are having trouble with their homework. Podcasts can also be used to introduce a topic. What better way is there to get students ready for a new topic? Teachers can make a podcast on a brief introduction to a new topic so students can get a head start. They can have a chance to look over the material and come up with any questions they may have and then ask them in class the next day. Podcasts can also be used to create reminders for parents and students. Parents are very busy and they may forget to sign off on homework or permission slips. Podcasts are a great tool for them as well. They dont have to be long so parents would only have to take out a few minutes and listen to them quickly and keep up on everything that is going on with their children at school. Also students have a lot going on and a great deal of work to keep up with so podcasts are a great way to remind them what they have due. I would definitely use podcasts in my classroom some day.

WebQuests

I really enjoyed making my own WebQuest. I had a lot of fun researching WebQuests and getting ideas from ones that I found. I think students can learn alot from looking at WebQuests and have a good time while doing so. I had fun designing my own and adding a lot of clipart and colors to make it look entertaining for kids. I was really impressed with Quest Garden. It is a great program to use to create WebQuests. I thought it was going to be a lot harder to do. This program took me through all the steps. There is a lot of work and information that needs to be put into the WebQuest but the process was easy to follow. The hardest part was taking the topic and information and making up a creative problem or story for the students to follow. I wanted to make mine interesting so that children would really want to keep going and see what happens next. I think its important to organize the information so that students can understand. I tried to include a lot of colorful pictures and great links that they can explore and learn more about the topic that I chose.

Mid Term Time

I can't believe its mid term time. I have my first mid term tonight. This semester is going by so fast. It's probably because I have so much work that the time is going so quick.
I wanted to share another good website with everyone. This website has a lot of great arts and crafts ideas. It's a great website for preschool or elementary school teachers. It also has a lot of printables that you can use for students to color or create their own projects. Also you can find printable books on this website. They have letter books and many more. I use it all the time for my preschoolers. I have them color the book and then we talk about words that start with the letter we are working on for that week. I also have found a lot of great art project ideas for each and every holiday or season. Some of you might have already heard of DLTK. If not check it out. The link is http://www.dltk-kids.com/.

Resources for Internet Safety

I was so surprised that there are so many cool tools to use to help teachers teach about internet safety. I was happy to see all the fun games, movies, and information out there for the younger students too. The "bad guy patrol" game looks like so much fun for young students. It's very kid friendly with words that are easy to understand. It has a lot of important questions that will help students learn the do's and dont's of the internet. I also really liked the Ikeepsafe.org website. It had a whole classroom discussion that teachers can use in their elementary classrooms and tests.
The movie "Growing Up Online" showed young kids using the internet for the wrong things and getting in trouble. I was shocked that kids are abusing the internet at such a young age. It was so sad to see that 15 year olds girls were posting sexual pictures of themselves on the internet. Also that children were involved in cyber bullying which I never even thought about it. The internet seemed a lot more dangerous to me after wathching the movie. I'd like to think that I know what is ok and not ok to do on the internet but a lot of these young kids and teenagers might not be so sure. It is up to us as teachers to point out the dangerous and to try and get parents involved as well. It is extremely important that parents know what is going on in their childs life!

So much I didnt know about!

This class is making me realize how much I dont know about technology. haha! I cant believe that there are so many great tools out there that I never heard of. For some reason one website has really stood out. I think it is great that there are tools that teachers can use to help them stay organized and keep everything in one place. Also how teachers can communicate with students and parents all the time through certain websites. I really enjoyed exploring the chalksite website. I think this is a great organizational tool for teachers. It could also be fun for teachers. They can have fun designing their own page that is just for their classroom. Its extremely beneficial for students. They can keep track of what assignments they have and when they are due. And of course its great for parents as well. They can check and see how their children are doing and have a chance to talk with teachers if they have any concerns or questions. I would definitely use this type of tool when I have my own classroom.

Put a little shake, shake, shake in your lessons!

I love music and I love to dance. I enjoy using music to teach. As I mentioned before I work with preschoolers and I find that music is the best way to get them to understand. I think its great to incorporate music into our lessons. If we make learning fun then most likely the students will want to learn. This is most helpful in the younger grades. I went to a Appelbaum training session last saturday in Albany. I learned a lot about how to set up my classroom, ways to engage the little kids, things to do to hold their attention, and ways to calm them down if they are having a hard time controlling their emotions. The presenter put on some music every half hour and had us dance and stretch. She was showing us things that we can and need to do with the younger children so they have a chance to shake their wiggles out. I bought the cd that she used. It is wonderful. I have been using it all week and it is really working. The children love it and its educational. It has songs on it to help them remember their ABC's, theres counting, and even rhyming and word families. The name of the Cd is Exersongs. http://lintel.atiseminars.org/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=560&zenid=33c6111398afdd3b21efc35838c3e15d&myrand=753
It's also great if anyone is interested in getting it for their own kids at home. It's a fun and interactive way to learn and excercise at the same time!

One of my favorite websites!

I love using abcteach.com. There are so many free printables. They give you access to a lot of stuff without being a member. I believe it is $40 a year to sign up to become a member. I work with preschoolers and I find this website extremely useful. Last week we did a bear unit and I found a lot of printables that I was able to use. I just printed out the pieces, cut them out, and then had the children put it together. It's great for me because I am not anywhere close to being an artist. I am actually the furthest away from being one. I come up with good ideas but I cant get the pictures on paper. So I make my lessons plans and come up with ideas then I ask my dear friend abcteach.com for help. I also used it to help me make my unit plan in one of my classes. Another one of my favorite things to get off this website is writing prompts. They have good writing prompts on cute paper so its extremely kid friendly.

Worried

I hope I am doing this right :)