Week 4 Reading
Sunday, October 24, 2010
FV_Option 3 AR Pitch
21st Century Classrooms
Images From:
http://www.unf.edu/cirt/edtech/clickers/Clickers.aspx
http://klausco.com/SMARTboards.html
http://www.theflip.com/en-us/buy/Educators.aspx
Microsoft Images
PE6_ GoogleDocs
This is the survey I created using GoogleDocs. I am hoping to actually use this survey to send to other members of the ARRA grant that my AR project is based on. I feel like there are so many ways I could use these forms in my classroom. One idea that immediately comes to mind is obtaining information from parents and students in the beginning of the year.
PE5_GoogleDocs
I was very excited about learning more about GoogleDocs. I am about an hour into watching the videos and I have realized that these videos are aimed toward someone who has little Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint experience. The videos spend about an hour just explaining how to edit and format a word document using google docs. I have decided my time would be better spent not watching every video but selecting a few that I am less familiar with. I am planning on focusing on watching the sections about Creating and Managing Google Forms. I feel like this is a more practical application for me.
Stay tuned :)
Saturday, October 23, 2010
PE4_Google Docs
This week I will be working on using GoogleDocs. I have some experience using GoogleDocs however it is something that I am interested in learning more about. I will be using the Lynda tutorial, presented by Susan Cline. I am hopping to learn new ways to use GoogleDocs not only for FullSail but for my classroom, and home.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
PE2_ CS5 Flash
Adobe CS5 Flash Part 2
For those of you who may have read some of my posts (either on here or facebook) over the past few days, my MacBook crashed on Friday night. It has been two days of going back and forth to the apple store to try to figure out what is wrong with it. This morning they decided to replace the Logic Board, which could take anywhere from three to five days.
Sorry for the rant I am slightly stressed :)
In the time my computer was working I began watching the Lynda.com tutorials and found it to be really interesting and informative. Although the computer I am borrowing for the next few days does not have CS5, I decided to still continue with this tutorial. I am about half way through the tutorial and already have learned so much! Above is a screen shot from the section on how to create and edit text on flash that is imported from photoshop. I will update in about an hour or so when I finish the training. I cannot wait to get my computer back so I can try what I have learned.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
BP9_Creaza
Creaza
In the midst of my computer crisis Tom recommended trying Creaza to edit my video. I decided to see what the web site was about. As usual Tom gave me a great resource to use. And since my other blog was lost somewhere with in my ever-beeping Mac book I figured why not talk about Creaza. Creaza offers a few different types of editing tools all free of charge. They have a cartoon-editing portion of the site, which allows you to create your own cartoons from their premade backgrounds or upload your own images. There are several different formats of cartoons you can use as a starting point.
Second, is the audio editor, which is set up very similar to Garage Band. This allows you to edit and create music and sound effects.
Third is Mindoro, this one may be my favorite of all. Mindomo allows the user to create their own mind maps (or concept maps). This tool is my favorite available on this site. I have used Inspiration in the past and this is very similar to that program except that it is FREE!
Finally is Movie Editor. Which is very similar to another Apple product imovie. This site allows you to create and edit movies.
As an educator I am always on the look out for new tools that I can use in my classroom. Creaza would allow my students to easily register and save their work while they are at school and continue to edit their work at home if they need to. This is something I look forward to trying in my classroom as the year progresses.
PE1_CS5 Flash
Adobe CS5 Flash
Where to begin?!?
When I saw this assignment earlier in the week I was very excited to be able to use the Lynda.com tutorials. I have used and taken courses and feel pretty familiar with Photoshop and Premiere Pro so I decided to take the time to learn to use Flash. This is where things got interesting. My Internet did not work for 3 days and many of our assignments are blocked on the internet at school and then on my "homework crunch day" my computer crashed!! Awesome week I know. :) I am going to be working on the Lynda.com Creating a first Flash Website tonight and I will be posting some samples as I move along. (hopefully a little smoother than the rest of the week has been)
Sunday, October 10, 2010
W2_Reading
Week 2 Reading
(2009). ARRA Outreach (School Improvement Grants). ED Review, 1. Retrieved October 10, 2010 from Education Research Complete database.
Curtis, D. (2003). Brain-based research prompts innovative teaching techniques in the classroom. Edutopia, Retrieved July 25, 2010 from http://www.edutopia.org/brain-based-research-powerful-learning
Stullich, S. Eisner, E., McCrary, J., Roney, C., & Institute of Education Sciences. National Assessment of Title I: Interim Report. Volume I: Implementation of Title I. National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. Retrieved on October 10, 2010 from ERIC database.
The american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009: saving and creating jobs and reforming education. (2009, March 7). Retrieved October 10, 2010 from http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/implementation.html
BP8_Quizlet
Quizlet Video Commercial
This is my quizlet commercial, I truly hope you enjoy the video my students and I DEFINITELY enjoyed creating it.
This video can also be viewed on my viddler site.
This video can also be viewed on my viddler site.
BP7_Comment to Jessica
Jessica Coffelt- Collaboration Chatter Blog
Follow this link to Jessica Coffelt's blog about gameclassroom.com
BP5_EasyTestMaker
EasyTestMaker is a web 2.0 tool that I have been using this year to create tests and quizzes this year. This site is fairly simple and registration is free, and the number of tests you can create is unlimited. Although there are a few features that can only be used with a paid membership but I have not found any of them to be critical enough to actually pay for the membership yet.
EasyTestMaker allows you to create tests and quizzes using a variety of question types and will even create alternate versions of the test.
I used this tool this week and in just a few days time they have already done an upgrade to a new test editor. This version although I have not used it yet seems more user friendly. Here is a screenshot of the test editor and a quiz that I gave on Friday.
I have found EasyTestMaker, although it is an extremely simple idea, a wonderful tool for people who are slightly OCD like myself. This takes all the work out of formatting quizzes and tests that you create on Microsoft word such as getting the numbers to line up perfectly and having the spaces large enough for the students to write their answers in.
Monday, October 4, 2010
BP4_Quizlet
I love when things just work out some times. This weekend I was preparing my unit on Ecosystems as well as doing research for the Web 2.0 assignment. I should start by saying my students BOMBED my first vocabulary quiz this past Friday. I was really upset; I went over the words so many times and gave them plenty of study tools to use. I wanted to find something that would make studying these words fun and interesting for them. I stumbled upon Quizlet while searching through the Go2web20 website.
Quizlet.com is a Web 2.0 tool that allows you to create flashcards online. Once you create the flashcards, you can then use the flashcards to study, and play games.
Here are a few screen shots of the set up of my Quizlet page and some of the tools I will be using with my students.
This first shot is the home page of my quizlet site that I created. From here you can search for other flashcard sets that others have created, create your own, or view flashcards that you have already created.
Group A117 Science is the group I created for my students to use. With this group students can leave comments on the discussion bored and keep track of their scores playing the review games.
On this page, you can flip through your flashcards and study the words/definitions that you have created.
Learn, is one way you can review the flashcards that you have created. In this mode, given the definitions you must fill in the word for that definition.
Scatter is the game that my students really liked when I demonstrated how to use the website today. In this game, the words and definitions are scattered across the screen as you match the words with their correct definition they disappear from the screen. During this activity you are timed and students can compete for the best time.
I am really hoping that by using this site my students will score better on vocabulary quizzes.
STAY TUNED for results!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
W1_Reading
AR Research Week 1
My action research project is based on the ARRA grant received by my school this summer. This grant is based on creating 21st century classrooms to increase test scores of at risk students. Through this grant 20 classrooms will receive interactive smart boards, student response devices (clickers), Flip Video Cameras, still digital cameras, and upgraded speakers and ceiling mounted projectors. I was chosen to have one of these classrooms and I am basing my AR project on the improvement of learning through use of technology, more specifically low-level learners. I am looking for an increase in test scores and overall student confidence.
The following image is a screenshot of the concept map I created using my first four sources in my research.
Beatty, I, & Gerace, W. (2009). Technology-enhanced formative assessment: a research-based pedagogy for teaching science with classroom response technology. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 18(2), Retrieved October 3, 2010 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10956-008-9140-4 doi: 10.1007/s10956-008-9140-4
Loschert, K. (2004). BYE BYE BLACKBOARD. NEA Today, 23(1), 30-31. Retrieved from Education Research Complete database.
Supon, V. (2006). Using Digital Cameras for Multidimensional Learning in K-12 Classrooms. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 33(2), 154-156. Retrieved from Education Research Complete database.
The partnership for 21st century skills. The partnership for 21st century learning. (2004). Retrieved October 3, 2010, from http://www.p21.org/
Friday, October 1, 2010
BP3_Diigo Group
This is my Diigo Group for my action research project. I am very excited to get started on my research and would love feed back.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
BP2_iGoogle Screen Shots
The following is my iGoogle "trapper keeper" I love a binder and never realized I could make iGoogle like a super binder.
Home Page
FSO
Action Research
ETC
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
BP1_GoogleReader
Image from mywonderfulworld.org
Happy Fall! :)
I always see the rss icon on different websites I visit, but up until this week never paid much attention to them. That was then this is now. I have only completed one assignment in ETC and already feel like this class is going to be useful and open my eyes to new "tools" to make life a little easier.
WMS News Feed
This summer the school district I work in created an RSS news feed for parents and teachers. I felt that this would be a useful feed for me to follow because there are MANY times that parents will call with a question about an event happening at school or an announcement they may have missed. This will allow me to point them in the right direction and stayed informed with what is happening in my school.
Edutopia RSS
Edutopia is a website I found during month one and have checked back quite a few times already this year to find interesting articles about many topics. I feel that this news feed will provide a valuable resource for my ARP.
NSTA Learning Center for Professional Development Tools
As a member of the National Science Teachers Association, I felt that this would be a good feed to follow. When I started to browse through the information available on this feed I soon realized it would be a GREAT idea to follow this feed. They have valuable information and ideas that I can use in my classroom.
BrainPop Educators
I have been dubbed the BrainPop addict at work (and home). I have based many lessons/units around BrainPop videos and use them on a weekly basis. This feed will allow me to find out updates and new information and tools that may become available.
My Wonderful World Blog
This year is my first year teaching 5th grade social studies and our goal (I have a coteacher) is to make social studies interesting as well as making our students aware that the world is bigger than just the town that they live in. This website and feed has great ideas to incorporate just that.
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