One Last Thing

 I enjoyed a lot of the discoveries during this process.  I would have to say that I enjoyed the Livebinders (I LOVE organization),  RSS feeds, and Google Drive.  I think those are extremely helpful tools that I will use in the future.  As a member of the technology generation I thought I knew a lot about technology and was up on the times.  Boy was I wrong.  It was great to learn all the new things that are out there.  It showed me I will always be learning.  And I plan to make it a goal to learn a new application every 6 months. 

I think the format and concept of this program are good.  It can become overwhelming have sooooo many logs in for things.  I wish more of the applications would let you sign in with google account.  Unfortunately there is nothing that the creators of this program can change. 

I have learned how to use so many great tool for my future classroom.  It taught me that the internet is always changing and I will need to keep up with the times.  I will use my RSS feed to keep up with the Web 2.0.  I feel that is a great tool that will the future of teaching. 

Thing #23: Creative Commons

 

When I first started this blog project I had noticed these two disclaimers on the APSU 23 Things Main Page.  After reading about Creative Commons License I understand the disclaimers better.

 

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 License is something I will explain to my students.  I want them to know what they are allowed to use and not allowed to use when completing work.  It is also something I would use if I were to create something that would be useful to other teachers.  I would like to share it with as many of them as possible and let them know they CAN use it legally.   

Thing #22: Keepin' it Together: Livebinders

Ancient Egypt Binder

Livebinders is a great way to organize all the information that you see on the internet, and stuff you have on your computer.  It allows to you to create "binder".  You can upload documents and videos.  The great thing is you can create a link to another website.  I find when I am just surfing stuff for my future classroom that I say to myself oh this is a great website I will remember this.  Then I vaguely remember and spend 20 minutes searching for it at a later date.  It is easy to link websites to the binder you just click on your bookmark tool bar and tadaaaa it is in the binder. 

I have organized three binders for for.  Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome  These are three major topic areas that I will be teaching in the future.  Right now I just have several general website in the binder but my plan is to add subtabs that are titled by the standard it will teach.  It will be a great way to organize. 

This could be a great way to share resources with student.  This way you have control over the information they are using for their research.  But as long as you have plenty of sources all the students research will be different.  Again it takes the guessing out of finding creditable sources for students. 

Thing #21: Animoto

Travel

 Animoto is a great tool for creating professional looking video clips.  This is something that would be great to create for background at student teacher conference or at the end of the year as a farewell to students.  It was easy to use and they had a lot of upload videos and pictures in case you need inspiration.  I did a video with some different pictures from around the US that Animoto had preloaded and a preloaded song.  The program picked the order of the pictures and had transitions in great locations.  It looks like someone spent hours putting it together.  I am getting married in the fall and this would be a great thing to use for wedding photos!

Thing #20: YouTube and Beyond

HECTOR VS ACHILLES Lego Action - TeacherTube

 YouTube can be a great way to engage students.  The disadvantage of YouTube is there is so much out there.  You need to carefully view the videos before showing the content to your students.  I picked a YouTube video about Hector vs Achilles.  It is in lego action which I think a lot of 6th grades would be able to connect with.  Another reason I picked this video because it was accurate in retelling the Greek Myth.  Attaching YouTube videos to my classroom website would be a great way to help students and parents with homework and classroom content.  

After searching some other video tools and applications I decided that Movie Clips would have a great use in my classroom.  This movie clips are a great way to bring history alive.  The movie clips would also be a great way to engage students in a debate.  Movie clips are not always accurate when it comes to history.  It would be interesting to play to clips covering the same topic and let the students decide which is accurate. 

Thing #19: Beyond Facebook: Other Social Networks

Social networking is a great way for educators to connect with their students.   It is best used as a tool to keep students up to date on tasks that are due and what is going on in the classroom.  They are NOT meant to be used to socialize with students.  I think it is important that teachers set up privacy settings for their personal social networking and have a different account for educational purposes.  I am a member of facebook, twitter, pintrest, imdb, yelp, instragram and more I am sure I am forgetting.  

When reviewing the suggested social networks I really liked Tasty Kitchen.  Then again I like most anything that has to do with trying new recipes and food.  I will most likely use Teacher Librarian Ning as a resource in the future.  It seems like a great resource

Thing #18: Explore Social Networking

My Twitter


I have a twitter account and facebook account that I use for social purposes.  I never thought of the classroom application.  It is important for educators to understand social networking because it is such a big part of students lives.  It is a great way to connect with the students.  It is important to know what they are talking about when they reference social networking.  This is also a great way for educators to connect about specific topics.  

I never thought of all the different hashtag combinations that could be searched.  After searching the educational hashtags I found an abundance of information.  The disadvantage of hastags is that anyone can post to them and there is a lot of spam out there.  Spam posts can be frustrating.

Thing #17: Tagging and social bookmarking with Delicious

 Using the social bookmarking sites was easy.  Delicious had a very easy format and was intuitive to use.  It was great to explore and see how many results came up.  It can be a great tool to find teaching resources.

I could see the potential in using this hand in hand with a webquest.  It would be a great way to help students research a certain topic.  There is a lot of information out there and sometimes students have a difficult time deciding what is accurate information.  By using the bookmark or tagging you can have students use a certain phrase that you looked at previously so they can be confident in the information they are gathering.  

Thing #16: Get Organized with Web 2.0 Tools

I picked the Symbaloo start page.  I like the format of the page.  The others seemed cluttered.  I like that it had google features since I already have a google account it made it easy to navigate.  I do not think that I will use this start page much.  By the time I remembered to log into it I most likely will have logged into my usually pages.  I do not use that many on a daily basis.  

Online calendars are great because you can access them anywhere with internet.  Something that always aggravates me is when I need to check my calendar and I do not have it with me.  In this day in age when everything is go go go, I dislike making people waiting on me to check my schedule.  

I think that the PDF Converter and Zamzar will be useful when teaching. It is always frustrating when you have a file in an incorrect format and you cannot open it.  I think the Remember the Milk to do list.  It is a great tool because your to do list will always be with you(well as long as you have internet). 

Thing #15: What in the world is a Wiki?

I have surfed wikis before but I have never added content to a wiki.  It was fun to be able to add something for everyone else to see.  I really enjoyed the suggested wikis.

• Book Lovers Wiki 

• ICT Magic
  
  
• Resources for History Teachers
  
  
• Educational Blogging Wiki
  
  
• Westwood Schools Computer Science class wiki
  
  
• Educational Origami Wiki

• Texas School Librarians' Wikispace

They are great examples for wikis that I will use in my teaching days.  They are great resources for teachers because the suggestions are coming from other teachers.  It really makes a difference when you get advice/resources from someone that is currently in the field.  

I do find the concept of wikis fun but they can be dangerous if they spread false information.  One must be careful when documenting information from a wiki. 

Thing # 14: Go With the Flow

I always used the terms flow chart and mind map interchangeably.  Now I know better.  A flow chart seems go in sequential order and have a definitive end.  A mind map seems more like a brainstorming process with ideas going in different directions.  I agree with Anne Wall in her instruction for Thing # 14 of the 23 Things Project she mentions that a flow chart seems more for the reader and a mind map is more for the creator.  I tested bubbl.us and gliffy.  They are both easy to use applications.  They have a lot of design options.  I like that they both have preloaded formats for those of us that are less creative.  The only reason why I liked gliffy better was because I think I like the idea of flow charts better than mind maps. 

I think both mind maps and flow charts have their place in class rooms.  I plan on teaching Social Studies and a flow chart would be a great way to teach cause and effect in class.  It would also be a great way to create unique timelines.