Blog Post #12

When asked about technology the first and one of only a few of things I would list would be computer, but after this class I have become so aware of all the other uses of technology and how the tools and resources are almost endless. I think that technology is a very important tool to use in the classroom for many different reasons. There are many different tools that can be used and accessed and I think it is important as teachers to learn about these tools and bring them into the classroom. With technology, students are not only having fun and learning but they are developing skills they are unaware of: how to troubleshoot problems, how to work different devices (computers, scanners, digital cameras etc.), establish problem solving and decision making skills and much more. Students love variety and learning in different ways, and incorporating different technology tools allows students to learn about those tools and keep the learning fun, interesting, and different. Technology can be very controversial and some people are against it and its uses, and as an educator I am aware of those issues and understand them. With that said, I will make technology in my classroom safe and educational and a useful and powerful tool for students. Technology is a very important part of our society today and it is important for students to be aware of that and learn about it and how to use it at a young age so they have a head start when they get into the real world.

Blog Post #11

I think the most interesting educational use that is non-computer-based technology is simply writing utensils. Although many teachers today try to find activities that are not paper based (hand written), it is still the best and most convenient tool. Teachers can find all sorts of activities rather than just worksheets and tests to do in the classroom, which involve the use of many different utensils. Also different utensils give children a chance to be more creative and I think that is important in elementary education. If teachers allow children to be creative it gives them a chance to express themselves more and they can do this by using different writing utensils like crayons, markers, colored pencils, gel pens etc. Writing utensils also give children a chance to simply learn how to write which leads to better literacy skills and also gives them a chance to express themselves in writing and saying how they feel. This writing then leads to better writing skills. Heather Benson, author of the article “Emergent Writing” from pbs.org PBS Teachers, said, “It is as important for teachers to provide a variety of authentic writing experiences as it is to provide opportunities to explore and learn about reading. Incorporating writing into your daily schedule is essential to supporting children's emergent literacy.” Most writing can simply not be done without a writing utensil (pencil, pen etc) therefore I think it is a very important tool to have and always keep within the classroom. I also feel that it is very important to keep a wide variety of different utensils, even some from other countries!

Blog Post #10

Overall, I think that the ERIC presentations (so far) have gone really well. The one thing that really stinks in my mind that I learned the most about, that I never really knew about were the AUP’s. All of the other information was either obvious to me or things I have already heard (for the most part). I think that the group who had “Technology Integration in Science” had some really good ideas. Other than just hearing about technology and its pros and cons and things like that, I like hearing about ideas we as hers can actually use within our classroom. Like the farmer activity etc. Those are the things that I think are most helpful and valuable. I also really like the different websites the “Internet in Technology” group showed us. I think they will be very useful in the future, and definitely websites I will save. Again, overall I think that all of the presentations have been very good and similar but very different. One thing I am glad though, I am glad we split this up into different days, because to be honest with you, when the last group went up to present my attention span had started to decrease. I am not saying the last group was bad by any means, but my attention decreases after hearing so many presentations on the same thing: technology. But again I think they have gone really well and I am interested to hear what the other groups have to present on.

Blog Post #9

The article I found was the in NY times and is called, “In the Classroom, Web Logs Are the New Bulletin Boards”. It is not directly about technology in education, but it focuses specifically on web logs in education. The article goes through and just talks about web logs and how teachers use them for different things. One second grade teacher (Mrs. Dudiak) used it so her students could write short entries on their field trip. She said, “It allowed them to interact with their peers more quickly than a journal, and it even the playing field”. She also found that the students who tended to be quieter in the classroom, tended to come alive online. Some teachers use the blogs so students can show how they solved a math problem, post observations about a science experiment and even to display different projects like art projects. Another way teachers aid they used the blogs was to continue discussions that were not finished in class, and to also prolong question-and-answer periods with guest speakers. The bogs were also used for modern-day pen pals. One high school teacher used the blogs to study the Holocaust with other high school students in Poland. The article also talked about how teachers like using blogs because, “they require little effort to maintain” and they are easier to use and start than websites. Teachers also said that the blogs allowed them to give students feedback more quickly than just writing back to them in journals, and not only can they react to what they say faster, but also that students can respond to each other. “Teachers who use blogs say that students put a lot more though and effort into their blog writing, knowing that parents and others may read their work on the web.” On the other side, some teachers tried to get the blogs to stay alive over the summer and many failed to have that happen. This makes teachers who are critical to blogs question, has technology actually done anything to interest students in writing? They also worry that blogging may encourage bad habits for students, that are hard to break. The second grade teacher, Mrs. Dudiak, argued that, “blogging is a different form of writing … they should proofread, but we are more concerned about the content, not grammar.” The article even mentions how one school district in Cincinnati is requiting teachers to maintain blogs for their classes. Lastly, the article states that, “Teachers become receptive to blogs once they see how easy it is to se one up” and “If it gets kids excited about learning, we might as well try it.”
After reading this article, and actually others that I used for my ERIC project, I have learned a lot of opinions about blogs and also electronic portfolios. I agree with most teachers opinions about blogging and that it allows students to carry on conversations after class, to share their work, to help each other, and also to respond to students faster. I also completely agree that it gives students a chance to show their more personal side and open up, more than they ever would in the classroom. With that said, I just worry about one thing. I myself dread blogs in this class, and I find it just something else I need to complete. I rarely get on and look at others blogs and the things they have posted unless I have to, like commenting to others. I can not argue though, after being forced to read others so that I can comment on them, I have learned things from other students and gained new and more ideas about things. So to me there is a positive and a negative side. I just know how I am with blogging and it makes me think that others are the same way. Like I said, there are a lot of good things about blogs and I think it is really more beneficial than writing in journals, and it is easy to respond etc. But I do have to be critical and question if it really excites children about learning, just from my personal experience. If we could make it more fun for students I think I would be totally for the whole idea. I will use blogs in my classroom because I do think they are great and they also give children a chance to use technology and communicate together, I just want to find a way to make it more interesting and fun, rather than just another assignment for them to do.

The link to my article is below:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/19/technology/circuits/19blog.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5090&en=33627811ca310596&ex=1250568000

Blog Post #8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT4RXcYEY-E

The folloing link above, shows a video that I found on Youtube that helps children learn different Spanish words.

I tried to add it with the "add video" tool, but I could not save the video onto my computer, and you have to have it on your computer in order to upload it as a video here on the blog.

Blog Post #7

I think that things are going pretty well. I was extremely glad to get that iMovie out of the way, because these next projects seem a littler easier and more relaxed. I feel that there is always a lot of work for this class and I sometimes find myself very overwhelmed with all the work assigned, but with that said I have learned a lot about technology and how I may use it in my classroom in the future. I think that technology in early education is key. Technology is a major part of our society today and it is a means of communication and obviously much more. I think it is important for children to learn things that are used within our society often, at a young age. There are many different things you can do with technology in the classroom, and it gives children another tool to use rather than a pencil and paper. I also think technology can make learning more fun for some students if not all. The most important lesson/concept I have learned so far is the safety involved with technology for students. It is important to teach students how to use each technology tool and to teach them safety precautions. (For example: what is good information to give out on the internet and what not to give out and do).

Blog Post #6

1). There are many different pros and cons for using the internet in early elementary classrooms. As for pros, the internet, as well all know has many different resources that are available for students. The internet can also enhance different skills for students. Some skills that can be enhance are communication skills, writing skills and depending on what activity is being used on the internet it can also enhance and improve critical thinking, problem solving and group work skills. Students can also learn to explore things on their own, see different and multiply view points on specific topics, and it also provides the opportunity for students to participate in student-centered learning. Some disadvantages to the use of the internet in an early childhood classroom are, the easily accessible resources to students that may lead children to wrong information, bad/ not appropriate web sites, some students may not be aware of how much personal information to share (safety concerns). Another disadvantage that some may seem to have is the cost that is put into having these tools available to students and to maintain and fix them if any problems arise. Personally, I feel that internet in an early childhood classroom is crucial. Technology is a main part of our society today and it is important to teach children about current things and give them an opportunity to start and learn at a young age. Although there are many cons to internet in the classroom, I think the pros over power them. Schools have to of course limit the sites the students are allowed to be on and teach them safety rules when using a computer. It is also important when students are on the internet to have assistance and someone monitoring their work. If teachers and schools make the right precautions and teach how to work and view the internet it is a very educational, useful, and powerful tool.

2). My favorite education website so far is probably Academic Skills Builders. I really like this website because it gives students a chance to enhance their basic math, language arts, vocabulary and thinking skills through a variety of different games. An example of one game that this website provides is a game called, Grand Prix. It is a multiplication game (obviously not a game for an early childhood classroom) and it gives students a chance to race again each other to get to the Multiplication Cup first. The faster the students correctly answer the problem determines how fast their race car goes. I think that these kind of educational games make students have more fun and it makes them want to learn. The better they know their facts, the faster the will go and become the winner. The link to this website is: http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/
(to get to the games look in the right hand corner at the different tabs and click on games)

Blog Post #5

I have sometimes heard of teachers being frustrated because they are limited to what they can teach and what they can teach. Teachers have said that there is no leway in what they can do and it is so structured anymore that they can not do activities that they had planned because they have to cover things that the state is making them. After reading this article though it really made me think again about my feelings and thoughts on this topic. I am kind of torn between how I feel because I am not yet a teacher and I have never been put strongly into that position. I can understand how frustrating it must be as teachers and when the state makes these benchmarks it is frustrating because teachers are basically limited to their creativity and what they want to teach. At the same time I think it is good to have these benchmarks and a list of ideas on ways to teach each skill. It is important so that teachers know what the children are expected to know for the following grade/grades. This also puts most teachers on the same level so all the children are learning the same material and if they were to swtich schools/ classes they would not be "lost". Again I am pretty torn about the way I feel about this article, but I agree with what Veronica Rieck said at the end of the article, "It's easy to miss things when you're new and to forget things when you're old". I may not be old yet but I do tend to forget things (everyone does) and as a future teacher I am sure to miss things as well, so these benchmarks for me, I feel would be as a benefit.
-Kaitlyn Imbus

Blog Post #4

There are two different ways in which I can do this lesson. Both ways to do this lesson would be more for kindergarten or first grade. The first way is I would take pictures around the room of different things, or outside etc. And I will have the students say what the picture is out loud. For example: there is a picture of a baby so I would have the children say baby and then have them figure out what the first letter of the word is. I would pass out the papers have each student do it on their own and then write in the letter. Underneath it I could also leave some lines and they can practice writing that specific letter, if I needed more for them to do. Another way I could present this lesson is for the students to actually go around the room and take pictures of different things that start with a certain letter. For example: I would give each student a letter and they would take the camera around and find something in the room that starts with that letter and take a picture of it. I would then combine all the pictures that were taken from the students and make a book for each child and they would have to fill in the first letter of each picture. This example would be an example page the book, or it could even be for the first lesson in just a sheet I pass out for them to fill out.

Blog Post #3

Teaching Philosophy in 3-5 terms/words:

• Patient
• Encourage students
• Outgoing/fun
• Acknowledge and understand: culture, strengths, weaknesses of each student