Thing #23

Overall I would describe this process as challenging, enjoyable and a labor of love. Becoming a Technology Integration Specialist was a marathon and not a sprint. It was tough but learning and getting to know all the wonderful new TIS candidates and the cohort leaders was remarkable. I felt so fortunate to have the opportunity to gain so much knowledge. In some ways I feel like this will inform my entire career as a teacher. I do not think I will get bored with trending technology and its use in the classroom. As long as I am employed I plan to continually train my peers in all that I know and learn. For instance, two things that I already have planned for the upcoming school year is having a club at school where we will learn to write code and currently I am working on writing a grant to get the teachers of the school a tablet of some sort to stay safe, connect and communicate. One of the most important things for teachers to learn when embracing technology is to "explore and play". They shouldn't be afraid of technology. At time the thought of trying something new with 25 students scares teachers and they get uptight about the experience, therefore they do not ever try to use new tech in their classroom. We need to make sure they understand that they can play and make it less serious. If it doesn't work out the first day or if it is chaos, things will be better tomorrow. They should also pass those feelings on to their students so that they will embrace technology in the classroom as well. I feel with the projects that we did as a group, my understanding of the standards become much deeper than what it would be without the training. Each project was specifically designed to enhance our understanding of not only the standard but more specifically how to use it in a classroom setting. This brought challenges all along the way. It was like not knowing how to swim and then jumping into a lake with both feet and no flotation device.

Thing #22

This was a fun activity. I have been trying to incorporate more Edmodo into not only my classroom but also the classrooms of my peers. So having my peers enjoy some of the webinars from Edmodo Con was a good time.

Thing #21

I started reading the Cool Cat Teacher Blog. I love the way this blog is presented. It is very neat and clean. It has all the information in vibrant color and upfront. This makes it easier to get into and to spark interest. If you look at the latest posts, you see that she covers topics such as remaining creative, working with adversaries and current news from around the worlds of education. All of this is incredibly relevant to education and technology education.One resource she provides on one of her latest post is an in-depth look at all the ebook applications and software that is available. http://www.coolcatteacher.com

Thing #20

I found a website called edupic.net. This will be great for any classroom. What the website is, is a stock photo website free to teachers and students to use. This is perfect for science projects, Power Point presentations or Prezis. There is a wealth of animal pictures and other pictures that teachers can and will use in their classrooms. It also has school themed drawings that are also available for you to use. Check it out.

Thing #19

Currently at my school, we are discussing ideas for a grant. Whatever grant we decide on we know that we want to thoroughly incorporate it into our lessons. One grant idea we are discussing is creating a plan for a global classroom. We would like to take volunteers for this pilot program and work on getting contacts in the next school, to then in the next year have pen pal school to skype with. According to all the webinars that I have listened to this is the new and popular thing in education. Recently, I listened to a webinar with teachers that have established long standing relationships with teachers in other countries. They have co-authored lessons with these classrooms halfway around the world, really giving their students a unique perspective. If the grant does not happen to be one of the ones we choose to go with I still intend to work to establish a global classroom on my own. Reading and talking with other students accross the globe, I believe, can impact my students greatly. I am excited about the opportunity and look forward to it. One specific activity I am looking forward to is a book discussion with my students and students from another state or another country. Each classroom will have a unique perspective and interpretation of whats on the pages.

Thing #18

CMS and LMS ... CMS is an acronym for Content Management System. This is a software created so that multiple users can access, edit and remix documents. One company with the capability is Google. You can create a document in Google Drive and share it with multiple users. The great this about it, is that it has real time editing. If a student or participant edits a document on one computer the alterations show up on the docuent right away. LMS according to Ed Tech Training and Tools is a Learning Management Software. This software attempts to house all aspects of a digital classroom in a one stop shopping convention. Schoology and Edmodo are examples of LMS. I have done trainings at school with this type of tool and one teacher in particular has adopted it and loves it. Madame Blend, our French teacher has incorporated it beautifully in her classroom. It has helped her establish a "flipped" classroom. The students seem to enjoy responding to each other in the "facebook" like format. There are two distinct types of learning going on in classrooms today. The first, is the well established type, asynchronous learning. This type is what is presented in the traditional classroom. IE, teacher stands in the front of the classroom and delivers the lecture to students sitting in front of him/her in desks. The 23Things portion of this TIS journey is an example of synchronous learning. Everything that we are tasked to do within this program is based on the computer and the internet. It is not a traditional classroom in the slightest. As students we go out and seek the knowledge, we learn on hour own by doing.

Thing #17

Below are screen shots from a free app available on itunes called List Maker Pro. As you can see you can make multiple list categories as well as adding to each category. Because the app is free it does have advertising on the app but it is not too cumbersome.