The Organized Classroom Blog

I found this blog. A teacher keeps a blog about ideas to keep your classroom organized and other things. If you are looking for some ideas you can check her blog out. Of course, much of the stuff you can make yourself, but if you don't want to bother with that, you may want to buy some of her stuff. She also has some free things as well.

http://theorganizedclassroomblog.com/

The Organized Classroom Blog- Click Here

Making a website using Google Sites

I'm beginning to create a classroom blog using Google Sites. It was difficult at first. Once I figure it out it was easy. Of course, if you've every made a website you know it takes time. So, those of you who don't have time and get stressed easily will probably not want to try it. Anyway, I know we have the SBISD websites we can use, but I wanted to try Google Sites. So far, so good.

Playing with embedding videos ....:-)

experimenting ...

PASTE HERE

Free apps, books

I'm sure none of you read this except for maybe one or two or you.

I've been doing much searching through all the apps on the iPad and the app iBooks. If you are looking for any texts that are out of copyright or are government documents (e.g. Declaration of Independence) there are many that are free. I found tons of fairytales etc.

There are also tons of sights sites that house free copies of classic works.

Tool #11

The tools that I am sure I will use or attempt to use in my classroom  are Storybird, Wallwisher, Edmodo and three apps that I found to be interesting: EduCreations, Inkflow and Socrativ.  These apps can be used for student response/participation and independent lessons. EduCreations and Inkflow can also serve as a way of teaching others certain concepts. The cool thing about these apps is they are free! 

I am starting to think about the routines and procedures that are going to change. I will obviously have those available laptops, which definitely will change the way lessons are conducted. In my eyes, I see students able to work on projects efficiently. I'll be able (hopefully) to confer with them more often, etc. My vision has changed a little, but my vision will be easier to realize. 

Well, I learned more than I thought I would. I also didn't realize the amount of things out there that students can use. I also realized how much I know about HTML. 

I really enjoyed doing 11 things. I also enjoyed playing around with the apps and programs as if I were a student. I think that the students can definitely figure things out quickly with some guidance. 

Tool #10

There are so many good things about the internet and information it houses. There could also be ramifications for the actions we take online with our words. So, we must make sure students understand that.

I want to make sure my students understand that:

1. We must use the digital world to make this world a better place.

2. They must be careful to not trust that all the content on the internet is true.

3. The dangers of meeting people who are on the other side of the world. My brother tends to do a lot of gaming online, and he understands that the people "on the other side of the screen" may not necessarily be people that he would want to hang around with. He must be careful how he speaks, what he says, and how he presents himself.

This can all be taught through discussions.

I do think that I would use the following lessons to teach/explain how to find quality websites, how to cite, etc.

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/browse?grade%5B%5D=48259&topic%5B%5D=48240&type=csm_curriculum_lesson

As I was reading the other blogs, one of the teachers stated that parents should know specifically what technology their children are using. Maybe the student must bring a sheet home and have parents sign. Tell the parents that they are welcome to look at the websites they access and the work they do. I also agree that students need to understand that interaction online is similar to interaction in person. We MUST show respect. 

Tool # 9

1         The whole point of using the technology in the classroom is to apply learning in a different way. There are media literacy TEKS,  and using the technology that we are getting will meet those TEKS. Yes, I wish I could let them do what they wanted to do with the technology, but the fact is that this technology was purchased for a reason. I do think these technology pieces will enable us to have more options for them to show what they know.

     Learning Games for Kids has a few activities that can be used as enrichment for the students.  I read in another blog, that the students can copy the screen, paste on a word file, and reflect on their activity. TESiboard looks cute, but I think it is mainly for elementary school. 

     One app that I found is called Verses Poetry. It is like Magnetic Poetry, but it is on the iPad. The app gives you a collection of words. You can organize them in whichever way you want. I can use this during my poetry unit or anytime when I want them to practice writing poetry. There can be a group of 3-4 students working on writing a poem. They can also take turns and write their own. They can also look at the word lists and write them on paper and create a poem with the same words.  To keep students accountable for their work, students can write the poems on the app. Also, they will need to copy the poem on paper or post it on a blog etc.

     Another app,  Educreations, allows you to record/design lessons. You can draw pictures to help and record your voice as you teach the lesson. There are actually many math lessons on this app. However, I did find a few language arts apps. This center could be the lesson making center. It can also be a way to show what the students know by students creating a lesson for others. Of course, you want to make sure that you check the lessons before you decide to keep them on Educreations.  To keep them accountable for this they would have to show me or save it somehow and sign their name on it. It must be correct to get all points necessary for an A. There are also some apps that are about spelling and vocabulary.

     I know one way they can use the iPad is to record their thoughts instead of writing them. There is a program called Dragon Dictation they can use.  They can also use it to read books. There are a few websites that contain free classics…fairytales, etc.