Smart Notebook

Despite the fact that it took forever to download onto my laptop, I was able to manage to create a Smart Notebook presentation. At first I was really excited to learn about the Smart software because I did not really know much about it. However I do not think it is really that extraordinary. In my opinion, it's basically Powerpoint with a few added features. The only thing that I really liked about the software was that the students can come up and write with the different pens and this will keep them involved and participating in the lesson. Overall I was not really impressed with the software. I made a presentation on contractions and I have the students come up to write with the different pens to brainstorm some contractions together, but other than that it isn't different or spectacular to me.

Todd Nesloney Webinar

Flipped classrooms are definitely coming into play a lot now because technology is the number one thing booming in education. It grows more and more by the minute it seems and it's hard to keep up with it. However after watching Todd's Webinar about flipped classrooms, I have a positive attitude towards the subject. One tip that I learned from him was it is very important to keep the parents involved. He said that if parents see you have such an open mind with your classroom and there is nothing to hide, they will have more trust in how you decide to teach. I think this is important because parents should be involved as much as they can be in their child's education. Todd points out there are a variety of sources to use to keep them involved: blogging, twitter/facebook, remind101, monthly "flipped class" open house, instagram, and so on. There are many resources to use! 

One question that I would like to ask Todd would be, have you ever encountered that one parent who disagreed with the idea of a flipped classroom? If so, how did you deal with that or persuade them into seeing it's a good idea?

After watching this Webinar, I am more inclined to flip my classroom because it seems like his students are eager to come in and learn each day. It is so important to have the students want to learn and he said his students actually persuaded his team teacher into flipping her classroom because they talked about how much they enjoyed it. Technology seems to be what gets the students interested the most and learning can occur at the same time! Like Todd said, "You cannot internalize until you verbalize!" 

Click here to view Todd's other Webinar's on flipping the classroom and why it may be a good idea for your classroom as well!!

Flipped Classroom

So I was not able to attend class on Tuesday night; therefore I taught myself what Professor Ross went over in class. Basically I experienced flipped classroom first hand with doing these assignments. I went through the tutorial and answered the questions on there and also asked a question for anyone in the class to answer. Then I was able to look over lessons and websites where different teachers were incorporating flipped learning in their classrooms. I was able to encounter the pros and cons of a flipped classroom. After teaching myself, I was a bit confused on the next assignment with using Sophia and creating my tutorial for a lesson using a flipped classroom. However I was able to email Professor Ross for some clarification and I was shortly on my way. Since I directly experienced flipped learning I think it may be a good idea to use because it allows students to work at whatever pace they want. It also allows them to play back the videos they watched or even pause them when they need to write notes on it. The downfall of flipped learning would be that students may get confused by something and there isn't the teacher right there to assist them which can be frustrating. I do think it would be fun to try flipped learning in the classroom because it's a new approach to teaching and the different learners may appreciate more than a boring, old lecture!
View this video to see how a flipped classroom may be a good idea!!

Prezi

So tonight in class we learned how to create a Prezi presentation...I have created one before for another class, but I did not know all of the details about it. My presentation for the other class was basic and I just used one of the templates on Prezi so it was easier. Well this time I decided to challenge myself and create a blank Prezi and this was difficult. There was so much that went into it. From picking a theme, to picking different fonts and colors and uploading images and creating different activities and frames within the big topic. I could not believe how much time could go into one project. In my presentation I decided to pick a reading lesson and have the students complete activities based on the book. In some of the frames I put on there exactly what the students would be doing, rather than just information on reading. It engages the students in the lesson which hopefully keeps them interested because it is interactive. As I move along with the Prezi students complete the activities on the screen which is a visual learning aspect.

Click here to view my Prezi on my Stone Soup lesson. Enjoy!

Videolicious

Videolicious is an app that we used on the iPad where we created a one minute commercial, in groups, to cover information on Creative Commons. I thought it was a fun assignment because it was a creative aspect to incorporate what we learned about Creative Commons. There were no restrictions so the video could be however we wanted. My group and I made a video where we had 6 or 7 images that flashed across the screen as we narrated facts that went along with the pictures. Although I was not able to upload the video to YouTube like my professor wanted, I was still able to email it to myself and show the class that way. That was my only frustration with the project because I was not able to upload it that way, but now it will always be in my email if I ever want to refer back to it.

Edmodo

There are a lot of new tools and uses of technology I cannot wait to incorporate into my classroom when I begin teaching. I think Edmodo is a great idea of how students can turn in their work and get instant feedback on the web. It is easy for the teacher to comment on their work right then and there. Most students like to know how they did on assignments right away because the anticipation can be a burden at times. Edmodo allows students and teachers to grade assignments right away and allow students to see where they did well and what needs improvement for next time.

Gamification

At first, I was all about the Gamification within the classroom; however, there are some downfalls to the idea. When using Gamification in the classroom, it is important for all of the students to understand all aspects of the game and how the entire thing works. I had no idea what Gamification was until this class so I had no background with it and was a bit confused at first. I do not think this kind of activity should be done as a group because I feel like it is more individual based and it allows the students to work at their pace. When a group is designed to complete certain activities and levels it may be hard because one or more group members might not be at the same activity yet and I think it makes it difficult. I do like it for individual work though and I think it is great to get students thinking on their own.

Pinterest

So at the end of class on October 1, we were assigned into groups to do a presentation. The group I was assigned to was given Pinterest as the topic to research and discuss. Before this, I had never gone onto Pinterest and knew little about it. However, after researching and finding YouTube videos on it, I think I may make an account. My sister-in-law tells me all the time how she uses it and finds a lot of neat ideas to use in her classroom. Also the teacher I am observing said she uses Pinterest often to find ideas and things to use. She even said this is where she found her discipline action. It is a chart that hangs on the wall and each student has a clothes pin they move up and down throughout the day. There are different labels: one is good choice, great choice, outstanding choice, warning, letter to parent. Every time a student is behaving and doing what they are supposed to she allows the student to go up and move their pin. I think this is a great idea to use within the classroom and it is little things like this that Pinterest allows teachers to create and share with one another!

Day 2: Creating a Website

Tonight in class we learned how to create a website which I thought was pretty interesting. I think it is a great idea to show the work I am doing and have done. It puts a creative aspect on what I have accomplished. At first I was nervous about creating a website because I have never made one, however I thought it was pretty easy going through it step by step. I want to create a bigger website to have a portfolio of everything because I think it is a good tool to use in an interview to show what I have accomplished. It shows the work done in a creative way because you can branch out and put links to anything to show different ideas. I can't wait to expand my website and add on to it more and more!

Smartboard Learning

I heard a lot about this class from other people who took it before and everyone kept saying how great it was because it was really interesting. I would consider myself pretty average with the use of technology, but I always think there's room for more learning because technology is always improving. I'm really interested in learning about the use of the Smartboard because I have tried using one several times, but I find it difficult.  I don't know much about them and the district I live in has them in all of the schools. It would be interesting to try and do a lesson with the help of the Smartboard in order to incorporate the students. In my opinion I think a lot of students learn more when they get to be involved in the learning process. Technology opens a lot of doors with teaching because there are so many opportunities and its always improving every year!