Download some educational apps to an iTouch.
I have downloaded some neat apps to my personal iTouch. I am unable to do it for the ones that I have in my classroom - our librarian usually does that for us. Some of the ones that I personally have are more for younger children.
Hangman (Helps not only develop strategy skills, but also spelling and word patterns.)
Houston Zoo (Helps navigate when you are at the zoo, but also gives animal specifications. It also helps with the Map skills and reading a map with cardinal directions.)
Funny Flash (This one is neat because it morphs animals and then spells them out verbally and in print.)
Distant Suns (This app is very cool - you can use it to help identify the constellations.)
Math Drill (Addition & Subtraction - primary grades.)
Learn Chess (I haven't really figured this out but I want to learn.)
Poker Delux (Fun!)
Louvre (I had some of my GT students look at the art. Then, we also discussed the artist.)
NASA (I had some of my GT students look for intersting facts / details.)
SAT Words 5000 (I was in hopes my teenager would use this but I don't think she has even looked at it. Never the less, my GT students can learn new words.)
Science (This has a list of all the elements off the periodic table. I think it is cool to sometimes talk about them with my small research groups.)
Sight Words (My daughter enjoys reading and being quizzed on these.)
Tic Tac Toe (Just for fun! My kids especially LOVE playing this.)
The Weather Channel (Keep current with weather conditions anywhere. Goes well with our Air & Weather Unit.)
Words w/ Friends (More for me - I love playing my friends in a game of scrabble.)
UNO (Fun! Fun! Fun! Love playing UNO!)
Create a list of ways to use the iTouch in the Library by multiple students (that is different than an iTouch being assigned to students).
With the rockstar, sharing the iTouch is SO easy! I personally downloaded audiobooks and the kids listened to them. Also, the kids participate in a play and to have them be able to listen to the music, is wonderful. Especially since I do not have to hear it being played.
We have also used the iTouches in the library to research birds, & habitats. They are a hot commodity that usually is never idle!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Thing 5: 11.5 Things
Describe your experiences with Facebook and Twitter. Give suggestions as to how these resouces could aid students in and out of the classroom. Give ideas for using back-channeling at school.
Facebook has been a new way for me to reconnect with old friends. I started an account during the onset of the social networking and have watched it just about explode! I belong to many groups that help me keep up with the ongoing calendars of important things. I do have "friends" that are my students, so I am very careful what I post - keeping it clean for all ages! Some of the best features of FB, is when a student moves, you can still keep in touch! I have kids that are all over the world!
Twitter and myself are just becomming acquainted. I've dabbled with it in the Library 2 Play 23, but really didn't have much use for it. Maybe if I had more time on my hands, aside from being a single mom (M-F), it would be more for me. My problem is that I'm exhausted by 4 and what little energy I have left, I use cleaning or getting dinner on the table.
I just recently visited the SBISD twitter and it had some of the neatest information on it. I even found an article where I was mentioned! Very exciting!
Spring Branch Independent School District Teachers get active with Playnormous' iMacs http://cms.springbranchisd.com/SchoolZone/tabid/
6212/mid/13789/newsid13789/1387/Default.aspx
June 16 at 8:52am ·
Then, I found where my daughter's winning was announced:
HideSpring Branch Independent School District PTA Council Environmental Awards issued http://cms.springbranchisd.com/SchoolZone/
tabid/6212/mid/13789/newsid13789/1369/Default.aspx
June 3 at 1:51pm
So, I guess it is a cool place - just had not had the time to figure it out! I like that you can subscribe to different "tweets".
This is just a great way to let people know quickly (an overview) of what is going on... Great for PTA's & clubs!
Facebook has been a new way for me to reconnect with old friends. I started an account during the onset of the social networking and have watched it just about explode! I belong to many groups that help me keep up with the ongoing calendars of important things. I do have "friends" that are my students, so I am very careful what I post - keeping it clean for all ages! Some of the best features of FB, is when a student moves, you can still keep in touch! I have kids that are all over the world!
Twitter and myself are just becomming acquainted. I've dabbled with it in the Library 2 Play 23, but really didn't have much use for it. Maybe if I had more time on my hands, aside from being a single mom (M-F), it would be more for me. My problem is that I'm exhausted by 4 and what little energy I have left, I use cleaning or getting dinner on the table.
I just recently visited the SBISD twitter and it had some of the neatest information on it. I even found an article where I was mentioned! Very exciting!
Spring Branch Independent School District Teachers get active with Playnormous' iMacs http://cms.springbranchisd.com/SchoolZone/tabid/
6212/mid/13789/newsid13789/1387/Default.aspx
June 16 at 8:52am ·
Then, I found where my daughter's winning was announced:
HideSpring Branch Independent School District PTA Council Environmental Awards issued http://cms.springbranchisd.com/SchoolZone/
tabid/6212/mid/13789/newsid13789/1369/Default.aspx
June 3 at 1:51pm
So, I guess it is a cool place - just had not had the time to figure it out! I like that you can subscribe to different "tweets".
This is just a great way to let people know quickly (an overview) of what is going on... Great for PTA's & clubs!
Thing 4: 11.5 Things
What would be some advantages of having teaching/learning videos available on online at sites like these?
I use YouTube quite a bit to add that extra bit of information and to add a "hook" into the lesson so that it gains the interest of all! For instance, as I began to teach a lesson on counterweights with our Balance and Motion FOSS kit,I had the students watch the following clip:
We then discussed special words such as the point of balance, counterweights, etc.
On another occasion, my principal was very surprised to see clips from Tony Hawk as I introduced the Force of Motion systems (Wheel & Axel) for another lesson in our Balance and Motion FOSS kit. By already having it uploaded to my blog, it was easy for me to obtain and I could easily start and stop it without any other advertisements on the page.
What about student created work -- would there be advantages to having it uploaded?
There is definitely a benefit to uploading to YouTube. I used this primarily as a way to communicate with my parents this past year. I would record something with my FLIP camera and then export it out using the embedded files to showcase on my classroom blog. While some might worry about it being published to the web, I did not tag it and / or rename the movies in hopes to help keep the identity private.
http://www.trevinos2ndgrade.blogspot.com
Here is a clip that I made - my class was helping our "learning buddies" with food and nutrition and creating more of an awareness to eating healthy! I had used a camera with MP4 feature. By uploading it to YouTube, instead of uploading it directly from the digital camera, I saved lots of time!
I use YouTube quite a bit to add that extra bit of information and to add a "hook" into the lesson so that it gains the interest of all! For instance, as I began to teach a lesson on counterweights with our Balance and Motion FOSS kit,I had the students watch the following clip:
We then discussed special words such as the point of balance, counterweights, etc.
On another occasion, my principal was very surprised to see clips from Tony Hawk as I introduced the Force of Motion systems (Wheel & Axel) for another lesson in our Balance and Motion FOSS kit. By already having it uploaded to my blog, it was easy for me to obtain and I could easily start and stop it without any other advertisements on the page.
What about student created work -- would there be advantages to having it uploaded?
There is definitely a benefit to uploading to YouTube. I used this primarily as a way to communicate with my parents this past year. I would record something with my FLIP camera and then export it out using the embedded files to showcase on my classroom blog. While some might worry about it being published to the web, I did not tag it and / or rename the movies in hopes to help keep the identity private.
http://www.trevinos2ndgrade.blogspot.com
Here is a clip that I made - my class was helping our "learning buddies" with food and nutrition and creating more of an awareness to eating healthy! I had used a camera with MP4 feature. By uploading it to YouTube, instead of uploading it directly from the digital camera, I saved lots of time!
Thing 3: 11.5 Things
How might Skype be used in the Library or classroom?
Skype is a new concept that could open up many new doors for all learners. I'm thinking in particular, those students who come with a limited amount of background experiences. Or, those kids who thrive to know more about a topic such as NASA. This would allow for several learners to either grasp basic knowledge on a specific topic, or to persue subjects that are of particular interest. When looking through the links, I found where I could have my second grade class hook up with a zoologist at the San Diego Zoo to learn more about birds. This would be such a fascinating video conference!
My goal is to find a camera and hook it up and give it a try. I really want to use this with my class this next year!
Skype is a new concept that could open up many new doors for all learners. I'm thinking in particular, those students who come with a limited amount of background experiences. Or, those kids who thrive to know more about a topic such as NASA. This would allow for several learners to either grasp basic knowledge on a specific topic, or to persue subjects that are of particular interest. When looking through the links, I found where I could have my second grade class hook up with a zoologist at the San Diego Zoo to learn more about birds. This would be such a fascinating video conference!
My goal is to find a camera and hook it up and give it a try. I really want to use this with my class this next year!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Thing 2: 11.5 Things
Wordle.net is one of my favorite websites! In second grade, we use this image generator to:
Get to know one another at the beginning of school.
To show different things about the 10 states that our students learn.
To reflect on the American Heroes unit.
To help depict a character from a story and the traits that he / she had.
Specific bird & their characteristics / habitat.
Glogster was pretty neat except it took a lot of time for me to do anything with pictures. I'm not sure if it is a server issue or weather related issue, etc... Then, I got stuck using a frame for the pictures I had uploaded. Well, I learned to fix it, just re-insert the photo without clicking on the "frame" tab above. This website is like "high - tech" scrapbooking! I probably missed the point of this activity!
http://trevinot.edu.glogster.com/kinder/
Animoto is an awesome sight too! My kids absolutely LOVE making movies. This past year I used it to help win an iMac computer through www.playnormous.com. The kids researched healthy foods and then uploaded the pictures and made a movie... They even went into Powerpoint and saved the pictures as a .jpg rather than a .gif.
Thing 1: 11.5 More Things
Post you thoughts about the student, the video, and the teacher and her role.
This video was so cool! I loved the way that our school incorporated the librarian as the "hub" of learning. This last year, my class was used as the teaching class (as far as using garage band and iMovie, etc.) and then we paired up with different learning buddies (kindergarten, 1st, 2nd & then some 5th graders) to help expand on what we had learned and assist others using the same technology. My role in all this was a facilitator - warm body in the room! The students helped each other and guided their lessons. Furthermore, by May, kids were actually deciding what ways they would produce and with which web sites they would use. Basically, the sky was the limit and if you can get connected, the wealth of the world is amongst us!
Can a Librarian play the role depicted in the video?My librarian is the hub of my school! She not only teaches the kids, but guides teachers in the learning of technology and incorporating different strategies that aid in the delivery of instruction and the output of the learners knowledge.
This video was so cool! I loved the way that our school incorporated the librarian as the "hub" of learning. This last year, my class was used as the teaching class (as far as using garage band and iMovie, etc.) and then we paired up with different learning buddies (kindergarten, 1st, 2nd & then some 5th graders) to help expand on what we had learned and assist others using the same technology. My role in all this was a facilitator - warm body in the room! The students helped each other and guided their lessons. Furthermore, by May, kids were actually deciding what ways they would produce and with which web sites they would use. Basically, the sky was the limit and if you can get connected, the wealth of the world is amongst us!
Can a Librarian play the role depicted in the video?My librarian is the hub of my school! She not only teaches the kids, but guides teachers in the learning of technology and incorporating different strategies that aid in the delivery of instruction and the output of the learners knowledge.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
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