Week Eight

In the classroom, computers are becoming the teachers.  They are what the students look to for answers, look to for questions, and depend on to help them understand every piece of information they hear.  In some ways, the computers are becoming the brains of today’s children.  The advancements we are able to make because of the use of technology is amazing, we just need to get a handle on.

When it comes to technology usage it is sky rocketing.  Students are using multiple applications and programs for all types of things from networking to school work.  Because of this booming use of technology the viruses have increased greatly and continue to become smarter and smarter in order to sneak into the systems we depend on.  I notice that with the use of security systems at school they are great for blocking various things, but we get too reliant on their ability to stop anything and everything without us worrying about what we are going to.  I myself we admit I rely on the systems in place to keep things from coming in to harm the systems I use, when I know that I should use more caution.

At my school, we have a system over the entire district called Barrcuda, which blocks many websites from being viewed.  Also, no one has the authority to download any software or programs to their computers without administrative rights.  Only the technology people have the passwords for this and they have a better understanding of what is safe and what is not.  I will admit the place I feel that is most vulnerable is the school email.  There is really not a block with it and anything can come in, it is up to us to use good judgment on what is okay and what is not.

Bottom-line, you can never be too safe while on the computer and nothing is completely safe.  That is how we need to treat it and view it.

Week Seven

In week seven, I have learned some new information in the world of technology that I did not realize existed.  Like with educational software there are many forms such as:

• Drill-and-practice software, which gives the students immediate feedback, but does not however teach then new ideas.
• Problem Solving software, which challenges students, based on the concepts they already know.
• Creative software, which challenges students to explore and make connections on their own.
• Tutorial software, which walks the students through what they are learning
• Simulation software, which allows students to experience situations

I feel we need all these forms of software and they all work together to form some of the best site for students to use to improve their skills.

The brain discussion was quite interesting and provokes me to want to learn more.  On a video I was watching online I learned that through video gaming the gray matter in our brains are showing growth and it is sparking all kinds of creativity and motivation for students.  It is amazing to think that the video games that many say are horrible for children and the kids spend too much time on are increasing the Fluid intelligence of our children.  The brain is so amazing and I do not know that we will ever have a full understanding of all the possibilities of it.

With the technology explorations I found piclits and historypin to be my favorites.  When I think about it, they are quite similar and share a common bond.  They bond are pictures and we create our own interpretation of them.  On piclits we can write on the pictures whether it be one sentence, one word, or a poem and use the picture as the background to help with understanding.  With historypin on the other hand, we can compare how the world is changing in so many different ways and see the world through the lens of someone else.

Week Four

Week Four has been a journey in the areas that I enjoy the most.  All the activities and programs that we have worked with this week are ones that require creativity and challenge you to think bigger and outside the box.  Powerpoints can be quite boring if we just put a whole book of words and a few pictures and rant on about blah, blah, blah.  With the world of prezi and much, much more presentations and powerpoints can be interactive and make you feel as if you are right through in it. 

With the Technology Explorations this week I have found some amazing sites that I will be using soon to do projects with the kids.  The Comiclife site will be first on the list and a way for my kids to express topics we are learning.  I am excited to show my kids this activity and I can already see their minds running wild with imagination and creativity.  The other sites that amazed me were Storybird and Scribblar.  My kids already love to create stories and I have a million stories and books they have drawn posted all over my room.  Storybird will be a way for them to make stories online and a digital version that everyone can see.  It allows them to reach more people with their writing.

The powerpoint presentation I created and used with my students was with “The Hungry Caterpillar” book.  We are working on math skills such as addition and subtraction and I wanted to use technology to get this to them.  I used the various pictures and foods from the book to make interactive slides with addition and subtraction problems for them to solve at their desk.  I presented my powerpoint to my 1^st grade math students.  I am the most proud of the visual attractiveness of my powerpoint and how it brings you to every inch of each slide.  You do not look at the slides and see words everywhere, but pictures that tell you the problem.  If I could change one thing about the slide I would add voice to it and make it ask questions to the students about each problem, like with Voice thread.  The students looked the presentation and the artwork used.  It was very appealing to the students and not just a lecture that went nowhere.

Week Six

Webquests in the beginning were about to be the death of me.  They are something totally new for me and I had no clue what they were.  The more and more I read about them and the more webquests I looked at, I started to fall in love with them.  They are lessons ready to use, and fully use, from beginning to end for the student.  They are so unique and each webquest I looked at could be totally different, on the layout and what task it had for you to complete. 

I found creating my own webquest a very challenging and intimidating task.  I was unsure about how to word things and second guessed myself about a million times it felt.  In the end it was okay and the message of the lesson was there.  I have seen many webquest that not only have an excellent lesson for you, but are some visually appealing it is crazy.  I learned that the layout of the webquest can be very beneficial to the student and to what level they focus on the task before them.  You also what to make your webquest fun, inviting, and interactive without losing the focus of what the kids are being taught.

The challenges I faced this week while making my webquest were what exactly I needed to put in each area.  I was confused as to what information went where.  I do not understand the full logistics of how everything works as well to make it beautiful, but that will come.  Mostly, I was just confused with the title of the areas and what information I wanted to include in each area without being ridiculous.

My webquest is called Olympics Add Up.  It is tying in the Summer Olympics of 2012 with the math that can be gained through taking a deeper look.  Not only are you hitting math standards, but social studies, science, and using a ton of technology.  The high level thinking skills for this is going crazy.

http://questgarden.com/148/68/8/121001143021/