Monday, January 25, 2010
BP9_2010013_Web2.0Tool3_Kido'Z2.0
Monday, January 18, 2010
BP5_2010012_Web2.0T2_iBreadcrumbs
Image courtesy of photobucket.comClick on the title above for a tutorial.
iBreadcrumbs.com is a wonderful, free and useful resource tool that I have learned about recently and found very useful during my graduate courses. By doing so, I can see the benefits of using it in the classroom as well.
iBreadcrumbs is a downloadable toolbar that acts as a recorder for the webpages you visit. This tool then allows you to annotate the pages and share your research with others via any web browser. As a graduate student, I appreciate the ease of the tool and the wonderful idea of being able to review someone’s else’s research “breadcrumb” rather than starting from scratch. With this being a recording toolbar for your web browser and allowing users to save, review, and share research, it is a timesaving organizational tool as well. Several of my colleagues and I have put this tool to the test while collaborating on a grant we are writing. It is so amazing. We each took a section of the grant to research and by using the ibreadcrumb tool, were able to save and share in hours what would have normally took us days, even weeks to do.
Using it in the classroom to reference websites for studying and for group research projects are just a few of the ways to use it in the classroom environment. Students could also develop evaluating skills by reviewing and commenting on shared “breadcrumbs”. Networking, collaboration, creating databases of web resources and the ability for RSS subscriptions for updates are additional uses as well.
Monday, January 11, 2010
BP4_2010011_Web2.0Tools
Image created at http://www.wordle.net/
Web 2.0 tools in the classroom seem inevitable now days with the majority of students coming into schools as early as kindergarten with a vast knowledge of technology. Why not, as an educator, utilize their interests in the digital world and the vast Web 2.0 tools we have available to foster communication, creativity, engagement, and collaboration between school and students.
One of the Web 2.0 tools I have become interested in and have begun using with my 2nd graders this year is podcasting using Audacity. Podcasting is used “to describe a combination of hardware and software used to distribute audio and video content online” (Pederson, 2005). Audacity, Movie Maker, and pc’s are the tools that are offered at our county level that I have utilized in my classroom for my podcasting projects. Podcasting has become a very engaging tool that my students are eager to use, even my reluctant readers and writers.
My first project with Podcasting involved the students writing and then reading their “All About Me” questionnaires. After practicing orally several times, they recorded their “bios” using Audacity and then we uploaded them to our class blog. It became a “hit” with students and parents. What a great communication tool as well! I plan to continue to learn more about podcasting and use it in my classroom for future projects such as: student recordings of favorite books, class songs, poetry café, book reviews, record daily events, class happenings for parents, homework reminders, etc.
The educational benefits of this Web 2.0 tool are endless. It makes learning meaningful, engaging, and innovative. Podcasting offers a creative means of developing and strengthening their communication skills, oral reading fluency, and self esteem using 21st century technology
Pederson, C. Michael (2005). Podcasting in education. In B. Hoffman (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Educational Technology. Retrieved November 2, 2009, from http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/articles/podcasting/start.htm
Sunday, January 10, 2010
BP3_2010012_RSSFeeds
RSS subscriptions
BusyTeachersCafe:
I chose this tool for the timesaving, valuable resources it offers elementary teachers.
It will benefit the teaching profession by allowing teachers to use monthly resources to plan engaging lessons, blogs on current products and member contributions, as well as lists of useful teacher websites for collaboration.
Wikispaces:Cooltools for schools
I chose this site for the 21st century/Web 2.0 tools "hot list".
This will greatly benefit my teaching profession as I will use it and share it when planning and implementing 21st century lessons and professional development. Allows users to stay abreast of the latest tech tools.
TeacherTube.com
Wonderful resource for instructional teacher videos to use in the classroom or as professional development.
Great tool for my teaching profession that allows me to showcase, share, and collaborate will colleagues who share similar interests. Also a useful 21st century teaching and learning tool.
Edutopia.org
I chose this site for the resources as well. It is a site that archives k-12 articles, videos, blogs, professional interviews, and 21st century learning. This site benefits the teaching profession by keeping me updated on best practices and current trends in education.
JenuineTech.com
I chose this site for the cool collaborative, technology integrated projects.
This has greatly benefited the teaching profession especially at my current school because of the collaboration between students, classes, and grade levels. It has also offered more engaging ideas and a way for our students to connect to other parts of our world.
BP2_2010011_EducationalUsesofBlogs
Image created at http://www.wordle.net/
Cravin (2006) states that “according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, nearly two-thirds of Internet users don’t have a good idea of the meaning of “blog.” Cravin (2006) goes on to explain that blogs aren’t just fancy websites but “web logs” that allow users to keep “ a personal journal, but sharing it with the world”. When I first heard about blogs, I too was one of the majority who didn’t understand it but soon grew to value it.
Uses of Web 2.0 tools in the classroom such as blogs can provide support not only for the teacher as a personal networking tool but also for the classroom as a whole. As a 2nd grade teacher, I can see the valuable benefits and resources using blogs in the classroom can provide in all academic areas.
There are vast uses of blogs-personal & commercial, but the one I am most excited about is the use of it in my classroom. The buzz for some time now has been the integration of technology into the classroom to help our students become proficient in the 21st century workplace. As a teacher for the younger students, the use of blogs to promote reading, writing, communication, and social skills while fostering higher order thinking skills is one-step in this direction.
I currently use my classroom blog, which I began about a year ago as a communication tool for my parents as well as my students to keep them updated on classroom topics and events. I also use it as a means to showcase student work such as special projects and photos. It’s a great tool that offers a collaborative touch with the use of comments as well as features that allows the creator to upload photos, videos, and sound. Another neat feature that I find useful as a teacher is that the blog posts are archived so colleagues, parents, even myself can view and/or reply at any time.
To stay up to date on the latest trends and issues in education especially ones that relate to technology, I am constantly researching new & exciting ways to use tech tools such as blogs in my classroom. Thanks to the Web, our resources are limitless. From allowing students to make comments or ask questions about topics, to creating a class newsletter with photos, to using it as a reading response forum, to one of my favorites…. Blog-pals.
What a wonderful, powerful tool for both learner and educator.
References
Carvin, Andy (2006, May 22). What Exactly Is A Blog, Anyway? Retrieved January 4, 8, 2010 at http://www.pbs.org/teachers/learning.now
/2006/05/what_exactly_is_a_blog_anyway.html
