Wikis, forums, Twitter, class website, Moodle, iPods, iPads, and the many websites and blogs...oh my! I'm just bombarded by how much information is out there! I am trying to figure out the best way to incorporate it all into my classroom activities! I have to say that it gives me as much excitement as it does anxiety! Where to start and which activities are the best ways to teach curriculum to children are my two continuing questions.
My latest idea is starting a class blog to use solely as a place to publish written work. I like the idea of sharing globally with other classrooms and receiving feedback from other people, especially since we are now following 17 different classrooms and that number goes up every day! There are so many things our children want to share! The blog idea is formulating in my mind. Our school has an internal blog network that can be shared with anyone, which seems like a safe route to take. I am always thinking about and considering the safety and privacy of our students. I'll keep you posted on this work in progress. I'm sure I'll be asking for comments for our students as soon as it takes off! For now, I'll stick to my tweets, OTHER blogs, and the many magical things happening on our SMARTboard everyday!
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Voicethreads and Wikis
We finished our iPod project and I am in the process of final edits on the Voicethread. I sat to listen to the children's interviews and was blown away by their excitement, engagement, and entertainment. It was great to see the children show their personalities through their questions and delivery of the answers. I could tell how much the children enjoyed this project. So, my next adventure to discuss is another collaborative idea by my colleague, Chris. Here is my advertisement for his great idea and my support by passing it on.
Chris has started a wiki page for educators interested in tweeting on Twitter with their classrooms. He has made different areas where educators can contribute to different "hashtag" conversations. It also allows people to leave their Twitter names if they are interested in collaborating with other classrooms through Twitter or other means. It is a great idea. I am excited to see this take off. Feel free to share and contribute!
http://twitterclassrooms.wikispaces.com/
Chris has started a wiki page for educators interested in tweeting on Twitter with their classrooms. He has made different areas where educators can contribute to different "hashtag" conversations. It also allows people to leave their Twitter names if they are interested in collaborating with other classrooms through Twitter or other means. It is a great idea. I am excited to see this take off. Feel free to share and contribute!
http://twitterclassrooms.wikispaces.com/
Saturday, September 3, 2011
The Gift of the Clothespin
So, this post is dedicated to my colleague Chris, who came up with this brilliant idea that I stole (with his permission, of course). As I have been working with my fourth graders in the computer lab, my biggest frustration has been hearing the following words: "Mrs. Karol, I need help!" Don't get me wrong. I love helping the children with their computer needs, but it is overwhelming to hear 5 of them saying that phrase at the same time.
I was venting to my colleague about the iPod project and how it was going well except for the constant need of help. I admit I didn't schedule enough time in the lab for what I wanted the children to do. It all ended up working out fine, but I left feeling like I needed to pull my hair out! Chris told me that he felt the same way, especially when starting a new project. He told me he had thought about giving the children a clothespin or another object to put at the top of their screen as a signal that they needed help. Brilliant! I remember in college, when we were in our education classes, they taught us about little tricks like that and I thought they were great ideas, but never got around to using most of them. Now, this trick has been a life saver!!
We were in the computer lab, typing up our iPod interviews and I explained the system to the children. I told them the things they could work on while I was helping other children and I modeled how to use this new system. I have to say, it has changed the entire mood in the room! I can't tell you how excited I am to use this new concept every time we are in the lab! Hats off to Chris on this idea!
I was venting to my colleague about the iPod project and how it was going well except for the constant need of help. I admit I didn't schedule enough time in the lab for what I wanted the children to do. It all ended up working out fine, but I left feeling like I needed to pull my hair out! Chris told me that he felt the same way, especially when starting a new project. He told me he had thought about giving the children a clothespin or another object to put at the top of their screen as a signal that they needed help. Brilliant! I remember in college, when we were in our education classes, they taught us about little tricks like that and I thought they were great ideas, but never got around to using most of them. Now, this trick has been a life saver!!
We were in the computer lab, typing up our iPod interviews and I explained the system to the children. I told them the things they could work on while I was helping other children and I modeled how to use this new system. I have to say, it has changed the entire mood in the room! I can't tell you how excited I am to use this new concept every time we are in the lab! Hats off to Chris on this idea!
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