I found this course to be challenging and rewarding, but most of all relevant. I have looked at many blogs as resources and I really like the format for information. But the low-tech web template I was currently using didn't allow me to publish information in consistent or user-friendly way. So this course was very timely. I want to use the things I've learned as a way to connect with both students and parents in a better, more current platform.
The challenging part initially, was the format. I'm used to attending a class where the instructor walks you through a process step by step and you "learn" it. Being asked to figure things out on my own, or with just a little video prompt... was new/different/intimidating at first. The most frustrating point of this was the Prezi project. I just couldn't find specific enough tutorial for some of the things I wanted to do. But as I continued to work through the format, I was amazed at the things I could create! I kept showing my husband and my kids... look at this! It became easier and I even researched directions for a few other things I now knew I could find and learn online. I even experimented with Google sites a bit prior to the in-service we have next week, because I knew that I could learn how to get started and then go to the lab with my specific questions. So in the end, I am grateful for the format of the course. I found the structure of the open-lab to be superb as well. I could go when it worked for me. A couple times, I went with questions, and once I went as a way to schedule time to work because I wasn't fitting it in at home.
I do plan to link a blog to my webpage. I want parents to go to my web resources and I think you need to post often so they learn to look there for updates. I am also anxious to use the screencasting. I think this will be great for my K. students.
Friday, August 23, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Activity #9 Fitness Assessment
Scenario 2: Blocking all Access
After hearing a presentation at a conference, your principal Mr. Smith has banned all Web 2.0 tools for students and teachers including Facebook, Skype, YouTube, wikis, blogs, and Flickr. A number of teachers and many students are upset with this decision but Mr. Smith cites legal reasons for blocking the sites.
Task:
1. Discuss the possible ethical issues involved.
2. Determine if the safety or well-being of anyone is in jeopardy.
3. What advice, strategy, or policy would you recommend to individuals or schools based on this scenario?
4. Share any real-life incidents or personal connections related to the scenario.
Response:
1 and 2- I think the administrator in this scenario is trying hard to avoid ethical and safety issues. By banning the use of these platforms, he is avoiding the issues, but at the same time, denying the teachers and students options for learning and sharing that, in my opinion, students today will need. I think the safety issue is probably that students be exposed to inappropriate content or comments of a similar nature.
3- Advice I would offer includes education on how the banned tools can add to today's classroom and improve motivation and relevance for students. This administrator needs to look at some good examples of teachers who have successfully and safely used the platforms. I think some clear guidelines/policy could be arrived at with communication about the potential problems Mr. Smith wants to avoid. And possibly help from a teacher with experience/success. Many teachers who blog or use web tools are willing to share.
4- I do like to use You-Tube clips of songs with my students in class, but don't like the adds that sometimes pop up. So I can appreciate concern there.
Scenario 5: Email Complication
Mr. Lopez, a social studies teacher, has been using the same PowerPoint to introduce content on the electoral-college for many years now. He recently saw a Prezi his high school-age daughter created for a class and asked her to teach him how to create a Prezi. He was able to link images and video content instead of just text and found that his students seemed more motivated and lively in a debate about voting politics. He decided to have his 7th graders create Prezis in small groups outlining their main points for the election debate. What Mr. Lopez discovered in the computer lab is that as students were creating Prezi Edu accounts and told to use their school provided email when registering, they could not activate their Prezi accounts because the school email settings only allow emails internally, and therefore cannot receive emails from outside the district. Mr. Lopez’s assignment was suddenly dead in the water.
Response:
1- The ethical issue here, lies in the school trying to keep spam or other unwanted email away from students.
2- Spam email is pretty bad. I get it with my home account and at school also. I am often shocked at how graphic even the subject lines are on some of them. Yes, I definitely see the potential ethical and safety issues with student email accounts.
3- The reason I chose this scenario is because the initial fix to Mr. Lopez's lesson is easy. I really believe in honesty with students, and explicit modeling with students, especially when you can model hitting a road-block and then working through it. Kids need to see this in action. They need to see how to remain calm and work through a problem. Mr. Lopez could just stop the lesson, discuss the problem, brainstorm some solutions, and then circle back later with a fix. Or not and go to plan B. Either way- it's good life-lesson material.
I think the possible solution would include using a shared log-in account, so he could filter the email account. Or possibly contacting Prezi to ask for a suggested solution. I would think his district tech department would also have some ideas for how to work around the internal email. A school district tech squad has the unique niche of understanding the technology, but knowing that the safety of students is the priority.
After hearing a presentation at a conference, your principal Mr. Smith has banned all Web 2.0 tools for students and teachers including Facebook, Skype, YouTube, wikis, blogs, and Flickr. A number of teachers and many students are upset with this decision but Mr. Smith cites legal reasons for blocking the sites.
Task:
1. Discuss the possible ethical issues involved.
2. Determine if the safety or well-being of anyone is in jeopardy.
3. What advice, strategy, or policy would you recommend to individuals or schools based on this scenario?
4. Share any real-life incidents or personal connections related to the scenario.
Response:
1 and 2- I think the administrator in this scenario is trying hard to avoid ethical and safety issues. By banning the use of these platforms, he is avoiding the issues, but at the same time, denying the teachers and students options for learning and sharing that, in my opinion, students today will need. I think the safety issue is probably that students be exposed to inappropriate content or comments of a similar nature.
3- Advice I would offer includes education on how the banned tools can add to today's classroom and improve motivation and relevance for students. This administrator needs to look at some good examples of teachers who have successfully and safely used the platforms. I think some clear guidelines/policy could be arrived at with communication about the potential problems Mr. Smith wants to avoid. And possibly help from a teacher with experience/success. Many teachers who blog or use web tools are willing to share.
4- I do like to use You-Tube clips of songs with my students in class, but don't like the adds that sometimes pop up. So I can appreciate concern there.
Scenario 5: Email Complication
Mr. Lopez, a social studies teacher, has been using the same PowerPoint to introduce content on the electoral-college for many years now. He recently saw a Prezi his high school-age daughter created for a class and asked her to teach him how to create a Prezi. He was able to link images and video content instead of just text and found that his students seemed more motivated and lively in a debate about voting politics. He decided to have his 7th graders create Prezis in small groups outlining their main points for the election debate. What Mr. Lopez discovered in the computer lab is that as students were creating Prezi Edu accounts and told to use their school provided email when registering, they could not activate their Prezi accounts because the school email settings only allow emails internally, and therefore cannot receive emails from outside the district. Mr. Lopez’s assignment was suddenly dead in the water.
Response:
1- The ethical issue here, lies in the school trying to keep spam or other unwanted email away from students.
2- Spam email is pretty bad. I get it with my home account and at school also. I am often shocked at how graphic even the subject lines are on some of them. Yes, I definitely see the potential ethical and safety issues with student email accounts.
3- The reason I chose this scenario is because the initial fix to Mr. Lopez's lesson is easy. I really believe in honesty with students, and explicit modeling with students, especially when you can model hitting a road-block and then working through it. Kids need to see this in action. They need to see how to remain calm and work through a problem. Mr. Lopez could just stop the lesson, discuss the problem, brainstorm some solutions, and then circle back later with a fix. Or not and go to plan B. Either way- it's good life-lesson material.
I think the possible solution would include using a shared log-in account, so he could filter the email account. Or possibly contacting Prezi to ask for a suggested solution. I would think his district tech department would also have some ideas for how to work around the internal email. A school district tech squad has the unique niche of understanding the technology, but knowing that the safety of students is the priority.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Activity#10 Free Choice
One of my goals this year is to actually do something with the photos I take in class. I've used some in class books, and some at the end of the year for memory-books/movies but this year I would like to share them in smaller bunches as I take them. I'm testing out Flickr as a vehicle.
Here is a photo of our trip to the fire station! Check it out.
Link to Flickr set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100292835@N04/sets/72157635068200649
Setting up a Flickr account, uploading, and linking it to the blog were pretty easy steps. I did have to look around a bit to determine how to invite "friends" to view photos. I would have to enter in the emails of each family, to allow them access to the photos I would post. I don't think sharing all photos as "public" is a good idea. So inviting each family would create a "group" that would have access to the photos. Families would have to create an account with Flickr to be able to log in and view- but this is an easy, intuitive step... I hope!
I think Flickr, Picassa, even Shutterfly would all accomplish establishing a group and a place for families to view photos. All of those vehicles will store photos, and allow you to invite a specific group to view the photos. I would like to start with a photo or two right in a blog post to entice/increase families to view more.
Setting up a Flickr account, uploading, and linking it to the blog were pretty easy steps. I did have to look around a bit to determine how to invite "friends" to view photos. I would have to enter in the emails of each family, to allow them access to the photos I would post. I don't think sharing all photos as "public" is a good idea. So inviting each family would create a "group" that would have access to the photos. Families would have to create an account with Flickr to be able to log in and view- but this is an easy, intuitive step... I hope!
I think Flickr, Picassa, even Shutterfly would all accomplish establishing a group and a place for families to view photos. All of those vehicles will store photos, and allow you to invite a specific group to view the photos. I would like to start with a photo or two right in a blog post to entice/increase families to view more.
Monday, August 12, 2013
Activity #8 Polling and Data Gathering
Once again, I am really searching for the way polling would look in kindergarten.
My 2 thoughts:
1- as a way to engage parents and or spark the at-home connection. I think parents might find a poll unique and it might entice them to check a class blog regularly.
2- kids could check the class blog from home and answer a poll with a little support. We could discuss the data in class. I was wondering too, if I had 3 or 4 iPads in class, and set up a poll, could the kids get in 3 lines and check their answer via the iPad. ...or does each poll entry have to come from a separate device? I'll have to check into that.
Here is a poll I thought I could put up on the screen at my parent info night. Parents could take the poll while waiting and it could be a little ice-breaker as I start my presentation. This poll was easy to make. I did give a try to adding graphics to another poll- but didn't get it to work on my Chromebook. I think I could do it at home on my mac.
Google Forms:
Here is a form I created. Pretty easy to do. I sent it to my team trying to find a common date for us to meet at school. I left one question open-ended... asking what was on their/our "to-do" list. I am anxious to see how they respond. Fun and helpful. I don't see myself using a form with kids... and not really parents at this point. Maybe an end-of-the-year survey. But I would definitely use a form with my team. It's practical, but adds a little more interest to email too!
My 2 thoughts:
1- as a way to engage parents and or spark the at-home connection. I think parents might find a poll unique and it might entice them to check a class blog regularly.
2- kids could check the class blog from home and answer a poll with a little support. We could discuss the data in class. I was wondering too, if I had 3 or 4 iPads in class, and set up a poll, could the kids get in 3 lines and check their answer via the iPad. ...or does each poll entry have to come from a separate device? I'll have to check into that.
Here is a poll I thought I could put up on the screen at my parent info night. Parents could take the poll while waiting and it could be a little ice-breaker as I start my presentation. This poll was easy to make. I did give a try to adding graphics to another poll- but didn't get it to work on my Chromebook. I think I could do it at home on my mac.
Google Forms:
Here is a form I created. Pretty easy to do. I sent it to my team trying to find a common date for us to meet at school. I left one question open-ended... asking what was on their/our "to-do" list. I am anxious to see how they respond. Fun and helpful. I don't see myself using a form with kids... and not really parents at this point. Maybe an end-of-the-year survey. But I would definitely use a form with my team. It's practical, but adds a little more interest to email too!
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Activity #7 Cloud computing
This summer, I have used Google Drive for 2 projects.
The first: I am on the district Design Team for the all day kindergarten model. We are working on a document with all the priority ELA standards. At one meeting, we all had a Chromebook and our note-taker shared the document with everyone. As we made more and more changes, our note-taker would be typing a revision and someone would find another, and they could make that change simultaneously. One thing I really liked during this process, was that the name of the person typing (or even just hovering) showed up on my screen. So you kind of knew who to direct comments to, etc. We also used the comment function, as a way to make notes for "next steps" ...things we wanted to re-visit during our next meeting. This was a really efficient way to work with a group. And we all had a current copy of the document upon leaving.
Second: we work to make balanced classes of incoming kindergarten students for the all-day classes. There are some specific things we divide out first, but then for the bulk of the kids, we divide them by their birthday month/age. In the past we have hand-written the lists. This year I had a chromebook at our first meeting, so opened a Google document and started typing the names onto the lists there. I shared it with the other teachers, and that night a colleague updated the boy/girl count. Next, we wanted to alphabetize the lists, so I made a spreadsheet in Google and started to enter the names. Because I had shared the spreadsheets with my team, one of them finished entering the names for me! I love that we can work from school or from home, and we can work as a team. And the document is always there, without us having to send a bunch of emails.
Here is a link to the ELA standards document (which is still a work in progress!) I chose not to link the class lists just because they have first and last names of students, and they are not finalized and have not been made public for families yet.
Link to ELA standards document (draft)
The first: I am on the district Design Team for the all day kindergarten model. We are working on a document with all the priority ELA standards. At one meeting, we all had a Chromebook and our note-taker shared the document with everyone. As we made more and more changes, our note-taker would be typing a revision and someone would find another, and they could make that change simultaneously. One thing I really liked during this process, was that the name of the person typing (or even just hovering) showed up on my screen. So you kind of knew who to direct comments to, etc. We also used the comment function, as a way to make notes for "next steps" ...things we wanted to re-visit during our next meeting. This was a really efficient way to work with a group. And we all had a current copy of the document upon leaving.
Second: we work to make balanced classes of incoming kindergarten students for the all-day classes. There are some specific things we divide out first, but then for the bulk of the kids, we divide them by their birthday month/age. In the past we have hand-written the lists. This year I had a chromebook at our first meeting, so opened a Google document and started typing the names onto the lists there. I shared it with the other teachers, and that night a colleague updated the boy/girl count. Next, we wanted to alphabetize the lists, so I made a spreadsheet in Google and started to enter the names. Because I had shared the spreadsheets with my team, one of them finished entering the names for me! I love that we can work from school or from home, and we can work as a team. And the document is always there, without us having to send a bunch of emails.
Here is a link to the ELA standards document (which is still a work in progress!) I chose not to link the class lists just because they have first and last names of students, and they are not finalized and have not been made public for families yet.
Link to ELA standards document (draft)
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Activity #6 Study Tools
Initially I was thinking this activity was not very applicable to kindergarten because there are so many emergent readers and we don't typically use flashcards with words very much. BUT... I was wrong!! Quizlet is really cool: you create "sets" of flashcards. I decided to make short vowel word sets. Once you create the sets, there are several things/"games" you can do with the sets. I am really excited about the "Speller" game. A voice speaks the word, and students try to spell the word. (We do this in class all the time!) I say a word, or our Jolly Phonics for the whiteboard program does and the kids write out the sounds they hear. The additional cool thing with Quizlet is that you can add graphics too! Very kindergarten appropriate! With this, I could have various levels of lists for individual or small group practice. I think kids could practice at home too, via a blog post with this embedded. What I really need next, is to figure out how to get some devices for kids to use... iPads, laptops, chromebooks, etc. And figure out how to efficiently load up this program on the devices so that 5 or 6 kids could use them during Daily 5 time.
Here's a set of short a flash cards...
Spicynodes:
I had several technical difficulties for the 2nd study tool...
I wanted to make a tagxedo. Couldn't load the operating system on my laptop or on my Chromebook, thus couldn't create anything. Moved on to Spicynode. I am posting the start of my project. But hit a wall with this too. I had added several more nodes to the "Mrs. Sabby" branch, but couldn't save them. Tried many times on my laptop, even moved to the Chromebook and had the same saving issue. So.... decided to post what I had so far. I want to keep moving forward.
I like Spicynode, but am not sure about creating a mind-map with the whole class. The format for entering text is easy, but might be overwhelming/confusing for emergent readers and writers... I have to think more on this. And I like to involve the kids in generating the ideas for a mind map- so I probably wouldn't make one to just put up for them. Also- no option for graphics with this one (Popplet would be better) But I did think I could use this with parents just as a fun option for organizing and delivering info.
I created a mind-map with topics I cover at our fall parent meeting. I could post this prior to the meeting and parents could get an idea of what I will talk about. Also, people who can't/don't come could get an overview from this.
Activity #5 YouTube channel
For this activity, I wanted to try uploading a video that was made/saved on my iPad. That's one of the things I would like to use iPads in the classroom for... making short videos. Sharing them out with families seems like the natural next step. I did not make a new video for school use, I am posting one my daughter, Madeline made. On her own one night, she pulled some photos from a trip to Haiti that Ellie(my oldest) and I went on. The text is all original from Maddie. When she brought it to show me, it brought tears to my eyes. I really think she captured the spirit and purpose of the trip, even though she wasn't the one on the trip. I am really proud of both my girls for their interest in caring for others and expanding their view of people and the world.
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