Weebly

Weebly seems like a great way to get a professional looking website.  As an undergraduate, I actually made my own website using DreamWeaver.  It was actually pretty fun once I got the hang of it, but the learning curve was a tad frustrating.  Linking was definitely the most obnoxious part.  Anyway, my professor insisted that I use software like DreamWeaver and not a tool like Weebly (a great learning experience, but a LOT more work for similar results).

Overall, a great example of the power of word-of-mouth.  I am drawn to the layout and freshness of the sites, and I probably would have chosen this tool for my literacy project.  However, in class, several people mentioned its drawbacks, especially copying and pasting from Word.  So...I think I'll avoid it! 

However, I am loving the idea of the ePortfolio and I am seriously considering creating one for my career.  I love the way this one is set up.  It's also a great way to set up a WebQuest, like this wonderful example. 

I don't know...on second thought, after seeing all those cool examples, I sort of DO want to explore and create one for my project!  I'm just apprehensive about potential frustrations.  What is your experience with Weebly?  I am sure it is user-friendly and easy, but I'm worried about formatting annoyances.  Have you had any of those?  Help me make my decision!!  Thanks in advance :)

Ciao!

Blogs I Follow

I have a special weakness for teacher blogs, especially pretty ones!  I have bookmarked a LOT on Diigo.  I thought I'd share my Top Five, all worth following on google reader!! Highly recommended. 

The First Grade Parade
Seusstastic Classroom Inspirations
Tales from a K-1 Classroom
Keep Calm and Teach On
Teaching in Flip Flops

If you had to narrow down your favorite teacher sites to five, which five would you choose?  I have chosen mine based on readability and usefulness - these sites are especially good for freebies! Once I have a classroom, my favorites will be more focused on those grades.  I still think it's helpful to look at a variety of grades, though!  What do you think of these sites?

Skyping with Mike Gwaltney and Students

This session really taught me a lot.  Two concepts were especially significant for me:

The differences between online discussions and classroom discussions really surprised me.  I had always focused on the negative drawbacks of online discussions, as I really love grand discussions in a live classroom.  But these girls taught me that there are actually many benefits of online discussions!  Students have an opportunity to form more complex arguments.  Moreover, the discussions are entirely student-driven.  Teachers are almost forced to stay out.   If you’re anything like me, you’ve definitely experienced the professor who promises not to talk for the discussion, only to pipe in more than anyone else.   The other super great part of online discussions the girls brought up is that there are virtually no off-topic diatribes.  In my adolescent lit class, it seems that we spend approximately 10-15 minutes each class talking about the Hunger Games movie.  Those conversations (although incredible enjoyable!) would not happen online.

The other thing I took from the session was that, although counterintuitive, the Internet is actually humanizing.  Yes, it allows teachers to differentiate more easily and it allows people to connect across great distances.  This I knew and understood.  But what really stuck with me is the amount of effort Gwaltney puts in to reach his students.  I went to a very small college, with classes no larger than 20 students, and that kind of personalized attention was rare.  Although more common in high school, it still was not at Gwaltney’s level.  I think online teachers are forced to make these kinds of effort to make up for lost “face” time...but what people don’t understand is that being in the same room does not add value intrinsically.  If that effort isn’t put forth, then a brick and mortar classroom is no better than a virtual classroom.  However, brick and mortar teachers are less motivated to make those efforts because they think being physically present adds value.

What do you think?  What was your experience as an undergraduate/high school student?  What do you see as the pros and cons of virtual learning?

Ciao!

Revised Digital Story

Hi all!  I updated my digital story (added transitions between photos, mostly).  Enjoy!


I think this story would be great at the beginning of the school year.  Firstly, it provides a really personal introduction to me as more than just a teacher.  It's important for students to view us as humans!  With lives!  It also serves as a model for their own retelling of their summer vacation.  It enhances the curriculum by modeling successful detail and elaboration in original writing and shows them that I, too, am a writer and creator.

Here's the storyboard.
Here's a google form to provide specific feedback :)

Ciao!

Digital Story Feedback

Click here to view my digital story.

I think this story would be great at the beginning of the school year.  Firstly, it provides a really personal introduction to me as more than just a teacher.  It's important for students to view us as humans!  With lives!  It also serves as a model for their own retelling of their summer vacation.  It enhances the curriculum by modeling successful detail and elaboration in original writing and shows them that I, too, am a writer and creator. 

I would be eternally grateful if you would be so kind as to take a few moments of your valuable time to provide some feedback on my digital story. Click here if you're awesome.  (It should be pretty and blue.  Let me know if it's not!)

Independence Now

Allow me to write for a moment or so about something that has been bugging me for the past few weeks.  It’s something that Felicia mentions in this blog post and something that was reinforced when I read this.  And it’s something that I’ve definitely touched upon before.

I am petrified that technology is actually helping us to create dependent learners.

There.  I said it.  Disagree with me, please!  Tell me I’m wrong because I want to be.

We are using the internet to help children get answers, not find them, as Felicia writes.  Isn’t that also what we’re asked to do in the digital story project?  Dependent learners are given a list of resources that hold their hand through the process.  Independent learners are given an objective or a task and then they do it.  Oh, you don’t know how to use iMovie?  Figure it out by trial-and-error and playing around with it for yourself.  That, I think, is why my generation and the generations that have followed find tech so intuitive.  We figured it out for ourselves.  Nobody taught us.  Our parents, by contrast, have to be told how to do something and they don’t actually LEARN it – they LEARN to ask us.  I SAY NO! What my mom needs to learn is how to find the answer…NOT GET THE ANSWER! Instead of calling me or my brother, she needs to take on the inquiry task herself.  If she did, she would be much more likely to remember the answer…even if it takes longer to FIND it than to GET it.  If you can’t figure out how to do something on iMovie, then find a tutorial yourself.  Ask the internet yourself. 

Like I said, this was reinforced when I read this.  Did anyone else notice that about HALF the sites were no longer available?  That’s the internet for you, folks!  That’s why it’s important not to be GIVEN resources, but to be comfortable FINDING them.  There will always be something to replace what goes missing, but if you can’t find it, it won’t help you.  So I say, instead of telling your fourth-graders to get answers on a certain website, give them an objective/task (webquest) and have them do independent research.  Not only are they discovering content, they are learning how to learn.  That’s as authentic and independent as it gets.  And then they won’t shut down when their go-to website does.

Ciao!

Google Reader

I LOVE Google Reader.  It is soo helpful!  Instead of going to twenty separate blogs, I go to ONE site.  I read what I want and/or what's new.  It's all in one place!  I check the reader about weekly to respond to interesting posts.

I've subscribed to all of our classmates' blogs.  I haven't subscribed to anybody else's yet -- I simply don't have time to read blogs.  I have a bookmark folder on my computer of blogs I love (I'm talking Top Ten status) that I can look at when I do have time.  Mozilla lets me open them simultaneously in tabs and then I just mess around according to my mood!

Where does blogging fall on your priority list?  How often do you check?  What are some blogs that you recommend?

Ciao!

Ning

How can we improve the effectiveness of our cross-campus Ning?

• I personally love controversial topics and that's surely a way to get people to respond.
• Anything where people to get to talk about themselves (like the travel topic)
• Hot topics in the world today (I posted a forum about Joseph Kony)
• Maybe somebody gutsy could post one of those video blogs instead of typing a response?
• Reading/doing something together and then responding (glorified, inter-state class discussion)

Think these ideas could work?  What other ideas could we try?

Ciao!

Slideshare/Pinterest

Yup, I'm obsessed with Pinterest.

For those of you who are unsure what it's all about, check this out:

PinterestMy friend recommended it to me and I just jumped right in.  I was HOOKED.  I'm all about most of the things that are popular up there:  education, fitness, cooking, organization, and humor. What did you think of Slideshare?  I found it not-so user friendly.  Most of the videos were in other languages and they all seemed to be geared towards business.Anyway, did you find this video helpful at all if you're new to Pinterest?Ciao!  

VoiceThread

VoiceThread seems pretty straightforward, but once you browse around a little, you can see how creative people are with it! Of course, some attempts fall flat.

One that doesn't, however, is this social justice poetry slam.

This science project is also worth sharing.  As a writing tutor, I'm in love with this tool because, essentially, it's a visual paper.  Instead of having each subtopic written in paragraph form, the students research their topic and organize by pictures.  Duh!  They're much more likely to stick to relevant facts this way.  It's so easy to get caught up in writing and include tons of extraneous information that isn't pertinent to the point of the paragraph.

What are some VoiceThreads that you thought were unique?

Ciao!