Blog Post 12

We chose to present this as a group blog post. I found the app SayText, the software Face Mouse, and the Satalight technology. Each of us put our sources on the ending slide.

C4T 3 Ken Halla

1. National WWII Museum & Teachers: Halla's blog post is about the WWII Museum's website. He explained that the museum's website is very helpful for history teachers. He also explained that there is a teacher site to the page. This site has a very convenient virtual tour of the museum. This site is great for future and current secondary history teachers.
    Hi, Mr. Halla, my name is Brandi Wescovich. I am a student at the University of South Alabama, and I am currently enrolled in the EDM 310 course here. I am in the Elementary Education Program and I loved learning about the WWII Museum's website. I have visited the WWII Museum twice before and I loved it. I love history and my favorite subject is WWII. I plan to use this in my future classroom.

2. My Newspaper Editorial: Halla's second blog post was about technology in the classroom. Recently he had been seeing negative editorials about using technology in the classroom. Halla decided that he was going to write his own. His editorial is called Halla: Don't Kick Technology Out of Virginia's Classrooms. He explains that the Virginia Legislature is trying to limit the use of technology in the classroom, to protect the state's students. Halla wants to prove that technology should be used in the classroom. I really enjoyed reading this blog post; it is directly related to what we are learning in EDM 310.
    Hi, Mr. Halla, my name is Brandi Wescovich. I am a student at the University of South Alabama, and I am currently enrolled in the EDM 310 course here. I am in the Elementary Education Program and I loved reading about your view on technology in the classroom. We are learning that it is great to use technology in the classroom. I believe that students should be subjected to technology in the classroom; it gives them experience to build on when they end their formal school career. Teachers are the ones who need to teach students how to be safe on the internet. I would defiantly recommend future teachers to read this blog post.

Project 14

I chose to create a lesson about the colors of the rainbow. My students will learn about the colors of the rainbow and split into groups to create an activity.
Lesson Plan
Rubric

Blog Post 11

    I enjoyed watching all 6 of these videos. I learned things that will help me a lot, when it comes to getting ideas for future classroom procedures.
    My favorite video out of all of them was Roosevelt Elementary PBL Program. This one was my favorite because there were many points of view added into the mix. I liked how parents talked about how Project Based learning helped their children. I learned more about PBL from watching this video. I did not understand that allowing children to practice public speaking early makes them get over stage fright. Also, PBL allows students to think for themselves and not rely on the teacher for guidance or the thought process. By using PBL, in the classroom, students are learning the fundamentals of researching topics at an earlier age than previous years. PBL is a great way for students to work on social skills; this is because the aspect of group learning and cooperation. Each of these PBL lessons work on more that one subject, so these lesson plans are comprised of multiple intelligence. At first, when we learned about PBL I did not like the idea too much, but now after watching this video I have grown to see the true nature and benefits of Project Based Learning.
    I learned a lot from the Super Digital Citizen Video as well. Sam Pane allowed his students to make their own Internet Superhero. This project was used to teach his students the importance of online safety. Each student created his or her own superhero and made a comic about the superhero's powers. I like this project because it allows students to understand the importance being safe on the internet. It also allows the students to show off their creativity. I would use this in my future classroom because this will allow my students to become comfortable with safely using the internet. This one is great because the students have an interactive approach instead of just sitting in a desk listening to someone just talk about using the internet safely.
    The video, Project Based Learning, shows the transition from the regular classroom approaches to Project Based Learning. Three teachers decided they wanted to convert their classrooms into a Project Based Learning class. By doing this, the teachers decided to hold the class through several periods and combine History, English, and Information Processing into one class. When the students had more time to work on a project they felt more proud of what they accomplished. Using PBL allows teachers to teach beyond the curriculum. This video is helpful because it shows the ease of transition from one form of class to the next. This is a good video to show a teacher who is on the fence about changing their classroom to PBL.
    The next video, Back to the Future, shows how PBL is beneficial. Brian Crosby describes how his students were behind intellectually. Out of his 24 students, only 9 knew the city they lived in, 12 knew the state, 3 knew the country, 7 knew their address, and 4 knew their phone number. The reason to this was because the students did not have a schema to the real world. This allows them to make connections with classroom ideas and home life. Crosby used Project Based Learning to allow children to develop a more working schema. He did this by performing experiments with a soda can, tissue paper, and balloon. The biggest experiment, with the balloon, yielded the biggest help. I find that this video helps a teacher understand that PBL can help students understand more about the world and classroom ideas.
    I felt that Blended Learning Cycle and Making Thinking Visible are close in comparison. Both show the importance of allowing students to think for themselves. These videos showed that allowing students to think and understand the material, before moving on, is important. This allows the students to fully comprehend the basics of each lesson. I would love to use the Quivers approach in my future classroom because it is simple, yet complex, in how to perform a good lesson. This approach is categorized as question(hook), investigate/inquiry, video, elaborate, review, and summary quiz. These are great videos for future teachers who do not know how they will conduct class in the future yet.

Project 12 Part A

Blog Post 10

What can we learn from Mrs, Cassidy?

Little People... Big Potential

    In this video, Mrs. Cassidy uses her class to explain how she uses technology in the classroom. The students explained that they prefer doing blogs over formal writing assignments. The students enjoy them because anybody from around the world can comment on their writing. Also, the students' families can comment on their posts. Some of the other sources that she uses are the class webpage, wikis, videos, Skype, and Nintendo DS. The students like using the technology, because it is something different than busy classwork.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 1

    In this video, Mrs. Cassidy describes the way she uses technology in the classroom. She explains that she got funding from the federal government for professional development, in technology. Mrs. Cassidy has a classroom blog that the students use daily. She then explains that the use of video helps when teaching her students. When she uses her students' names, on the internet, she only uses their first names and mixes up their pictures where they are not by the right name. Mrs. Cassidy gave us a tip, we have to keep changing with the technology. She explains that her students' writing is better when used in a blog post, because the students know they have an audience. She also explains that Twitter is a good way to find resources. And her ending note for this video is that, as teachers, we have to always keep learning. 

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 2

    In this video, Mrs. Cassidy continues her points from the previous video. She explains that when making a technology plan for the classroom; start with what you love, like photography or music. Then, she explains that Personal Learning Networks are a good resource as well. Twitter is a good way to start a PLN. There are also other websites that can be used when forming a PLN.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 3

    In this video, Mrs. Cassidy finishes her interview. She explains that her students blog at least once a week, in the computer lab. Some of the students blog more because they want to blog outside of class. One of the students, from the EDM 310 class, asked if there is more cheating when technology is used, and Mrs. Cassidy explained that when looking at someone else's work on the blog is not necessarily cheating, but collaboration. As stated in one of the earlier videos, Facebook, like Twitter, can also be a good resource to find educational help. She thought her students to only use their first names, do not post pictures, and never post mean comments, on the internet. And lastly, Mrs. Cassidy explained that she teaches her students to be safe on the internet, by showing them safe places to find information.

    Mrs. Cassidy likes to use technology in the classroom, because her students seem to excel when they know they have more than just her as an audience. In my future classroom, I plan to use her idea of only posting first names, for my students. I would not post any pictures of them, because it would be safer than mixing up the pictures. When using technology, in the classroom, I think one of the things that I will have to address is that my students will get off topic and play noneducational games. I would address this by speaking to the class on how important it is to stay on topic and learn as you play. I would benefit by using her approaches, because my students will be prepared for a world that uses a multitude of technology. 

C4K Summary 2

C4K #1
Jesus
    Jesus's blog post was about how he is job shadowing for a class assignment. He does not really like job shadowing. He thinks that there is no point to job shadowing. He explains that it is just like having a job, and that if he wanted one he would go out and get one himself. The only reason he is finishing it is because he needs to pass his English class.

   Hi, my name is Brandi Wescovich. I go to the University of South Alabama. Job shadowing is a good way to find out if you actually want to go into a certain job field. I know you do not like the idea of job shadowing, but some people would kill to have the opportunity. I wish I could have been able to job shadow before. Once you get through it, I am sure everything will be fine.

C4K #2
Justin
   Justin's blog post was about how first impressions are not always true. He was explaining that one time, he tried to talk to someone new, in his class, who really did not talk much. Justin thought he was mean and unfriendly. On another day, the teacher paired the two together, and they began to get to know each other. He finally realized that the boy was cool, and he was his first cousin.

    Hi, my name is Brandi Wescovich. I go to the University of South Alabama. I find it interesting that you could think that someone was mean and find out that he is your cousin. I had that happen to me once, except the girl was not as close relation to me. I find it cool how you thought he was mean and he turned out to be cool. If you would not have gotten paired with him, you would not know he was your cousin.

C4K #3
Jaxon D.
    Jaxon's blog post was about the book Left Behind. He explains that the book centers around what will happen after the rapture. This is undoubtedly a religious book. Jaxon describes the journey of the four main characters. They go through many trials and tribulations that eventually make them understand that they need to work together. I really enjoyed reading this blog post.

    Hi, my name is Brandi Wescovich. I go to the University of South Alabama. I like the book you chose to write about. I find it very interesting. You did very well in describing the book, in detail. Your description made me want to read the book. You would be good at writing the synopsis to different books. I think I will go find that book and read it.