Reflection

Some of my favorite things that I learned in this class are the designing and visualizing with technology. I am a visual learner so I can relate to this technology. I have enjoyed setting up and designing the ePortfolio page. Ok, not so much the setup, but the designing was fun. I enjoyed making my first interactive power point. I hope to create more. The sky is the limit with technology. Like I've said before, we must keep learning in order to keep up with the kids.  Thanks to my professor for making us learn and be aware of all of these neat tools that are at our fingertips to help students be successful learners. Before this class I was afraid of technology. Look how far I've come.  :)

Assessment tools

There are several way of assessing a student. One way is to use rubrics. There are many rubrics out there that are already created. You can find them for subject or grade level. They are quick and easy to use. Some of them you can add your own fields in there for more personalization. I think using a rubric for assessment has many advantages. It lets the student know up front what the expectations are. It allows them to take responsibility for their own actions or non-actions. They are aware of the grading up fornt so it's up to them to decide what kind of grade they want to earn.
I really liked the website inspiration.com is a cool website. With this software, students can build and use graphic organizers to help them to brainstorm, plan, organize, think, and outline (Admin, 2008). These are visual aides that help children visualize what they are learning, and when they create the graphic organizer critical thinking is involved.

Admin. (2008, August 07). Inspiration - Comprehend. Create. Communicate. Achieve More. Retrieved May 05, 2010, from http://www.inspiration.com/print/2

Visualizing with Technology

This is another cool website with thousand of possibilities. http://www.safarimontage.com/ It has intergrated lesson to use with the promethean board. The possibilities are endless for using technology in the classroom. There is so much out there I still need to tap into. I am a visual learner myself. I like to see things in print. I know there are students who are visual learners as well. This will be a great help in the classroom to those students. I learn a little more each day. The virtual world of visual technology is so amazing. I can't wait to use it in my future classroom.

Visualizing with Technology

I really like this new website http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm . This site has lesson plans with animation and video. You can search by grade level or subject area. It also has the Read Write capability in which you can click the sound button and it will read it to you. This is good for special education students who have trouble reading. It makes it possible for them to listen and still be able to gain the material. I did several searches. I did a search under science for elementary. I found the virtual lab. This was so cool. The students can try experiments and change variables one at a time. This is good to teach trial and error. This is good for analysis which brings about deeper thinking. There are lesson plans listed. In the lesson plan it lists the objectives, materials, procedures, website reources that go with the lesson plan, evaluation, and vocabulary words with definitions listed, and it lists the standards. It is all there in one little package that is put together for you. The students can use this site at home as well for practice. It has useful information for the parents too. I have shared this website with several teachers at my school. Please give it a look. You might find it useful.

Beautiful weather this weekend

The weather was so beautiful. It is time for Spring planting. Time to get the vegetable garden ready. I love fresh tomatoes. I can almost taste them now :0)

Designing with Technologies

The First Lego League is a unique program. It allows the creativity of the kids. It is a international competition for elementary students. They are to design a robot that will complete a task. There is a different theme each time. The students learn to work together and meet with other groups to share their ideas and designs. This is a competition which the use of technology, engineering, and math skills are needed. The students also learn how to respect each others work. This league also teaches the student about a sense of community. The community gets involved as well for support and volunteers.

Lego Universe Creation Lab is another way in which students can be creative. Students can design Lego creations. The designs that kids create are often used by the creaters of Lego for future inspiration in the future design of pieces. They can play games on this site as well.

CreatingMusic.com helps kids get an interest for music, beat, pitch, and rhythm. It allows the kids the freedom to design and create their own music. It has games for comparing pitch and rhythm. This could help students who have an ear for music.

All of these site allow for students to be creative and allow for independence. The music one would be great for a music teacher to use. The First Lego League reminded me of a science fair project in which students compete with each other. This takes thought and determination from the students to enter a competition like this. This allows for more indepth thinking on the students part which usually means more learning.

Another Beautiful Weekend

Well another weekend gone by. I pulled up some things that were still in my vegetable garden. I'm ready to plant tomatoes and squash now. My bluebonnets are blooming. They are so beautiful. We did some grilling on the porch tonight. I love to cook out and sit on my porch and watch my dog (Sparky) run around in the yard.