Taryn Oldroyd

Week #16- video schoolhouse rock

2009-12-13T16:05:00.000-08:00

This was a cute digital story, I liked how they had it in cartoon form. It was a lot different than I would think to have a digital story, but it works. It isn't the most effective way for me because I feel like real photos make it more effective. But I liked this way a lot too, and think it would be really good for little kids to have a cartoon. I think a cartoon might make it more understandable for them.

Week #16- Finals

2009-12-13T15:53:00.000-08:00

This week my group and I presented our digital story to the class. It went well but there was definitely things we needed to fix on our digital story. I think it's the revised version of our digital story is so much better. I'm excited for the other two in the group to present it again to the class. It is longer and has even more pictures that will be effective in getting the point across. We fixed the sound also and I know that will make it better at getting the point across now that the sound works at all of the parts.

I will definitely use this digital story in my classroom if I teach Civil Rights. It gets the point across and makes a statement. It gives them enough information to get them interested in learning the civil Rights.

I will also create other digital stories when I have my own classroom. It's a great way to give enough information to make them interested in the topic. And you can refer back to it in all of your lessons. I wish I could see all of the digital stories so I can see all the different ideas that they had. But I'm sure there are a lot of different ways to create digital stories, in good and effective ways.

Video- Week #15 Millenial Generation

2009-12-06T18:11:00.000-08:00

I liked how on this video it had all of the people asking technology questions. The one that I have always wondered about is why can't we talk on our phones when we are on and airplane? That has never made sense to me, was it to not have peoples incoming phone messages get in the way of the plain receiving information? One of the people said that parents are doing everything by hand and not utilizing the technology that is readily to them. By using the technology it saves you great amount of time.

- Media mobility- Being able to take all of your media on the go with you. Your computer stuff, music, everything.

Week #15

2009-12-06T17:54:00.000-08:00

This week we continued to work on our digital stories. We were able to figure out exactly what we needed to do with our digital story. I'm very excited to show it to the class to see what they think about it. It is a digital story about civil rights, a very important meaningful topic. This is why we chose it we believe it is a very important topic.

I will definitely use this in my classroom. I think it is such a great way to start a topic. It gives them just enough to get interested in the topic so they will stay interested throughout that specific unit. I noticed when watching them and creating mine it makes me more interested in the topic and want to learn more, so I'm sure that the students you show it to will feel the same. We are creating a lot of lesson plans in our other classes and for all of them we have to have a hook to start of the lesson. I know that a digital story would be a perfect hook for most lessons.

I believe that this technology can be used in all of my other classes as well. And something I could use for a church activity or a family gathering. You can use this form of technology in many different areas of your life.

Week #14- week #4 Field

2009-11-29T11:35:00.000-08:00

This was our last week of field, and it was the wax museum for the last two days of our field assignment. So we watched the students give their oral reports and then when they were their characters for their wax museum, I helped the cooperating teacher grade them. They presented their specific character from history and we would grade them on their costume, their presentation ( how they sounded, memorized, etc.) and their prop that they had. It was fun to see how the students presented their information to the class and then the visitors who came into the classroom to see the wax museum. The student't can definitely do more than you think they can, they had it memorized so well and definitely got into character when they were presenting.

If I end up teaching the older grades I will definitely do the was museum. The kids had so much fun doing it and learned so much. A lot of times kids can learn more from their peers, and definitely can from doing the research themselves. I think it's a great teaching technique and also helps the children to stand up in front of people and learn how to present information. It's good to learn that young because all through out school student's present information, and if you start that early it's not as hard for people.

It has been a great experience to be able to teach in the 5th grade classroom. I've learned a lot and will definitely take many of their teaching techniques into my own classroom.

Week #13- #3 of field

2009-11-22T15:23:00.000-08:00

This week has been a great week during field, it's been mine and my teaching partners biggest teaching week. We taught four lessons and then also had to help the substiute on friday and teach some too. We have been staying late to help in the classroom as well. It's been a great learing week, and i'm so glad to have had this experience in field. I've definitely learned areas that I need to work on in my teaching as well as stuff that I have done well in my teaching. I hope as I continue to be in the classroom for the next two days and for my next semesters I will continue to learn and become a better teacher.

It is also great to see different teachers perspectives on teaching and how they teach. Each teacher teaches so differently and has areas that I want to use in my teaching. We have had team teachers so i've been able to see both of their point of views as well as during math our teacher has let us go see the other 5th grade teachers teach, and gone on friday to a 2nd grade class when our 5th grade class helps them read. So we've been able to see about seven different teachers teach and each one of them has a different way to teach.

I will definitely take what i've learned in field into my classroom. They have taught me many great concepts of teaching and ones that I will definitely continue to use. I have also never thought that I would want to teach older grades I always wanted to teach the younger grades, but with this experience I've really enjoyed teaching the older grade. It's fun to see how much they can do by just telling them how to do something.

Week #12- week #2 of field

2009-11-15T16:41:00.000-08:00

This week has been another interesting week in field. We were able to teach our first lesson in the classroom. It was starting the unit of teaching the Colonial times. We introduced the subject to the students, it was definitely a learning lesson for us as teachers. We learned what we will need to work on for the next time that we will be teaching. We will be teaching everyday this week except for friday, and I think we will be able to do better this time. We will be teaching about the people of the Colonial times this week, the clothing, housing, laws, school etc.

For technology in our lesson and for all of our lessons we made a google docs slide show. This past lesson we just showed one of the pictures, and will be showing a couple of pictures with information per lesson we teach. Knowing how to use Google Docs has been very useful and I'm glad that we knew how to do it. It saves money on making prints of pictures or transparencies to show on the overhead and you are able to have it wherever you go. You can just get on the interenet and your presentation is there it is incredibly helpful.

I will definitely be using power points, slide shows and Google Docs in my teaching. They are such helpful forms of technology, it makes presenting information much easier, I don't know how teachers wouldn't use it in their classrooms it is very helpful.

week #11- week 1 of field

2009-11-08T20:51:00.000-08:00

Field has been such a great experience so far. I have learned a lot about the different ways that teaching occurs. In the classroom I'm in there are two teachers that are team teachers. Even with them two you can see such a difference with the way that they teach. They have both taught me so much already, and am so surprised to see how different teachers teach so differently. I am learning what I like from each one and maybe a few areas that I would do a little differently.

Me and my field partner are teaching are first lesson this Tuesday. While we are in the class we will be teaching about the Colonies, so on Tuesday we will be introducing the subject to them. We will be going over the different Colonies and the states they are now. We will show what each Colony had as a successful product and see what they know about the Colonies already.

For technology we have used over heads, one of the teachers teaches P.E. and she used a microphone and speakers to help project her voice, and something to show a movie. We haven't used a ton of technology yet but the technology we have used has been very good and helpful.

I will definitely use a lot of what the teachers do in our classroom. They are great teachers and I'm excited to continue learning from them. They have also been very accommodating and helpful to each of us since we have been in the classroom. I'm glad for their help that they have provided.

PDP #3 Lessons Learned

2009-11-01T22:41:00.000-08:00

3. To evaluate the technology resources found in the reading, web sites, videos, and from what students are wanting teachers to use, that provide effective learning opportunities for students.

Students want us to use technology in our teaching, if this is going to help them learn why not integrate it into our teaching? Why not use IP's, computers, ipods, vidcast etc. This is an excerpt from one of the articles " active engagement, participation in groups, frequent interaction and feedback, and connection to real-world experts. Effective technology integration is achieved when the use of technology is routine and transparent and when technology supports curricular goals." I believe that those are four good things to consider when integrating technology, and to also make sure we bring it into all of our subjects in an ways we possibly can. These articles and videos had a lot of good insight in them for me to use in my classroom. I have learned a great deal from them and home to engage the students with technology.

PDP #2 My beliefs

2009-11-01T22:40:00.000-08:00

2. To compare your own set of beliefs about the integration of technology in teaching, the classroom and for student learning to what you learned from the students, reading, web sites, and videos.

I still think that we need to not have everything involved with technology when we are teaching. But we are becoming such a technology based society that we definitely need to bring it into our teaching. This I feel will help kids better pay attention to what they are learning. In one of the power point it talks about sending announcements to an IP I think that would be a great idea, then the students will have what is going to happen right there with them. In one of the videos also it shows the students telling about technology and how their parents are always taking longer to do tasks because they don't know technology, so we don't want our students having to be stuck taking longer than they need to because they don't know how to use the technologies of today. Something I also really liked was the classroom setup model, that can help you to better set up your classroom before you move everything around. We need to use WWW in our classroom so that we can keep the kids interested in what is being taught. So as a teacher I want to bring that into the classroom but without technology taking over the classroom.

PDP #1 strengths and weaknesses

2009-11-01T21:28:00.000-08:00

1. To describe what your beliefs are concerning the integration of technology in teaching, the classroom and for student learning.

I believe that it is a great idea to integrate technology into learning. But I believe that you have to be careful to not put too much into the childrens learning to the point where they are not learning anything from you anymore. There are definitely times for technology in the classroom and times for face to face teaching. We just need to learn to decipher when to use which and then it will be great to have technology in the classroom.
My strengths are that I am willing to learn all about technology to teach to my students. But a weakness is that I don't know a ton about every sort of technology created. There is so much technology out there and I want my students to learn about it and be able to use it, and I know that I need to be the one that helps them learn how to do that.

Week #10-video

2009-11-01T19:53:00.000-08:00

This video was very interesting, I thought it to be very odd that the #1 English speaking country is going to be China in ten years. And that by the age of 38 most people will have between 10 and 14 jobs, and that in 2006 there was 600,000,000 internet devices. That if myspace were a country it would be the 8th largest country in the world, is unbelievable. It is amazing how technology has grown and expanded over the years. Each and every year people become more and more reliant on technology. I know that I use it everyday, i don't know what I would do without technology, my cell phone and computer make it possible to stay in contact with people and do my homework. Technology is a very commonly used powerful thing in our world today, and i know people wouldn't know what to do without it.

Week #10- digital stories

2009-11-01T19:24:00.000-08:00

Digital stories are very interesting to me, I like the way that they provoke emotion. I know I said it in my last blog that emotion helps kids remember things, and I think it is so true. We definitely remember things from our past that has brought up great emotion, just like we still do. If something makes us sad, hurt, happy, excited we are more likely to remember that and that makes me excited to make my digital story.

Our digital story is going to be about Martin Luther King Jr. and when we are done we are going to turn it in for our assignment as well as submit it to a Martin Luther King Jr. contest. We want to be able to make this presentation moving as well as teach.

We will use the Martin Luther King Jr. speech, with soft inspirational type music in the background. It will start off showing his speech then it will continue showing pictures of black rights movements such as: Rosa Parks standing up for herself on the bus, Bloody Sunday, The Underground railroad, and other inspirational people that helped the blacks receive their rights. We will show a picture of these events with the name and date of what happen below the picture. I think these events are very important in our countries history and will be a good effective way of presenting the information. Then at the end of the presentation we will again show part of Martin Luther Kings speech, and then show the rights that have been passed for them to receive their equal rights at the end.

I really am so excited to create this digital story, I have this whole image of it in my head and want to see how it comes together. I will definitely use it in my classroom when we go over history/social studies, when covering equal rights. I hope that it will turn out as effective as I am hoping it to be, and will be excited to create more digital stories after this one.

Week #9- video

2009-10-24T09:00:00.000-07:00

The video on the first week of digital story, was unable to come up it said that they could not bring the page up. So I used one that was on teacher tube called Solar System Hero. It is very interesting and I think a great way for students to remember what is being taught about the solar system. There was actually a group of students in our cohort that used this video to show part of a lesson they would teach. It was so cute they then handed you a planets name and information about it and you then had to create your own song to go with your planet. It was fun and very memorable, and think this video would be fun and memorable for the students.

Week #9- digital stories

2009-10-24T08:50:00.000-07:00

This week in class we learned about digital stories. It was very interesting to see how digital stories work and how you are supposed to make them and what goes into them. I really like how they bring up emotion using pictures, words, and music. I'm excited to start working on our digital story, we decided to do ours on Martin Luther King Jr. his speech is always so powerful, and I believe that this digital story will show just how powerful it is to the students. I like also that its not way long when they are shorter like how digital stories are it keeps kids interested longer and will make them want to learn more. If this digital story creates emotion in the students also they will be more likely to remember what they saw and learned on this digital story. Something you feel emotion about is one of the best way you can remember subjects/topics.
I will definitely use digital stories in my classroom. I think it will be a great way to start out a subject that we are going to be studying. It will get them interested in and wanting to learn more before we just dive into the topic that we will be studying. I'm not sure how hard they are going to be to create, but if they are difficult hopefully I will get better at it so I can create a lot for my class in a timely manner. I believe this is a great learning technique and I'm excited to create my own digital story as well as, to create some for my own students. Because I know it will help them enjoy the topics a lot more if they have this started of the subject.

Week #8- fall break

2009-10-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

This week was fall break so we didn't get to have computer technology. So I decided to notice how much I use technology in my everyday life, I realized my friends and I use technology a lot with cell phones, and everything on computers like youtube, watching videos, music, facebook, bloging and so much more. I was wondering what people ever did without technology before we had all of these things to use and get information off of. I was also working on a presentation and was realizing I got all of my information off of the computer you have libraries and libraries full online it makes it so much more efficient especially since I was babysitting all weekend and couldn't make it to the library.

Week #7- Video Education for all

2009-10-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

I really enjoyed that video, it was so cute to see everyone get to learn and have school as a part of their lives. I would have never thought to have cell phones as a form of teaching to people everywhere. I'm sure those children loved having the opportunity to better their lives through learning. The first part was so sad when they were turning those people away from having an opportunity to learn, but loved the outcome of giving everyone a chance to learn.

Week #7- continue webquests

2009-10-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

We continued working on our WebQuests this week, and as we work on them each week I feel as though I'm gaining a better understanding of them. I learn of their importance in the classroom and how they can help the students. One thing I realized that is a little more difficult though is that we are doing our WebQuests for kindergartners and since they can't read and don't know what a lot of things are at that point you really have to break things down. You have to use lots of pictures small words so when you or their parents read it to them they will be able to understand what you are looking for, and what they need to do. I thought that it would be easy to do for kindergartners because of the simplicity you have to do it with, but it actually makes it more difficult. This made me realize in teaching in general when working with kindergartners how you have to speak differently so they know what is going on and you don't speak above their understanding.
I also really like in our WebQuest how the kids are able to help students that will be joining our class. They get to teach them, provide a service for them that they will need while they are in Utah. It is also a way to help the students to befriend the new students and for the new students to feel welcome in our classroom.
I will definitely use this WebQuest that we are creating in class in my classroom, I will also create many more that I can use in my classroom. I hope as time goes on I'll be able to create them more quickly, that it will come more easily for me to create a WebQuest from a kindergartners point of view.

Week #6- Video, We didn't start the fire

2009-10-04T19:03:00.000-07:00

I remember watching this video before when I had the computer technology class. It is a funny and informational video. I would definitely use this in my classroom to teach history. It sticks in your memory for sure, I couldn't get it out of my head after I watched it. I think songs are a good way for kids to remember information, especially a song that they are already familiar with.

week #6- Webquests

2009-10-04T14:37:00.000-07:00

This week we continued on working on our webquests. It became more clear to me what we needed to do and it was great getting our ideas put together. We were able to create all of our slides and started writing on them and adding pictures to the slides. I'm excited to see what the final project looks like.
We decided to do our webquest on seasons, someone that has never lived in Utah is going to be moving here and into our school. The students are going to show their fellow student the different seasons that occur in Utah. This will make the child have less of a shock of all of the students and they will know what to expect and clothing that needs to be warn.
I will definitely use this in my teaching and classroom. It helps the students to get involved in teaching, as well as accepting this new student into the classroom. I believe it will make this new student feel more welcome into this new environment with these new people, as well as making the students who are already there want to befriend him more. These can also be used to teach the students new activities by goign through the different steps. This is very beneficial form of technology to use in the classroom.

Video #5- Surface Computing

2009-09-27T19:33:00.000-07:00

This was a very interesting video, I believe it was one of our videos we watched when I had computer technology before. I think it would be so cool to have a coffee table as a computer. It would be most beneficial for a group of people working on it together. If the schools could afford this it would be so fun to have in the classroom, when the students were working on group projects. The students would have so much fun with it and they would enjoy the creating process of a project so much more if they had this bit of technology involved in their learning. It's amazing how the cameras can actually see whats going on, on the surface of the table/computer. As well as being able to transfer data from one piece of technology to another such as what they did with the cell phone.

week #5- Vidcasts

2009-09-27T18:24:00.000-07:00

This week we learned about WebQuests and came up with ideas for our own WebQuests. We also finished up our podcasts and vidcasts this week and will be turning them in next week. The pod and vid casts were so fun to work on as well as something that is informational for the students. We are wanting to teach kindergartners, so we decided to go with a couple of ideas that would be easy to follow and something that would be able to go along with learning in the kindergarten classroom. When creating a pod or vid cast you want to give the students and parents take home ideas for the learning to continue. The ones we chose have easy products to access so the parents don't have to spend much on the activity, yet they can still have fun and learn with their children.
Now we are going to create our own WebQuests, I still have a few questions about it but am very excited to create it. I always thought I wasn't the best at technology so I love learning about all of these new technology ideas that we can use in our classrooms. I'm excited to have a WebQuest that my group and I have created so that I can use it and know how to create more.
I can't say for sure if I'll use WebQuests in my classroom yet because I don't believe I have a great enough understanding of what they are yet. I'm sure I will use them in my classroom though, everything else that we have learned about I will use in my classroom for sure and I'm sure that a WebQuest will be just as useful. I feel as though this technology class and my last one has really brought me up to date on the different forms of technology and I'm sure that I will use them in my classroom.

Why let our Students Blog- Video #4

2009-09-20T21:22:00.000-07:00

I really liked this video, the kids could really relate to it because they are seeing kids their same age using the computers. I like how it was simple and showed the main reasons why we should let our students blog. I really liked the one that said "to expand the walls of the classroom". Bogging could definitely expand learning, its like a journal but really makes it so much easier, since its on the computer. Wherever you have a computer you also have your blog/journal. Wherever you have your blog you have a was to reflect and learn.

Week- #4 Podcasts & Vidcasts

2009-09-20T20:40:00.000-07:00

This week we learned about how to do podcasts and vidcasts. I found it to be very fun when the groups got to get together and make our own podcasts and vidcasts. We were able to create our own scripts and describe how to make something one on video and one just using our voices. We came up with teaching how to plant a flower using podcasts and teaching how to bake cookies with using vidcasts.

I haven't done a vidcast yet but I can imagine I might like that way of presenting information. I can imagine it might be a little bit easier to show kids how to create something. It still works very well with the podcasts and telling them how, but since I want to teach younger kids I think it might be easier for them to understand how to create something if they actually see it.

I will definitely use these technologies in my classroom. I will especially use vidcasts, I think it will be more helpful for young children. I think young children need to see something to learn how to do it more than just listen to it. I think it would be a great way to have a take home activity for the students and their parents. They will be able to continue their learning at home rather than stop learning when school is over.

Video Introducing Web 2.0- Week #3

2009-09-13T18:06:00.000-07:00

This was quite the video, it seemed like a star wars type way of presenting information. Especially at the end when it was scrolling through the last part of the information about technology. For kids who like Star Wars and things like that I think they would really like the way they presented the information. For me it was a little distracting, with all of the stuff going on in the background. It was good though and interesting way of presenting the meaning of things such as blogs, wikis, or pod casts. It gave the basic definition of these tools, it was very straight to the point no extra fluff.

Website- Week #3

2009-09-13T15:52:00.000-07:00

I never thought to do a website for my classroom,until last semester when I took my first semester of computer technology. It is an amazing idea to have this tool it gives you so many more opportunities to get information for the faculty, students, and parents. It would be so nice as a teacher, student and parent to have this resource. It is very clear for everyone to understand, and a lot of times children will forget to write down there homework or announcements. With this tool they will be able to always have it there so they won't ever forget their homework assignments. They will always know what will be going on in the classroom throughout the week. It also will help those students that miss a day of school to know what we did in class, and what the assignments are for that day and the rest of the week. The parents and students will be able to know contact information for the school quick and easy. As well, as knowing about the teacher of their child's class. To have the web sites are very informative and useful, for the teacher, students, staff, and parents. And now that I have created this website I believe it to be a necessary tool to have for my classroom.
I also believe that it will improve the relationships with parents and faculty. They will never wonder what is going on in the class, and always feel well informed and included. I remember forgetting some things through out my life that were due in class and I would have to call around and find out what was due. A lot of the time other students forgot too and now we have this resource that will be so beneficial to everyone involved in the classroom.

Mr. Duey Fraction- week #2 video

2009-09-06T20:48:00.000-07:00

This video is such a good learning tool for the students. It makes learning fun and upbeat, which is exactly what the students need to retain the information that is being taught. I remember when I was younger and in school I always remembered everything so much better when they had a song or limerick of some sort to go with it. I still remember the math equation that went along with pop goes the weasel. So these kind of videos are ones that I will definitely use for my students in the classroom, it will greatly increase there memory of the subject.

Everything Google, Week-#2

2009-09-04T17:21:00.000-07:00

I believe that this technology that has been taught to us in our computer technology class will be very beneficial for us as teachers, students, and colleagues. By having a blog site, g-mail account, google docs., or your own web site, it provides us with many easy ways to let the parents, our students, and our colleagues know what is going on in our classroom. It helps to develop a closer relationship with all of those people, by letting them know whats going on in the classroom and giving the parents and students at home activities, so they can continue learning in the home. For us as teachers as well, it makes it much easier to get that information out to them quickly and more efficiently. It will be easy for any one that needs to contact you, to be able to do that quick and easy.
Technology is used so much these days that by providing the students with a technological way to get a hold of you will keep you in better touch. It will keep the students updated on their homework and what is going on in class. The kids will be able to do better in the classroom, if they have this technology. With this technology they will be able to stay on top of homework and whats going on in classroom.
The Google docs. will also help children to be able to do projects in large groups without having to rearrange their schedules. Many times you will have to cancel things in your schedule, or the people in the group will only be able to meet very few times. You would only be able to meet few times because, no one has the same schedule and can meet at the same time. So this provides you with a way to be able to work on the same project and different times.
The pros to these types of communication is that it's more efficient and quick. It provides information for you, your students, parents, and colleagues more easily. Technology is an amazing invention, and a balance of technology and no technology needs to be in every classroom. We need to remember that the students will definitely benefit from learning the different parts of technology especially the many ways they can use it on Google. I will definitely use the Google forms of technology in my classroom.

video week #1

2009-08-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

I thought it to be very interesting that they put a limit on internet users. And that they would charge them if they exceeded their limit. It then went on to tell about the newest technology that is going to be appearing in the next little while, such as touch screen computers, and the i-phone. I've seen a lot more interesting videos on technology from my last semester computer technology class with you, but this one was very informative as well. I like to learn about the different pieces of technology that they will be coming up with.

My Ideal Classroom week #1

2009-08-30T19:38:00.000-07:00

My ideal classroom has two different components. The first being the outside environment, and the second being the inside environment.
I would like the outside environment to be surrounded by nature. This way, we would have many opportunities to explore the environment around them. Being surrounded my nature, we could go on many nature walks as a class and be able to teach the students of their surroundings. Providing this hands on experience would give the students a lasting impression of the environment in which they live. As I have taught in classrooms I have found nature and the children's surroundings to be the most useful learning tool. They seem to more fully comprehend what is being taught when they are being taught with items they see and use every day.
The second component to my ideal classroom is the the inside environment. My ideal classroom would consist of many different centers such as blocks, reading center, manipulative's, sensory, and dramatic play. These centers would be available daily for the children's use. It would also have all the materials needed to meet the requirements of having DAP lessons. I would also need a good team support to hep me carryout these lesson and help provide the children with lasting experiences. One important factor in my ideal classroom would to provide a safe environment within the classroom. To make sure the materials are safe to use as well as feeling safe with every person int the classroom. This way, the students will always feel comfortable with their teachers and peers and are willing to share their ideas as we learn. I would have a behavior management program set up using token economy. In doing this, I will be using a lot positive reinforcement. It is important to provide positive feedback to the children when they are good and not just discipline them when they do something you don't approve of. A goal I want to always have is to make sure that the students feel safe and feel that the classroom is a positive learning environment. I also would like to use technology in my classroom such as computers to learn many different subjects and books on tap so they can start to put pictures with words in their books.
My ideal classroom will be a positive place for all those who are apart of it. I want the children, and parents to have positive feelings when they leave my classroom. I want to talk and work well with the faculty, so that we can help each other in our classrooms. I want to communicate well with the parents so they know what is going on at all times in the classroom and are happy and comfortable leaving their children. I want the children to be happy to come to my classroom, and know its a safe fun learning environment for them to come.

Week#14

2009-04-26T20:02:00.000-07:00

This week we did our final, we had to make a newsletter and a flier by ourselves. We were just able to use a little help from those around us. It was actually very helpful to have to work it out on our own. We were forced to figure out how to create a news letter and flier all on our own. This will definitely help in my teaching, because I want to hand out newsletters often to keep the parents updated on what is going on in the classroom. I believe that this creates stronger student, parent, and faculty relationships by letting them know what is going on in the classroom. I believe everything that I learned in this class will be very beneficial in my own classroom. We are living in a world of technology, and we need to start using it in our classroom, to help our future generations.

week#14-video

2009-04-26T20:00:00.000-07:00

This was a very interesting video. It was of a little boy preaching to a big audience of adults. What he said was more affective because of his age and him talking about himself and his peers. He said he they need the teachers and they need help from them. and sometimes are the only example. But wow that kid is definitely going to be a politician when he grows up, with the way that he is able to speak to such a large crowd.

Week #13

2009-04-19T19:48:00.000-07:00

Get a Voki now!

Week #12- video

2009-04-12T17:58:00.000-07:00

This video was an interesting fun video, it was the "Schoolhouse rock- A noun is a person, place, or thing". I couldn't help but laugh when I saw this video, it was cute and I'm sure would help kids remember what a noun is but it was funny with the cartoon story and everything. Such as when the brother gave the dog a bone so now the dog barked at his owner instead of at the boy and girl, and how it randomly snowed in the middle of summer. It was funny and I would definitely show my kids this video when teaching them about nouns.

Week #12

2009-04-12T17:49:00.000-07:00

This week for technology I learned how to create an invitation for a shower using photo shop. It was very interesting and something I could definitely use in my classroom as well. If you were having a parent teacher night or bring your parents to school day, how fun would it be to print up a cute little invitation to send home to all of the families. I feel like the cuter the note is being sent home the more likely the parents would be to keep the note or hang it up for a reminder. If it's just a lose piece of paper I know my parents wouldn't usually keep it so I would assume most parents wouldn't as well. If your going to give all the parents, students and faculty a reminder for something anyway why not sent out something fun.
It's also important I feel to be able to find pictures on the internet and be able to print them off. I had a project due in my Children's Literature class, and so I decided to print out a bunch of pictures that I was able to gather together off of the internet print them off and show them to the class. It made my report more interesting I felt, and the teacher really loved it. The teacher even told me it was a treasure to have those pictures. So I think it's just so important to be able to find this information and pictures off of the internet to help for school and your everyday life. They always say that pictures can say 1,000 words, so if you can find pictures off the internet think how much better it will make your school projects and reports.

Video- Week #11

2009-04-05T18:18:00.000-07:00

This video was very interesting it was week 13's video. I had no idea that India was the 2nd largest country in the world. And that is crazy that myspace is the worlds 12th largest country in the world. This definitely shows how much we use technology in our world today. I liked the part that said we are preparing kids for jobs that don't exist today, to prepare them for problems that haven't happened yet. I can't remember exactly how it went but that part really stuck out in my mind. It's good that we are learning now how to fix problems so we will be able to deal with them in the future.

Week #11

2009-04-05T18:11:00.000-07:00

This week was a fun week I loved the program that we ended up doing. This would let you set up your ideas in a fun effective way. If your kids had this program they could even think of ideas of what they would want to learn in class. They would be able to hand this in to you and then you would be able to see what they are interested in learning. I would definitely use this in my teaching, I would use it to prepare lessons for the class. It wouldn't be a bad thing to prepare lessons at all it would be really fun. And you would be able to print it off and show the kids, and then they would be able to see what they are going to be learning about in the next little while. I think it would spark the kids interest to see the web of topics they are going to be learning about for the next unit coming up. If they knew what was coming up to they could start learning about the topic at home, and their parents would be able to see what is going on in the classroom. You will even be able to get more ideas from the kids dealing with they subject you have chosen to learn about. Then you will be able to know what they are interested in learning about with that specific topic. I think with your faculty as well, your principal, other teachers ect. they will be able to see your ideas of whats going on in class and be able to bounce ideas off of one another. It's a great program and I would definitely use it in my classroom.

Week #10- video

2009-03-29T22:13:00.000-07:00

I thought this movie was interesting, I thought it was a good idea how they made it into a comedy show. It made in funny and informative at the same time, and what could be better than that. It's a good way to present information without stressing you out with all the statistics. The comedian was a good person to show this too he made it even better.

week- #10

2009-03-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

This week was a really fun project week. We learned how to make pictures into a slide show and a presentation. It was very interesting and I believe it is definitely something that I will use in my classroom. I think it is important to create power points of the children through out the school year. It will help the parents have a part of their kid’s life even though they are not with them. I agree with the saying a picture says a thousand words; it is so true you can show how the children are learning and what they are learning through pictures of them participating in classroom activities. That part of technology was hard to figure out for me so it was fun to go over it so we can remember it for the future. This actually ended up being a lot easier than I thought it would be and am excited to use it for my classroom. One part that I thought was really interesting was where we had to connect all of the different pictures together on the power point. I'm glad that I was able to learn how to put the pictures together, and how to create a power point. I know I will definitely use this in my teaching over the years.

Week #9- video

2009-03-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

I thought that the David Letterman video was very funny. It was cool how they intertwined teachers and the talk show together. The facts they told were informative yet very funny at the same time. It was a video that definitely catches your attention and keeps you interested through out the rest of the video.

Week #9

2009-03-22T20:44:00.000-07:00

It was fun this week having to take five pictures this week, I was with my family this weekend on vacation so it was easy to find pictures to take care of. I can definitely see how it would be useful to use cameras in the classroom. I think it helps you remember what you learned by capturing the moment and having a visual of it to help remember. They will be able to not only tell their parents about what they learned but be able to show them as well. I'm excited to be able to use technology in my classroom I think it will help the students really want to learn more.
When I was in the preschool at UVU they had cameras to capture learning moments. Then we would put it into learning categories in their portfolios, and I believe that the parents really enjoyed seeing the pictures of their kids and their projects.

Week #9- video

2009-03-15T20:00:00.000-07:00

This video was very interesting, one fact I thought to be very interesting was the one that said India has more honor kids than America has kids. Also that the top ten jobs now a days did not even exist in 2004, and that kids are being prepared for jobs that don't exist yet. It's crazy how technology has expanded it even is said that there are more text messages sent each day than people on the planet. This was a very interesting video, and I liked to watch it and learn more about technology.

Week #9

2009-03-15T19:57:00.000-07:00

Reflection on Internet Saftey:

1.) Why we should or should not use the internet in education?

We should definitely use the internet in education. I think it is nearly impossible to not use it now a days. It has so much good true information on it, yes there are some bad parts of the internet and that is why we teach our kids internet saftey.

2.) Why we should evaluate the sites we use?

I think it is important for us as the teacher, to make sure that the kids are being provided with fun safe internet sites. The only way we can know if they are fun and safe for the students is by evaluating them ourselves.

3.) The question you should ask your self to evaluate a site?

I believe the 5 W's (Who, What, When, Where, and Why) are the most important questions to ask yourself when evaluating a website.

4.) Ways to keep your students safe while surfing?

I think by putting a saftey lock on your computers, making sure that nothing inappropriate would be able to come up. I think by being the facilitator in the classroom as well as the teacher is a good idea as well.

video- week #8

2009-03-08T19:19:00.000-07:00

First off I want to say that, that is a great song, and made that video that much better. I think it was a good way of presenting information. I believe that when kids learn something through a rhythm, poem, song, or pattern kids can learn so much more effective. Once you have the words down that go with a song you will never forget them the words will be there forever. So I believe this is a good form of using technology to help children learn, and we need to do that with more songs like that.

Reflection #8

2009-03-05T16:12:00.000-08:00

I believe that it is important for students to learn about internet safety. The internet can be a great tool to use if it is used appropriately as well as knowing the ways to be safe while using this great tool. I like how it tells us the process for going about setting up a way for the students to learn and know about internet safety, because, I would have had no idea to set something like that up. I like how on one of the websites it states that the internet is the number one source for students to turn to for any type of information. I thought it to be a very good idea to have a check list; on one of the web pages it gives you a check list to look at when considering using the internet and certain pages you will have your students visiting.
I'm not exactly sure why we needed to learn about Velcro and DHMO, maybe it's supposed to show what we are capable of finding on the internet. Either way it was very informative and a good thing for people to know about.

When evaluating a website here are questions to ask:

Who

Who wrote the pages and are they an expert?

Is a biography of the author included?

How can you find out more about the author?

What

What does the author say is the purpose of the site?

What else might the author have in mind for the site?

What makes the site easy to use?

When

When was the site created?

When was the site last updated?

Where

Where does the information come from?

Where can I look to find out more about the producer/sponsor?

Why

Why is this information useful for my purpose?

Why should I use this information?

Why is this page better than another?

I thought these were good questions to ask yourself, when you are evaluating a website. For the sake of anyone that will be using your suggestions for websites it is a must to make sure it's safe for colleagues, parents, and your students.

Video- Week #7

2009-03-01T21:09:00.001-08:00

This was such an interesting piece of technology that has been invented. How nice would it be to have a computer that is like the surface of a coffee table and can be controlled by your hands. It would be a lot easier to control with your hands instead of with a mouse. I would find it very beneficial to be able to put items on top of the service of the computer and not ruin the computer and have the computer be able to read what is on top of the computer. I especially like that you don't need a bunch of chords to attach to the computer because if you just put it on top of the computer it knows what is there. It can download information from those devices onto the computer without using all of the chords and different equipment. I did find this piece of technology very expensive being from $5,000 to $10,000. But I would expect something as nice as this piece of technology to be very expensive.

Reflection Week #7

2009-03-01T20:38:00.000-08:00

This week has been difficult but interesting and informative at the same time. At first I had a hard time understanding exactly how to find all the information. Then once I figured it out the rest of the assignment was very easy. I was able to find all of the information all on UEN and Pioneer Library, I believe that this is going to be very beneficial to me and students. I can find activity ideas and lesson plans quick and easily. The activity ideas were very interesting, and would be very fun and informative for the kids to participate in. I really liked how you could find articles so easily, I've had to find articles for classes before and it would have been so much easier to use UEN to find thos articles. Not using UEN it took quite a while to find articles that were going to have information from reliable sources. I liked the virtual pond also it was a very interesting game, and I think the students would like to play it and see how the different species change from week one to week 18. I think that every activity on this site is going to be fun for students, parents, and the teachers. It is going to be very helpful to me as a teacher, and will be great for preparing lesson plans, and activity ideas. I enjoy the core curriculum so you know what you can teach children and the activities that we could use to teach our curriculum. I think that this is a site that every teacher should know about and be able to use before they start teaching. It will help find all types of information beneficial to our students, and we will want to be able to provide fun informative ways of teaching for our students.

The Pioneer Library is something I found very interesting. It had anything and everything you could possibly want to know and learn about. It had newspapers and articles and games and activities. I like that we can find information from the future until now that will definitely like to use in my classroom. I think it's important to learn about our state also and think that Pioneer Library will help them learn about our state.
If I were to have changed anything in this process though, I would have just made it have a little more description in the instructions. It would have been fine if my password would have worked right away so I could have had help in class, but it didn't work until I got home. But other than that everything went really well and it was an interesting activity.

Week #6- Video

2009-02-22T18:42:00.000-08:00

This video didn't really catch my attention at all. More than anything else I was noticing the camera job and the mean look on all of the kids faces, instead of the information being presented. I did read the information that they showed. But for a few of the pieces of information I had to pause it because the camera would go wobbly and then change to fast. The information shared was interesting and can catch peoples attention, but was unable to be recognized, because, of the other items that threw your attention away from that information.

Week #5 video

2009-02-14T15:27:00.000-08:00

The video this week was alright. It certainly brought up some interesting questions that I've wondered myself at the very beginning. Such as "why can't I talk on my phone when I'm flying across the country?" really why can't we do that or be able to get on the internet through my T.V., or why are T.V.'s not chord less. So I liked the questions they asked, and I agree with them about the parents not knowing much about technology. I have to do a lot of the technology stuff as well, mainly with the cell phones.

Week #5 Technology Articles

2009-02-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

Computers

Computers are very useful pieces of technology. They provide so much learning to all those who have the access to the computer, and use it for beneficial reasons. If people need an answer to something all they need to do is find a computer and they will be able to find an answer within seconds. A lot of times people want to know a question that they can't seem to find an answer to from the people around them. They just go to their computer and they will be able to find the answer to the question. There are many times when I have even asked teachers of my classes questions that they didn't know the answer to, and the only way I was able to find the answer was by googling it. It will be a magnificent tool for children to be able to use, they will have the knowledge from the teacher and from the computer. This will also make classes more interesting for the children by being able to use computers in the classroom. Are generation is using technology for everything especially computers, so the more we can show children how to do things with computers the more they will benefit in the future. All businesses are using computers now. Those who have been taught the ins and outs of computers will be more likely to receive a job compared to those who do not know how to use a computer.

I can see also the disadvantages that might concern you as parents, and that is that children will spend to much time on the computer. We don't want children to stay inside on the computer all day, but if we twist fun and learning together when they get on the computer we will take care of two things at once. They will be able to have studied and had fun while studying and doing their homework, and then they will be ready to get off the computer and go have fun out doors and spend time with friends and the family.
The children will be able to get onto sites such as Teachertube, National Geographic, Facebook, google and many more such as these sites. It also makes communication more quick and efficient through places such as e-mails, your teacher website, and blogs. The children will be able to learn how to make their own websites, Facebook pages, and find videos and music to help them learn school topics such as on Teachertube.
Computers hold so much information as well as memory. Anything you need saved can be saved on your computer for example: pictures, papers, research, clip art, articles and so on. You could even have an entire journal on their by using word document, to create and save experiences that you have had, when it's just easier to type rather than write them down.

www.primarygames.com

A specific website that the students could use on the computer would be primary games. It is not only fun games for the children, but it also teaches them in all the different subjects such as: English, social studies, math and all of the rest of the subjects. In one of the English sections they have a cube where you have to try and create words with the letters that or on the cube, with out being able to rearrange any of the letters. It was a fun game, teaches kids, and it's a brain teaser, that would be fun and informative to the children.
When I was a kid it was the games on the computer that I learned the most from. Because, they were a mix between fun and informative that helped me do better in those subjects. So if I had access to a websit that had all of the subjects on it when I was a child it would have made each topic so much more interesting to me. I would have wanted to play and learn at the same time each day.

I would like to use this website to help the students to study and learn through games and fun. Studying and learning doesn’t always have to feel like studying and learning. In fact the more it doesn’t the more that kids are going to learn, and going to continue to want to learn.

I realize that this could be hard for you as parents to want to do, because children might get onto other games that aren't going to help them learn. But I believe that once kids play on this program the students will be excited to get on this website and won't want to find another game to play.

I believe that there is a big importance for children to have a fun way to study. And I want to share those ideas that will help them if I can. It is so important for children to find the joy in learning and I will provide the children with opportunities to find that joy that seems to have been lost over the years.

Week #4- Video

2009-02-08T21:46:00.000-08:00

Wow, I just watched the video called "Did you know 2.0" it was very informative. I knew that technology was growing tremendously each and everyday, but I would have never guessed that it would have grown as much as it has. I think technology is great, but i think we need to have lives outside of technology. Some kids don't even know how to have a normal conversation anymore because they are so used to texting everything. People don't need to know how to interact with others face to face anymore, because you can do everything via technology. Cell phones, computers, i-pods, Nintendo's ect are absolute wonderful things, if they aren't abused. There is a point where it's to much and we need to remember that not everything has to happen through technology just because it can. But then I watched the video "A vision of students today" and it shows how very helpful technology is in the class. Some of the students couldn't even read the chalkboard, didn't even come to class, and would be on facebook the entire class. If you involved technology into this classroom I'm sure the students would pay more attention and get a whole lot more out of their classes. Honestly those students looked so board, if i were in that class I would probably be on my computer or phone the entire time too, just like those kids. I think thats why I like this computer technology class so much. Is I feel like I learn about everything that is so relevant and is becoming more and more so each day. Also I think I don't have to stop my life when I come into this class, you involve technology and let us use it in the classroom. This honestly makes me want to pay attention so much more, and believe every teacher would benefit by using technology in their classrooms.

Reflection #4

2009-02-08T13:49:00.000-08:00

I loved that we created ten rules for the classroom. It was a fun thing to do in a group, because we were able to bounce ideas off each other. We were able to create a fun looking sheet of rules that is very appealing to the eye. We made the rules for our pre-school class using positive words, and words that the children would understand. I think it's important to give children rules that have a positive twist to it. Such as change "don't touch anyone else" to "to keep your hands to yourself" when kids are young all they will hear is "don't" in the first one. I believe that you need to create rules for the class to keep control in the classroom, so the children know what is appropriate behavior. But I also believe that if you give kids to many rules they they are going to ignore them because they won't remember all of them. I know that I will use rules in my classroom it is definite necessity for a classroom. But I do not want to be one of those teachers that overloads my students with homework, rules and negativity. I want my students to be able to remember the rules and follow them, but not being afraid of making mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, and they need to feel comfortable in the classroom, so I will make a list of rules that is realistic to the age group that I am teaching.
I have also learned a lot from what I have been creating at home. We as a class have been creating our own websites. It is very interesting to learn about, and something that is going to be very useful as a teacher. It gets your ideas across, and it's easy and informative for all of your colleagues, parents, and students. I hope that all those that will be viewing my website, will find it easy to access, informative, and enjoyable to look at.

Video- Week #3

2009-02-01T20:28:00.000-08:00

This video is very informative way of teaching us about how much technology is used these days. It is good how it asks questions, to make you think about what is going on through out and after the video. I liked the quote "it's not attention deficit- I'm just not listening!", it just shows how hard you need to try to get through to your students. You need to involve them in your discussions instead of just getting in front of the class and lecturing for the entire time. It stated the fact that, students only get to ask one question for every 10 hours. That is ridiculous, and the students are going to have a lot harder time learning if you do not engage them in the learning that is going on. I agree with this video that technology is a good way to engage the students.

Week #3

2009-02-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

This week was a very interesting week in class. We learned how to create or own websites for our classroom. It was a lot of information to take in at one time, but it was also very useful interesting information. I never thought to do a website for my classroom, but it is an amazing idea. It would be so nice as a teacher, student and parent to have this resource. It is very clear for everyone to understand, and a lot of times children will forget to write down there homework or announcements. With this tool they will be able to always have it there so they won't ever forget their homework assignments. They will always know what will be going on in the classroom throughout the week. It also will help those students that miss a day of school to know what we did in class, and what the assignments are for that day. The parents and students will be able to know contact information for the school quick and easy. As well, as knowing about the teacher of their childs class. To have the web sites are very informative and useful, for the teacher, students, staff, and parents. And now that I have created this website I believe it to be a necessary tool to have.

Video- Week #2

2009-01-25T21:20:00.000-08:00

I loved the fractions music video. It was so funny, and made learning much easier. If I was a student learning fractions for the first time, I would definitely remember what to do with fractions because I would have that song memorized. I believe that it is a more effective way to teach and learn when you have a song or saying, and have a visual recognition. On the other video i was a little confused about what a "Wiki" was. I thought that the video was quite overwhelming with all of the blinking, music, and definitions. It was and o.k. way to get the point across, but I believe that without all of those special effects it would have been a lot easier to understand.

Week #2

2009-01-25T20:40:00.000-08:00

I believe that this technology that we will be taught to us in our computer technology class will be very beneficial for us as teachers, students, and colleagues. By having a blog site, g-mail account, or your own web site, it provides us with many easy ways to let the parents, our students, and our colleagues know what is going on in our classroom. It helps to develop a closer relationship with all of those people, by letting them know whats going on in the classroom and giving the parents and students at home activities, so they can continue learning in the home. For us as teachers as well, it makes it much easier to get that information out to them quickly and more efficiently. It will be easy for any one that needs to contact you, to be able to do that quick and easy.
Technology is used so much these days that by providing the students with a technological way to get a hold of you will keep you in better touch. It will keep the students updated on their homework and what is going on in class. The kids will be able to do better in the classroom, if they have this technology. With this technology they will be able to stay on top of homework and whats going on in classroom.
The pros to these types of communication is that it's more efficient and quick. It provides information for you, your students, parents, and colleagues more easily. But a con to this is that it could take away some of your face to face communication with the parents and colleagues. If they know they can e-mail or find out about everything on the internet, they are less likely to come and discuss matters about their child with you. Technology is an amazing invention, and a balance of technology and no technology needs to be in every classroom.

TechWatch #1- New tech trends

2009-01-18T20:45:00.000-08:00

This was a very interesting video. I find the idea of having touch screen computers to be a good idea. Although, I believe that charging internet users is unfair. The computer activity called, "Our Courts" seems like it will be fun and informative for children. It will greatly increase the knowledge children have about the judiciary system.

Reflection #1

2009-01-18T18:58:00.000-08:00

My ideal classroom has two different components. The first being the outside environment, and the second being the inside environment.

I would like the outside environment to be surrounded by nature. This way, we would have many opportunities to explore the environment around them. Being surrounded my nature, we could go on many nature walks as a class and be able to teach the students of their surroundings. Providing this hands on experience would give the students a lasting impression of the environment in which they live.

The second component to my ideal classroom is the the inside environment. My ideal classroom would consist of many different centers such as blocks, reading center, manipulatives, sensory, and dramatic play. These centers would be available daily for the children's use. It would also have all the materials needed to meet the requirements of having DAP lessons. I would also need a good team support to hep me carryout these lesson and help provide the children with lasting experiences. One important factor in my ideal classroom would to provide a safe environment within the classroom. This way, the students will always feel comfortable with their teachers and peers and are willing to share their ideas as we learn. I would have a behavior management program set up using token economy. In doing this, I will be using a lot positive reinforcement.