Thing # 13

Ok everyone.....fasten your seatbelts!  Don't be scared...are you ready?

I TRIED SOMETHING NEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!    :P

I composed my Thing #13 blog as a PowerPoint using Google Doc.  So, if the link works....check it out!  Just copy and paste it in your browser.............Come on!  You can do it!!!!  LOL

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1FtJvgfET5-XT6NgPjGTFvwYRGskP-xAC1AyJoHApmGo/edit?usp=sharing


Wonder what I can come up with for Thing # 14???  :)  See ya!

Thing # 12

     Good morning everyone!  Unless it's not morning...then I should say something else! LOL  But, it's morning time for me so, "Good morning, everyone!"  :)  Well, after being somewhat disappointed with Thing 11, I was glad to move on.  Unfortunately, when I read Thing 12, I didn't expect to really like it either.  But, I was wrong!

     The Picasa Web Album is awesome.  Don't you think so?  I mean...what a neat way to post current pictures of your class activities for parents and faculty to peruse.  Kids absolutely love seeing their pictures on screen, so I know this will be something I will use in my classroom.  Below you will find a link to the album I created.  Just a short journey with my family....Check it out and tell me what you think.

https://plus.google.com/photos/117331216562664202450/albums/5848787637191887857

Cool, huh?  My kids are pretty awesome and I have the BEST husband ever.  :) 

     Now, let's talk about Google Calendar.  This is something I have been using for awhile now.  As most of you know, if you've read my previous blogs, my husband pastors a church.  We pass out a monthly calendar with all the activities for the month listed.  I went in and made a short version of my February calendar.  Trust me....it has no where near the activities on it that my actual calendar has.  But...you'll get the point.  Check it out:

https://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=mcneilyapsu%40gmail.com&ctz=America/Chicago

     I don't know about you, but there are so many ways I can think of to use Google Calendar in my classroom.  I can actually create different calendars for different events.  For example, I can have a calendar for important faculty related dates; another for my students birthdays; another for parent/teacher conferences.  There are so many ways to utilize this tool.  It already simplifies my life.  Without it, I would forget where I am supposed to be each day and what I'm supposed to be doing!

     Time to move on to Thing # 13!  Want to go with me?????

Thing # 11

 

 

 

Sniff....Sniff.....Ok ya'll......I am not so excited about Thing # 11.  I'm actually pretty bummed....sigh.  I was REALLY looking forward to learning something new again, but this didn't excite me in the least.  I actually found it quite boring!  Come on, admit it.  You did too, right?  Yeah, I know...you just don't want to admit it in case Dr. Wall actually reads our blogs!  LOL 

I will say that the Technorati site was probably the easiest to navigate.  The tutorial helped tremendously.  And I think that site would be fairly easy to find the information a teacher might be looking for.  But the most confusing site was the Edublog's Award Winners.  There is just SO much information on that site that it's a little overwhelming for those of us who are still somewhat intimidated by all this technology!    

I am actually somewhat familiar with the topix.net site.  However, my personal opinion on this site is the only good use for it is to find out the local gossip!  Not my cup of tea!

So...this "thing" was disappointing.  Why don't you follow me to "Thing # 12"  and let's see if it gets any better.  Come on........let's go!!!!

                                                          

Thing # 10

I LOVE it when I learn something new!  I'm sure those of you who are "tech savvy" probably use RSS feeds all the time.  It's old school for you, right?  Well, for me...it's brand new! 

As I've said before...I am not a computer "geek" and I'm definitely not technologically gifted, so I'm learning what RSS is and what it does for the very first time.  Yes...unbelievable, I know.  But, it's true!

Now don't get me wrong.  I've seen that little orange icon on my husbands ipad many times.  But, I never asked what it was...and to be honest...I really didn't care.  But, I care now!  This is a great tool!  I mean, I can now keep up with so many pages that interest me without having to type in each URL.  How convenient is that?????

This tool will be a tremendous help to me when I have my own classroom.  Just thinking of all the educational sites that I can visit and pull data from to enhance my lessons is amazing!  What's even better than the enormous amount of material is the convenience of accessing it!

Now, in my personal life...I suppose I could use it to keep up with any personal blogs that I like to read or any updated news links.  But, for me, the greatest benefit will be in the area of my classroom.  I'm sure many teachers already use this site for updated educational clips, games and lesson plans. 

I have definitely learned something today that I will use over and over again!  Thanks for the tip!!

Thing # 9

     Well...here we are again.  I'm still playing around with all these great Web 2.0 tools.  I put myself on the magazine cover to the left by going to http://www.fakemagazinecover.com/.  It was easy to do!  Go ahead...try it!  You can really make some crazy things on that site!

     Since Thing #9 is supposed to be all about having fun....Let's see what I can come up with...hmm????  How about these?


                                            

http://www.happyfacegenerator.com/

 
         
                                        
                                     

http://mashable.com/2009/08/22/image-generators/

 


I think I would use these generators solely for the purpose of adding some "fun" images to my class blogs...or even my PowerPoints for instructions!  It would definately keep the kids interested!! 


   Well.......time to move on!  Let's see what the next "Thing" is all about........Come on...Go with me!!!!!!!

Thing #8

   

That is so cool!  LOL  Hi everybody!  I love this Mashup tool!  I've been sitting here for over an hour playing with my pics.  :)  If you haven't tried this one...give it a whirl.  It's extremely easy...and I'm all about things that aren't complicated.  :) 
     I don't know about you, but I would definitely want to use this tool in my classroom blog.  I believe the students would love to see class pics on the blog in this manner.  It's so simple, that it would take no time at all to update.  What a great way for parents to see what activities have been going on inside the classroom!
   

  I share alot of my personal photos online on my FB account.  However, I do make them private so only my closest friends and family can see them.  I think people are way too free with their personal information on the web.  I mean, come on....do we really need to know that you're trimming your toe nails in the bathtub?  I mean...PLEASE! 

      And another thing.......

when posting those personal pics.......just remember.  If you allow anyone access to them, they can be copied and photo shopped and end up on who knows what type of website.  So, I think you should guard your personal family photos like a soldier at Fort Knox.  The last thing I want is for some pervert to take my daughters pic, photo shop it and ruin her image and her reputation.  So...post wisely guys!!!!!

Thing #7

    

Hey guys!  Well, I must admit to learning something new today.  I have heard all my friends talk about Flickr, but I just never thought I'd use it!  So, learning this step in our 23 Things was a challenge.  But, I believe I figured it out.  :)  I chose the above picture for my Thing #7 because in a small way, it's sort of personal.
     You see, I lived in Sylcauga, Alabama for 12 years.  My daughter did a history report in 5th grade for her school on child labor in Alabama.  (She won first place, by the way.  Proud Momma moment here!!!! )  Anyways, we began to research child labor laws and were amazed to discover that the Avondale Mills plant in our town was one of the largest factories in our portion of the state to employ child labor.  The picture listed above, which you can view for yourself at http://www.flickr.com/photos/dystopos/167337060/ was taken at the Avondale Mills plant in Birmingham by  Lewis Hine for the National Child Labor Committee, November 1910. 
     My daughter and I stood outside this plant and took many pictures of what it looks like today.  As we stood there, we discussed what it would have been like back then to have to allow your children to go to work in factories that were dangerous to adults, long enough to children.  Kids as young as 4 picked up yarn from the floor of this plant.  Others were hired to sweep the floors and to keep coal in the furnace.  Most days these children were forced to work 16 hours with little or no food.  And of course, an education was out of the question.
     I don't know about you.  But I am very thankful that economic times do not require my children to leave school and get a job in order for my family to have food on the table.  As we walked through this factory, which had been shut down due to a fire a few years earlier, you could almost hear the voices of the children......lives lost, childhood's taken away.  Child labor in America should make us hang our heads today as we look at the past.  You may be asking yourselves, "How could society have allowed this?"  That's a question I can not answer......................

Thing #6

     It so amazing the things that are at my fingertips these days!  The subjects you can research and the places you can see are absolutely endless.  I don't know about you, but I could spend hours surfing all the Web 2.0 links out there.  I actually spent a couple hours viewing all the different ones just for this blog alone!  How long did you spend looking for your tool?  Did you let time get away from you too?
     I found a site that really excited me.  I can see so many uses for it within my future classroom.  Not all students are visual learners, like me.  But even those who aren't still could learn a great deal from what I discovered today.  My tool can be found at www.visualthesaurus.com.  VisualThesaurus is an online interactive thesaurus designed for visual learners. 
     Type in any word you want to know more about, and instead of just reading a boring definition, VisualThesaurus defines the word by visual interactive pictures.  This program then expands on the basic definition and ties it to supporting facts.  Try it!  Go ahead....I dare you.  :)  I promise you won't be able to stop at one word.  Kinda like that Lays Potato Chip commercial...."you can't eat just one." Well, you can't "read just one!"  LOL  Go to the website at the above link and type in the words "solar system."  It's amazing!
     Educators could really take advantage of this tool when teaching on a subject that has alot of detail.  If it's broken down and the students can "see" all the layers of the term and how they connect to other things, they will love learning!  Go ahead....try it!  Bet you can't "read just one!"  :)

Thing #5

     What does "School 2.0" mean to you?  Hmm....As I was reading some articles today about "School 2.0", all I could seem to do was ask myself, "Why didn't you consider this?"  :(  You see, I have a son, David, who is one of the joys of my life.  He's top in his class academically and his IQ is amazingly high (I know this because the school asked to test him).  So, I'm a proud momma...in case you couldn't tell!  LOL  But, I could have really used this knowledge a few years ago to benefit him.  David was bullied in school severely.  We had to pull him from the public school system and home school him for 3rd thru 5th grade.  What I would have given to have thought about the options available, such as "School 2.0!"  I mean, a virtual school with an actual teacher that he could have "Skyped" would have been such an amazing thing!
     As a future educator, when I think about the possibilities for my classroom using today's technological advances, it excites me!  What?  It intimidates you?  Aaahhh...come on!  We can do this!  :)  Most students today absolutely LOVE any type of gadget.  When I think about blogs, IMovies, Skype,  Interactive game sites, Talking avatars...this list of what we will have available to engage our students is endless.  Some teachers want to shy away from new technology and stick to teaching "inside the box."  Why not use what engages kids?
     For example, while home schooling, when I told my son it was time to study his vocab for his test, he ALWAYS moaned.  I mean, you have to admit...a booklet, paper and pencils are not very exciting study tools!  LOL  But now, he comes to me and asks if it's time to study!  Why?  Because his teacher uses interactive games that she invents and places on the computer for the students to use.  He thinks he just playing a game.  But, we know he's learning!
     I truly believe there will come a day in the future, where going to an actual school building for school will be rare.  I can see the pathway leading to more students enrolling in online schools and working from home.  For those students, like my son, who suffer from bullying...think of how that could change their lives!  Instead of not wanting to work or go to school for fear of being harassed, they wake up excited to log on from the comfort of their home and learn in a safe and loving environment. 
     I have given much thought to working as an online teacher/tutor after graduation.  Have you considered the possibility of teaching from home using things such as an online academy?  Maybe you should give it some thought.  Technology is here and it's advancing every day.  Don't run from it!!  Embrace it and use it to your advantage......See ya next time!