Put Your Cell Phones Away

In school, all I ever heard was "turn off your cell phones". It was natural for me as a student to put my cell phone away until the bell rang. I would sneak a text message in when the teacher wasn't looking or check my e-mail at lunch, but never would I be on my cell phone during the class. If students had cell phones out during class, tachers could kick them out. THey were thought of as distractions. Today, cell phones can be helpful during school. Students can find out answers to questions and learn more about a topic that is being taught. I can see where the teacher is coming from but I also know that cell phones will be more of a distraction then useful. Students can go on facebook and twitter while the teacher thinks they are looking up something that has to do with the class. It is easy for students to close out of the tab that they were on if the teacher asks to see what they are looking at. Computers are expensive for schools, however I don't think that having students take their cell phones out is good. It can also be a sticky situation for teachers to give out their personal numbers to students and teachers. After school hours are done, a student or parent should only contact teachers through the school or through email. I don't think calling a teachers cell phone is appropriate. Not all students have cell phones that have internet access which can make them feel left out. I think classroom computers is fine for students and cell phones should not be used in the classroom.

Digital Divide

I found this article very interesting to read, especially since I work in a high priority school. Drilling is NOT the way to get children to learn, especially from a computer. A teacher's voice, facial expression and attitude when teaching students is the key to their success. Anyone can sit in front of a computer and do what the computer is telling them, but how many are going to learn from what they are doing? Do the students feel cared about? Just because the students are in a high priority school doesn't mean they shouldn't get the same resources as students in the next district over. I think children learn best is when they feel that the teacher cares about them and when they are being listened to, both things a computer can't do.

Inspiring through Inspiration

Students more and more have different ways of learning. Many students are visual learners and can better understand what they are learning by seeing it. Inspiration is a software that allows students to visualize concepts being taught to them. A teacher sitting in the front of the classroom reading from a text book doesn't work for students. A student learns by doing and Inspiration helps them. Students are able to add icons, create maps of their ideas and out line students ideas. Inspiration acts as a "game" instead of a web of ideas that confuse students. It also helps students be creative in their work by having the option to choose images to trigger their memory. Students being allowed to use the computer is fun for them, it is something that they are not allowed to do everyday. Doing something different besides using a paper and pencil is fun and gets students ready to work. Inspiration is great for students and fun for the class to see what their classmates have made using Inspiration. It allows students to be creative while learning, which will make for better projects and understanding of a lesson.

Rappers Delight

My partner Allison and I did a project on Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" . Instead of reading the poem as a voice over, we rapped it. Adding pictures to the poem was fun and a good visual for students. We thought it would be fun to rap the poem becuase we were trying to be creative. I think this is great for students to do in the classroom on a book or poem that they like to share with the class. Voice overs can be fun for students to use in the classroom, and different from asked to read a book to themselves.

Non Linear Power Point

I think the non-linear power point is a great idea to use in the classroom. Power points have been used in the classroom for years where students create one, present it to the class showing one slide at a time. I'm happy to see that there is a different way to show a project with fun buttons for students to use. Non-linear power points can be fun for students to be creative in their projects, giving "right" and "wrong" buttons to their projects. Powerpoints can be boring and now, students can create projects that are more like games then work. I think this is great for students!

Jigsaw Planet

I picked this GREAT website Jigsaw Planet, for my web 2.0. Jigsaw Planet allows students to upload their own pictures, words etc. and the website then breaks it into puzzle form. The student will then try to put their picture back together. This is great for all grades. You can adjust how many puzzle pieces you want, according to the grade. This helps students with all types of learning needs. Puzzles are a fun, academic task that teachers can use to help their students learn and problem solve in the classroom.
        Web 2.0 allows users to interact with information allowing anyone to create websites and share resources. If you like to share information with other people, create a Wiki just like i did with Jigsaw Planet. It's easy for anyone to use, teachers and students. A wiki can be great for many reasons. In my school, we are learning about Mammals. There are teachers who have developed a wiki with links and pictures of mammals for the students to click on. Students can look at the information and create their own with pictures that they have found and access their wiki from home. A wiki can also be used instead of a class website! If there is important information that a teacher would like to show their students, it can be shared on the wiki. You can add pictures, text and links to the wiki for students to check and share.