FINAL BLOG!!

ABCTEACH
Abcteach is a teachers dream site! When i found this i got so excited because although there are a lot of good technology tools out there, this one really caught my eye. This tool is for kids, parents, and teachers. It gives worksheets, activities, flashcards, and many other things you can do to help your students learn what you are teaching. When you first go to the site there are a lot of categories you can click on such as subjects, theme units, learning centers etc. As a teacher, i will be able to go to this site and create my own worksheets, assignments and get ideas for lesson plans. Also, my students can go on this page and play games that will not only be fun but a great learning experience. For example, If i was preparing a lesson on Science, I could find an activity or worksheet to help me. When you click on a subject it sorts it into categories such as plants, animals or the earth. Then, it even sorts the categories into sub catagories for even more detailed information. This tool will really be beneficial to not only me but those who are planning on becoming teachers someday!

MICROSOFT PUBLISHER
When I first got introduced to Microsoft publisher I was a little upset I hadn't heard of it before! This class has been a challenge because i am not extremely familiar with the new programs that are available now. Although i have learned an extraordinary amount of information, Microsoft Publisher was what really opened my eyes and helped me quite a bit. When you open Microsoft publisher there are several options you can choose from depending on what sort of project you are creating. For example, If I was wanting to make a flyer to send home to my students parents about an upcoming field trip i would be able to click on the flyer and it then will show me different layouts or designs for my flyer. Also, Microsoft Publisher is great for older grades to complete given assignments or projects, such as a brochure or class newsletter. This tool is so easy and useful that I know I will someday use it in my class to create assignments and handouts.

LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL!!

It has been crunch time this past week...I am about finished with my projects, i just have a few finishing touches! I have really enjoyed this class although it has been quite stressful. I have learned so many new things and concepts that will really benifit me in the future. This past week i have learned to LOVE microsoft publisher. It has been my best friend for these last projects! In my classroom someday i can use publisher do create flyers and newsletters to parents telling them what is going on in my classroom. I have grown so much throughout this class!

thanksgiving break...and homework!

Because of Thanksgiving Break we did not have class this week. However, i did get some of my homework done. Over the past few weeks we have been working on projects to help incorporate technology in the classroom. This week i worked on the google site, at first i was a little ovewelmed. Although, working on it has really opened my eyes to new ideas and perspective that teachers have. I learned that i will be using a google site for my classroom because it has so many benifits being a teacher. Because i am planning on teaching 2nd or 3rd grade, my students may not use this web page. I have found though, that this resourse is very helpful and convenient for parents of my students. There will be a calender of events, homework, things going on in class and also a good way to get to know me not only as a teacher but as a person.

Kidspiration and Inspiration!

We had a nice break in class this week, we were asked to play around in Inspiration and Kidspiration. I have never heard of this software before but even the names got me curious! I spent at least 2 hours playing around on these programs and still feel like i barely understand the basics and their is a lot more to learn!
First i looked at inspiration and imediately was so excited. This program was especially designed for teachers to create endless assignments, handouts and activities! I was amazed at how many tools and objects i had to work with. I really liked the tool to create diagrams and charts. I made a diagram about the sea, i changed the background color and used a bunch of sea animals and objects that were really cool! When i become a teacher i can use this program to make an assignment or handout where i put pictures in a row and the students use describing words to describe the animal or object. Also, if i teach upper grades the students can use this program to make their own projects or assignments. or to teach the class about a new topic.
Next, I had some fun playing around in Kidspiration! Wow, this software got me even more excited because it was specifically designed for kids! I loved all of the pre-made activities, younger children would love them as well! The base ten blocks were really cool for the math section and i realized that for those hands on learners these activities would be perfect. Also, i liked how you could move the objects around and allowed you to type on it as well. It was almost an interactive worksheet! I also played around with the "make your own" activities, that would also be really helpful as a teacher especially with the younger grades. I had a lot of fun creating my own activity about animals and matching. I will use this tool a lot as a teacher.
Overall, i think these two programs will be extremely benifitial to teachers. Although, I doubt that these programs will be available to all schools and im sure it is quite expensive. If i am able to have this program where i teach i will be forever grateful because it is an awesome learning tool!

Teamwork!

This week in class was a lot of fun. Like i wrote in my last post, we created three powerpoints in groups. I really liked working with my classmates for these projects. It was really fun getting to know each other and helping everyone do their part and work together. I also learned a lot during the time i worked with my classmates, I became more familiar with powerpoint and the differnt tools to make our slide show more creative and professional. This project has helped me a lot, i learned that comunication is really important when you work as a group to make sure that everyone is on the same page. As a teacher, i will definately help my students develop teamwork skills and teach them the importance to work as a group and help each other. Also, i think it is very benifitial to help the students realize that each team member needs to do their part in order to make final project a success.

Power to the Point...YEAH!

Okay so this week was really fun and relaxing, on Tuesday we spit into groups and picked two power points to create and present to the class. Our group chose to create a comic strip and a new years resolutions power points. I thought this activity was really fun, i liked getting to know my classmates and working together as a group. I think the power point book called 50 Quick and Easy PowerPoint Activities is a very beneficial book that i will be able to use someday when i become a teacher. I liked how all of the activities were original and creative, i think students will really enjoy and learn from these power points because even I had fun with it!

Fun using Digital Cameras!

Five ways I will use Digital Cameras in my classroom:
1. Have each student take home the classroom camera over the weekend to take pictures of what we are learning in class and share it with his or her classmates.
2. Play games such as a guessing game where we take pictures and the students try to guess the location the picture was taken around the school.
3. Teach the students teamwork and sharing skills. Split the kids in groups and have them go around the school taking pictures of plants and animals.
4. Each student takes a turn to spotlight another student so he or she takes a picture and tells about the student to the class.
5. Show the students how to be creative. Ask them to take a unique picture around the school, it teaches them to be original and observant.

This week we learned all about digital cameras and how we could incorporate them in our classrooms. I want to teach second grade so i wasn't sure i would be able to teach my students that young how to use a camera. Although, doc. waters had us split into groups of students who wanted to teach second grade as well. We created pictures of "exercise" in the eyes of a second grader, this made me realize that even that young they can learn alot from using a digital camera. Also, we learned how to use picassa and manipulate our original pictures into creations of our own! I really liked this program because it made our project different, and stand our among others. After taking pictures and manipulated them, we created a powerpoint describing "exercise" like a second grader. i really enjoyed this assignment, it was different and fun. Also, it really encouraged me to do this when i become a teacher.

Digital Cameras are AWESOME!!

Ever since i recieved my first digital camera when i was 15 i have grown to love taking pictures. Photography to me, is like capturing moments and sort of a journal through life! In our computer tech class we have been learning all about digital cameras and dr. waters has shown us how to crop and personalize them. The main point of learning about cameras is to be able to incorporate them in our classroom someday. After reading the three articles it really opened my eyes.. the article on the ten tips was basically stuff i already knew, the 100 ways to use a digital camera had some helpful ideas, but the article that really hit me the most was digital snapshot. It made me realize that I, as an elementary school teacher, could use digital cameras in my classroom to help my students be more creative and visual learners. I thought it was awesome how even kindergarteners were using cameras to learn new things and be able to understand shapes and colors for example. This article just really stood out to me seeing that children could hilight their strengths intrests and talents using a camera in their classroom. I will definately consider using digital cameras to teach my students someday and show them how to "preserve and reproduce special moments for reflection-a potent stimulus to writing"

Learning new things about power point!!

So I am already pretty familiar with power point from doing previous class assignments with the program, but i have begun to see it in a whole new perspective....
In my technology class we have been learning about power point and the different tools you can use to personalize it. From learning this, i have come to realize that these tools will help me a lot as a teacher. At first i didnt think that teaching 2nd grade would really bennifit from this but it actually can. Although i wont be teaching the kids to create their own power point, it will allow me to create lessons on power points showing pictures, graphs, video clips, sounds and a lot more. For example, if i am teaching my class about different animals and the sounds they make and the environment they live in, then i am able to create a power point showing pictures, sound clips and bits of information to visually teach them. I am really excited to be able to show my students fun ways to learn and prepare them for the future!

Internet Safety!

I have learned a lot this week in class.. internet safety is something that is getting more and more important as the use of technology increases. It is vital for our students to be familiar with the dangers and risks of a simple web page. it is important to teach them what to look for when researching a topic, or using a safe search engine. it was very helpful to learn some tips that we, and our future students, can use to be internet safe. I also realized that if we teach our students in a fun and entertaining way that they are more likely to enjoy it as well as learn. I learned how to create my own web activity using webquest. I was surprized how easy it was to set up and i really think this will be useful as a teacher

Learning more about websites!

This week I was able to create my own website about me. I think this will be helpful in my future classroom because it is available to students and their parents to get to know me not only as a teacher but as a person. I would also like to teach my students how to create their own website, to express themselves and to become familiar with today's technology. Also, we learned about UEN. This will be extremely helpful to me as a teacher and also my students. It is awesome that we can have a web page available to our students to let them know what to expect and due dates for assignments. It is also convenient for the teacher to organize not only the public page but our own personal page as well. We learned about Pioneer Library also and i was amazed at how many resources to online journals and articles that will be extremely beneficial to our students. This week was fun and i cant wait to see what is in store for next week!

You learn something new EVERY DAY!!

Although the past few days have been beyond crazy i really enjoyed class this week, on tuesday we learned about microsoft word. I already love this program for it has helped me countless times in writing papers and assignments, so learning new things about it really got me excited! Dr. waters taught us how to insert pictures, columns, word art an a lot more... i think these tools will really be helpful when i become a teacher to make assignments, handouts, quizes or even help my students create projects.
On thursday we learned how to use microsoft excel. this program was very new to me, i never knew how useful and easy it was. I think this will be helpful in my future classroom because keeping track of 35 students assignments and grades can be pretty overwelming. I think this program can keep documents organized and also saved on file.
Learning all these new tools and programs has made me really anxious to learn even more and become a teacher someday! ta ta for now!

My 1st reflection...

Ok so my first week of computer tech class was awesome, i have already learned so much that will help me in my future classroom. I never would have thought facebook and blogs would be useful to teachers and students, but the more i learn about it, the more sense it makes! I have enjoyed this class so far and cant wait to see what else it has to offer.. oh and we also learned how to make wikis, it is an awesome feature i will post one soon!

test post

this is my first post... yay!