Thing #21: Animoto

APSU Sophomore Year

I found Animoto to be an incredibly user friendly website. It took me no time to pull the photos I wanted from all my social networking/school/storage sites and upload them. The music library they offer is hardly extensive, but it wasn't impossible to find songs for the video. I'm sure this site would be perfect if you were a paying user, however, there is no reason for me to do this at this time. Overall, I really liked Animoto, and would probably use it again if a situation for that type of video (wedding, bridal shower, etc.) arose.

Thing #20: You, Too, Can YouTube

This video features teachers from Hubbard Elementary School, as one of many videos done by them for their Friday assemblies. The reason I felt this video was worthy of putting in my blog was it shows the teachers having fun. While I understand this isn't part of their job description it is important for students to find their teachers approachable. When students see their teachers as real people rather than just a figure in the classroom, it makes them easier to talk to.

YouTube becomes more user friendly each day. I often use it on my iphone and can search using my voice, which often saves me time. The only thing I don't like about the site is how quickly it becomes filled with junk that has no value or videos which no longer work.

Thing #19: Beyond Facebook, Other Social Networks

While Facebook can be entertaining and can suck you into the games quickly, it provides little to no professional or educational interaction. Sites like TeacherPop are providing a place just for educators to interact with one another with questions and concerns and ideas that they have about teaching. While it took my quite some time to figure out the navigation, I found that I really like the site as a whole. While exploring teacher pop I replied to a question posed by Adrienne with an idea of how she could make her curved grading fair, commented on an adorable photo of a child interacting with a deer, and uploaded a profile picture to my account.

While I thoroughly enjoyed exploring teacherpop, of course I was excited to see a social network specifically about animals, Fuzzsters.com. Fuzzsters offers a place for proud pet owners to show off their furbabies by creating a profile specifically for them. While I really enjoyed admiring other folks pets, I don't have the time to do the same for Raven (my dog). In the future when I have more time it may be of interest to me to give Fuzzsters.com a second look.

Thing #17: Tagging and social bookmarking with Delicious

Prior to beginning working on Thing #17, I had only ever used StumbleUpon out of the tools which were mentioned. I am still more of a StumbleUpon fan than I am a Delicious fan, however, I can see useful features of them both.

When I created an account on Delicious and began searching for things on there using the keywords "educational technology", I came across many useful things but did not find the tags to be very helpful in finding what I was looking for, other than finding TeacherTube on the site. It took more time than I felt necessary to find things on the site that would be useful to me, however that could have been my error in entering keywords.

Within the classroom, I would prefer to use Diigo, as it was easier to navigate for me, both in the mobile and desktop formats. Social bookmarking tools are very useful to teachers because they offer opportunities for teachers everywhere to share their resources with one another for free, at any time on any day. This is incredibly important when you look at it as a nationwide aspect. Teachers in California may "StumbleUpon" a great web activity for teaching students long division, post it on Diigo or Delicious, and then a teacher in New York or Florida could come across it minutes later as the perfect thing to complete her lesson plan. Collaboration is important within the classroom, within the school, within the community, but also nationwide. Collaboration has only positive aspects for the educational world.

Thing #18: Explore Social Networking

Social networking is a way which folks of all ages are connecting with each other in the 21st century. People who graduated high school twenty years ago are catching up with people whom they have not heard from in years, friends that move apart are remaining in touch by keeping up with status updates, tweets, photos, and private messages, and some folks are even meeting on social networking sights. I personally have a facebook and a twitter account. I use my facebook account for the purpose which is described above. Twitter, however, I use more to follow people whom I don't know but find entertaining or informative. For example, I follow The Ellen Show, Renfield the Corgi, and many of my favorite artists as well as a few friends.

It is important that educators know how social networking sights work so that they can help ensure their students know how to be safe when they are online, especially on popular sights such as these. It is also important if they have a social media account, because they must understand that anything they post on facebook, can be seen by others if you have not adjusted your privacy settings. While educators are still free to live their lives, they may go on vacation and wear a bikini which they do not want their students and/or their parents to see(especially as the students get older and have more freedom on the internet).

Honestly, I feel it would be best for facebook, twitter, google+, and all those other social media sites to be left out of classrooms and schools. There are too many risks associated with sights like these and they do not currently offer any contribution toward education for the students. Facebook is intended to help you get to know each other on a personal level, educators and students should not have this type of relationship.

Thing #16: Get Organized With Web 2.0 tools

The iGoogle customized home page is a feature which I used to use when my computer everyday. I found it to be much less annoying than the yahoo or msn home pages which often showed things I was not interested in reading about. However, since I purchased an iPhone and an iPad I rarely use an internet browser outside of school assignments, in which case I don't have time to browse through a page filled with things I am interested in. In the future, when I have more need to be on a computer daily I could see myself using something like iGoogle again.

Currently, I use the Google calendar to syn my school assignments. The majority of online accounts I use are linked to my gmail address so entering my assignments into that calendar often helps to keep me on track.

I created an account with GradeFixed, however I did not like how difficult they made editing tasks after they had already been created. The concept sounded appealing but there is certainly room for this program to grow. Personally, I did not find this site to be helpful. I will be looking for a similar tool that is better developed in the near future.

Thing #15: What in the World is a Wiki?

Wikis are used for many purposes online. They are used both for general information purposes, as well as for educational purposes. Some people use them more as a blog, for book reviews and reviews on travel destinations. I attempted to make a post in the sandbox but was told I had insufficient access to that. I have often used wikis to find general information which inspires deeper research into whatever topic I began looking into. Wikis were incredibly helpful to me when I was looking to adopt a pet, when I found this information on corgis, I ended up adopting Raven. Below you will find her picture:

Thing #14: Go With The Flow

When exploring the options I was given for flowcharts and mind maps, I chose the two that made the most sense to me (as far as the ease of use with tools). These were flowchart.com and mindmeister.com. I don't have any upcoming projects that relate to this type of chart, so instead I made one of each for the standards I chose in our livetext projects, which was distinguishing between facts and opinions.

Here you see the flowchart:

What I liked about this tool was it was incredibly easy to figure out without any directions and was able to be completely customized if you chose not to use a template from their database.

Here you see the mind map:

I liked the design elements of this tool much better, however, I Felt that it would only be useful on the web. This is a downfall, because sometimes you want to print a flowchart/mindmap, and you lose some of the perks of the mindmap when it is printed, such as minimizing details.

Thing #13: Web Based Applications

Zoho was an incredibly easy web based app to use, so was Google Docs. For school purposes and teaching purposes I think I would prefer using Google Docs because simply by having a Google account you are offered so many different web based apps. However, from a business standpoint, such as a managerial position at a pizza place, Zoho had some awesome tools! Tools that are typically very costly to start using and require subscription fees each month regardless of how often you use them. Below you will see the drawing I made using Google Drive.

For reading and language arts at an elementary level, students may use Google Docs collaboratively to work on group projects, like the ones we saw in the elementary webquest in class. Students may also use this to view interactive power points which I created to help them develop certain skills. It may also be used to collaborate on grades with fellow teachers as well as lesson plans with the principal.

Thing #12: Google is not just for searching anymore

Below are screenshots of the two tools that I chose to use, google translate and google alerts. I chose two simple English sentences to translate to Spanish and found it incredibly easy to understand the forms. I also chose to receive google alerts about standardized testing, because I wanted to know how they're affecting our school systems and how they are changing. The form provided for this tool was also very easy to understand. It took me only a matter of seconds to become familiar with all of the tools google provides to its users.

These would be great for educational uses when writing a long term research paper google alerts could keep you up to date on your topic and the developing news around it. Google translate would be great for students of different cultures to find a way to communicate, as well as teach students trying to learn a different language learn the proper pronunciation of each word.

Thing #11: Finding Good Feeds

I found using google to look for blogs related to the topic I was interested in the most helpful. It brought up a large selection of blogs for me to view and choose which ones fit my interests the best.

I found the search tool provided on the blogger website to be the most confusing because it didn't provide me a detailed preview of the blog.

I also asked fellow classmates how they found blogs and began to follow some of the same ones that they were following.

Thing #10: Set up an RSS Reader and Add Feeds

I set up my RSS reader and added feed many weeks ago when we began using blogger for this class. I have thoroughly enjoyed sporadic updates from the cooking, photography, travel, news, and education blogs which I follow. I like that it keeps a "news feed" type list for me that is self updating so that I don't have to worry about searching through bookmarked links on my computer to keep up with my interests.

I can use the education and news blogs that I follow in my academic life to relate the material that I am learning at school, which helps me understand it better. I can use the cooking blog to better my nutrition and relaxation when I am at home, because I enjoy cooking and find it to be rather relaxing. I use the photography and travel blogs, simply for enjoyment and relaxation. After a long day of going to school, followed by work, followed by housework, I like to just sit down in my big comfy papasan chair cuddled up with my dog and look over these things on my iPad. It is one of my favorite ways to end my day.

I have found ways to use RSS Readers in every aspect of my life. There are many feeds relating to management and serving and the pizza industry and the burger industry, all of which relate to my jobs.

Teachers can use RSS readers to collaborate with other teachers about issues, lessons, and technology in their classroom, essentially using the blogs as a support system.

Thing #9: Online Image Generators

Each of the images below came from a different website, but they were all customized by me. I cannot personally think of any reason that I would use these in a library or classroom setting, other than for the purpose which i listed in a previous blog, to label items in a creative way. I can't really think of any academic purpose for these in a elementary classroom. I did enjoy this exercise though, because it did not involve a lot of mental involvement from the academic portion of the brain!






http://www7.flamingtext.com/net-fu/jobs/131129675.html?use=personal
http://free.text2logo.com/happy-face-smilies.htm
http://www.comicstripgenerator.com/create-duo.asp?text=Spring+break+is+almost+here%3F&title=Spring+Break&move=&move2=&fontsize=12&font=comic&color=black&cartoons.x=74&cartoons.y=9&cartoon=see-hear-speak-no-evil-smilie_&text2=You+don%27t+say%21&tag=March+5%2C+2013&mover=&mover2=&time=1415

Thing #8: Flickr mashups

The first image is an image of a flickr mashup, created on http://metaatem.net/words/. This particular tool creates a word from various tiles and could be used in the classroom to have students create unique nametags to place on their cubbies(since I'll be teaching elementary school) or their folders which they keep homework, notes home, report cards, etc. in so that they are easy to sort through upon check in and check out from the teacher each day/week. I used in in my personal life to create my name not only for this assignment, but also for my facebook cover photo.

The second picture is a mosaic which was created on bighugelabs.com. This tool would be useful for putting photos from field trips, classroom activities, and just daily activities to place around the classroom. Many people feel more comfortable in environments containing pictures of themselves, their friends, and their families. It makes them feel like it is okay to "nest" there. In my personal life, I can use it to create neat little backgrounds for my iPhone, iPad, and laptop.

Personally, I have no issue sharing photos online, as long as I have some control over who can view them and what can be done with them.

Thing #7: Explore Flickr

This image was found here on flickr. I searched for the tag Blue Lagoon Malta, because that is somewhere I visited as a student ambassador when I was twelve. I felt by viewing others photos as well as my own of this site I would be able to remember more about the experience that I had there.

Flickr's search engine made it extremely easy to find photos for the purpose I was using it for. It brought me to a page with a wide variety of images, from which I chose my favorite. This image depicts a castle which used to be used on the land surrounding the Blue Lagoon. It also shows to people using a special type of goggles(which you must have for saltwater) to look at the beauty below the water surface, which I did when I was there!

I also took the tour of flickr which showed how to share your photos to tell a story, leave comments on others photos, and explains the benefits of having your photos wherever you go. I found flickr to be a very intriguing site that I would like to explore further when I have more free time on my hands.

Thing #6: Discovering Web 2.0 Tools

When I read the assignment for this blog my mind began to wander from cooking to work to school to my social life. It was almost overwhelming when I opened the link which we were supposed to find a tool at. In the midst of this confusion, a light bulb came on in my head which said "you need to organize your thoughts to complete this project, you will never get it done by being scatterbrained." So I looked at the tags on the right hand side, and saw one titled organization, so I clicked it. Then I saw one titled "tools" so I clicked it. Quickly I came upon the one which would be a winner for me, moreganize. Moreganize is useful for me in multiple aspects of my life. I can create a to do list which I can access from anywhere of homework assignments, and then a separate list of things that need to be done around the house, and the one which I found the most rewarding was being able to create a list from anywhere on my phone, laptop, or iPad which I could share with coworkers telling them things that needed to be accomplished that day. For example, the list would be titled with the date and name of our workplace and it may list deep cleaning for BER, consider CLC roles, ensure great service is given to each guest, etc. Then when my coworkers open the list they can check off the things which they have completed, communicating to the rest of the team what projects are still left. I tested it the last few days, and it has made us communicate so much more and accomplish more as a team all together.

I think this tool would be especially useful for college students to collaborate on group projects, and for team teachers to collaborate on field trips, lesson plans, etc. You can find this tool at moreganize.com

Thing #5: School 2.0

School 2.0 is a revolution which is changing the way that teachers teach, students learn, and people interact. Most people think that school stays within the school building, but this is untrue especially with school 2.0. With new programs and technology being available to our students online for little to no cost, school can and should go everywhere with them. They can learn about anatomy and physiology on their iPads from the Kahn Academy app on their moms iPhone in the car on the way to Florida, or they can learn about grammar usage and mechanics from the kitchen table on the iPads at home while dinner is being prepared. The possibilities for education are endless with Web 2.0. It is nearly impossible to know about all the technology that is currently available, let alone guess what could come about in the future.

However, it is only human nature to speculate about the future and what each new technology could do to and for our students. Apps for the iPads that are becoming more and more prevalent in classrooms such as Crocodoc, Google Art Project, Kidblog, Quia, and many others are allowing our students to take their education to a whole new level that was never possible before. WIth endless possibilities for these apps, there are no limits on where education can go! School 2.0 is taking school out of the box!

Thing #4: Why Commenting is Important

Blogs are a way to share ideas, communicate thoughts, express feelings, and simply connect with others. When blogging, the writer is often looking for community responses of discussion on innovative ideas, opinion on one's thoughts, empathy with one's feelings, and conversation. If these things weren't being sought out, they wouldn't have been posted online for the public to see. When you read a blog that unveils something of interest to you, you could simply call a friend and tell them about it/share it to your Facebook timeline OR you could comment on it and let the blogger know what you found interesting and discuss it with someone who you are guaranteed has the same interest as you.

I found it interesting that one of the articles mentioned that "Right on" or "I completely agree" was simply not enough to comment on a blog. While it is encouraging for the author, it does not contribute to that particular bloggers community. Encouragement within comments is important, even when you have a difference of opinions, but it is not the main content of a good comment. I also found the "lurking" terminology interesting. I had not considered that when a blogger logs in and has 20 pageviews but no comments that they may begin to feel discouraged or spiral downhill thinking that their writing wasn't worth anyone's time because they did not comment. In addition to the effect it has on the blogger, lurking can prevent one from retaining the material which was just read. If the reader doesn't take time to analyze it and comment on it their chance of remembering it is much smaller.

Within our class I chose to comment  on Megan Singleton, Ashley Beazley, Jessica Brown, Jeffrey Doyle, and James Harris' blogs. I chose these because they all had posts which intrigued me to want to know more about a certain topic or had similar feelings to what I experienced when writing my blog about that particular topic.

Outside of our class I follow a blog called I Can Cook That!, because I love to cook. I originally found a link to it on the cooking light website where she was described as a "Beginner chef". I thought her dishes would be fairly simple but give me a wide variety of things to try at home. I frequently have friends over for Mysterious Monday where I try a new recipe with them, Taco Tuesday where we indulge in a variety of Southwestern and Mexican dishes, and Whatever Wednesday where we will find a way to make something out of whatever is in the cabinets.We have found many dishes from her blog that we truly love over the past month. I also frequently check the site travelblogs.com to read about other peoples travels and dream of places I would like to go someday. Occasionally, I find a post about places I've been like the Leaning Tower and The Blue Lagoon and thoroughly enjoy reading about other peoples experiences at these same places.

Thing #3: Register your blog

Blogs can be useful for many purposes, both in one's personal and professional life. As a personal blog, I enjoy reading those that are about DIY projects at home, especially those that help make the most out of your space. On a professional note though, there are tons of crafts, activities, and lessons that teachers have found successful and share on their blogs to give other teachers the opportunity to use it with their own students.

In the teacher education program, I am currently using blogs for the 23 things assignment. In the future, I foresee using my blog to share with other teacher candidates (also perhaps professors, if they were interested) my clinical experiences as I find them incredibly fulfilling.

I had a teacher in highschool who had us blog about a particular poet throughout the semester and reflect upon several of their poems. It was a writing/critiquing exercise which taught me to love writing as well as reading poetry. I would perhaps use it in this fashion with elementary students to have them tell about their favorite chapter books, author, or even just as a place to practice creative writing.

Thing #2: Create a Blog, Add a Post and an Avatar

Creating my blog was much easier than I had anticipated, because I already had a Google email account. I think most of my nervousness prior to setting it up came from the fact that I had no prior experience with blogging. I wrote in a journal for class in high school, but that was pen and paper in a classroom where I could talk to my teacher if I didn't have any idea what to write about. As it turns out blogger and Mrs. Wall's instructions made setup rather easy. My posting name for my blog was chosen simply because that is my name and that made it easily identifiable as mine for teachers and classmates. My avatar, however, is a whole different story. I struggled to find things that I liked and ended up settling for something that looked like a rather skewed version of myself on a work day. Putting this in perspective, that is how I look most days, as I work 6 days a week.

Thing #1: Lifelong Learners

Prior to viewing the slideshow which discusses the 7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners I sat down and contemplated what habits I could identify in my own life already. I identified habits such as spending too much time stressing over details, not allowing myself to enjoy life on a frequent basis, and using my iPad for absolutely everything. Little did I know that some of these habits would perfectly align with the 7 1/2 Habits, while others would perfectly contradict them. Below you will see the two that do exactly that.

Habit #6 is by far one of the easiest for me. My first Christmas after college began I was given an iPad, and since the day I received it I can think of very few days I didn't catch myself looking for ways to use my iPad to improve my daily life, especially during the times I was taking classes. From iBooks to CourseSmart eTextbooks to the myHomework app they have helped me to organize and keep track of all my school assignments and the majority of my documents that I use for school. During my EDUC 2100 class I learned how many features my gmail account offers to assist me with school as well.

As strange as this will sound Habit #7 1/2 is the hardest for me. I have two jobs in order to support myself while being enrolled in school full time. Between working 6 days a week and attending school 2 days a week I have difficulty setting aside time for play. I allow myself to become so enveloped by my daily workloads between the three that other than taking my dog for walks and caring for her I don't leave myself much time for play. This often leads me to a stressful semester that I don't enjoy. I hope that keeping the 7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners in mind will help me solve this problem that I create for myself.