Blog Post VII

I think that Blog Post #7 expresses a great deal about the current technology that we use day to day. I listened to Dr. Strange interview two educators from the Eastern Shore community. They expressed how new technology in the classroom can be very helpful to students, teachers and educators. It makes learning much more interesting and available to everyone. Children are able to catch on quickly and adapt their learning patterns to whatever resources that are given them. I consider the new technology we have now as a personal library of knowledge and resources. There is no limit to what we can attain and learn as people.

I learned many ideas from the video We All Become Learners. The educators who were interviewed by Dr. Strange brought out some very interesting thoughts about kids and the new technology today. Mrs. Bennett mentioned how a student in the classroom was able to show her how to operate an iPad. She was extremely shocked and intrigued that someone so tiny could be so knowledgeable of such a device. This shows us as teachers and instructors that we can learn from our students. I was personally impressed with this young man in the video and how he was able to illustrate the use of the iPad.

While watching the video iPads In the Classroom. I learned that as teachers we will not be replaced by technology, but the video did bring out that as teachers of this modern age of technology and advancement we need to be on board with how to use many of the electronic devices available to us or else those teachers who are skilled in these areas will get the better jobs and possibly better pay. That is something that we should ponder and think about in a serious way. This really shows how teaching has evolved within this era. I hope that I can consume as much knowledge as possible to be able to keep up with the rapid advancement of the growing technology in the world in which we live. Learning means advancing and that's exciting to me as a teacher and educator!

Project 7 Part B

We were pretending to be teachers with our own class. These are the videos that I would show parents and students at the beginning of the year.

Blog Post VI-What Can We Learn from Anthony Capps

The videos were very interesting to me. In the video Project Based Learning Part 1 I thought that Mr. Capps information about being a third grade teacher was very enlightening and encouraging. I was surprised to know that he was a recent graduate of South Alabama. That's very encouraging to know that he has some very interesting experiences to share. Being a teacher can be very rewarding because it allows you to teach and influence others for life. I thought that he was very practical in his wisdom of how to reach young minds. Kids are very energetic and quick to learn. They are always ready to learn new things. They really learn from examples. Mr. Capps has the right idea about teaching. He seems to be very patient and open to suggestions. It's true that as good teachers we need to teach but we also need to be open to learning from others. The best lessons that are learned are taught from others.

The video about iCurio: Conversations with Anthony was very enlightening. It brought out how students are able to use that website to get information for projects and do research for important information. This helps them in class to show what their research was about and perhaps help other students to gather information for their projects. The teacher is there to direct students to the right source for learning and inquiry. It will enable students to experiment and explore the unusual and the impossible. When they discover what's really out there, they become fascinated and want to learn much more. It's also nice to know that this website is safe and secure for elementary kids. There are so many websites on the Internet that are not kid friendly. Some are much to mature for our young people. It's so refreshing to know that we are personally looking out for our young people and not allowing them to become weighed down with things that they are not ready to digest in their young minds. We must make sure that we are a vehicle of filtering good things to our kids and not bad.

Project #7-Part A

Blog Post V-Personal Learning Network

I learned a great deal about the Personal Learning Network. The videos helped me to better understand what they were truly about. It was mentioned that basically there are people, learning tools, consultations and assistance set up to help teachers or students on their journey to learning. There was a student named Wendy, a seventh grader, who used the Personal Learning Network as a tool to do research for her science project in school. She was able to gather the vital information she needed for her assignment. This proved to be helpful and successful for her. I hope that when I become a teacher in the future this will become a great source of research and vital information for the students that I am able to help and assist.

Symbaloo was mentioned as one of the networks that was new to me on the Internet. This is my first time ever hearing about this network but I am sure that it will provide the help that I need as a teaching tool. I'm sure that when I am familiarized with what it does I will be able to use it effectively. I do research from the computer all the time. Whenever I am unsure of the accuracy of something, I always look up the facts and tabulate my findings to make sure that everything is correct. Being a teacher requires that we must research information and facts to help others. On that note, I view the Personal Learning Network as a personal library used to help find information when needed.

 A 7th Graders Personal Learning Environment

Project 15-Search Engines

Google Scholar is a search engine that helps one to be able to find special citations and papers.  It was created by Google and helps in locating different types of literature.

Dogpile is website that is paired with Google and Yahoo and this search engine has been associated
with an organization that clearly prevents the cruelty of animals nationwide.

Yippy.com is a meta search engine that allows anyone to find what they need at any time.

Mamma.com is also a meta search engine that is the mother of all search engines and allows you to find videos and images when you need them.  It also helps you to be able to locate jobs and employment.

Info.com is a search engine that is combined with Yahoo and Google to help locate things like
shopping, jobs and videos.

Ms.Freckles helps to locates bloggers on this search engine.  It is also handy for finding scholarly
papers and other important information.

Radio-Locator is a search engine that has the largest radio station.  It can be used to find over
10,000 radio stations on its website.

Wink is the largest people search engine.  It provides addresses and phone numbers that are very
important.  This provides a way for people to network and locate one another.

Blog Post IV- How and What Questions to Ask?

Questions are vital in determining what information needs to be discussed.  It's only through by
asking the right questions that the correct answers can be given.  Helping students to want to
know the right answers require a great deal of speculation on the teacher's part.  We must be
concerned about our students on an educational level as to whether or not each student is able
to understand and comprehend the information correctly.

Some students are readily alert and quickly available to answer questions given by the teacher
in the classroom.  This shows their enthusiasm and quickness to learn the material.  By answering
the questions, indicates that those students are excited about learning and quick to share their
answers with other students in the classroom.

There are other students that are very quiet in class and reluctant to share their comments with
others in the classroom. They may be shy or coy.  This does not indicate that they are not smart
but simply unable to be as open as other students in the class.  Teachers should take notice of
this and recognize their capabilities as trying to be better students in the long run.

Sources I used for my blog post:
The Right Way to Ask Questions