Thing 23

Wow, I can't believe that I am done! I started out very unsure of many online tools and now I am at least familiar with many new things that I can try in both my professional and personal life. Though I definitely wouldn't call myself an expert in the realm of technology, I at least know what a widget is, how to set up a blog, how to subscribe to a podcast, etc... I know that I won't start the school year off utilizing every single thing that I learned, however I will implement a handful of the ones that I do feel comfortable with. For example, I will have a classroom blog and I will be using my Delicious account to find relevant information for my classroom. I also liked the bubbl.us brainstorming website. There are things like podcasts and bloglines that didn't really appeal to me, but at least I am familiar with them, so I can always incorporate them into my classroom. I really enjoyed this class and I liked being exposed to a whole new technology world!

Thing 22

Well, I actually created my own Wiki! You can find it at http://ejm27.wikispaces.com/Trying+Something+New. I was able to insert a picture and a widget, so I am quite happy with how far I have come in regards to technology. It kind of seems that a blog and a wiki are a bit similiar. However, a wiki can be edited by others. I tend to like a blog a bit better, but can see how a wiki can be used in collaboration with the classroom. One thing that I don't like about wikis is that many times students use Wikipedia as their resource to looking up information for a class, and they don't realize that anyone can put information on there and edit it, so it isn't always factual. Overall, I like Wikis and see that in certain settings it would be more appropriate than a blog.

Thing 21

I finally know what a Wiki is! I guess I should have known that it had something to do with Wikipedia, but I of course, I didn't think through it that much. I really like the Comparing Hemispheres Wiki. With a background in counseling, I think that it is really important for children to learn about differences and similiarities, and what a fun way to do such a thing through a Wiki. Obstacles that I see would pose a problem are that many of my students do not have internet access at home, and they lack proper computer experience (other than facebook and music searches). However, we do have a wonderful media center and they need to start using the internet for something other than listening to the new Drake song (being home in the summer, you get to watch a little more tv and unwillingly discover who Drake is). Anyway, I think that it would be a nice tool to use in a classroom.

Thing 20

Okay, I must admit, I am not much of a fan of podcasting. Yes, I think it is a good idea to use if students are creating their own podcasts, but I am really not wow-ed by the search engines out there to find the exact podcast that I am looking for. I thought that the Education Podcast Network would be filled with appropriate podcasts for middle school kids, but there were only a few dozen podcasts. I found that Podcast Alley was just overwhelming. I don't know, I guess I just don't want my students to listen to a podcast just for the sake of listening to one. If one day, I had a brillant idea and searched and found an appropriate podcast, then I guess I would have them listen to one, but I think may stick to having them create a podcast- with monitoring of course. I listened to a podcast from Cranbrook middle school composers and noticed that one of the student's song was titled "Bubbles, Sparkles and Champagne"- plus she described her song as "Sexy". Yeah, I would have to do some teacher editing to her podcast if she were my student... Anyway, I did subscribe to an NPR Health podcast- just to see if I could do it (and I could). Honestly, I don't check my bloglines account, so I probably won't check my NPR podcast subscription, but if I ever have an urge to subscribe to podcasts, I now know how.

Thing 19

I had heard of Podcasting, and kind of understood the concept of it, but really never explored podcasting until today. I think that of the ones that I explored, I like the ones where the students had an opportunity to be creative and share their knowledge in a different form of expression. For example, I liked the podcast called Our City (I guess we are supposed to include the link so here it is: http://learninghand.com/ourcity/index.html). I thought it was a nice idea, having students research the place they live and report on it. The students can also click on other areas of the map and learn about other cities where students who live there have also reported. I think that podcasts are a great way to have the kids share the infomation that they are learning. They are always on the computer and ipods, so I'm sure it would be something that they are excited about. I would like to use podcasts in the classroom, though I still am not quite sure how to find things that exactly fit what you are looking for- though I am hoping that Thing 20 teaches us how to do that.

Thing 18

ACT College Planning

View more presentations from Mike Parent.

Who knew that you had to reinvent the wheel? I found a wonderful College/ACT presentation that I would like to show the students that I am working with this summer. I tried to embed it onto this blog, but when I try to look at it, it just keeps saying "loading". But I do think that it is a pretty neat website and I look forward to exploring more of it. Out of the classroom, I don't know if I would really think to come to slidesharing, but who knows now that I am becoming more tech savvy.

Thing 17

Once again, I am learning about things that I didn't know existed on the internet. A few of the options that I explored, I would definitely use in the classroom. I really liked the bubbl.us site. Since I teach study skills, this would help study with their brainstorming and organizing their idea. I really wanted to set up an account with Knowtes, since I think that virtual flashcards would also be helpful to my students, however Knowtes wouldn't let me set up an account (or maybe they would, but I just couldn't figure it out). The Remember the Milk site would be helpful for both my personal and professional life- I like that the site can send you reminders on your t-mobile account. All in all, interesting sites in Thing 17.