It really amazes me how people come up with inventions such as Goggle Lit. Trips. This would be such a great tool for students to use especially when they are reading difficult literature such as Shakespeare. I took the tutorial guide on MacBeth and was amazed at the three dimensional figures that were made, arrows to show us where the characters originated from and where they were going, and well as being able to hear someone explain where the characters traveled.
This resource will really help students imagine what is going on in the novel and it will give them a better understanding when they try to discuss it.
The best part about this is that it can be used anywhere with the help of wireless networks. This is a tool I can already see myself using when I am on a 5 hour bus ride to go home while I am reading a book.
For students that are visual learners, this tool will help them to read a milestone in their learning lives. We as teachers have to accomadate our students as best we can and this resource should immediatly be added to one of the tools we could use in a classroom.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Monday, March 19, 2007
Teen Book Video Awards
I want to thank Doctor Stearns for showing us the youtube video of The Book Thief simply because now I realize how powerful the tool of technology can be.
Throughout this semester I have been battling on weather or not I am for or against technology in the classroom. As I've stated before, I understand all of its benefits but I do not want my classroom to go paperless or have students lose face to face communication. Although I still feel this way, watching this youtube video made a very powerful impact on me. I did not read The Book Thief in 374 but after seeing the video, I am extremly eager to read it.
During the semester I have gained a liking to the Warlick text simply because I like the short personal stories of teachers and what they are experiencing in their classroom. I found it interesting that the technology always seemed to work out for them and in their favor. I couldn't help but wonder if using technology in a classroom would be just this easy for me. Somehow, watching this video made an impact on my positive feelings about technology. I wish I could explain it better but I can't!
This would be a great exercise for students to use in the classroom. Students can form book clubs based on the same novel and then make a video clip of a preview of the book and post it on the class blog. This will not only engage students in working and communicating together, but it will spread tons of authors, titles, genres, and give students more exposure to books they may decide to read.
An activity just like this was shown at the session I attended at the conference. The teacher had her students perform a skit of any section of the book they were reading and post it on youtube. She has she received tons of positive feedback about it from her students and she made one just as well.
Throughout this semester I have been battling on weather or not I am for or against technology in the classroom. As I've stated before, I understand all of its benefits but I do not want my classroom to go paperless or have students lose face to face communication. Although I still feel this way, watching this youtube video made a very powerful impact on me. I did not read The Book Thief in 374 but after seeing the video, I am extremly eager to read it.
During the semester I have gained a liking to the Warlick text simply because I like the short personal stories of teachers and what they are experiencing in their classroom. I found it interesting that the technology always seemed to work out for them and in their favor. I couldn't help but wonder if using technology in a classroom would be just this easy for me. Somehow, watching this video made an impact on my positive feelings about technology. I wish I could explain it better but I can't!
This would be a great exercise for students to use in the classroom. Students can form book clubs based on the same novel and then make a video clip of a preview of the book and post it on the class blog. This will not only engage students in working and communicating together, but it will spread tons of authors, titles, genres, and give students more exposure to books they may decide to read.
An activity just like this was shown at the session I attended at the conference. The teacher had her students perform a skit of any section of the book they were reading and post it on youtube. She has she received tons of positive feedback about it from her students and she made one just as well.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
After-thoughts about the Conference
The more I think about the D.A.T.E conference, the more I realize how aprehensive I am about technology. As great as the conference was, it was a huge eye opener for me which has made me pretty vulnerable. The session that I enjoyed and learned the most from was Dealing in the Digital because everything that we have been reading in our texts and discussing in class finally all came together.
Here we are in a technology class where we are learning, using, and teaching each other the many sources that teachers are using in classrooms today. Has it really hit us that we will be those teachers one day? That we will be demonstrating to a room of 30 students just how to use these tools and how to incorporate our lessons into these tools? Throughout the session I kept thinking about Will Richardson's text and realizing the importance of practicing on how to use RSS Feeds, why and how blogging is useful and important in a classroom, why we as teachers need to be totally alert while our students are surfing on the web, the significance of Wikis and so much more.
All of the reading in our texts totally corresponded with what I learned during that session, plus I was given more websites to check out and use in a classroom.
It is true now more than ever, we are all publishers, artists, writers, and proudly, teachers.
Here we are in a technology class where we are learning, using, and teaching each other the many sources that teachers are using in classrooms today. Has it really hit us that we will be those teachers one day? That we will be demonstrating to a room of 30 students just how to use these tools and how to incorporate our lessons into these tools? Throughout the session I kept thinking about Will Richardson's text and realizing the importance of practicing on how to use RSS Feeds, why and how blogging is useful and important in a classroom, why we as teachers need to be totally alert while our students are surfing on the web, the significance of Wikis and so much more.
All of the reading in our texts totally corresponded with what I learned during that session, plus I was given more websites to check out and use in a classroom.
It is true now more than ever, we are all publishers, artists, writers, and proudly, teachers.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Barb's Post
I think it is pretty clear to all of us at this point that the definition of "texts" are changing rapidly. I thought the article that Barb posted was very useful and something that I will need to keep in mind constantly when I enter a classroom.
I especially liked the quick writing activity because it will bring awareness to the students of what texts are, how many different types of texts are available, and that they are most likely using valuable texts already.
I am still trying to get used to the fact that the definition of literacy is changing and that there are so many different texts that can be used in the classroom now.
Awhile ago we had a class discussion that the job of what an English teacher is, is changing and we might be a little disappointed at this point. Well, this article is proof that the curriculum and resources in the classroom are changing more and more as the days pass.
I especially liked the quick writing activity because it will bring awareness to the students of what texts are, how many different types of texts are available, and that they are most likely using valuable texts already.
I am still trying to get used to the fact that the definition of literacy is changing and that there are so many different texts that can be used in the classroom now.
Awhile ago we had a class discussion that the job of what an English teacher is, is changing and we might be a little disappointed at this point. Well, this article is proof that the curriculum and resources in the classroom are changing more and more as the days pass.
Friday, March 16, 2007
You won't believe this
There was also a breaking story on the News about a situation that occured in a sixth grade technology classroom.
The classroom had computers for every student which were set up in a way that looked like each student had their own cubicle to complete their work.
While the teacher was in front of the classroom demonstrating an example on the overhead, she was unaware of what was occuring in the back of her classroom. Two sixth grade students were having sex while in their "cubicle".
The Superintendent and Principal are furious and humiliated about this situation and parents are saying that technology classrooms need to be set up in a different way so that teachers can see everything that is going on in the classroom.
The classroom had computers for every student which were set up in a way that looked like each student had their own cubicle to complete their work.
While the teacher was in front of the classroom demonstrating an example on the overhead, she was unaware of what was occuring in the back of her classroom. Two sixth grade students were having sex while in their "cubicle".
The Superintendent and Principal are furious and humiliated about this situation and parents are saying that technology classrooms need to be set up in a different way so that teachers can see everything that is going on in the classroom.
Even movies are changing
While I was home over the break, the News had a breaking story that technology is even changing the way movies are being made and presented.
The movie "300" is the primary example of technology changing what we will see from now on in the movies.
There were several scenes throughout the movie where the actors were not even on the set while the movie was being filmed, but technology gave the actors the ability to film anyway. One of the actors was in another country but still had the ability to film his scene by performing it on a set where he was and sending it via email to the directors back here in the states. The directors then simply added it into the rest of the film where the scene was meant to be.
It is amazing that this was able to happen, but frightening to me all at the same time. Technology is doing so much and I don't want it to take over everything. Especially movies.
The movie "300" is the primary example of technology changing what we will see from now on in the movies.
There were several scenes throughout the movie where the actors were not even on the set while the movie was being filmed, but technology gave the actors the ability to film anyway. One of the actors was in another country but still had the ability to film his scene by performing it on a set where he was and sending it via email to the directors back here in the states. The directors then simply added it into the rest of the film where the scene was meant to be.
It is amazing that this was able to happen, but frightening to me all at the same time. Technology is doing so much and I don't want it to take over everything. Especially movies.
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