PLN Activity #2 - My Educational Toolkit

I am a Special Education major and my binder focuses on upper elementary grades, specifically,  third through sixth. The name of my binder is EDT Binder, and can be accessed at: https://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=1744717.


After using LiveBinder, I found several things that were useful about the tool. The one aspect of LiveBinder that I enjoyed the most was how easy it was to organize online content and websites. Organizing online content in Word documents and Excel spreadsheets can become disorganized. By having online binders that include a link to specific websites can make this task easier for teachers.

My YouTube Playlist About Classroom Management

For my first YouTube playlist, I have organized a set of videos about classroom management. I believe classroom management is one of the most important aspects to be able to have positive learning environment for students. The videos in my playlist give an overview of how to keep students focused on what is being taught. Some of these videos the videos have professional and straightforward techniques, while others showcase unconventional techniques. An example of an unconventional technique is he usage of music in the classroom to increase students' attention.  Different situations need to have different techniques. By watching these classroom management videos in my playlist, it is guaranteed that you will learn new ways to take control of a classroom.

SMART Board Videos

Video #1


The first video that I watched was titled, SMART Notebook 11. This video was created by SMART Education to inform people about the product, SMART Notebook 11. This video gave an overview of the product, and the new features that came with it. SMART Notebook 11 is an innovative technology tool for education because of its interactive nature with the internet. If there is anything form the internet that a teacher would like to use for an activity, they can easily drag it to a black document on the SMART Board. This is innovative because the process happens instantly and a file conversion does not have to be completed. Another innovative tool with SMART Notebook 11 is the ability for students to use digital crayons. With technology increasing in education, it is important to retain some of the old education techniques, but improve them. The crayon feature accomplishes this because students will feel like they are actually using a real crayon. To watch this video, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQygH2iyerA&list=PLE_NvYUMg6BNgUikQDa4oWucGBAf4m9zi&index=1


Video #2


The second video that I watched was SMART Notebook 11: The Activity Builder. The video, created by Danny Nicholson, included informative details about how to create activities with SMART Notebook 11. An example of an activity that he modeled was determining if certain types of animals were insects. He was able to create an "insect" circle and a "not an insect" circle. If an animal was not considered an insect, they would be thrown out of the circle if a student tried to put it in there. With little preparation time, this activity would promote interaction from students in the classroom. New technology like this will replace the monotonous learning practices of worksheets and make the students feel like they are interacting with what they are trying to learn. The major positive with SMART Notebook learning like this is that students will be eager to learn because they will want to interact with the SMART Notebook. This video can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fnJCRynrRc

Feedly Article #3 - ClassDojo Introduces Groups...More to Come

In the article, ClassDojo Introduces Groups...More to Come, the author discussed the new features that ClassDojo is adding to their product. ClassDojo is an app for teachers to use that will help encourage participation by students in the classroom. Though the app has already been released, ClassDojo is improving the app. Now, teachers will be able to put students into groups within the app. For example, teachers may group students by which table they are sitting at, and encourage collaboration by tables. This new feature will promote teamwork in the classroom.

After reviewing ClassDojo for our previous technology review project, I knew I would like to use ClassDojo in the classroom, then. This article made me excited to know that there will be even more features to use with ClassDojo as a teacher. I plan to use this technology as an incentive for students to model good behavior in the classroom. I plan on accomplishing this by having rewards for students to be able to purchase with their ClassDojo points. I understand that some students will not be influenced by ClassDojo at first. Hopefully, they will see other students receive rewards from their points, and want to change their behavior to receive rewards as well.

I found this article at http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2015/07/classdojo-introduces-groupsmore-to-come.html. It was written by Richard Byrne on his blog, Free Technology For Teachers.

Feedly Article #2 - Year One With 3D Printer

In the blog post, “Year One With 3D Printer,” I learned how to utilize a 3D printer in the classroom. The author discussed the many things that were learned throughout the whole year from using the printer. Since this is relatively new technology, the blog discussed that there will probably be trial-and-error periods when trying to get accustomed to it. One of the most important aspects discussed was safety. After something has been 3D printed, it will most likely be hot. This article discussed how to keep students distracted from touching the hot surface.

Hopefully, I will be able to apply what I have learned about 3D printing to my teaching. I believe that by having my students use 3D printers will not only help them accomplish their project that they are building, but also spark their interest in science and technology. Since this is new technology, it would be a good thing to teach students how 3D printing works and how to use it. This could possibly be an entire lesson for science. If I am lucky enough to have access to a 3D printer, I believe it will have a significant role in my classroom. After watching this short video, I am convinced that 3D printing could create new learning opportunities for my students.

 

To learn more about 3D printing in the classroom, and to read more blogs by Vicki Davis, please visit: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/year-one-with-3d-printer-vicki-davis

Feedly Article #1 - 6 Reasons Why Puppets Will Change Your Classroom Forever

After reading the article, 6 Reasons Why Puppets Will Change Your Classroom Forever, I learned how the usage of puppets can enhance the classroom learning experience for students. The article discussed how puppets in the classroom could help students learn more. Not only would the teacher be using a puppet, but students could create their own puppets as well. They would then use these puppets to converse with the teacher during discussions in the classroom. By having a puppet speak for them, the students will be more focused and engaged in the discussion because it will be less boring than a regular lecture.

I found this article interesting enough to bookmark for future use. As a person who is creative, the usage of puppets in class is something I plan on incorporating into my future classroom. Instead of making my own puppets, I would probably buy some nice ones and use them in my lessons. I would then give them special voices, names, and create voices for them. By doing this, it will hopefully make them true "members" of the classroom. I would use them to introduce new concepts and projects. Secondly, I would use them in my discussion so my students could ask them questions about what has being taught in class because they might be more inclined to ask a puppet than their teacher.
This article, 6 Reasons Why Puppets Will Change Your Classroom Forever, was found on the Edutopia website. The well-written article was wrote by Scott Patterson, a K-5 Educational Technology specialist. If you would like to view the full article, it can be found at: http://www.edutopia.org//blog/puppets-will-change-your-classroom-sam-patterson-cheryl-morris.

Using Blogs in the Classroom

As technology is integrated into schools more and more, there are new features to a classroom that are added. One of these is the use of blogs. Using blogs can be beneficial not only to the students, but to teachers and parents as well. The first way teachers are using blogs in the classroom is for a means of keeping parents informed of classroom happenings. In the past, teachers typed a class newsletter each week that informed parents of what had happened in their child's class that week. This was very time consuming because not only did teachers have to type the newsletter on a word processor, but they had to print them out and staple them as well. This was not only time consuming, but wasteful of paper as well.

Another way teachers are using blogs is to give a summary of what class assignments and activites have been worked on in class. Students whom are absent from class can use this as an information tool to know which assignments they missed on that day. By posting which activities were done in class, and how to do them, can give parents assistance with helping their child complete their homework. As a future Special Education teacher, I believe this tool will be very beneficial to me since parents will likely want to be very involved in their child's homework assignments.

Lastly, teachers can use blogs to supplement their instruction. If a cool video or website is found, they can post it to their blog. By having a blog like this, students will be more likely to study and be involved with class lessons since they will be interested in the cool supplemental instruction materials that their teachers find.

After examining the different uses of blogs in the classroom, it is evident that they can be a beneficial technologial tool for a future teacher to use. From saving time on communication with parents to organzing interesting material in one place, a blog is something that I plan to try when I become a teacher.