Tool #4: Moving up to the Clouds!

Google Apps offers many tools to collaborate with peers and students. Google Docs lets the author type text in the same manner as Microsoft Word. The difference is, as with all templates in Google Apps, all users (author and viewers) can correspond quickly and easily. Participants can share comments, critiques, and any other type of feedback. I created a short questionnaire using Google Forms and sent it to a few people via email. This would be easy to use with students to get their thoughts on various subjects or assess their knowledge about TEKS content. I plan on doing more discovery within Google Apps - definitely an addition that I'll be using with my classroom next year!

Tool #3: Finding Online Video and Image Resources

Video hosting/streaming sites are highly used by today's educator. It is another digital tool that appeals to the digital-aged learner. Sites such as Discovery Education and, yes, You Tube have much to offer for educational purposes. I use these sites often to either introduce or reinforce concepts, typically showing clips of full-length videos to target the TEKS objective for the day. The video clip, "Polar Bears," was downloaded to my laptop from Discovery Education, then uploaded to Blogger, and "Naughty Number Nine" is embedded from YouTube.

I went to Hall-Davidson online to get more information about fair use laws. One law that I found useful was "Up to 10% of a copyrighted musical composition may be reproduced, performed and displayed as part of a multimedia program produced by an educator or student for educational purposes." The fine print suggests no more than 30 seconds in length. How do you use music to enhance the classroom experience? Is 30 seconds enough to establish purpose with the students?

Tool #2: Building Community in the Online Environment

I've been blogging, mostly by commenting on others' blogs, for a few years, so the expectation for Tool #2 wasn't much of a jump. It's good to have a voice on different issues, whether in person or online because contrasting thoughts add richness to an otherwise mundane situation. It also adds to one's knowledge base. This is why having blogs set up for student use, when managed correctly, is an asset to learning. Websites also have great educational value. I plan on navigating howstuffworks. This site is for curious people who wonder about things. The best thing about the site is that it does a good job of satisfying that curiosity. Even though its target audience is 7th-12th grade, teachers can adapt the material to satisfy even the youngest curious mind.

Tool #1 - The Blog Setup

Below is the write-up I created for the first time I set up this blog. I hope it satisfies the parameters for the first tool. Plus, I added my Voki. It's the inner me!! Whatcha think?

...of my blogging setup. It didn't sting too much. A little confusion about pasting the html code to a "gadget" but all in all, I'm satisfied with the outcome. As I posted in my last entry, I learned something - love it!!! On to greener pastures now - wait, I don't mean retirement. Errrr, on with the show.