Interview With Laura Blackman

Teaching Video

This is my video where I teach how to teach something by using technology. I decided to teach how to tie a bowtie. My audience would be anyone who needs to learn how to tie a bowtie. I hope you enjoy and hopefully learn how to tie a bowtie.

Substantive Presentation

My group, which included Brittany Lewis and A.W. Faris, used the site xtranormal.com to create a video for this project. Enjoy.

Personal Learning Network Post 2

I have now expanded my personal learning network. I use Twitter where I follow several educators. I also use the social networking site, Facebook to connect with other people. I also use Delicious to bookmark interesting websites that I find. With Delicious I can share all of bookmarks with other people. I also have researched the website ALEX which is the Alabama Learning Exchange. It is a very helpful tool for teachers and I'm sure I will use it in the future when I become a teacher. Also I have learned that Skype is very useful for connecting with others and I have used to get help from classmates. It is a great tool that can connect people from all over the world.

Comments4Teachers 13 and 14

For these weeks I followed a blog entitled The Fischbowl. This blog is written by Karl Fisch who has been a middle and high school math teacher for 21 years. He is currently the Director of Technology at Arapahoe High School in Centennial, CO. In his blog he post about new ways to grade in the classroom and also new teaching patterns that he is using. He opens up his blog for discussion and opinions of other educators and whoever really has something to say. His post are always interesting and always make you think. It was enjoyable to read his blog.

Comments4Teachers 10 and 12

For these weeks of comments4teachers I followed a blog named Teacher NZ. This is a blog by a teacher in Hamilton, New Zealand. She teaches a grade 4 class part time but also helps teachers and students with their own "technological journeys." Her most interesting post was a video she found which talked about the internet winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Her post was very informative and well written. This blog is a great tool for educators.

Welcome to My PLE

This is a video of a 7th graders personal learning environment. She discusses the many different uses of her PLE and tools that are included in hers. I think it is incredible that someone at such a young age has a personal learning environment and knows so much about it. She is very capable of finding her way around the internet and can use her PLE thoroughly. Her PLE is like mine in that we use many of the same tools. My PLE is more geared towards teaching while hers is more towards using the internet to research a topic. This student is quite impressive with her knowledge of technology and of personal learning environments. She uses her PLE more extensively than I do though.

Two Questions that Can Change Your Life

This video was very interesting and extremely thought provoking. In the video, the creator, Daniel Pink, says to ask yourself "what's my sentence?" This question made me think a lot about what my sentence would be. I'm not sure what mine would be but i think it's too soon to tell. I think my sentence will come when I really begin to live my life in the real world as a teacher. I'm just a student but I hope my sentence will always include making a difference but for now I feel like that is just a draft of what I want my sentence to be. The second question he wants you to ask yourself is " Was I better today than yesterday?" Many days I think I was but there are also many days I know I was not. It's hard to always be better and being human there is no way we could go without messing up. But to have this question to think about can motivate someone into striving to be better everyday. Sure you may slip but I think as long as your goal stays the same you can do it.

Group Podcast

My group's project was all about Google LitTrips. In our podcast we described what they are, how they are used and their significance. Click here to see our podcast on Google LitTrips. Click here to see the whole class' podcast.

Making a Difference

One of the most important things that I have taken from EDM 310 is that as a teacher it should be my goal to make a difference. Whether it be in one student or in every student I teach. It is important to have that motivation behind you when you teach. Knowing that you could actually have a great affect on some one's life. I know that the best teachers I have had have made the biggest impact on me. The most influential teacher I have had was my American literature teacher in college. She was passionate not only about the material but also about life, teaching and making a difference in students. And I have to say she definitely made a difference in this one.

I think that EDM is equipping me to achieve this goal. By using the technology I have learned about over the semester I feel like I have a whole set of tools that I can use to make a difference in the classroom. Dr. Strange is passionate about his classes as well and I think it is his goal for us to make a difference. I feel as though this class has prepared me to teach better and more effectively. I look forward to getting in the classroom and using the many technologies and techniques to teach. I hope I can be an affective educator who will always maintain the motivation to make a difference.

Comments4Kids

This week for comments4kids I read a blog by Josie who is a 6 year old in Mrs. Kathy Cassidy's class in Moose Jaw, Canada. In her post she put an illustrated story book about a fairy. The graphics were great and the story was well written for a 6 year old. The book had a cover and several pages that you click to turn through. It seems like a great tool for kids to learn to write with.

Vocaroo

I used Vocaroo for my comments4classmates this week.

The Importance of Blogging

Over the course of the semester in EDM 310 I have come across several interesting things from different peoples' blogs. I have learned how blogging can be very useful for both the creator and the reader. You can learn all sorts of things and at the same time get feedback. It has become an important part of our technological society. One can achieve many things through blogging and sharing information over the internet. This tool is very important and is used by many people.

One example of the importance of blogging is to share progress with others. The video of the PS 22 students singing is a great example of this. They were sharing the video for someone to see the song they were singing but ended up getting widely recognized. Just by posting that video for someone they got recognized.

Blogging is also important because it can be used as a way to record things. A great example is the blog "Dear Kaia." This blog is written by Kaia's father for his 4 year old daughter as sort of a scrapbook. He records things that they do so that later Kaia will have the memories with descriptions, pictures and even videos.

Another good example of the importance of blogging is for teaching. Doing the comments4kids I have learned that teachers help their students to read and write by making them blog. Even younger students have gotten into using blogs. I think this a great way to encourage kids to both write better but also learn to use technology. It is important to have technologically literate kids in society today.

This is from a 5 year olds blog.

Comments4Kids

This week for comments4kids I read a student's post on the class blog for Helen King's year 5 students at Pt England School. The student's post that I read was Kingston. His post was entitled Kingston at the Swimming Sports. He wrote about a swimming race he had won and had a video of him swimming. He wrote a few well formed sentences about it as well.

To read his post click here.

Timetoast Timeline

Ice Ice Baby

Skype

In EDM 310 we are required to use Skype as a tool for education media. I have used Skype several times this semester. It is a great tool to stay connected with people all over the world. It is incredible that people can be connected so easily. Skype serves so many purposes and can be used in many different ways.

EDM 310 Survery Results

My survey was all about music. I asked what kind of music people listened to, how often they listened, what kind of music player they have and who is their favorite artist. The results are as follows.

To see my survey click here

To see my results click here

Dear Kaia: Voice thread and Video

In this blog, Mr. Chamberlain and his class at Noel Elementary School discussed a comments4kids blog they came across. The blog they found is written mainly by a dad for his kids as a digital scrapbook in the voice of his oldest daughter Kaia. His children Kaia and Skyelar are the focus of the blog and it follows them on their journey growing up. The post that Mr. Chamberlain's class read was about some pictures that Kaia and her dad took. After they took the pictures they made a video where Kaia talked about each picture she took.

Mr. Chamberlain and his sent a video with voice thread as a response back to Kaia because she is three and cannot read yet. The video had pictures of the class and each child said something about her pictures in the voice thread. First of all I think it is amazing that Kaia is able to do such amazing things on the computer. It is so cool that this class is able to see someone from so far away in the nation and read about their experiences. The way that the class responded was awesome because Kaia will be able to appreciate the class's thoughts even though she cannot read. The communication across the Internet is so incredible and interesting to experience.

Kaia's father also has a blog in which he shared the whole story about his daughter and about Mr. Chamberlain's class's comments. He talks about how this communication through classrooms is what is needed today in order for students to thrive and grow. He encourages the use of technologies in the classroom and hopes that everyone can be connected through education and media. He is sharing the life of his daughter to teach himself, Kaia and others that the world can be completely connected through the Internet.

This so important for teachers because class from all over the world can communicate and learn from each other. It expands the borders of education and the many tools used to teach. I think this form of learning will allow students to learn more at all ages without limits and possibly on their own. This is such a huge step for educators and once this educational tool is applied to all classrooms I think that education will be revolutionized.

To read Mr. Chamberlain's blog click here

For Kaia's blog click here

For Kaia's father's blog click here

Comments4Kids

This week's comments4kids was a blog entitled "Team One Rock stars" which is a class blog of 5 year olds from England. The post I commented on was by Henry titled "Pop, pop, pop!" He drew a picture of a fish and the subtitle said a fish blowing bubbles. I told him that it was a great picture with cool colors.