Thing # 12

I had no idea Google had so much to offer!  I loved learning all of this new stuff about a site that I usually do not explore this in depth.  I created a schedule for myself for this upcoming week with Google Calendar.  I also set up the Google alert.  That will be very handy for me when I want to know about a particular subject and the information will be sent straight to me.  I could use Google Calendar to stay organized in my future classroom and I could also have my students create a schedule with it as well.  This is one of the most interesting and beneficial Things I have done so far on this blog since the calendar will definitely now be an integral part of my day. 

My Calendar

Thing # 11

I found the Google Blog Search the easiest to use and also Technorati was pretty straight forward too.  I did not like the Syndic8.com site at all because of its presentation.  It looked overwhelming and harder to use than the others so I did not want to use it to find any feeds.  I found several useful feeds while I was searching.  I found some interesting blogs in Technorati that were about current films.  I am a huge movie buff and so these sites are of great interest to me personally.  I found some useful blogs about current events that could be beneficial for students to read in my future classroom.  Finding these feeds and having them handy will benefit me for sure in the future as a teacher.

Thing # 10

RSS could be very beneficial for teachers to use.  It makes anything that is interesting to you more accessible and easier to find since it comes to you.  I think that teachers could use this to stay informed about specific topics they should know about.  I could use this in my classroom by having the students subscribe to specific sites I want them to visit often and that are relevant to the topics we are covering at the time.  It is a much faster and more efficient way of keeping up with any information I am interested in.  It keeps the information instead of constantly having to search for certain topics.  RSS is extremely useful and relevant for all teachers. 

Thing # 9

I decided to make a glittery sign for this Thing.  I decided to use my nickname for my image that I created.  I used http://www.glitterizer.com/ to make this image.  It was very interesting going through all of the different glittery effects that I could make.  I also went to a site where you could place one of your pictures on a magazine cover.  I wanted to do that one at first but for some reason it did not work so I did this instead.  For a class I could use this image generator for PowerPoint presentations since the images could serve as an attention getter and are interesting and cute.  I could also show my students how to use these sites and they could then make their own creations.  I could personally use these image generator sites to make cards or other art projects for various occasions. 

Thing #8

Well I finally placed my lovely Joan on my page.  I loved this Thing!!!  I greatly enjoyed the Big Huge Labs site and using the pop art feature on this picture.  It looks so quirky and cool and I can say I did it. :)  I could use these types of sites for art projects in my class or for PowerPoints that I use in my future classroom.  I think that these sites are important for educators to know about since most kids are comfortable using computers and like to be creative.  These types of activities could greatly encourage students to become more familiar with technology and all of the cool things that are out there to nourish out creativity.

Thing #7



Lemon Tree

So Flickr is not my best friend.  I had a very difficult time trying to figure out how to put a picture on this blog.  Anything I would search for would say "All rights reserved" and I could not use it due to copyright.  I finally found one that I could use.  It is just a lemon tree.  Even though it is pretty, I had originally searched for Joan Crawford pictures because she is my all time favorite actress and I wanted her to grace my page.  Oh well, the lemons are cute too I guess.  The picture was from the MrsWoman group.   I could use Flickr in my classroom by showing the class any pictures that illustrate a specific topic we are covering in class.  I would however never use Flickr in my personal time.  I did not have much fun using this site and I would not want to put my personal pictures on the site. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrswoman/4730986920/sizes/s/in/photostream/

Thing # 6

I decided to explore Stardoll.  I loved this website very much.  The site has dolls which are sometimes celebrities that little girls can dress up and create outfits for.  Stardoll also had several games on it too.  I played around on the site and I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it!  It made me think back to the good ole days when I used to play with Barbie Fashion Designer all the time.  The site was easy to use.  I chose a doll to dress up and I was then taken to her closet where I chose which clothes to put on her.  The site could be used in a classroom as an incentive for little girls.  I could allow them to play on the site as a reward for good behavior or when they finish their work.  The site was very kid-friendly and little girls would definitely love all of the cool clothes they have to pick from when dressing up their doll.  I will definitely show this site to all of the little girls in my future classroom!
http://www.stardoll.com/en/

Thing # 5

I chose to read the articles Web 2.0: A Guide for Educators and Web 2.0 is the Future of Education.  From these articles I have a better understanding of what Web 2.0 is.  Web 2.0 is a movement to create more technological advances in schools since the world is becoming more and more technology based.  Web 2.0: A Guide for Education mentioned that most students are already familiar with technology and it is only practical to apply their knowledge of the Internet and technology in the classroom.  Using more technologically based curriculum in the classroom will have great implications on education and it will have an overall positive impact on students.  Classrooms in the future will inevitably become more and more technological and teachers will use all of the resources on the Internet that are available to teachers to better their students' learning experiences.  I will try to use more technology in my classroom but I will not rely on it completely.  I am kind of old fashioned and I would honestly rather read a book or physically write a paper rather than using a computer.  I do see the value in technology though and I think that it should be incorporated in some way into all classrooms.

Thing # 4

I decided to read Coolcat Teacher Blogger's "How to comment like a king (or queen!)" and the Problogger's "10 Techniques to Get More Comments on Your Blog" posts.  After reading these blog posts I can see that commenting on other people's posts is very important in the blogging community.  Commenting creates a sense of community and allows bloggers to feel that people are actually listening to them and they are not just randomly posting their thoughts online.  I think it is essential especially for teachers to comment on each other's blogs since teaching is a collaborative process.  For instance, I know that grade levels have to have meetings about curriculum and how they will successfully teach the material.  Teachers could use blogging to put out ideas they have on teaching particular lessons.  I found what the Coolcat blogger said about the "Darth Commenter" very true and at the same time quite funny.  I think that anytime we write and put our thoughts out there we fear the judgement of others.  It is a shame that there are people out there who would resort to curse words and hurtful language just because they either do not agree on a topic or because they have fun putting others down.  Problogger's idea about being humble and admitting failures and weaknesses also resonated with me.  I think that it is an extremely courageous act when people can admit their mistakes and I think in any situation, not only blogging, it makes you more accessible to others and they feel they can open up to you.  For the rest of the semester, I have decided to follow the blogs of Kristyn King, Anna Hall, Skylar Riley, Katharine Green, and Lindsey Cotton.  I chose these five people because they are in my class and I thought their blogs would be interesting to read.  For the two blogs from the blogosphere at large I have decided to comment on The Drama Teacher and Drama Teacher's Diary.  One of the blogs is by a current drama teacher and the other is written by a retired drama teacher.  I chose to follow these because I think that I one day want to be a theatre teacher.  I am a strong believer in arts education and I think that more often than not the arts are forgotten about in the public school community.