Blog Post 3: Inspiration & Web Resources

1. Is Inspiration something you would invest in for your classroom? List at least 10 ideas in your content areas where you could incorporate it- Include uses as a productivity tool as well as an instructional tool.

     Inspiration is definitely something that I would invest in for my classroom. I think it useful for a teacher organization and will benefit students. I could incorporate Inspiration into my class room in many ways. Some ways that I could incorporate Inspiration as a productivity and instructional tool are: 

1 Concept Maps.

2 Outlines.

3 Showing pictures that relate to concepts. For lower elementary.

4 Create diagrams or other graphic organizers.

5 Making quizzes and tests .

6 Students could use this software to create their own concept maps, outlines, or visual reports. This would help me do make sure that they understand the concept. 

7 Study guides for students.

8 Visual aid for students who are struggling with a concept.

9 To help introduce a new concept in an organized way.

10 To help the students compare and contrast different ideas or concepts.

2. What are your favorite Web Resources we covered in class? Which do you think you would use the most why and how? Be specific.

                I like a lot of the resources that we covered in class. My favorite resource was United Streaming. This is a not only a great resource for teachers and parents, but will also be beneficial for students.  I could see myself using  United Streaming the most because of all of its great attributes. This website has Videos on many subjects and content areas. Also many of the videos have detailed lesson plans that can be used with them.  Along with the videos and lesson plans the website also provides a calendar that can be used for the classroom.

                Some of my other favorite web resources were Rubistar, Illuminations, and Library Curriculum. Rubistar provides a great template for grading rubrics, and is a great graphic organizer. I like illuminations because it provides lesson plans organized by grade level and standard. I also like the activities that they provide. The Albright College library curriculum resource proves great resources for different content areas and lesson plans. 

Blog Post 2: Social Bookmarking

Does Social Bookmarking have an application in your classroom? What are some ways it could benefit you and your students? Can it help you now as a student...how?

     Social Bookmarking will have a strong application in my future classroom. As a teacher social bookmarking can benefit me in many ways. I will be able to save websites that are good resources, share them with other teachers, and also look at other teachers social bookmarking sites to find good ideas. Having a social bookmarking site will help to organize my classroom and also help to find resources efficiently by using the tagging tool.

My students will benefit from social bookmarking in many ways. Students will be able to bookmark sites if they are doing a research project, by using this tool students will learn how to find reliable resources that they can uses for current and future projects. This is an important skill because if students do not know how to distinguish a reliable internet source from an unreliable one they will have incorrect information, and will not be able to use technology to their advantage. Also, students can use social bookmarking to learn from each other. They can look at their classmates sites and share resources, which could also benefit them while working on a group project. 

This will not only benefit them in my classroom, they will have their social bookmarking site as they move up through the grade levels. Even if their future teacher does not use it in the classroom they will have the site for their own use. 

Social bookmarking can also help to organize the classroom. The entire class will have access to all information about the class including, homework, and resources to help them succeed. 

Social Bookmarking is also relevant in my current classes. For many classes we must write lesson plans, and research papers. By viewing someone's site that has had the class before you can find resources that they found reliable and helpful. This would also be a great resource for education courses, by viewing saved websites you can gain new ideas and inspiration for current lessons. 

Blog post 1

1. Give some specific ideas of how you could incorporate Blogs in your classroom. What are the advantages and disadvantages to using this technology in your classroom.
     Blogs can be incorporated into the classroom in many ways. One possibility is to have each student create their own blog to use as a journal, or a reflective piece for any subject that the class may be learning. Another option to incorporate blogs in the classroom is to have all students comment and discuss their ideas about a question or topic that the teacher has posted. Students can also view videos, pictures, and use podcasts to enhance and explore ways of learning outside the classroom.
     One major advantage of using this technology in the classroom is that everyone in the class is capable of viewing the blogs and then adding their own ideas. The students in the classroom can be connected beyond the classroom and therefore can learn from each others opinions. Also, it is a great way to organize new information. Students will always know where to find information that the teacher has posted. Another advantage is that students will be more enthusiastic about learning because they will be able to work with technology. We now live in a generation that is filled with television, music, games, and all different types of technology. Blogs are just another great way to engage the students.
     Although blogs have many advantages they also have a few disadvantages. For example, not every student is going to have access to a computer outside the classroom. So, if the teacher assigns the students homework using a blog format, some students will not be able to participate, or they will have rush to do the assignment during class time. Also, some students may not feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and ideas with their peers so they will not have thoughtful responses.

2. What is your opinion of Google Apps? What are the advantages/disadvantages of using google apps over traditional office apps? List as many as you can.
     The first time I had used Google Apps was in class on friday, and I really liked it. I thought it was really interesting to see how easy it was to send, edit, and share information with others. One clear advantage to using Google Apps is its unique ability to be interconnected with other people simultaneously. This would be a great tool to use for college and even grade school classes.  The advantage of using Google Apps in college and grade schools would be how easy it is to share your documents with many different people, and those people also have the ability to edit and add their own thoughts and ideas to the paper. Instead of sending private e-mails back and forth everyone can see the document at the same time. One other advantage is how user friendly it is. Although I have not mastered it I quickly obtained a general understanding of how to effectively use it. Also, you can save your work and it will readily transfer to any standard office application.
     Some disadvantages to Google Apps are some of its applications. The traditional office apps have been around longer and have had time to develop and have more options, unlike the google apps. For example, powerpoint has many different slide layouts to pic from while google apps only has about five. Also, not many people have Google Apps accounts, or the knowledge of how to properly use it.