Topic 19: Document Cameras

I was sent a GREAT link to all kinds of different ways that you can use the document camera, some of these we've seen...some are new! I thought I'd share my faves to remind you that the document camara can be SO much more than a place for you to work out problems on the "big screen", :)

• training or initial introduction to any other piece of equipment everyone can use, but can't gather around to see easily
  


• Students can draw the background scenery for a play or skit they will perform in class. Move your projector at a 45 degree angle to the white board. Project the drawing onto the white board, angling it behind the actors. The image will naturally distort, but the overall effectiveness is well worth it.
  


• In math problem-solving use the doc camera to take a photo of a problem and solution (use a kid's). Put it in your teacher blog and have students individually respond to the query: How might the writer have arrived at this solution?

Some videos that were found on document cameras/document readers:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaixlM5PFAM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcBiUDTdkoQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OtigNJ5rFA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhaPsLwUurI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtMGFsuy_4M&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4fpOf6zUOQ&feature=related

Topic 18: My Journey in Education

This week I have been thinking a lot about the journey that I have taken in my career toward becoming a Master Technology Teacher. I wanted to share some of my thoughts on that journey with you.

My undergraduate studies were pursued at the University of Texas at Dallas. My work ethic and dedication to learning continued to expand as I was given a buffet of classes to sample. After two years, I found myself sitting in an organizational behavior business course realizing that I had no passion for any of the concepts being taught by the professor. I began searching for that spark in learning that motivated me for all those years. I soon experienced it in an educational psychology course and found myself striving to learn more. As I continued to enroll in education courses, I realized this is where my heart thrived. From the cognitive developments to the intervention methods that improve struggling students, everything in education inspired me to learn more. I graduated with a major in interdisciplinary studies, a certification to teach elementary education, and a dedication to make a difference in the lives of children.

Attending the Texas Computer Education Agency Conference in February of this year opened my eyes to the growing industry of educational technology. I arrived at the conference with a basic understanding of technology use in schools and left thriving on my newly obtained skills, yearning to share everything with my co-workers, and eager to learn more. I have observed first hand how technology related lessons can not only motivate but inspire students to become active, engaged learners who problem solve and use higher order thinking. Students in my class have used applications like PowerPoint, Photo Story, and Study Island to construct tangible representations of their knowledge. Because of their passion to create technology based projects, my students have become known as the ‘tech-ie class’ according to Debra Chisholm, the principal of my school.

Topic 17: Show me the Money!

One of the greatest problems with technology in the classroom is how to fund it. I know that personally I will learn of all these amazing programs and lesson plans that incorporate technology but become very discouraged when I realize that I cannot do them because of lack of resources. There are numerous ways to get technology into the classroom, and while many resources are free, there are still some things that you have to have. For example, my elementary school is one of the largest in my district. We have 6 sections in almost every grade level and yet we share ONE digital camera between the entire school.

I have found that grants are my friend. I have written numerous grants to receive extra resources for my classroom. I have receieved a class set of flash drives, a digital tablet, and a bunch of reading resources. I am always on the look out for new companies and opportunities to apply for items I need in my classroom...especially technology.

My favorite and most used grant company is Donors Choose. It is a non-profit organization that works to connect companies and private individuals willing to donate money with teachers who need help in their classroom. They cooperate with several companies in offering supplies. Basically anything that you could possibly need can be found in their supply database. Then anyone wanting to donate can read about your class, what you are asking for , and donate money right there on the website in a safe and secure manner.

Here is a website that lists numerous grants that are available to teachers:
Big Deal Book of Technology
Teachers Count
>>>Entire list of websites to search

Topic 16: Big Huge Labs

I love searching the Internet to find fun resources that I can use in my classroom. I actually came across Big Huge Labs a while ago but forgot about it in the craziness of the new school year. Big Huge Labs is a free website where you can create fun and interesting things out of your digital pictures. You do not have to register to use many of the features however if you do create an account you can save your projects to the site. Also, if you have a facebook account you can easily register through that login information.

I have played around with the site with some of my personal pictures and it is addicting. I took some time out today to think of numerous ways that I could incorporate the features offered on this website into classroom lessons:

Motivator: You can use pictures taken of your class during the year to create motivational posters for the students to read. Another great idea is to have students create a poster with a character from a story they have read. They would need to analyze the traits of the character to create a descriptive poster of that characters personality.

Photobooth: Students can work on sequencing events with this feature. They need to put pictures in the order that they occurred. It would work really well with timelines in history or steps of the scientific process.

Magazine Cover/Movie Poster: The first idea that came to me would be to create a fun book review. The students would need to identify the story elements, such as main characters and plot, and then translate that into the project.

Badge Maker: Create badges for important accomplishments. We are currently working on memorizing our multiplication facts and the students would be very excited to get a 'Multiplication Master' license. I created an example using my dog but imagine how excited students would be to have this laminated with their own picture on it. *TIP: In order to avoid the hassle of permission forms and student pictures, have your kids create their own Mii (a cartoon image of themselves) at http://www.makewee.com/.

Calendars, CD covers, Billboards, and so much more! The possibilities are endless for the ways that you can use these in the classroom. Explore, Play...Enjoy!

Topic 15: PhotoStory

If you have never used PhotoStory before, you need to try it!!! PhotoStory is a program by Microsoft that you can download for free online. The software was developed to create animated slideshows that can be saved and viewed as a movie. However the uses of this program for use in the classroom are endless.

The reasons to use PhotoStory are similar to those of using a PowerPoint presentation. They can convey information in a visual manner to reach students. They can also be played with recorded narration, animated effects, and background music. This provides a much more interesting and engaging presentation for students. A PhotoStory will also play in a movie format instead of a timed or clicked advance like the PowerPoint presentations.

I have used PhotoStories to capture important events that my class has experienced. PhotoStories are a great resource to use create slideshows from field trips, school events, or information for parents. I also like to convert PowerPoints that students create into PhotoStories to post on my class website.

Another great way to use them is as an assessment tool. One teacher that I observed used it to check understanding of her class on landforms. She created a partially completed PhotoStory by uploading pictures of different landforms that the students should know. Then she saved it as a 'Working Project'. Next she had each child open the file, label each picture with the correct name using the title feature, re-order the slides so that they were in alphabetical order, and save it as their name for the teacher to grade.

One of my favorite ways to use this program is by creating digital class books by scanning drawings that students have made to create more authentic pictures that they can narrate. My class created a movie last year on Earth Day. Each student was asked to think of a way to conserve energy and illustrate it on paper. I scanned in the pictures, had each student narrate their tip for saving energy into the microphone, and then placed them together in a digital class book.

Topic 14: Blogs, Blogs, Everywhere!!!

This year has become the year of the blog for me. I have gone from having no clue what a blog is or does to making it an integral part of my life. I now use blogs for school, work, and personal reasons. Surprisingly, I use each of the blogs in very different ways and for different reasons.

School- Obviously, I have created a blog for this class. This is my first blog written, designed, and executed solely by myself. I find it very easy to use. The site is very user friendly and I even managed to customize my blog with a cute new background. (Thanks to some google-ing) I use this blog as a means for my expression of thought and reflection on things that I am learning. I am not sure that it would be the type of blog that others, outside this class would follow, but I am definitely learning the basics of using a blog with this experience.

Work- I started a blog with my class year as well. This blog is hosted by a different site and is also easy to set up however I am using it in a MUCH different way. Our class blog is a chance for the students to express themselves in discussions about material that we have learned in class. In this blog, instead of writing in a narrative way about my learning experiences, I post a short open ended question about something that we have learned in class. The students can then go online and post comments to answer the question of comment on other student's posts. This blog focuses on the student comments to provide content.

Personal- I have recently come across several blogs created by other technology teachers. I read these often to gain ideas on ways to incorporate technology into the classroom, read about new trends in educational technology, or just to hear the opinions of current issues in technology. One of my favorite blogs is iLearn Technology. It is created by Kelly Tenkely, who is a technology specialist. I love her blog because she reviews various websites that can be used for educational technology. She tells you what it is, how you can use it in the classroom, and even give you tips on the programs. I have found numerous ideas from her blogs that I use in my classroom.

Topic 13: TCEA and Print, Cut, Fold

I was fortunate enough to attend the TCEA conference in Austin last year. This conference was AMAZING! I learned more about technology in education the three days that I was there, than I had in my entire teaching career. The conference is set up with the technology teacher in mind. They had Internet zones posted throughout the hallways with laptops that you could use for free. They also had model classrooms where you could go and watch actual teachers presenting a lesson with technology as they would in their real classrooms. It is a great conference and I would recommend it to everyone. Needless to say, I will be attending it once again in February with eyes wide and ready to take it all in. Here is a link if you would like more information about it: http://www.tcea.org/CONVENTION/2010/Documents/index.html

The best parts were the sessions over ways to incorporate technology into different content areas. Presenters came from all over Texas to share information and resources. One such session was presented by a company called Print, Cut, Fold. If you have never heard of them before, you need to check it out. They create templates that students can insert text and graphics into and then print out, cut, and fold into a neat, organized, foldable. These foldables are universal and can be used for any content area and any grade level. Basically whatever your teacher brain can think of...you can do! I have been using them with my 3rd grade students and they LOVE them.

Topic 12: Technology Across the Senses

Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences provides information to teachers about the cognitive aspect of a student's learning. Gardner has developed a theory that children are born with multiple intelligences, or optimal ways of learning, however as they enter your classroom you should identify which intelligence is their strength to build upon for optimal learning. It is important for teachers to identify this and focus lessons on delivering the content through that intelligence.

I would say that I am personally a visual and kinesthetic learner. I am able to learn and retain much more information by seeing representations of it or by actually being able to manipulate it myself. I am the type of person that needs to actually perform a task before it is retained in my memory. A good example of this is when I am given directions. If a person verbally tells me directions to a destination I would get SO lost. However, if I am able to see a map or GPS I can remember every turn by easily thinking back to the picture of the map in my mind. Also, once I have driven to a place I will remember how to go back there again from experience.

Looking at my lessons plans in teaching, I would say that my instruction is usually centered around Visual or Interpersonal learning. The biggest reason for this is because of my class website. I have incorporated a blog which allows for class discussions even from the student's homes. I also believe this would constitute as visual for the students to see and observe that various amounts of information and links that I compile for them on each page. Here is a link to my class website so that you can see: http://www.myteacherpages.com/webpages/ACheatham/

My objectives for the lesson plan are for students to identify important components of a story, analyze these, and synthesize them into a summary. Based on Gardner's theory here are some ideas of activities to incorporate technology in the lesson: