My Google Reader Choices are as follows:
1. CNN.com - Politics
I chose this site because I want to stay up to date on
politics as it relates to science and education.
2. New from the National Academies Press
I selected this site because of it's professional
science related content.
3. Science News - The New York Times
This site will help me stay on top of new stories
in my field of education and content.
4. TEA posts 8th grade science TEKS information
This site is very pertinent to my profession as it is
directly related to the Texas Education Agency and
the science content standards which I teach everyday.
5. Vernier News
This site will keep me informed of new technology,
tools and software as it relates to my content area.
Monday, November 30, 2009
BP3_Discovering Web 2.0 Tools
Research Web 2.0 Tools beginning with the resource listed below and choose one that is of interest to you in your teaching/learning environment. Learn how to use the tool through the site or tutorials and use it to create an assignment you might use in a learning situation or use it to create some product. Next evaluate what you have done and think about all the possible educational uses. Post a blog at least 250 words long describing how you would use it in your classroom and the educational benefits the tool provides. Be specific and thorough in your discussion.
Well I am an 8th Grade Middle School Science Teacher at a low socioeconomic school. Most of my students are minorities; Hispanic and African-American. I began my search particularly seeking Science related material. Then I stumbled on Youtego. I was immediately captivated by the site and was instantly beaming with ideas for uses and incorporation in my classroom! Basically, Youtego's main concept is self-visualization. Their motto is "recognize yourself to recognize the world around you", (Youtego, 2009). The way this is accomplished is through the use of simple semantics. A basic combination of pictures and words to express one's feelings, ideas, thoughts, etc. It reminded me almost of digital storytelling, which is also another web 2.0 tool I want my students to become more adept in. I would use this tool in my classroom by assigning a topic such as Newton's Laws of Motion and instructing my students to create the Youtego slideshows to depict the concepts and terminology and then present them in either a blog or website. I know that at first it may sound or seem too basic, but it is actually very deep and inspirational at the same time which is the primary reason why I chose this tool. As I mentioned before, a teach a very large population of ELL's, or english language learners. I feel that this tool would be of great benefit to them as well to aid them in their vocabulary skills. With this tool students can incorporate music, pictures and their choice of words to represent the natural world or whatever topic I assign. This tool really appealed to me because this tool will empower my students to become more self expressive through the use of their own pictures and digital technology. This is my third year teaching middle school and I see the hardships kids in this age group experience. Students in this age group love social networking sites such as myspace and facebook and they absolutely LOVE to take pictures, so with this tool they can accomplish both and learn at the same time! Not to mention that they can then share their products as they upload them to blogs, twitter, and facebook. I have a daughter who is in middle school herself and when I introduced the site to her, she was instantly hooked! Youtego is one web 2.0 I plan to utilize in my classroom as soon as possible.
In my search for science related material I also found a very useful site called Yacapaca.com. This site is teacher and student friendly. The best part about this site is that it is FREE! Uses for this site as an educator would primarily be for creating quizzes for students as reviews and at the end of units. I took a practice quiz and I really liked the level of challenge as well as the graphics used. I could also use this tool as extra credit for students who may need additional support or simply use it as an additional resource such as a homework assignment. Eportfolios are another option with Yacapaca. This tool is one that seems more content related and offers a wide variety of subject matter. As a teacher, I am always looking for resources and this one is very manageable.
Image from Yacapac.com, 2009
Although on my campus we are limited on the availability of technology due to some sites being blocked, I do believe that my students will benefit from one if not both of my choices. I enjoyed my search as I found many other tools that I have linked to my teacher website for my home campus.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
BP1_2009121_Blogs_in_Education
Before this course I had only written one blog, so this concept is still fairly new to me. As I researched educational uses for blogs, I found more articles directed at teachers to connect with each other to exchange ideas. This proved beneficial as I see that there are many other sources of information out there for me to gain ideas for teaching middle school science. When I specified my search engine for middle school science, I came across several more pertinent articles. One article: "Blogs in Education" I found on Adultlearn.com, provided many ideas which I had already had in mind since learning how to use iWeb in previous courses. Blogging in middle school can be very beneficial as it can provide students many opportunities to enhance skills such as writing and keyboarding. Blogging also allows students a means for self-expression. Middle school times are tough and I think that this age group would benefit from an additional outlet for self-expression!
I came across a very interesting science blog created by Steve Spangler which had an excellent layout and included many examples of videos of science experiments. I actually signed up to get updates! This was yet another confirmation of how I can use blogging to include video to demonstrate video examples of science experiments done in the lab for students who may have been absent.
"Science Blogs in Middle High School Classes" by David R. Wetzel (August 30, 2008) was another excellent article I researched to gain ideas on implementation for blogging in the science classroom.
One thing that really stood out to me was that blogs can be easily updated. This will be convenient as information and instructions/deadlines may change over time. This article also touched on my biggest concern with blogging on my home campus: access to technology. We have limited time and access to computers, so I am still pondering how to incorporate this into my instruction. I am also thinking about those students who do not have internet access at home. I also had one question from the article. The article discussed comparisons between teacher websites and blogs and it left me thinking: should I use one or the other, or a combination of BOTH??? I know that with iWeb, you can have a blog as a page. But I was kind of leaning towards iGoogle after Dr. Deason's class, I don't know.
Anyway, well I will close on how I could see myself using blogging with my instruction:
First of all, as I stated earlier~ I would want students to have the freedom to write freely and be able to express themselves. I would also use blogging as a means to challenge them through problem solving (science related) using Bloom's Taxonomy questioning strategies, which is something we are pushing for on our campus. I would also use blogging to allow students who are not present the opportunity to stay connected to what is going on in class. This leads me to PARENTS: they too can stay in the know of what is going on in science class as they view blogs, videos, and pics of what their children are doing! And last but not least, I would use blogging to provide extra credit opportunities for students who may need to improve their score or for those who want supplemental assignments and resources related to science content. WOW! I have my work cut out for me! I can't wait to get started! Well, after I finish my own work first.... LOL! ; )
I came across a very interesting science blog created by Steve Spangler which had an excellent layout and included many examples of videos of science experiments. I actually signed up to get updates! This was yet another confirmation of how I can use blogging to include video to demonstrate video examples of science experiments done in the lab for students who may have been absent.
"Science Blogs in Middle High School Classes" by David R. Wetzel (August 30, 2008) was another excellent article I researched to gain ideas on implementation for blogging in the science classroom.
One thing that really stood out to me was that blogs can be easily updated. This will be convenient as information and instructions/deadlines may change over time. This article also touched on my biggest concern with blogging on my home campus: access to technology. We have limited time and access to computers, so I am still pondering how to incorporate this into my instruction. I am also thinking about those students who do not have internet access at home. I also had one question from the article. The article discussed comparisons between teacher websites and blogs and it left me thinking: should I use one or the other, or a combination of BOTH??? I know that with iWeb, you can have a blog as a page. But I was kind of leaning towards iGoogle after Dr. Deason's class, I don't know.
Anyway, well I will close on how I could see myself using blogging with my instruction:
First of all, as I stated earlier~ I would want students to have the freedom to write freely and be able to express themselves. I would also use blogging as a means to challenge them through problem solving (science related) using Bloom's Taxonomy questioning strategies, which is something we are pushing for on our campus. I would also use blogging to allow students who are not present the opportunity to stay connected to what is going on in class. This leads me to PARENTS: they too can stay in the know of what is going on in science class as they view blogs, videos, and pics of what their children are doing! And last but not least, I would use blogging to provide extra credit opportunities for students who may need to improve their score or for those who want supplemental assignments and resources related to science content. WOW! I have my work cut out for me! I can't wait to get started! Well, after I finish my own work first.... LOL! ; )
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