Talkin Tech-Allen-gee!

I’m very excited about Day 2 of Breakfast Bytes.  In preparing for our next session I thought it would be a neat closing activity to have teachers comment on my blog, so they get some ”hands on.”

I like blogs because there are so many different ways to use them with students.  I first created this blog last spring when I took a class about web 2.0.  I’d like to expand this blog to write more information about technology resources that I find.  I’d also like to be apart of a classroom blog too!  After learning about Web 2.0 and blogs for beginners, what do you think?  Please share with me how you might use a blog with your students.  I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas!

The first day of Breakfast Bytes featured Subscription Electronic Resources.  These should be the first place you go when doing research with your students.  Why?  These resources are reliable, non-biased and kid friendly.  Sometimes it is difficult to find information that is the level that is easy for your students to read and understand.  Remember you can use these at home or at school but make sure you use the correct username and password.

World Book
www.worldbookonline.com – terrific online encyclopedia

Culturegrams:
http://online.culturegrams.com- excellent resource for geography and cultural information

eLibrary
www.proquestk12.com – tons of kidfriendly info and more!

Which resource do you think is the most helpful to you and your students?  Have you used these before?

Web 2.0 tools are terrific tools to use with students, but students need to be good net citizens before using these in the classroom. I believe that being safe online is a MUST and parents need to be aware of the uses and abuses online. Teaching your child appropriate behavior online is important and just like in anything else, this should not be the schools sole responsibility. The district or school should offer parents online safety workshops in collaboration with the ITRT and technology committee in the school.

Teachers must also be informed and knowledgeable users before students dive into the world wide web. Resources and tools need to be relevant to the objectives and teachers should be able to navigate through them so they can model proper behavior online. With the web constantly changing, it’s important to talk to children about how they use the Internet and “what if” scenarios, so they know how to properly handle them.

I particularly like this webquest designed for 6th graders. It is very creative and breaks down netiquette and specific roles of student users. Kids learn how to be safe online in a collaborative way!

http://coe.nevada.edu/slefevre/playsafe.html

Terrific Internet Safety websites:

http://www.connectsafely.org

http://csriu.org

http://www.staysafeonline.org

http://www.netsmartzkids.org

I’ve used Streaming video with my students before and the kids love it! However, I’ve know about podcasting but haven’t taken the plunge quite yet. I’ve found some terrific podcasting websites that I love! I’d like to create some sort of podcast with my students but this can be challenging since I work with a tech challenged staff. I need to find someone that wants to learn, and is willing to hang up the scaredie- cat persona and just try and learn. Who this teacher is…I’m not quite sure but he or she is out there! With this said, I want to learn how to make podcasts and have my students make them because it will bring learning to life for them in a new and different way! I’ll keep you posted on when this all happens, but it will!

Blogs and wikis take learning with technology to a different level. A level where the child has some control to share ideas, reflect on learning, and expand knowledge. In the everyday classroom where curriculum piles high and the teacher has to get through it because of the demand for more testing, where do kids get a voice? Blogs and wikis are one answer where kids can talk to each other about what they are learning and share their ideas. Kids are social creatures, they want to tell you stories constantly but for the sake of time, we need to shelve the discussions for a later time.

The great feature about blogs and wikis today is that there is teacher control to see student posts and accept them before they are seen by the rest of the class. This takes care of inappropriate posts and ideas expressed. This is also the perfect time to introduce netiquette and proper use on the web. Students should also have a clear understanding of behavior online and consequences for improper use.

I don’t think that blogs and wikis are for every teacher. I think that the teacher has to see the value of using technology with students to use this tool effectively and appropriately. Some teachers might wonder when they have time to incorporate this into the daily or weekly routine. I say it takes practice and the willingness to learn because students will highly benefit. For example, my mom team teaches third grade in Victor, NY. She and her co-teacher created a wiki and use it for all sorts of information, homework, news podcasts, pictures and more. She told me that the kids and parents LOVE it and they have become better technology users because of it.

http://harperallenteam.pbwiki.com

I know some about social bookmarking sites but haven’t set one up for myself yet. I have a bookmarking site for my students, www.portaportal.com/allenmr but I can’t wait to use www.diigo.com. This social bookmarking site seems like it offers so much more and I can see huge potential for this in teaching! I love that it lets you highlight and bookmark webpages, write notes within the pages and share them with your friends. You can join groups of people that have the same interests as you and share ideas with them. I previewed the demo and then checked out the groups and I there were a lot of groups discussing web 2.0 and technology education. I thought this would also be another great place to share ideas with teachers from all over.

This could be a terrific tool for students who are working on group projects- sharing ideas and resources- learning about collaboration. This tool would be easier for a high school student than elementary but it really hits home with the concept of Web 2.0. I wish there was some sort of collaborative site that elementary students could use. Any thoughts or suggestions?

RSS feeds are addicting! I just signed up for a bloglines account and opened my eyes to the wide world of information provided by RSS. I have been in the dark for too long. I love the fact that I can get the most up to date posts on technology, cooking, news, weather and whatever else I’m interested in. Once I signed up for an account I could have previewed the different blogs and sites for hours but talk about information overload!

I’m just getting started, but how do teachers or technology educators possibly keep up with all this great tech stuff? I am constantly asking myself this question. I think this is one way for me, to learn about technology. I especially like David Warlick’s blog. He spoke at the PWCS Technology Conference in August 2007 and he did a great presentation on Web 2.0. He shared his knowledge on how this can be used with students and the power of the internet on writing and publishing, thoughts, and sharing knowledge. It was very interesting.

As I am learning, there is a wide world of web 2.0 tools that I am just beginning to explore.  I am very excited to begin my first blog.  This blog will be a place to share technology student work, activities, and commentary related to technology lessons students are working on.  This will be a work in progress and might change as I learn more about blogging.