Friday, April 22, 2011

C4K 2

The first comment for Journey sing along from Mr.Mclungs class. I thought this was such a wonderful idea for a school activity. I think it would have been so amazing to do something like that when I was in high school. I find Mr. McClung to be a very amazing educator. I think the ideas he comes up with are fun and entertaining for everyone. The journey sing-a-long can be found here

The second student I commented on was Victoria from Mrs. Yollis' third grade class. The blog post I wrote a comment on was titled Hawaiian Volcanoes. This post was about Victoria's trip to Hawaii and her visit to volcanoes. My comment to her was,
"Hi Miriam,
I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I am sad to say that you are my last C4K. I have enjoyed this part of my class very much.
I found your pictures about Hawaii VERY interesting. One of my best friends lives there right now and I always enjoy looking at her pictures. I love to visit new places. I do love to explore new places. I've recently been to Nashville, Tennessee. I hope to one day to travel to Italy.
I have also never been to a volcano. I best it was an exciting experience!

Keep up the good work on your blog!

Courtney"

The third student I followed was Abby from Ryan's blog. The blog I posted on was Rome, Italy. She went to Italy over the summer. My comment I left her was,
"Hi, I am a student at the University of South Alabama in EDM 310. I am so jealous you went to Italy. My mothers side of the family is from Tuscany, which is located in the north east part of "the boot." I hope to one day visit there. I applaud you for trying authentic Italian food. Keep up the good work on the blog! "


Tuscany, Italy


My Blog.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Special Metaphor Assignment (Blog Post #14)

1. Why did you miss the metaphor in Tom Johnson's post, or, if you "hit the nail on the head", why do you think you understood the metaphor and why do you think that others in the class missed the metaphor?
----I missed the metaphor because I just did. Maybe I was in a hurry reading, I don't know. I went back and read it and now that Dr. Strange pointed it out, I understand the post. Another reason could be that I have never really been able to pick up quickly on metaphors. Yes, I get the cheesy ones like, "It's raining cats and dogs" or "He's such a chicken." I am much like a student in last semesters EDM 310 class who said why not just come out and say what you want to say. Any time I have tried to use a metaphor in reference to something else, I always end up having to go back and explain what I was talking about. To me, its just easier to say what you need to say and go on. There's less confusion by just coming out and saying what you really want that person to know.
2. What metaphors have you encountered since I asked you to create a log of them?
-----To be honest, I wasn't aware that we were asked to create a log of metaphors. However, some off the top of my head are; The ball is in your court,To beat around the bush, and to burst someone's bubble.
3. What other things can we do as educators to help our students to understand and to use metaphors?
----- I think that as educators the best thing to do to help our students understand metaphors is to obviously give an entire lesson on them. There are many examples of metaphors and ways to understand them. We can give them many examples of how to identify them. Chances are, they already know many of them, they probably didn't realize they were called metaphors.
4. Why do we use metaphors?
-----They are a way to describe something.




grammar.about.com

Blog Assignement 13

Alabama Learning Exchange, also known as ALEX, is a helpful website to current teachers and future students. On this website, there is information from lesson plans to a breakdown of different books and ideas to the classroom. Anyone can choose from any subject and any grade, K-12. The lesson plan section is very helpful if a teacher needs an idea on a any subject. Teachers from different Alabama counties post their lesson plans for different subjects. All of the lesson plans are very detailed. Some even come with attached documents such as worksheets for review and quizzes. Projects are also posted on the website.
Under Podcast treasury, you can find Podcasts on different subject areas. I was able to find a podcast on the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill. It was an introductory video which gave the viewer a first hand look into the tragedy.
I find ALEX to be very helpful to teachers and future teachers. I believe it is helpful to current teachers because it can help them change things up in their classroom. It can also give them an idea for a project to help their students better understand a subject. There are many helpful tools that I invite everyone to look at. Explore and click on the different tabs.

Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators & Students State wide, ACCESS, is to help high school students. As stated on the ACCESS website, the vision is to provide equal access to high quality instruction to improve student achievement through distance learning opportunities to all high school students. This program will prepare students for college and the 21st century work force. Students are given the opportunity to take advanced courses.
I know many students who have participated in this program. It is a wonderful program that helps students to advance academically. It also allows them to know their potential. This program prepares students greatly for college. It gives them a small look into how colleges work is and the specifics professors look for.



michael-li.com

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Progress Report on Final Project

My group includes Nicholas Sullivan and Alexandra Maniaci. We have decided that we are going to interview students on their thoughts about technology in the classrooms and in general. We are going to get together throughout the week to film it.

Great Quote

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Blog Assignment 12

Read the interview An Interview with Alex Hiam: If we cut the Arts, are we cutting our throats? Write your reaction to this interview.

-----I do not think it should be cut out for many reasons. Art shows each students creativity, whether it be a lot or a little. I know I was not an artistic child or adult, however I loved doing crafts and learning do things about art. Theater is also another way for anyone to show their creative side. They are also able to dress up as someone else and be that person for a day or so. Not many people know what its like to actually walk in someone else s footsteps and be that person for a day. Theater allows people to play dress up and be someone else. It also can teach them a lot more about different subjects. For example, having to play someone with a speech impediment can really open a persons eye and make them see the struggles that people with disabilities like that go through on a day-to-day basis.
I do not agree with cutting p.e out. There have been many studies done that show exercising helps with children development. It allows children to learn how to play different games. It also gives them the interaction with peers outside of the classroom.


Great Teacher Quote

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Special Assignment

1. What do you know (or have you found out) about Mr. McClung that is reflected in the way he has constructed his class blog?
-----From looking at Mr. McClungs' blog, I have noticed that first and foremost he is very organized. Also, he is creative. I like that Mr. McClung is very involved with his students, and he opens the floor for discussion on different topics. One for example being, "Lesson Two – Wrestlin’ Talk," which is about a boy who was supposed to wrestle a girl but forfeited the match claiming that it was against his religious beliefs to wrestle a woman. I'm sure this topic wasn't discussed in many classes, but I like how he incorporated the topic into the day to hear what his students thought of it.
2. Comment on what you would say about Mr. McClung as an educator.
-----Once again, I would say that he is a very organized and creative educator. From the looks of things, he keeps everything very interesting. If I was a student in his class, I would look forward to learning in his class because I feel like I would be on my toes about tomorrows lesson and how exciting it would be. I think I would HATE all of the snow days and having no school. As much as I would love the snow, I know I would get sick of having to sit in doors and not have much to do due to the snow.
3. I asked above that you read Mr. McClung's "rules" and think about them. What do they say about Mr. McClung, his teaching, and his connection with his students? What is your reaction to these rules (and guides) as a student and as an aspiring teacher?
-----In my opinion, these rules show that he wants his students to just listen and follow directions. Based on what I have read, it is clear to me that Mr.McClung wants to develop a relationship with his students. Reading these rules also tell me that he truly cares about his job and that his students learn in his class. I think these rules are great. I think that when I become a teacher I will use rules similar to these.
4. What was the first thing under Everyone needs? Why do you suppose that is the first requirement?
-----The Day Planner! I love this because this will teach students organizational skills!! I also think it will teach them how to manage their time. It's never to early to start learning time management!
5. Note the penalties for being late (under Homework). Compare them with my penalties for being late. Comment
-----Mr. McClung is quite hard on his students and I think that is great. They need to understand that you cannot turn in your homework whenever and get full credit. It is not fair to the ones who did what they were supposed to do and on time.
6. Read carefully his paragraph about what he hopes to accomplish with his blog. Comment and apply to your own aspirations as a teacher.
-----I think his aspirations for his blog are just what they should be. All classroom blogs should be very informative and be a guideline for the students. It should also keep students informed on what they have missed if they are absent.
7. I asked you to review at least two Useful Links in depth after reviewing all of them. Which two did you review in depth? Describe each of the two. How might each be used? Why do you think each made Mr. McClung's list.
-----The two links I looked in depth at were The Plagiarism Checker and Twitter Times. The Plagiarism Checker is very cool. You can copy and paste your students homework or paper to see if it is plagiarized. Twitter Times, as I quote directly from the website itself,"The Tweeted Times is a real-time personalized newspaper generated from your Twitter account."
----For obvious reasons the Plagiarism Checker made the list because he wants to know if the work he is receiving from students is theirs or someones' that they are putting their name on. I think Twitter Times made the cut because #1 its fun and #2 because it does keep you up to date on news.
8. Under Internet Safety I asked you to read carefully the rules Mr. McClung sets forth for safely using the internet. Comment on these rules. Are there any you would add or subtract.
-----I would not add any rules nor would I subtract any. They are great tips to help keep the students safety. I actually learned a few things from reading that I probably should have known but didn't.
9. In the C4K part of this blog I asked that you look carefully at one of the categories under which you assigned post was filed. What did you find? Select one of the posts in the category and review it for me.
-----I read the Trail of Tears post. I have always been fascinated with this story. As far back as I can remember, I always enjoyed this part of my history lesson.
10. Mr. McClung uses Edublog as his blog host. In some ways it may seem more "advanced." But Blogger has many abilities that we have not covered in EDM310. This leads to this question: Is there anything (or things) that Mr. McClung can do with his blog that you would like to do in Blogger?
-----I like the fact that everything works when you click on it! I have has many issues when trying to get buttons to work on my blog. I just basically like the overall layout better than Blogger.
11. In what ways does Mr. McClung make his blog useful to parents, teachers, administrators, students like you, and others?
-----Well for one, everything is either educational or entertaining. Also for future teachers like myself, we can get ideas on classroom rules. The main thing that I like is that I can get ideas from reading different posts. Also, seeing all of the videos makes it easier to get more of a first hand look at what they are doing in class.
12. How does Mr. McClung's 8th grade blog differs from other blogs you have visited including other 8th grade blogs? Why the differences do you think?
----- Like I said above, It is very educational. Also, just in the reading of the syllabus and class rules, you can see how much he cares about his job. The passion he has for his job is wonderful. The fact that you can see that in just a blog is fascinating to me.


Please check out Mr. McClungs' blog. You will be glad you did!




Mr.McClungs Blog

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Blog Assignment 11

I really like Ms. Cassidys' approach to technology. Her way of using it in her classroom and making it fun for her students is fascinating. She has a great approach to protecting her students identities. She uses their faces, obviously, and she posts only their first names and not with a corresponding picture. In the interview, Ms. Cassidy says, "You are handicapping your students by not using the tools available us." She also says the world is changing and we cannot teach the same way we did ten, even five years ago. I agree with both of these statements because we are "handicapping" our students be not using the technology that is available to us because technology with only become more advanced with time and not allowing our students to use these and become comfortable with them is the opposite of our job description as teachers. We are supposed to teach them, not discourage them from using the resources available.
I think I will defiantly use blog posting in my classroom. I think it is wonderful that something so easy can do so much. With a blog post, you can post information that an absent student can see to get caught up. You can also post updates so your parents can see what is going in the classroom. You can post videos of certain things you are doing in your class so anyone can see what is going on.
I know I will run into issues with my blog post. I think the main issue I will run into is the privacy issue. I think I will handle it the same way Ms. Cassidy handles privacy. She posts the students pictures with first name only, and does not post the names with corresponding pictures. The benefit of this is that it protects their privacy because their last names aren't shown.


Great Quote

Monday, April 4, 2011

Project # 14 Teach Someone Something

For this assignment, pick and choose an organization or charity that you care deeply about. Then, write a brief paragraph about why you like it so much. In another paragraph, give reasons on why you would want others to join and be involved in your organization/charity. If you do not know of an organization then come up with one that you would be interested in being involved in if it existed. Don't be afraid to explore your creative side. Be sure to include a website so others can read more into your organization. If you have made up the organization, then include a made up one. I have an example below. The example is not much, but it can give you an idea of where to start.

Susan B Komen



The organization I chose to write about is Susan B. Komen for the Cure. This organization is designed to end breast cancer. Nearly 1.5 million dollars has been raised since 1982 to go towards a cure. The federal government donates more then $900 million to breast cancer research a year. There are many ways to get involved such as donating, volunteering, or participating in a event. This information was all taken from The Susan B. Komen Website. Please visit the website for more information.

Blog Assignment 10

An open letter to educators

My experiences in college are very similar to Morgan Baydas'. For many of my core classes I used to sit in class for the two hour lecture, take notes trying to keep my eyes open, and zone in and out of the lecture. I had spent an easy $200 on the book, and barely opened it throughout the semester because the professor would say, "Just study my lectures," "I don't really prefer this book," "Just use the book as a reference from time to time," "If you study my notes, you will pass the class." So we had spent all of this money on a book, to barley ever use it. Now, this experience is not from all of my classes. You did have those few professors that understood college life and they used the book quite often so you would get your money worth. They also had the book open while they were lecturing and guide us as they were teaching.

What my students and I do on a boring day..Take pictures