Module 4

Vodcasts,  Podcasts,  Animoto, YouTube...

With such a choice, just where do you start?

It's strange that while I use a lot of these sorts of things in the classroom, it never dawned on me that we could be creating them ourselves.

We all use YouTube in just about every subject - probably all subjects at some stage, but I must say I have never thought to upload something there. I have a whole load of clips stored in my YouTube, Classm8 account, all neatly grouped by subject type. Bible stories are a particular favourite as they really come to life for younger children. I recently discovered the Storynory site through my Principal (a great inclusion at reading time for adding variety - and it's free!!!). We all tend to try and share good finds with each other.

Podcasts could actually be used to record children reading books or their own stories, in a radio play style. They can add  music and sound effects from sites that offer them for free. Reading for an audience would give reading more purpose and encourage rehearsing, expression, listening and seeking of ways to become a more engaging reader. It also allows the reader to hear themselves as others do. By making reading more entertaining, you are bound to attract even reluctant readers.

Teachers could also encourage children to make Podcasts of favourite books to create a class library of student owned Class Podcast books.

Pod/Vodcasts could also be a successful new presentation media for reports and projects. I suppose it isn't beyond the realms of possibility that teachers could even Podcast instructions for activities in groups - but that could be going a little too far...

Animoto was a real find! I had never even heard of it and can't wait to use it with my class. It was really easy to use and a lot of fun. I could see it being very popular as a new way to express ideas in a highly visual and efficient way. PowerPoint, Keynote and the like have a place in presentations, but this is very dynamic. Children could be encouraged to write captions for their uploaded photos. They can insert written slides in between uploaded video and photo sections.By using their own music and voice recordings, Animoto could become even more personal. The programme is so accessible and requires equipment that most (if not all) classrooms now have.

This was a first time Animoto creation based on a whole load of school photos. I tried to capture a sense of my school and also have a go at working through the programme. It would be a lot of fun to use for end of year celebrations, recording events on an excursion, special occasions.... The sky really is the limit.

I was also pretty impressed that it only took me a few failed attempts to work out how to add it to this blog. The learning curve continues!

Module 3

Google Docs

in the classroom....

Passing notes around the classroom has taken on a whole new dimension! Once upon a time, only those with the best designed paper planes could get their message to other side of the room. Now, Google docs is the technologically advanced way of communicating with others in a teacher approved way! Even the teachers can join in the fun!

We have all used large sheets of paper spread out on desks, with brightly coloured textas to entice students to add to brain storms and the like. This takes it one step further and in a very sophisticated way.   

The fact that students can work in real time and collaboratively with others can be quite an asset. Children can all be working on separate parts of the one project or learning task, but pooling their ideas at the same time. 

The ability to comment on the document and chat - in a virtual way- outside of the document, allows for it to become more interactive and inclusive. It is also accessible to all collaborators from their own devices, so geographical isolation outside of school poses no issue and children are not so dependent on ensuring work is saved on external drives to make them portable.

Teacher feed back would also be made easier through this medium. 

For distance education, the implications are enormous and would have to yield substantial benefits.

Classrooms could become so much quieter with no one talking and shouting out loud in order to be heard. The closest you get are PEOPLE SHOUTING IN CAPITALS!!!! That, however is actually my fear. While it is a powerful medium for collaborative work and sharing ideas, so too, is learning to interact physically with others. When children are engaged in physical talking, they must learn to stop and listen and to take turns in the conversation. These are vital skills that cannot be overlooked as we move into 'work station' dominated schooling and work environments. As with everything, there needs to be a balance.

The portability and ease of access to google docs does certainly make it an asset. I frequently find myself working on mobile devices outside of school. I then save these documents on my iPad and email them to myself in order to continue working on them at home. With google docs now available for mobile devices, that is no longer an issue.

It's a great tool. But a tool never the less.

    

  

Module 2

Well, I mean, just where do you start?

I read one of the recommended blogs where the individual completed the course in record time -  purely because he was so interested. My interest has had the opposite effect.... 

I have spent the better part of four hours just completing the second part of this module. There were so many sites to explore and so many interesting things to look at and read! This also wasn't just a desperate attempt to get out of the laundry... or help my sons with their homework...

At this rate I may be seeking an extension until Christmas!

We were asked to consider the use of blogs as a learning tool in our classrooms, so here are some of my observations:

Use of blogs in the classroom #1 - Feedback and Interaction
I was so proud of my first Blog, I sent the link to my parents. You are never too old for parental approval. They were suitably impressed.  

Classroom Implications:
Students receive positive feedback and parents are engaged in their child's learning.

Use of blogs in the classroom #2  - Support in Learning
I had two typos in my blog that were noted by my father... I then managed to work out how to go back and edit a post! 

Classroom Implications:
Students can receive feedback from a number of sources and learn valuable editing, spelling, grammar and punctuation skills.

Use of blogs in the classroom #3  - Sharing and development of ideas
It is so easy to add a comment and  expand on ideas already initiated. In loud, noisy environments, the quieter voices do, well - actually have a voice. 

Classroom Implications:
Collaborative learning. For the children who are reluctant to speak, they are given a voice. A teacher can't listen to the ideas of all the children who may be working collaboratively in a group, but this allows for a spread of ideas. Teachers can also be more aware of what groups are doing when working independently.


Use of blogs in the classroom #4  - Huge variety of expression.
Children may easily use and up load videos, links, pictures and so on to support their ideas.

Classroom Implications:
For any teacher who pales at the thought of yet another PowerPoint presentation... I rest my case...

Use of blogs in the classroom #5 - Blogger saves drafts.
My computer just crashed and all of the above went with it - or so I thought. I did find myself considering death by drowning -  in a glass of red cask Coolabah. (what teacher can afford a Henschke?)


Classroom Implications:
Auto save... Substance abuse avoidance...

New skills and Blogger Site benefits:
My blog now has  a list of some good sites I regularly use.I worked out how to add these as a result of exploring gadgets  in the set up section. As a class blog, this could suggest links to parents and children that they could find useful. I often add helpful sites to paper homework sheets, but these can easily get lost. I want to add more to my current blog, so I can access them more easily, but it's a bit late, so that will come!

I use Reading Eggs, Mathletics, Squirk, Study Ladder and Spelling City in my classroom (just to name a few!) so this could make things easier for all.  

I do want to work out how to make my site more interactive and dynamic with tabs and so on. I can't wait for a chance to check out Edu Blogs, Word Press and Weebly in particular. They do look like they have a lot to offer in the classroom.

Module 1

Until a few days ago, I had absolutely no idea what Web 2 was. Yes, I should have Googled it.... I was intrigued by the look of the course and was interested, so I sent Lisa an email and found the course came with a lot of support. With a great deal of trepidation, I signed up.

On completing the first module, I did breathe a sigh of relief (a little one). It was strange to realise that much of what I do on the internet actually is using Web 2. Oops! Many of the eLearning tools shown are ones I readily use at home and in the classroom. Many shown on the links have been filed away to explore later.

I have my favourite Bloggers. Not Quite Nigella, is a very entertaining food critic with a dynamic and fun site full of recipes and international travels (could I possibly start writing reports on food in exotic locations instead of writing reports on children as I eat a vegemite sandwich?!). I posted a question on a craft site a while ago asking for patterns for a craft cutting machine. The next thing I knew, people from all over the world were posting replies in a highly productive way for weeks. We all gained so much shared wisdom. I was blown away by the response as I had never posted a question before.

These experiences did change the way I viewed mediums such as blogs. I know that many people use social media including Facebook, tweets and blogs to share with the world that they had weetbix for breakfast, are suffering a headache or that they just stubbed their big toe. For those reasons, I stayed clear of joining up to Facebook and the like. I liked the idea of blogging because many blogs are actually related to the concept of sharing information that is more than idle self promotion.

When my Grandma became frail and began to develop dementia, I was thrown into a world I had never experienced before. Over the months and then years, I gradually learned more and more about the services available for elderly people and those who try to support them. It was so hard to get that information and much of it I discovered purely by accident. It was back then, a long time ago, that I had thought it would be great to set up a blog to share the information I was constantly discovering. I wished to save others the frustration. Pity I hadn't discovered this course back then! I had thought setting up blogs must involve web designers and professional computer people.

For these reasons, I didn't set up my 'old people help' blog and hadn't really contemplated how blogs could be used in my classroom. After module one, I can see that it could be a dynamic learning tool. It is also a tool available to everyone with a computer and internet connection. Maybe that was obvious, but I didn't know.

I am reasonable on the computer as I try to stay a little ahead of my own children - as well as those in my classroom, to ensure I can help them. My Year 7 son keeps wandering in to see what I am doing and was quite impressed when he heard I was creating a blog. It's not easy to impress a 13 year old, so that is saying a lot. Funny thing is, it wasn't that hard. I just took an awfully long time choosing and then re-sizing the photo I wanted to use on my cover page. Figuring out how to position it and change the colours was another issue and several searches later too. It didn't need to be done, but I just wanted to see what Blogger can do!

I am looking forward to the rest of this course with it's many challenges, but what I think will be a very valuable and fun learning experience. Thank goodness it's not a report writing term....

My Grandma

A WW 2 Wedding Day photo of my Grand Parents

Thought I'd have a go at inserting some pictures while at it. My Grandma and Grandfather on their wedding day and my Grandma a few months ago.When I talk to my sons about the world I grew up in - technology wise, it is so much more confronting to think my Grandma was born in a world before such things as television -  and telegrams were a quicker and novel way of sending messages. When my son was born, I swallowed tablets whole and used a pen to write in note books - and he is only 13 years old. I had also just received a very expensive, cutting edge 2 MG camera to take his baby photos on. My phone now takes larger pictures. 

Now, I have just completed my first blog!!!