Delicious

The delicious website I found a little confusing. If CK had not included the website: http://novemberlearning.com/images/stories/Documents/HowTos/Delicious%20Instructions.pdf I think I would not have been able to figure out what to do. I did create a username and I intend on having bookmarks. I think this would be useful in the classroom because a teacher could quickly find the link he/she is needing to present for the daily objective. Something that is constantly being said to me in my college courses is to use class time effeciently and I think having bookmarks would help with that. It is also great because you can show your students how it is worked and then you and the students can share bookmarks. Being able to see what others have as bookmarks would be a good way to see each others interest. The students could also use delicious on any kind of group work because they can find information needed, bookmark it and then share what they have found.

Excel Spreadsheets

I love using excel, but I usually get really frustrated when I can't get something to do what I am wanting it to! As a coach, you are usually not granted enough practice time with your athletes, so I would use an excel timeline to show my athletes practice times and how practice will go. This way they visually can see what is expected of them and we can use our practice time wisely. With a spreadsheet, it is so great for a teacher because you can enter a formula to average grades and once it is entered you can change numbers as you wish and the formula will automatically update the outcome. If a teacher had to use a calculator for all his/her grades, it would be a difficult task to constantly go back and make changes. Some teachers let students make up work, correct bad grades and/or give extra credit and with the spreadsheet entering those grades is easier because of the formulas.

Inspiration in the Classroom

I went to the Inspiration quick tour at http://www.inspiration.com/Videos/Inspiration. I have a few comments about this program. First, it is very obvious that it is targeted for the students. The abundance of graphics and pictures are meant to make organizing their thoughts more entertaining. Secondly, a main cause to poor grades is that students do not have proper study skills. This program seems to be something that could help with making it easier with encouraging students to take the time to study. Inspiration would be a great form of encouragement in the classroom. What interested me most is that the templates can be used by the students or the teachers can use them to help with creating lesson plans. It is great to use a program for both the students and the teachers. One way I would use Inspiration in the classroom is the tour said the students can print any of their "creations". I would let the students print and then share their work with other students in the class to encourage teaching and answering their peers.

The best writing activities that Inspiration could be used for would be research papers. They can enter any keyword to pull up numerous symbols and can outline a timeline clearly. Allowing the students to have neat and clear notes/outlines will make writing the finished product easier and less stressful for the student. Like I mentioned before, to encourage peer feedback the students could print their outlines and notes off and ask their classmates to read them. If the notes and outlines are easy to follow then the students know their thoughts and research are ready to be in written form. Once they write a rough draft they can allow their classmates to read and correct if needed. A way to use technology with peer feedback is the students could create a diagram and have one of their peers add text to the links that they have between each symbol they made using the rapidfire.

Tim Tyson blog

I think that it is important to incorporate technology into students curriculum because our society is driven by it. Having a blog as a teacher would encourage the students to use the internet, improve typing skills and develop communication skills. It is easier to communicate in person so asking your students to communicate via blog it forces them to use a different outlet for getting their ideas and thoughts out. You could use your blog to encourage students to share their thoughts and answer each other's questions while you help guide them in the right direction. Having a blog is also a great thing for a teacher because you can post your homework assignments, notes for parents and what you will be covering for days to come. As Tim Tyson says in the podcast, it can also help with cutting down on paper. The only catch to having a blog as a teacher is you can not "assume" that all the parents and students refer to it. Some students may not have interent access at home. With that said, it is important that anything you post on your blog to make it clear in the classroom as well.

I do not feel that a blog is a waste of time because it can only help with communication with your students and parents. I do feel that the internet is not monitored close enough by some parents and explaining what information should and should not be given is something that should be discussed.