Reflections on 23 Things

What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?
Quizlet, Wordle, Delicious!

How has this program affected your lifelong learning goals?
Made learning fun and introduced TONS of new tools to add my virtual toolbox.

Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?
Where was Delicious when I was in college???

What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?
Wouldn't change anything except maybe have a few orientations to hear aloud every one's experiences rather than sit and read 23 blogs.

If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate?
Yes! It was an enlightening experience.

How will what you have learned influence your practice as a teacher or school librarian?
My kiddos are GOING to learn some of these tools and use them to better understand technology, and employ that technology in their personal learning.

How do you plan to keep up with new developments in web 2.0? Recommend a way that you have found to be useful.
RSS feed or google alert to let me know of all new 2.0 developments and have it delivered to my desktop.

Thing #23

This is another wonderful site that this blogging experience has allowed me to become familiar with. The discussions in the forum on the classroom2.0 website were of great value. Are interactive whiteboards necessary was particularly beneficial. I was glad to hear that another educator found a comparable, if not better, way to utilize interactivity in their classroom while saving money, which is always a good thing for educators. I have a found a new way to engage my students with an experience they will never forget. That is priceless. I plan on using this new found knowledge of these sites on a regular basis to look for different ways to assist my students and coworkers. It is good to know that we have these resources available to us.

Another NING website I checked out was Teachers2.0. Through the forum I read about twitter. Students have cell phones and love to text in class. With twitter they can send instant updates via sms text messages. This can be used for classroom collaboration, and instant quizzes. It would also be great for brainstorming ideas and taking class surveys.

Thing #22

After reviewing both myspace and facebook, my social network of choice is myspace. I have had a myspace account for a few years now (though, I did create a new one for this exercise), and even though facebook may be more user friendly with just a basic layout, I like the many options that are provided to me through myspace. I think it is important that we know about the social networking sites to better understand the type of communications that my students use. When we better understand our students, it is easier to connect with them. In exploring these sites, I saw how many different types of people communicate through social networking. I think it is great that we can find such a diverse group of people in one place.

Of course, with so many in one place, there is bound to be some problems, and this is where I was most shocked. I noticed that on both sites there were children who had profiles. Myspace does not allow for children to have public profiles yet when I went to facebook, there was an 11-year-old with a public profile and I found her profile without even having an account. Her profile was on the home page. I am very concerned with that. Like most young girls, one of her friends was the Jonas Brothers. I clicked on their profile and found a discussion board of extreme mature nature.

For adults, I think myspace had the most useful features. Their search features are more detailed than that of facebook and their personalization of profiles allowed for more uniqueness. I don't think either of these websites had any educational benefit. Though I do believe if there was a more controlled networking site, it would be a great way to communicate with students.

Thing #7c

Ads on a test???

For this assignment I turn to my rss feed from a national public radio broadcast (npr). These days, teachers need to find creative ways to have the supplies they need for their classrooms and this story is about a California teacher who really thought outside of the box to solve his supply problems. He proposed an ad campaign to business owners. He would put the ads on the classwork of his students in exchange for various items. It would be nice if we could all do something like this, but as educators, I thought we couldn't accept gifts in exchange for any service. Maybe Calfornia has different policies.

Thing #21

Google on steroids...

Google is amazing, so many tools. I've been meaning to get an educator liscense since I've seen first had how powerful it is compared to Adobe PhotoShop. Perhaps I will do whenI'm done with this course???

The two tools I chose were iGoogle and Calendar. iGoogle is very nice, visually appealing, and tailored just for me. I have the sweet dreams theme, added the virtual aquarium, sudoku games, and optical illusions. I like having the calendar handy, my email snapshot, the local headlines, weather, and cartoons at my disposal. Not sure how this one can be used educationally except that it keeps you somewhat organized and a nice little stress releaser.

The calendar is great to use as an everyday calendar. It only took two minutes to set it up, so easy to use. It's also easy to share via a link, or share with individuals. Repeating appointments are just like the ones in outlook and you can set your status to busy, free, etc. It also lets you to add details like times, places, and notes. Love it! It would be great to share a calendar with my kiddos AND their parents so EVERYONE always knows due dates and what we're learning.

Thing #20

Google Docs (revisited)

I've actually already sat through a faculty roll-in session covering google docs AND a staff development covering it too! So maybe I'm thinking of turning Pro soon. :)

Google docs is cool, although it did take a while to get adjusted to after being spoiled with Office 2007 (well worth the $100). But given it's ease of use and availability it is a good candidate for high school students. They can keep their files online at all times without losing their media, don't have to worry about compatibility when printing, and no longer have an excuse for not getting their work done.

It's not as powerful as ofice, but the word editor is good. The presentation tool is also esy to use, format, add pics, etc. What I like best though is the spreadsheet being used as an online survey. It's instant gratification for burning questions! I also like how the documents can be shared, calendars can be shared, and websites can be created too!

Three good ideas for using google docs are listed here:

1. Writing science fair research papers. Students can easily switch between delicious and google doc windows to write their paper. They can share their papers with others for peer review/editing by allowing permissions and track changes ALWAYS!

2. Group work presentations can help the kids presesnt to the class what they've learned about a particular science topic. As a group they can all log on to the school computers and make real time changes as they work, then take it home and work on it individually still in real time.

3. I can use the spreadsheet ool to make surveys for the kids to fill out. Surveys such as what I can do to help them learn better, how do they think they are doing in class, what resources/special needs do they have.

Thing #15

http://delicious.com/rmart4

It's one thing to bookmark within your browser, Delicious is a whole other thing! Delicious puts a spin on bookmarking! I can remember writing research papers and making lots of bookmarks. Then forgetting what each bookmark was about as I went back to cite my sources. Where was delicious back in the day???

This site allows you to add EASILY add keywords and make notes, while bookmarking the page. How helpful is that? Just install, add some keywords, heck you can even just highlight some. Then login to your Delicious page and ta da...everything is nicely arranged for you. Had I thought of it, I'd probably be a little richer monetarily speaking. LOL I'm reccommending this site to my kiddos and my colleagues since many are in grad school. Not only is it helpful for citing sources, but it can be helpful for doing other research like large purchases (cars, high end electronics, houses).

I'm so glad to find an all new level of organization! When I teach classes that require science fair research, my kids will get a "how to" on this site so they can stay organized and not lost in clutter. I can easily get their links from their username and this can help me keep an eye on their progress in their research paper.

Thing #18

YouTube...is addicting. As soon as you click on one link, you are given more suggestions. And being like a kid in a candy store I open lots of new link in new windows...soon a few hours have passed by! Yikes!

One video I found on YouTube, thanks to CSI actually, is over biomagnification. It's fast paced, exciting, and visually appealing. My kids liked it and seemed to grasp the fact that poisons in our food chains do not go away, but instead actually accumulate and can be harmful.


Another video I found shows DNA transcription. It's always easier to have an animation embedded in a powerpoint because the kiddos are usually better off at seeing how all the "big words" actually work and fit together. They get lost in vocabulary and fail to see the big picture.

A video I found that is just plain useful is how to clean a K&N air filter. I got one of these for my car, and a cleaning kit but was unsure how to use it. This showed how to clean it and was sort of amusing.

The last YouTube video I found was of my father and I. It was our Route 66 vacation from 2006. I haven't checked on it in a while and was amazed to see over 949 views. Wow!

TeacherTube is probably more school appropriate. It's edited for the school student audience. I saw an AP Biology podcast that was great and I'm eager to show it with the AP Bio teacher at my school. I think it would definitely help her kids since they are trying to earn dual credit. I think my kiddos could also produce and star in some vids demonstrating cell processes. There's no better way to learn a concept than trying to teach it to others.

Thing #19

This is yet another great resource that I have found useful for use personally and professionally. I especially enjoyed the http://voicethread.com/#q+science.b10243.i70627 voicethread. The pictures of the students engaged in the project and the way they put their own voices to explain what was happening was fantastic.

Each school year we always start with water displacement to find the volume of irreuglar objects. I think this would be a great site to show before conducting the lab so the kiddos know what's expected of them.

Professionally, I can see myself creating pictures of various organisms and the students would have to label the parts. I think this would really benefit those students of mine that are visual learners. It's also an easy way for a group of students to evenly contribute their part in a group prooject. In my personal life, I would like to utilize voicethread to connect with my family members who live out of town. We can send eachother pictures and allow for comments to be left.

Thing #17

Podcasting is awesome. I took the staff development class covering podcasting and thought of many things the kiddos could use it for. All of them have some sort of mp3 player these days, from ipods to cell phones. Perhaps they won't want to listen to my voice over their earphones, but perhaps if they produced and starred in their own works, they could use it as a study tool.

I looked through the iTunes search engine and found a few podcasts for biology/AP biology. There were a lot of college level lectures such as one from UC Berkely. These would be cool to tune in to to review the material I learned over 10 years ago and to see what progess has been made in the science fields. I also found AP Biology from peevyhouse. There is a hilarious cell song that has an addicting tune still lingering in my head. I think I can use this cell song and the kidney song to my kids as a fun learning experience.

This six weeks, I've invited my students to produce a song/rap or movie over eukaryotic cells. I'm very interested to see their creativity and hoping I get lucky that I can use some of their works in future podcasts for my kiddos next year.

At NMHS, we already produce lab safety videos each year for school use, and I think this would be a great addition! What a wonderful resource it would be to have a library/collection future students could access to help them get their study on.

As a side note:Perhaps it's no longer cool to study as we did when we were growing up. Repitions with flash cards, study groups, parents quizzing us, etc. I think this could be a great way for those machismo young men to study before a test without losing any cool points amongst their peers. It's sort of a concealed study guide.

Thing #16

I absolutely loved this site. It has so much information that I can utilize in my classroom. The only thing I wasn't too fond of was the Early Reviews link on it. It is a wonderful idea to be able to get free books and after reviewing the list, there were some great books. However, all the requests for books were closed. I was going to read the rules for requesting a book, but the only way I could do it was to create an account.

The 50 book challenge is something that I would like to utilize in my classroom. My students would be able to track their progress and blog about it. The fact that I can search millions of titles at the touch of a button is amazing. I remember when I was taught the dewey decimal system as the main search factor and even then it was only in my school library. My students are growing up in an age where technology is key in succeeding.

Thing #7b

I have very much enjoyed using Google Reader. It's so useful to have current information at my fingertips. I was born and raised in Austin and I still like to keep up with the goings on in the area. This particular statesman.com blog is a great resource for events and also gives me a good laugh once in a while.

In http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/kelso/entries/2008/10/31/wachovia_explains_bike_deal.html?cxntfid=blogs_kelsos_cranky_corner , John Kelso is referring to an incident that happened at a local Wachovia branch. A bike rider was not allowed to go through the drive through because he was not in a car. You would think with Austin being as bike-friendly as it is, the banks would also take that in to consideration when designing their buildings.

Thing #14

In exploring the various websites, I found wonderful resources to use in my classroom. I can use http://30boxes.com/ to create a calendar for my students so they always know what assignments they will have and when they will be due. I can create quizzes for them on http://quizlet.com/ and also track their progress. I especially liked exploring http://wordle.net/. It would be great to create a vocabulary list for my students in a creative way. I think it is easier to learn and remember words when you see and study them in a format different than just the basic one word per row. This "thing" was a favorite of mine to participate in, so far. I definitely plan on implementing many of these findings in my classroom. This is one of my "wordle" creations.

Thing #13

Online image generators are soooooo cool to use! It would be great to make trading cards of different organisms to help teach the 6 kingdoms. I would make cards of all sorts of organisms that include key words about their structures and have my kiddos deduce which kingdom the organism belongs to.

I think this would also be great to use in teaching cell organells. Each organelle would have its own card listing it's function. The kids could use them as flash cards, but not your typical boring flash cards.

I can't wait to spend more time making these for my kids next year! Sweet! :)

Created with Mosaic Maker



Created with Trading Card Maker

Thing #12

Heyyy slideshow! This thing makes cells psychidelic - like totally groovy man. :)

I think this would be great for a class website. I could have my kiddos find various images and make a collage that tells a story or theme we are learning in class. I'd love to see their creativity and it's always great to have an extra set of 136 eyes to browse through all the web's images.

1. Red Blood Cells by rpongsaj
2. Blood Cells by Andrew Mason
3. Cheek Cells by http://www.flickr.com/photos/19877840@N00/2895610842/
4. Plant Cells: Leaf by Ah Pao

Thing #11

My theme is Plant Cell vs. Animal Cell. Recently, my class learned how to use microscopes and used some plant cells and cheek cells to reenforce the use of the microscope and the difference between plant and animal cells. The pic above is from a plant (Flickr Ah Pao): it's characteristically green due to cholorphyll, rectangular block shaped, and you can even see the cholorplasts.

I think flickr is a great tool, easy to use, and awesome to find royalty-free pics. I wish we could print in color in mass scale so my kiddos could keep these images in their notes. Perhaps the more visual images they see, the better the learning will stick. Putting the plant cell along with this image of a cheek cell (http://www.flickr.com/photos/19877840@N00/2895610842/) below shows a wonderful contrast between these two cell types. Of course, if we had a class website, they could always visit these pics to use as a refresher.

Thing #10

Up until tonight, I had never heard of creative commons (cc). I though it had something to do with copyright laws. After learning about it, I have started noticing it in different websites. It is good to know that I can use CC material without fear of retribution for using it illegally. I now know that I can also CC my own material for use by others and I will be more careful in what my students use when doing various projects for my class.

What I like about cc is that my students can utilize this type of material at their leisure and expand on it by adding their own ideas. Creative commons is a safe and easy way to find useful and educational items that will benefit the learning and creativity of my students.

I can't wait to see what my kiddos will come up with in the search engines on upcoming projects! :)

Thing #9

Playing in the sand is not my forte. I don’t like sand in my shoes, between my toes, or in my car. I’m also not a fan of the wikispaces generator. I do like the idea of a wiki, but after having used this generator, I gained a headache and there wasn’t any Excedrin in the house. The text editor was not very powerful, and often confusing. I love WYSIWYG, and I’m usually pretty good at knocking out computer tasks fairly easy, but this editor was a pain. Surely there is a better one out there??? Anyone???

Perhaps I’m just spoiled in the world of flash and shockwave media, but my wiki was rather drab and boring. If I had stumbled upon it just surfing the web, I probably would have surfed on by without giving it a second glance. Wikipedia also does not have a lot of flash media, but is still visually somewhat more appealing than the space I made. Maybe I just need some more elbow grease?

Thing #8

I believe there is definite potential for a wiki in my near future. A wiki can definitely get my students involved and enthused about a project that they can do on their own with minimal supervision. They can learn about assignments, communicate with others, and have questions answered by their peers and myself. It is a great resource for students, teachers, and parents alike.

I really liked the idea of http://kcountingbook.wetpaint.com/ because it engaged the minds of kindergarteners and their ability to count various objects. I don’t think the creator of this particular wiki kept up with the project as they should have. The pictures were all posted but that was it. There was no follow-up to the progress of the project nor were questions answered to those few who did leave comments.

Based on the title alone, I was looking forward to reading the wiki entitled http://salutetoseuss.wikispaces.com/ as Dr. Seuss books are a favorite of mine. However, after I looked at the wiki, I was not impressed. I liked the fact that it engaged PK through 6th grade students and that the project was completed, but it shows none of the completed work. The format of the wiki was great and the pictures that were posted were fitting for the project, but I was still disappointed with overall wiki.

Another wiki with a great idea was the http://schoolsthen.wikispaces.com/project. Students interviewed their grandparents to learn about changes from the way schools were in the past compared to the way they are now. It was a wonderful way to fill a generational gap. Though every thing about the project that they discussed was posted and kept current, there was no organization. All the answers were cluttered making it difficult to read and get easily bored with.

My idea of a wiki in my classroom would start basic and eventually become larger as my students became more familiar with it. I would like to start with posting the assignments for the week and allowing the students and teachers to post comments about them. If a student had a question on an assignment, I would want them to post their question in hopes that a peer would be able to help them out. If a teacher saw an assignment and they new they could assist a student with it, I would want them to leave a comment so the students new that if they needed extra help, they could turn to them for it.

Thing #7

Being able to leave comments on others’ blogs has been a great learning experience. In leaving comments, I know I have a greater chance of being heard by the author of the blogs. I also hope that I have helped others with the comments I left. It seems as though people are more comfortable stating what they feel when leaving a comment on a blog. It’s an informal way to share expertise and also gain insight on both sides of any subject. Though everyone may not agree with comments that are left, there is no face to face confrontation that can lead a hostile situation. Imagine what would happen if comments were verbally made on a controversial issue while everyone was in the same room. It’s just like we teach our students …. use words, not fists. It works on so many levels.

Thing #6

"If automakers want the money, they should ditch the jets and drive cross country in a hybrid"

LOL :P

I’ve been an avid reader of John Kelso, columnist at the Austin-American Statesman since I was a teenager. His humor is one-of-a-kind and with titles like the one above, how can you not want to read more?

For a good read, click here for the rest of the article. Perhaps, you’ll become a fan too.

My experience on the google reader has been a-ok! It is easy to navigate to a page, then enter the address into the add button and let the reader search for the feed itself. Maybe I'm lazy, but some rss links are hard to find or the wrong format and so that nifty little feature comes in pretty handy. All the updates are nice to have on one page, but with 10 feeds, it can seem cluttered and overwhelming. It would be nice if you could delete the ones you've read like email.

Thing #5

The Increasing Cost of Higher Education

This school year, I started off my classes with the importance of staying in school, a good work ethic, and the benefits of hard work. I told my kids that college is attainable and there is plenty of money out there to help pay for higher education. They just have to work hard, earn the grade, and set themselves apart by participating in extra-curricular activities.

THEN…it turns out we’ve been in a recession since Dec. 2007. Funds are drying up and drying up quick; funds that include grants and scholarships the majority of college students depend on for financial aid. My students are only freshmen, so in four years maybe the economy will rebound, but what about this year’s seniors and those already in college. What debt do they face???
In the news today, the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education released a report stating that the cost of college is rising and rising OUTRAGEOUSLY!

“Overall, the report found, published college tuition and fees increased 439 percent from 1982 to 2007 while median family income rose 147 percent. Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade, and students from lower-income families, on average, get smaller grants from the colleges they attend than students from more affluent families.” Click here for the full article.

The majority of my kiddos are Title 1, low-income. For those that are college bound, the road just got rougher.

Thing #4

Blogging is a wonderful way to show self-expression through writing. It is unrestrictive and real. You can sense what the blogger is writing about and sometimes how they feel as they are typing. In reading blogs of fellow educators, I noticed that they all have different styles of teaching yet there is a consensus about their goal, which is to educate their students. I especially enjoyed reading the “Why I don’t assign homework” blog. I agree with his stance on who will and won’t do the assignments. Only my students already making A's will do the homework, while those who don't care about their grades won't do the homework.

When people can read other peoples’ blogs, they can often learn ways to improve themselves and how they approach teaching habits in their own classrooms. There is an abundance of experience in blogs that you can’t find so easily in everyday life because it’s not easy to see what other teachers do when you are usually only in their own classroom.

Thing #2

My Thoughts on Web 2.0

Back in the days of high school, I remember wanting a computer so bad. Windows95 had an awesome release party all over the news featuring the Rolling Stones, and here I was creating all my high school masterpieces using my infamous Brother typewriter. Alas, my family was too poor to purchase a computer. How I envied those that could cut and paste, while I had to physically erase with a pencil eraser. Those were the days...jk

10 years later and I'm already on my second long term relationship with a Dell XPS laptop computer. Wow, a lot happens in just ten years time. Come to think of it, a lot happens in just a year's time, a few month's time. The computer world is rapidly changing as technology improves. Information is posted everywhere, so much that it can become overwhelming trying to sort out reliable info from some not so reliable sources.

Web 2.0 is a fantastic resource for collaborating; this application of knowledge ensures lifelong learning. Thus, classroom teachers should embrace all the web has to offer. Students need to be engaged through today's technology, since they will be responsible for using these tools to create tomorrow's inventions.

Preparing our students for beyond graduation includes proper technology training. Blogs, wikis, and podcasting can all be used as resource materials for kids. The more they are exposed to content and contribute to that content, the more engaged they are in their own education. Not to mention, these types of communication save many a tree (inner tree hugger coming out) and much time (inner procrastinator coming out). :)

I hope to use a blog, wiki, and eventually create a website with an active discussion board for my biology kids. I believe this will reinforce key objectives while preparing them for what awaits them in the real world. I also think constant feedback from the kids will, in turn, help streamline my lessons to their current pace and allow me to revisit any misconceptions they have over the course material. This would empower me to be an effective teacher that's on the ball and has the respect and trust of my students.

Thing #1

Reviewing the 7.5 Habits of a Lifelong Learner...

Honestly, I can't say I've embraced the 7.5 habits in my 29 years. High school was easy for me, straight A student, top of the class, went to college and breezed through my first year since most was a repeat of my high school coursework. Then came my sophomore year in college, and all of a sudden, my procrastination ways ceased their magic. I soon learned my study skills were not up to par and I was no longer cruising down easy street. I ran into myself as an obstacle! It took quite a while, but I finally saw the "light" and improved my learning skills.

This past year was my first year teaching and I've learned that textbooks, worksheets, and powerpoints bore kids in 2.0 seconds flat! I'm here to learn and utilize fun, tech savvy ways that will keep my students engaged and excited about coming to my class every day. I hope to prepare them for beyond high school and instill in them a great work ethic. That way they will not be sadly let down by procrastination like I was.

The toughest habit for me is the first one. Seeing the bigger picture, having the end in mind has not been my forte in the past. I was very much a "what do I need to know now" person, thus all the knowledge I gained was never applied. And without application, it gets lost and has to constantly be retaught. Yuck! But I'm improving, and this course is one of many steps in the right direction.

The easiest habit will be having my own learning toolbox. I have a lot of great resources, all easily accessible. The help is out there, I just have to put forth the effort and ignore my procrastinating ways. I love technology and catch on fairly quickly. I'm always game to expanding my toolbox - I'm already eying Google's Sketch Up as a replacement for Photoshop and Gimp.

Finally, teaching and mentoring others will be the most important habit to me during this course and my lifetime. Sharing and teaching my knowledge with other teachers and students is APPLICATION! Applications is lifelong learning. Lifelong learning is a HAPPY me! :)