Thing #9

I had a lot of fun playing around with the different image generators. The smiley face generator was my absolute favorite! I made myself laugh I don't know how many times at all the different images I made. The one I posted was the last one I saw. Since I recently got engaged, I'd say it is easily my favorite. I sent it to my fiance and he just laughed at me. :)

I think the way that I could use something like this effectively in the classroom would be for giving instructions on different assignments. If I am going to create a test or homework sheet, then I could create one of these images with special instructions and they would know to look for the silly smileys to help them remember what to do. Sometimes my 5th graders need a little something extra when it comes to finishing something on their own. This would help them to pay attention to the directions.

FYI: The image generators I liked the best were Happy Face Generator and Image Chef.

Thing #8

Poochie
Originally uploaded by hba827

I'm not sure of how I could appropriately use some of the Flickr mashups in my classroom, but it's definitely worth taking the time to think about it. I have enjoyed playing around with the different mashup tools to create different things with my photos. I made motivational posters, puzzles (as seen in this post), magazine covers, and a breast cancer awareness poster. There are some others that I used, but these are the ones I played around with the most. I would most likely use this more in my personal life to doctor some of my pictures. The tools make the picture something uniquely different but still show off the goodness of the original picture.
As I stated in the last post, I am mostly ok with posting pictures online but there is a line that has to be drawn (in my opinion) between posting pictures and posting one's entire life story online. If someone can literally find me because they have put together where I am by the different aspects in my pictures, then I have put too much out there. If I consider those boundaries and post carefully, then I am ok with posting pictures.** I think the more I think about it, the more uncomfortable I am becoming with posting personal pictures online.**

Thing #7

In Flight
Originally uploaded by hba827

I added the above picture to my Flickr account to share with the apsu23things group. I had changed to Flickr several years ago when the Yahoo! Photos site I was using no longer accepted pictures, but was replaced by Flickr. I imported all of my photos at that point, yet never used the site again. Today was the first time I actually signed back in to the site to use it. I went ahead and uploaded this picture because it has become one of my favorites. I chose to use one of my photos for this portion of the assignment. However, I started searching using the different tags and realized a while later that I had been looking at pictures for what seemed like forever. There are pictures of just about anything I might need a picture of. For me, I think this site would be good to store pictures that we take in the classroom so that parents could have access at home. I post them to my classroom website (with permission of course), but this would be an excellent way to share them with parents. I would also like to use this site for storing and sharing pictures with family members who live out of town. What an easy way to store and share!
I have not used any other storage sites, so I have nothing to really compare with Flickr. I think it has the potential to be a great site for picture storage...we'll see after I get the opportunity to play around with it more! I do like having the option of making pictures private. It doesn't really bother me that the pictures are public. I would, however, make sure to create a group for sharing pictures (especially for students and parents) so that only the people who need the pictures can get to them. Keep students safe takes precedence over sharing pictures any day.

Thing #6

I have been browsing through the different categories of Web 2.0 tools and believe I have found the one that would benefit me the most...personally. My web browser is completely full of bookmark categories after bookmark folders after scattered bookmarks across the top of the toolbar. In exploring the award winners, I found the del.icio.us tool. When I first started looking at the site, I thought it was only a list of bookmark sites other people had created. What I didn't realize was how much this could benefit me personally. This site has "the biggest bookmark collection in the universe," as quoted from their page. I have found links to many different sites because other people have listed links according to their needs, their interests, and just because they can. The best part about this site is that I can create a del.icio.us link site of my own. I can keep track of the different sites I keep "losing" bookmarks to, share my bookmarks with others, and see what they are bookmarking. The site also has a collection of the most popular bookmarked sites and you can search to find those you are interested in. Now I can sign into my del.icio.us account and import all the bookmarks from my web browser, tag new sites I want to keep track of, and access my del.icio.us list from any computer!
I'm sure I could find a way to incoporate this into a school setting, even if it's just used to link websites I plan to use with my class at some point. This would be a good way to keep track of all the different sites I use with the students at some point throughout the year. When I get ready to show them a new site I have found, all I have to do is visit my del.icio.us site and there are all the links I have tagged. It doesn't matter whether I am using my laptop, the classroom computers, or computers at a totally different school. I still have access to the sites I have saved for them.

Thing #5

Reading through the different resources on Web 2.0 listed on the Thing 5 section of APSU's 23 Things blog, I began to feel overwhelmed with the amount of potential found in Web 2.0 for Education. One of the most gripping statements I found in the resources I read through was one that was asking if teachers were going to continue to do things the way they had always been done or begin to step out and do things in a new way, incorporating the read/write web into the things we do. It's interesting to think about the many ways that the different Web 2.0 tools can be used in the classroom on a daily basis. Web 2.0 is making our world a world of collaboration. Writing, publishing, and interacting with content has never been the same and will likely continue to change the world of information for many years to come.
In my opinion, School 2.0 is an atmosphere where teachers take hold of the new technologies and put them into action in their classrooms. Students learn through a more interactive program than sitting in a chair with pencil, paper, and books all day long. The video on Understanding Web 2.0 described a classroom similar to the one listed below, but further back than a time period I am familiar with. If our school has changed that much since the time described, how much more can we expect things to change in the future. We must really begin to know and understand Web 2.0 as they will soon become commonplace within our schools. It may take a while to learn the new programs and technologies, but it will all be for the benefit of our students. I believe schools will change to a more interactive format through the use of Web 2.0 tools. Students will learn to interact with each other in new ways and will help each other in those interactions.

Thing #4

Blogging on the internet creates a very interactive community. This would not be so without comments. Personally, I am a very introverted person and find myself reading many blogs and only commenting on a few. Over the last couple of months, I have started commenting on what others are writing and it opens up many doors to conversation with people all over the country (and even the world). I can converse with others about topics I am interested in, but the conversation only begins when I make a comment on a post someone else has written. If I do not leave a comment, I am choosing to allow the topic to end on my part. Commenting and beginning a conversation with another person can lead to new knowledge gained on various topics of interest.

Over the course of last night and this morning, I read through blogs (written on commenting) posted on the following blogs: Cool Cat Teacher, BlueSkunk, Brown's Thoughts, and ProBlogger. Each blogger posted in their own unique style, but they certainly had similar views on commenting on others' blogs. One of the points I found most interesting was that we should always have good manners when commenting on a blog post. It is really important to agree to disagree. It is ok to disagree with something someone has posted, but they are entitled to have their own opinions without have others attack them. In my opinion, as reflected in some way in the post about comments as well, it is always important to give positive feedback even when disagreeing. Let the blogger know that you hear what they are saying and respond to some of the good points even if you disagree. The second thing I thought was interesting was to make sure you have really read and understand the post made by the blogger before commenting. Don't just skim the post and think you understand. Take a few minutes to make sure you understand before commenting. Then, when you do comment, make sure the comment adds something to the post. Comment to show the reader that what you are reading is worth your time as well as the time and effort they put into it.

I have been reading several blogs throughout the day, and I find that there are many people in our class that have interesting ideas and each person has their own unique way of saying what they think. It's neat to see the thoughts of other people. One of the first posts I responded to was Lynette's post on how to use a blog in the classroom. She had some interesting ideas on how to apply what she has learned about blogs and I really like her style of sharing her thoughts. I will continue to add more as I make comments throughout the semester.

Edit: Blogs I've commented on -
1. Lynette: see above paragraph.
2. Lorrie: I really liked Lorrie's blog on the use of an animoto video. I think it was a great way to help the students get to know one another more! I also wanted to share, with her, a way I had thought we could use it.
3. Stacy: I found Stacy's Summary blog to be very in depth and interesting. She and I had come to some of the same conclusions by the end of the process, so I wanted to let her know that I had read and agreed with her.
4. Shawn: Shawn is not a member of our class, but she is a blogger that I read often. She blogs more on her spiritual journey and the ministries therein. I read a blog about parenting that I thought touched on how I feel about being a "school mom." I am not a mother, but my students sometimes tell me I am their school mom which challenges me to be a good role model and to guide them in my actions and attitudes. I commented on this blog to let Shawn know I was reading (I have not commented on her blog before.) and to let her know how much her insights help me from day to day.
5. Jenna: Jenna is a classmate from High School. I have been reading her blog for a while now, and I thought it was time to comment. Each of her blogs is filled with so much wisdom and encouragement for others. I wanted to let her know how much I appreciate her blog.
6. Elizabeth: I liked Elizabeth's post on Social Networking. She stressed the importance of keeping our students informed. I shared my opinion that it is important to keep ourselves informed in order to keep our students up on what's happening / can happen on these different social networking sites.

Thing #3

WOW! There are so many uses for a blog in the classroom. I'll just share a few of my favorites.

In my classroom, I like to use a blog linked to our classroom website to keep parents up-to-date on the happenings in our classroom. I send out a weekly newsletter, but also make the same information (presented on the blog by a student helper) available on a blog. I haven't actually gotten this started this year, but I have used it successfully in the past. Even if parents do not get a hard copy of the newsletter, they are still able to get the information. Many are appreciative of the extra effort made to keep them in the loop.

One way that I would like to use a blog in the future would be to present some of the ideas I have for the classroom. There are so many things that we can do for each of the very different areas of the classroom (instruction, materials, storage, etc.). I think it is very important, as teachers, to share our ideas and help others as much as we can. There is always a chance we might stumble across something that might be extremely helpful for us as well!

My favorite way to use a blog in the classroom is for writing. My students are really excited about getting to write blogs for their writing assignments. In the beginning this just means they are taking the stories they have written and are posting them, but then they realize that others have posted and they can read what has been written. Further into the process, we will take the stories and work on editing our writing. Students can work with partners and proofread, edit, and offer new ideas for writing pieces. I find it's a great way for students to share their writing. The best part for them is that they can read them at home if they don't get the chance to at school!

Thing #2

Creating the blog was not a difficult experience. As I mentioned in the previous post, there are a couple of other blogs I have created and frequently post on. I enjoy connecting with other people, and having a blog seems to be a great way to do that. I chose the title that I did because I think this learning experience is truly going to be a journey. Some of these things will be new for me. A journey is an experience in which much learning takes place, so I felt the name was fitting.
My avatar is not designed to look like me. It looks more like my personality than my "real self." I would much rather people know me by my personality than by the way I look. That means they really know me. What's on the outside does not always reflect what is on the inside. I am a really laid back kind of girl and like to go with the flow. I also love the fall so I added that in the background. :)

Thing #1

Going through the 7 and 1/2 Habits activity was quite the interesting experience. I found that there were a couple that I thought I was especially good at doing, but one that really stood out to me as one I have a very hard time doing. One of the hardest habits for me is looking at problems as challenges. All to often, I opt to freak out rather than find a creative way to solve the problem / let the problem be solved. In fact, I have a very BAD habit of freaking out when facing a problem (something that will change the way things are going in a major way). That was very obvious this week when my dear fiance and I had some awful car trouble. Insurace decided they didn't want to do anything about it and I immediately freaked out because of the amount of money I knew we'd be expected to pay to repair his (dear fiance's) car. Turns out, the insurace company made a huge mistake and everything will be taken care of. I could have relaxed, but freaked out as soon as I was faced with the issue. This is, however, not the case for all problems of which I am faced. It seems that when I am faced with "problems" related to my career in education / the classroom, I am better prepared to view them as challenges. This bad habit is more of a personal life issue.
I have found that one of the better habits I have is using technology to my advantage. I have always enjoyed learning and try to learn something new every day. Since I am not able to make it to the library/a lecture on a topic every day, I turn to the internet as a learning environment. I consistently participate in mail groups and teacher boards, read news sites and personal / professional blogs, and e-mail with "pen pals" across the nation for the purpose of increasing my knowledge base. I believe this is one of the easier habits for me because I am so interested in technology and the internet. I enjoy searching for new information and reading about things I have never heard of before. Personally, this is definitely using the internet for my advantage.
One of the things that I would really like to learn when exploring the Web 2.0 tools is how to take what I am learning and apply it to my every day [classroom] life. Many of the Web 2.0 tools would be highly beneficial in the classroom, and I would like to be prepared to use them as effectively as I possibly can.
Setting up this blog was not really a difficult task. I have 2 different personal blogs that I frequently write on, so this is just another to add to my list. :) I did enjoy creating something new and learning about myself as a lifelong learner.