Blogfolio

I.CONCEPT MAP

I believe this assignment links well with standard number 2a.
2. Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

The concept map was created electronically on a computer program that allows you to design your own thoughts into a creative diagram.  Many different digital tools were used and it definitely promotes student learning throughout the process of creating it.  This activity could definitely be used in my classroom for the higher functioning students.  I love the idea of creating the concept map electronically because it opens so many doors of creativity.

II.INTRO VIDEO

The introduction video assignment links well with standard number 3a and number 4c.
3. Model Digital Age Work and Learning
a. Demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.
4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
c. Promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information.

The introduction video demonstrates fluency in the use of a video recorder and transferring data from the video device to the computer and uploading it to the media of your choice.  This relates to standard 3a.  Throughout this assignment, the students would also have to demonstrate digital etiquette and responsibility by making sure they are polite in their video and keeping their video clean and respectful to others.  This relates to standard 4c.  This is something that could be used at the beginning of the school year to allow the students to introduce themselves and get to know each other.  They would love being able to record themselves then going back and watching their own video as well as others.  I really like this assignment as well.

III.MOVIE

The movie assignment links well with standard number 3c.
3. Model Digital Age Work and Learning
c. Communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents and peers using a variety of digital age media and formats.

The production of this video relates to standard number 3c in the since that students will be communicating relevant information in the format of a movie that they create.  The students must do this effectively in order to get their point across and be understood by others.  This assignment is yet another that could be used in my classroom.  It is somewhat of a more complex format of power point presentations and displays an advance in technology.  I like this assignment as well and really enjoyed creating my own movie.

IV.VOKI

The voki relates well with standard number 2c.
2. Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
c. Customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies and abilities using digital tools and resources.

Creating a voki allows the students to be creative and broaden their imagination with the use of today’s technology.  They are able to personalize their own voki however they would like and use the voki as a spokesperson for their assignments.  I love the voki idea and think the students in my classroom would really like it as well.  This is something that students of all ages, no matter how young or how old, would really enjoy becoming involved with.

V.WEB 2.0 SITES

The web 2.0 sites link well with standard number 5c.
5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership
c. Evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.

Browsing the web 2.0 sites allowed me to view current sites that can be used in the classroom to help engage the students by using the newest digital tools and technology.  I was able to look through a list of today’s most popular sites used by educators and professionals.  These sites could be really helpful to me as a teacher and I will definitely be saving the link for future reference.  I enjoyed browsing through the sites and becoming involved in learning how to benefit from the use of a few of them.

Video: Children Are Our Future

Web 2.0 Websites

I like the Penzu website and the Quizlet website.

Penzu is a site that allows you to make your own journal. This journal can be used in the classroom for daily bell work when the students are given journal writing assignments. There is an option once they finish their journal entry to print and this would be an option if the teacher wants the assignment turned in that morning. If the assignment doesn't need to be turned in right then, it will be saved in the students journal and can be pulled up at a later date. All journal assignments for the whole year can be kept in this online journal. I think this is a wonderful way to keep the students interested and it also helps to organize their work.

The other site I like is the Quizlet website. This site allows you to make your own flashcards for study purposes. This can be used in the classroom, as well as at home. The teacher can have pre-made cards ready on the site and use this as an incentive for the students once they finish their work. The students would enjoy making their own flashcards as well. This is a great way to keep students interested and also keep up with technology. These can also be printed to be kept as a paper form and used in the classroom.

"Gaming to Reengage Boys"

Three reasons why boys are out of sync with school today:
1) Zero Tolerance
2) Fewer Male Teachers
3) Kindergarten is the Old Second Grade

This speakers expresses the reasons why boys are so out of touch with school today. She explains certain factors that relate to this problem and then goes on to explain a way to help! Boys love video games. Therefore, why not use gaming to reengage boys? Design better educational games for these kids to play, uncompress some of the curriculum so that they become comfortable in their surroundings, find more money for game design, and look at teacher attitudes. We need to become more aware of finding ways to better the environment for boys in our schools today. They need to feel as if they have a purpose and if they belong in school.

I agree with this speaker. She makes a very valid point about the attitude of boys in school today and how they interact based on their surroundings. Finding a way to reengage boys through gaming that interests them is a great idea.

Post Fifteen: "World Peace Game" Ted.com

The World Peace Game is a wonderful idea that a gifted teacher from Virginia name John Hunter came up with. It started out when he was planning a lesson in 1978 for students in Africa with all the problems of the world. He came up with an interactive game for the students to play. It consists of many layers of the world and thousands of game pieces, four countries that students make up and each country has a cabin with a prime minister. There is a world bank, a weather goddess and a 13 page crisis document. The bond that this teacher has with his students helps a lot throughout this lesson/game. The students are given a crisis and they have to figure out what to do to save the world from this crisis.

I LOVE this idea! It gives students so much responsibility at such a young age and makes them think critically and make life changing decisions. It allows them to learn so much from each other by working together and coming up with so many different scenarios and ideas. This teacher has made such a big difference in the world of teaching and the students enjoy this! I wish that every gifted class would engage in this game so that my son would have the chance to experience this.

Post Fourteen: "Educator's Guide to Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats"

This article is a guide for teachers to have a better understanding of cyber bullying and cyber threats. This notifies the educators of warning signs and what to look for when the students are actively using the internet. This article also expresses the legal issues associated with cyber bullying and cyber threats. There are certain privacy laws that must be followed and different ways of handling situations when it comes to the Internet.

This is a very important article for all educators to be made aware of. It has some very informative items and can help educators know what to look for when their students are using the Internet and know how to handle certain situations.

Post Thirteen: "Why Flipped Classrooms Are Here To Stay"

This article describes flipped classrooms. A flipped classroom is when the student are given the classroom lecture to view as a recording for homework and the class time is used to discuss the lecture and answer any questions the students may have about the information. The article expresses details of how to conduct a flipped classroom and the benefits from it as well.

I love the idea of a flipped classroom. This allows class time to be used more wisely. Letting the students view the lecture on their own time allows them to engage more and pay attention because they are doing it when they want to and they don't have the distraction of a classroom full of students. I love this idea!

Post Twelve: "Philanthropy"

This article discusses technology and how far we have come with gaming systems over the past decade. The writer expresses the importance of keeping all old material and information for use in the future. It is important to archive this information. The virtual world of video games is rapidly progressing day by day and the use of archived information helps to better this technology for the future.

I found it amusing when the children were introduced to the first video game and the reaction they had when they saw how basic the graphics were. It amazes me how far we have come with technology and the things that have developed over the past decade.

Summer Vacation Concept Map

Summer Vacation

I.       Beach

A beach is a landform along a shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, pebbles or cobblestones. Our local beaches on the coast consist of sand. This is a great way to spend the day with the family and inexpensive as well!

A.    Salt Water

B.    Fresh Water

II.   Camping

Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. It may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motor home, cabin or no shelter at all. Camping as a recreational event became popular in the early 20th century. This is frequently done at national or state parks and privately owned campgrounds.

A.    Cabin

B.    Tent

III.    Museums

A museum is a building in which objects of historical, scientific, artistic, or cultural interest are stored and exhibited for public view. Most large museums are located in major cities and more local ones exist in smaller cities. This can be a fun summer trip for the family and educational for the children as well.

A.    Object-Centered

B.    Narrative

IV.    Amusement Parks

An amusement park consist of a large outdoor area that could include fairground rides, water rides, refreshments, games and other types of entertainment. An amusement park is more elaborate than a simple city park or playground. These amusement parks usually provide attractions meant to cater specifically to certain age groups, as well as some that are aimed towards all ages. This a great way to spend the day as a family because everyone will be able to find something they will enjoy!

A.    Water Parks

1.    Gulf Islands Waterpark

2.    Rapids Water Park 

B. Theme Parks

V.     Cruise

A cruise is a trip that is taken for pleasure in a large ship over any ocean, river or lake over a period of time. Luxury cruises are typically taken by couples. Themed cruises are more of the family cruise. One of the best known themed cruise is the Disney Cruise.

A.    Themed

B.    Luxury

Voki Teacher Intro

Post Nine: "Safe Social Networking Tailored for K-12 Schools"

This article describes social networks that are used for educational purposes. Classes set up online networking sources to chat within the classes or with different historical figures or celebrities. This allows higher levels of discussions from students.

I think this article is very neat. This is a great way to allow students to use social networking for positive things. Using different historical people and celebrities allows the students to enjoy what they are learning!

Post Eight: "Digital Citizenship"

This article discusses how to use technology appropriately. It names nine themes of digital citizenship.
1) Digital Access - full electronic participation in society
2) Digital Commerce - electronic buying and selling of goods
3) Digital Communication - electronic exchange of information
4) Digital Literacy - process of teaching and learning about technology and the use of technology
5) Digital Etiquette - electronic standards of conduct or procedure
6) Digital Law - electronic responsibility for actions and deeds
7) Digital Rights & Responsibilities - those freedoms extended to everyone in a digital world
8) Digital Health & Wellness - physical and psychological well-being in a digital technology world
9) Digital Security (self-protection) - electronic precautions to guarantee safety

This article is very informative and expresses the correct use of online resources. 

Post Seven: "Children's Internet Protection Act"

This article discusses the CIPA (Children's Internet Protection Act). CIPA is a federal law enacted by Congress to address concerns about access to offensive content over the Internet on school and library computers. This article also discusses the new CIPA deadline. By July 1 of this year, it is going to become mandatory that teachers begin teaching about online safety and cyber bullying.

I think the CIPA is a great law. I understand that teachers should monitor what the students are doing online but, they can't watch every student at every second. This is where the CIPA comes in to play.
I also like the new CIPA deadline. I think that if students were more educated about online safety, the rate of cyber bullying and online predators being able to take advantage of younger children.

Post Six: "A Future Full of Badges"

This article discusses digital badges. MacArthur foundation says it's "a validated indicator of accomplishment, skill, quality or interest,". The Davis badge system is described a different way.  The Davis badge system is based on the sustainable-agriculture program's core competencies- "systems thinking," for example. 

Honestly, I don't really understand the badge the system from this article.  I would like a little more detail about it to better understand it. 

Post Five: "7 Things You Should Know About Gamification"

I think the use of gamification is a wonderful idea. Students seem to become more involved and more interested when they are doing something they enjoy doing and almost every child loves to play games. There are so many different types of games that could be used simultaneously within the lessons being taught in a classroom. Learning should be fun for the students and teaching should be fun for the teacher as well. Students learn so much more when they enjoy what they are being taught or how they are being taught.

Post Four: "The Virtues of Blogging"

I agree with Martin. Blogging is a very important aspect of our world today. It is something that people enjoy doing and it also can be very informative to others, depending on the topic. Blogging allows us to connect with the virtual world in a way that we could not connect if these same things we were blogging were being published as articles in a magazine or such. You're able to have instant feedback and carry on conversations with so many different people with so many different opinions. Yes, it's hard to say if blogging should be considered "scholarly" work because of the way it is displayed to the virtual world but, that is something that we'll figure out with time.

Post Three: "A Vision of K-12 Students Today" (My Thoughts & Surprising Stats)

    I found this video very informative and interesting. One of the first statements I saw that stuck in my mind was, "Students need to learn "how" to study." I totally agree with this statement. This seems to be one of the hardest things to teach and one of the hardest things for students to learn how to do. If the student is able to study in a way that is beneficial to them, it makes all the difference in the world.
    It also stated that, "Students love technology." and this could not be more true. Students these days enjoy learning so much more when technology is involved. Technology makes learning fun for students. "8-18 year-olds spend 10 hours per day with entertainment media." This statement demonstrates just how much students enjoy technology. If we, as educators and future educators, can find the way to submerge the the two together, learning and technology, students would enjoy filling their brain with new information.
    I also thought that the stats of test scores that were shown throughout this video were very surprising. You would think that the U.S. would have higher test scores than some other countries. Those stats were very surprising to me. That just goes to show that something needs to change. The graduation rate in the U.S. did not really surprise me. I actually thought it would be lower than what the video stated. I'm not saying that it's a good thing, but it's not surprising. We should find a way to change that percentage of graduates though and I think involving technology more would help. Engaging students in the use of technology to help the learning process and teaching students how to use technology correctly is something that should be pushed more in schools today.

Post Two: Article Reflection

I think this article is very informative and shows the very reason why web literacy should be taught in school. The Internet has become the most used source for EVERYTHING these days. Students should be taught how to use it correctly in order to find creditable information. 
As a teacher, I hope that I will able to teach some sort of web literacy to my students. I plan to work with special needs students but, even the simple things needs to be taught because they will be using computers at times as well.
Web literacy is very important and should be taught throughout school, beginning in the early elementary grades. Children these days are smarter than we give them credit for and they learn so much from the Internet. Some things we wish they didn't learn from the Internet as well. This is why web literacy is very important to include in today's educational planning.

Introduction

My name is Violet! I am currently a senior here at USM. I am majoring in Special Education with a minor in Deaf Education. I am married to my high school sweetheart and we have three "biological" children. We also have guardianship of two nephews and a niece.
I work as an Assistant Teacher at the school for children with special needs in Gulfport, MS, the Harrison County Child Development Center. I also work for the City of Gulfport in the summer with the FLASH Summer Day Camp.
I'm very eager to learn more in this class and I'm looking forward to a great summer semester!