Blog Post 16 My thoughts

Blog Post 14 Teaching can be a Profession

In the article Teaching Can be  a Profession by Joel Klein the argument of seniority in teaching is discussed. While I believe that all professions should be evaluated I also believe that seniority should also be considered.

Mr. Klein argues that the downfall of teaching as a profession comes from those teachers who obtain seniority and then decline as teachers. There is not a system to evaluate teachers and give them "walking papers" if they do not add up.

While it is true that some teachers go into being an educator for job security and benefits, there are teachers who are forced to become "glorified babysitters" (as stated by a retired teacher who wishes to be anonymous). They are tied at the hands because there are no consequences for unpleasant behavior in the classroom.

I agree that teachers can and should have a governing body to answer to and should in accordance be evaluated, we must also remember what they face in the classroom and from administration. Let us not judge a teacher who is just trying to regain respect and the love of teaching.

Comments for Kids April

I have enjoyed seeing how different classroom blogs can be a huge variety. Some teachers may not be as complete with instructions as I plan to be in my classroom. I hope to use blogging as a learning tool. I will also have an additional blog for kids on my classroom. I hope to have one where the kids will display work for their parents to see the achievements and for other students around the world to comment on . I am also going to create a journal blog that is shared only with myself and the students where they are free to express themselves through art, writing or video.

03/12

Caleb R

Mrs. Lombard

I too, like books that leave you with a cliff hanger. How else would you know to pick up the next book and read it? It is also fun to make up what you believe would happen. Great review.

04/03/15

Jamesen

Room 3 Aurora Primary school

Jamesen is starting a reading program and chose Hard Luck in the series A diary of a wimpy kid. I expressed it was agreat series to read and hoped that he would blog about the book and his opioions 

04/14/2015 mr. gardner

You are correct Janet, we are biologically formed to have a dominant hand. We get this from our parents genes. Have fun learning about what we inherit from our parents.

Comments for Teachers #4 Summary

My final teacher to comment on was Brian Crosby. I really enjoyed his article about messy learning. Watching his video a couple of weeks ago inspired me to think outside the box and be more enthusiatsic about Project Based Learning and its benefits. I have enjoyed gaining different view points from all the teachers we had to comment on.

04/02/2015

Comments for teachers #4

I enjoyed reading your blog post. It is very important the students be allowed to explore different ways of learning and the use of stem is not widespread. I hope that your learning is messy will inspire other teachers to become more of an advocate for their students.

Learning is Messy

Part 2 Blog Post #5

My Beginning Twitter page





To date I have interacted with teachers, friends and former teachers in my PLN. I plan on adding current and future professors here at University of South Alabama to be able to question, share, and interact with these professionals when I obtain my own classroom. My current PLN includes:
 Dr. Lomax
  Kirstin Bailey
Alison Earley
 Corrine Shirley
Amber Whitlock 
Dr. Vituli
Dr. Strange
Ricky

I know that I will add more and more friends, colleauges and professors to my PLN. These unique individuals will help me to become a more effective and strategic learner as well as a gifted teacher.

Project 16 Part A #2 Technology and Teaching: My Philosophy

In a world where each day brings new progress, as a teacher we must remember that change is inevitable.

My philosophy on using technology in the classroom has grown and developed over the past semester here at the University of South Alabama. When I first began this class, I just hoped to pass and move on. But in taking this course, meeting other perspective teachers, and also using technology to communicate with current teachers, I have come to realize that I must too change. Long gone are the days where a teacher could command his or her classroom to sit idle and listen to lectures. We as teachers must now grab the attention of many students who are far more advanced in technology than we will ever dream to be. I have discovered that engaging students will be more of the focus of teaching and that in doing this the students will retain more knowledge than just that of lectures and facts. I have noticed in EDM 310 for example that students have left the course , feeling overwhelmed, or unable to change or continue to learn. Some were still unable to accept a changing environment for learning. However, I  believe the course is essential to learning how to engage students.

 My new philosophy on technology is to become a lifelong learner. I hope to find a niche in which I belong and soar freely through technology. I want to embrace the rewards and benefits of teaching using technology. I aspire to see students grouped together discovering the power of learning. I embrace that as a teacher I will encounter different uses of technology and blend them into each lesson I am able to share with my students. Teaching and Technology are no longer two different subjects to divide. The two must be interconnected and adapted into the new classroom of today.

Blog Post #13 PBL for special needs

Project Based learning will have to be adapted in your classroom for kids with special needs. The following article is a great way to show students how it is beneficial to keep areas well maintained for those who are handicapped or have difficulties walking. The project would allow kids to help in their community.

Project Base Lesson Plan for Special Needs

After reading the article  I found that this would give students of all ages the chance to make a difference in the community. You could use this in conjunction with health lessons, math lessons, social history lessons, and science lessons.

I feel as teachers we should not only come up with things for the general student population, but for the whole society.

So the blog post to have students in EDM 310 should be to find resources on kids with special needs. Then post different ideas on how to adapt your lessons for those students.

C4T #3

For the Love of Teaching

Diane Dahl

30 day blog challenge

Day 4 comment for 03/29/2015

I am in EDM 310 at University of South Alabama. I enjoyed the concept of potential verses knowledge. So many times teachers forget to see the potential in students and only look at the knowledge they can spit back at them. Without the potential , learning is not possible. Great post!

Day 3 04/12/2015 comment

I liked your comment on testing. Students may have all the concepts to pass a test and still not have learned. Whereas, another student may not pass the test but obtains more knowledge and comprehension of the subject.

blog post 12

Project 14 Lesson Plan

Project #14

Reading 2nd Grade

For my project I created a simple reading and comprehension assignment followed by groups of students creating their own stories. This follows Alex Guide lines for 2nd grade R.ES.2.1-2.4.

LESSON PLAN
Worksheet
Rubric

Blog Post # 11 What can we learn about teaching from these teachers?

Learning is messy

When viewing the video posted by Brian Crosby, I was impressed at the children's ability to use different methods . The children are very enthusiastic about learning about the atmosphere because they are shown different ways to adapt their own skills. The students were able to teach other students. This teacher shows how engaging children can improve reading, writing and learning skills with 2nd language learners. I love how the children were able to expand their intelligence across the world.

Blended Learning by Paul Anderson

Mr. Anderson has a great method of showing students how to comprehend Science. I respect his method of starting with an engaging questions. The students are then instructed o perform their own investigations. His method of reviewing individually or in groups to test their comprehension is phenomenal . More Making thinking Visible by Mark Church should view this teachers concept of Blending Learning. I like his statement of if you can't explain what your learned to someone else, did you learn it?

Making Thinking Visible Mark Church

Mr. Church uses two approaches. First he discusses his subject with his students. He then has small groups review the topic and discuss it. In this video he is sharing the origins of human beginnings. He allows the students to come up with their own questions or "headline" which will intrigue the other students. After he finishes the unit of study he has the students reflect on their initial question and see where they would begin again to explain This method is superior in project based learning because it can engage the students to learn more.

Sam Payne Building Comics

Mr. Payne engages his students by reminding the students that you are responsible for using the Internet safely. He compares the students to superheroes. He shows the students on their level how dangerous the Internet can be when not used properly. He has the students build a comic strip to show how the Internet should be used. It is a great way to teach Internet safety. We can learn from him how to guide our students to use their own judgements.

Project Based Learning with Dean Shareski

Mr. Wander, Ms. Delorme, and Ms. Froshaug have created an enforcement where students are proud of the education they are receiving. They are examples of how teachers should communicate and create class room experiences. We can learn from their innovation and creativity how to achieve success in becoming effective educators. By combining three subjects that are required of their students , they were able to reach beyond the curriculum and have students do amazing work. The students will walk away with knowledge and the love of learning.

Roosevelt Elementary Project Base Learning Program

Project Based learning is intended to create a real world problem and have children solve these problems using technology, knowledge and comprehension. The students will apply their knowledge to the questions asked of them and you can evaluate their understanding and comprehension. The students are guided through projects. One benefit that was described was public speaking. This has always been a problem for me. I think being able to take away that fear as a young child not only helps for later in life but gives them social skills needed in what ever path they chose to take as an adult.

Giving students the "ownership" of the project gives them the confidence they need. I really enjoyed how Roosevelt School involved every classroom, every teacher and every student. The social skills, and communication skills taught here are amazing.

Blog Post #10 Inspirations from Kathy Cassidy

These are the most Amazing 1st Graders! They are students in Ms. Kathy Cassidy's classroom. Seeing them use technology at this age is outstanding and sometimes incomprehensible.

Ms. Cassidy utilizes class room time in very unique ways. She lets her students use technology to display their work in a portfolio that all the world can view. She states in her first interview with Dr. Strange "Why would children use pencil and paper where I can see it, when they could write on a blog where the whole world can see it?"

What incredible incite this teacher has. What better way to aspire your children to become artist or writers.

This approach to learning is something I hope to use in the classroom. Ms. Cassidy inspired me to look beyond a traditional approach. Taking the EDM 310 class at first seems like a horrible experience, until that one teacher shows your their classroom.

I think if more current, traditional and future teachers were to view these videos, their mindset on technology would change.

I plan to use twitter to share these inspirations in my PLN.



Inteview #1 Kathy Cassidy

Interview #2 Kathy Cassidy

Interview #3 Kathy Cassidy

The technique I most respected with her videos was being able to skype other classrooms or professionals and let the children interview them. I think children are able to see how education is important is much more impacting than anything we can have them write about. I hope to set up a class blog in my classroom so that my students can share with family, friends and the world their potential. I also hope to created something similar to facebook just for the classroom where students can contact their classmates and other students their age to begin their own PLN (personal learning network).

March Summary Comments for Kids

Summary

Being able to see and read children's thoughts gives us as teachers such a great power. Knowing how to challenge students by first understanding them as individuals, will empower a teacher to engage different students using a variety of methods.

The first post for this month was from Ms. Malowski's class. I had the pleasure to read David's interpretation of Valentines Day. He was able to understand how though it is meant to be a holiday to show your loved ones how you feel, some people may not have someone to share this holiday with. 

Your understanding of Valentine's Day is amazing for your age. I agree that Valentines can be both happy and sad. Your statement that it is a memory is true. Hope you had a good holiday!
 Ms. Malowski  Per Davids 6

Chasity is an amazing child. She comprehends testing better than most college students. She gave a great method to studying and preparing for test. I hope she continues this through her college and later goals in life.

The plan you set forth for being prepare to test is amazing and very effective. Good way to help other students.Ms. Malowski per Chasity 4

Jack G is aspiring to become a Professional Soccer player. He has a great love for the game.

It is great you have a love for Soccer. Having dreams to be a professional player is a great aspiration. Keep up the good work!Jack G  Ms. Lombards 7^th Grade

Blog Post #9 What Can Teachers and Students Teach us about project based learning?

The Seven Essentials of Project Based Learning
(summarized)

I.
 Grab attention, engage and guide students in a meaningful project that will challenge them, solve problems and involve them in their community.

II.
 Create questions that will have the students research and hypothesize themselves.

III.
 Give students a choice to arrange their projects with creativity and a voice to reflect.

IV.
 Have students utilize skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, and synthesizing.

V.
 Let the students become empowered by discovery. Let their questions intrigue you as much as your questions gave them enthusiasm. Give guidance not instruction.

VI.
 Give direct feedback and allow the students to analyze and comment on each others work.

VII.
 Give public recognition and let the students reflect on their projects.

Project Based Learning for Teachers

Project based learning for eachers creates a classroom in which students can become members of current society. They will use critical thinking and problem solving skills and apply these to real world situations. Below I have found several lesson plans that involve these.

C . Mccllough
Kindergarten PBL - FIVE SENSES

This lesson will help kindergarteners realize that their senses help them to solve mysteries and problems everyday. You could perhaps also add in the problem with smells in inner cities. Give them guidance on waste products and how to help enviromental issues pertaining to these pollutants. The possibilities for 5 year olds to comprehend the world around them are endless.

Involving Students in Project Based Learning

By allowing students to give input on the project you are empowering their minds to think beyond the project. You may find that the students ideas will blossom more questions and more projects. Do not be afraid to allow the students to create and maintain their own projects. Help guide them with checklists or rubrics to evaluate themselves and other classmates.  Giving students a choice in learning instead of forcing memorization with help them to become more well rounded and better assets in their careers later in life. Giving them group projects will all diversity in the groups show that collaboration is essential to have success in careers and college.

Indvidual Responsibility in Project Based Learning

Giving each member a role in learning is essential. This will guide the student to responsibility for oneself. It can help build the skills to become confident in ones work and give the student investigative skills. This should also help them on interviewing skills in the workplace , whether they are the interviewer and investigating a potential employee or the interviewee and being able to solve problems during an interview if given opportunity. The most asked question during an interview is what are your strengths, what are your weaknesses? Being able to use the skills such as critical thinking and collaboration in a group should help the student to achieve success on obtaining a career.


STUDENTS TODAY

FUTURE TOMMORROW

Project #13

A time to Travel Lesson PlanTime to travel Rubric

Project #9 Video Book Commentary

The New Role of the Teacher Discussed

Blog Post #8 Randy Paunch

What can we Learn from Randy Pausch?

To become an educator, Mr. Pausch, discusses three topics that should pertain to your choice of career, your dreams, enabling the dreams of others and the lessons you learn.

First he discusses achieving your dreams. He explains that in order to achieve anything in life you have to be willing to go the distance. You should never give up. You are always looking for a way to live out these dreams.  The saying "anything is possible" lies within yourself.  He explains that enabling others to live out their dreams could as well help you live out yours.

In this theory as an educator, you should always be extending your mind on how helping others with only help you. During his lecture pertaining to enabling others to realize their potential, he states "giving chance to show them what it feels like to make others excited and happy" this gives your the an idea of how selfless Mr. Pausch truly was. Although, he was very wealthy, he gave to others, not only monetarily , but little parts of him.  In doing this, and watching his last lecture I feel a part of him will go with me in education.

Seeing his words about children or students rather and how they inspired him helps me to understand what it means to be a true inspiration to someone else.

Lessons Learned

Mr. Pausch is just a man who felt he could make a difference. But instead of discussing the differences he made, he chooses to discuss the ways others made a difference in his life. If we all look at the people in our lives the way Mr. Pausch did, we will be effective not only as educators but as humans.

Taking what Mr. Pausch did with his life; teaching, inspiring, and also learning from his students, has made my decision to be an educator more empowering than I could have ever imagined.

I hope that anyone who choses to become a teacher will watch the following videos.

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture

Speech to Graduates

C4T #2 Deb Frazier

Deb Frazier is a first grade teacher in Central Ohio. After reading several of her blogs along with the assigned material, I find her methods refreshing and exciting.

The first assigned blog post was on February 22, 2015. It was titled "Math Investigations and Twitter".  She allowed her students to explore possibilities to a simple question. Her investigative students researched others works and were able to blog to other teachers and students. She allowed the students to pose the question on twitter and they were amazed at the responses that were available.  The simple answer a student gave "i think addition is like subtraction" was a great way to investigate other perspectives.

The second blog post I read on March 10,2015 and was titled, "Math Monday The Power of Independent Math". This was also inspiring to a future teacher. It gave examples of how students learn by different methods. It showed the different cognitive functions students go through to solve math problems. It also explained that we all need to become independent learners, especially in the subject of math. Children were allowed to practice math in any way that felt would help them understand it.

I hope to read more of Deb Frazier's Blog Post and to continue to communicate with her in the future for more inspiring ideas.

Project 7b for parents and students

For Parents

For Students

We all become Learners Blog Post #7

As a new teacher, it is imperative that I be open to be a learner. By knowing my weaknesses, such as; low technical abilities and sometimes preferring a more traditional approach, I can become a learner with my students. My strengths of the enjoyment of learning and the ability to see all obstacles as a challenge I will enjoy the eagerness of children to help increase my knowledge as well as their knowledge.

Using Imovie and Virtual Library in Kindergarten

The interview between Ms. Davis and Ms. Bennett, both who are media specialist in Baldwin County, confirms that we are learning more from children every day. We as adults who were taught with pencil and paper hold the knowledge, we only need to engage children at a level which they are comfortable. Children are intrigued by new technology and will seek and search ways to improve themselves while using technology. As a teacher, we are going to need to listen as much as we request our students to listen. We need to encourage their abilities to teach each other and to teach themselves.

Ms. Bennett's enthusiasm for Kindergartens book trailers is refreshing. Most teachers who have been in the field feel that the "old" way of teaching is the only way. Enthusiasm is lost among most educators due to either frustration with technology or lack of training.

We All Become Learners

As stated before, the best educator is one who is willing to learn along side his or her student. Asking questions in the classroom that lead to discussions and research is the most beneficial way for a student to learn. Projects reinforce the theories we teach. Being able to ourselves question our on learning and reflections will only enhance to ability of our students to learn.

Ipads in the Classroom

Viewing the interviews with various schools in Chicago and the implementation of Ipads in the classroom gives me more motivation the embrace technology in my curriculum. Watching the eagerness of the students and educators on this new adventure only confirms the reasons I chose to become a teacher. I want to experience the smiles on the faces of students when they figure out a puzzle. I see that different areas of learning can be utilized by using an Ipad. You can explain to different children from different backgrounds and learning levels on the Ipad. It is configured to their learning patterns instead of the student trying to learn in only one direction.

Top 10 Reasons for Technology in Education

Should anyone question the reasoning for technology in education, you need only have them view this intriguing video. They put it in simple steps on how it is beneficial. To summarize the reasoning; engagement, participation, feedback and connection to the subjects are first utilized . There are also the benefits of less time working on grading papers. You can use specialized applications for children who need special education as well as for gifted students who need to progress faster so they do not lose the drive to learn. The technology can also remove obstacles such as visual impairments and needing to be closer to the front of the class to hear. Technology use in the classroom is a great way to engage both student and teachers.

Project 8 BOOK TRAILER

About Jonathan Allen

Blog Post 6- Anthony Capps

Who is Anthony Capps?

Anthony Capps is a teacher at Gulf Shores Elementary School. He utilizes Project Based Learning. He believes it is  a "constant evolution". He thinks it should be used to teach instead of being a tool that you use to evaluate after lectured teaching. He does not think technology should be used to test your knowledge but should be used as a motivation for students. He thinks that using Project Based Learning should be "driven by content". In this he said that your projects should be created to given students the content required by the state of Alabama's College and Career Readiness standards.

Approach 

Mr. Capps has a effective approach to Project Based Learning. He does not teaching technology. He uses technology. He uses a method of "scaffolding" or making steps to a goal. He begins with a simple assignment then uses each new class day to add to the assignment. This created layers of learning and helps the students reflect on their choices and be able to better structure their learning methods.

ICurio and Discovery Education

(Baldwin County Board of Education)

Implemented in Baldwin County  , AL these are tools for students and teachers use in Project Based Learning. ICurio is an online tool that students log into to perform safe searches and filters. It has a storage system so that students can utilize a Personal Learning Network.   Discovery Education is a visual aid research tool. It gives students the ability to research and watch films, pictures or listen to music based on the topic they are researching. 

Reflections:

After viewing all the possibilities I feel confident that using technology in the classroom with be beneficial and motivating. I aspire to see the eagerness in students to learn and process education without the mondaine repetitive note taking and speeches in the past classroom experiences. I am very interested in studying more ways to help students realize their potential as learners.

Project 7 My Sentence Videos

MY SENTENCE

  MY PASSION

Blog Post 5 What is a PLN?

A PLN is a personal learning network. As a teacher you need a network of websites,people and social media contacts. These venues will have an impact on you and your students. Your personal learning network should included well planned websites that are valid and will assist you in the process of researching subjects to add to your classroom instruction. You should also add peers who can review your lesson plans and add input to your critique. Social media venues will help you to come up with creative ideas in getting your class involved. As a teacher in elementary education, I hope to introduce PLN's to my students so that they can enhance their ability to network with the world. They can use the PLN for learning, exploring and reading about cultures, arts and history. I personally enjoyed the first video A 7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment, I was impressed that the student was able to enjoy her assignments and even obtain responses from teachers in other parts of the world.

Project #3 Presentation

Project #4 C4T

Who is Dean Shareski?

When reviewing the blog written by Mr. Shreski on January 3rd, My Year in Numbers, I was not prepare to completely evaluate his blog properly. His blog was very exact and had a great deal of information that seemed to relate back to previous post and his past year. Although I did enjoy seeing the different methods he used in his blog post such as video and charts at the time , I was just beginning to get a sense of what blogging was in general.
Since I have opened my mind more to the process of blogging and decided to review again the January 3 post. Now I find his methods inspiring and motivating. I find myself reviewing and reflecting on the blogs I have written and enjoying editing and creating more concise and meaningful information on my blog.
Unfortunately, however my comments to Mr. Shareski never were made public. I also had not read that we should post these on the blog for class.

Mr. Shareski shared his year in numbers with his class. This is also a way to show your students that you as a teacher are also working for the common goal of learning. I hope that if allowed I will be able to do quarterly numbers to motivate my students to be more vigilant in their blogs.


My second blog to enjoy was written on February 6, Happy Anniversary to Me, was also a wonderful read. Mr. Shareski explains his passion for blogging and the progress he has made with his students. He also discusses that he needs to become a more effective blogger by being more consistent with his blog. He has set standards for himself. I am enjoying his love for his career as an educator and for his passion for life and knowledge.

Project 15. Search Engines

KartOO
 This is a search engine that gives visual displays. It directs you to a variety of alternate search engines and will give you a visual map to hover over to pick which link you use to search.

Bing
A search engine very similar to Google. A student could use this to spell words, research subjects or to cite works.

MSN
This search engine can be used for news and current entertainment. A student may chose this option to search for current affairs and political science.

Ask.com
Formally Ask Jeeves, this site is out of date. It is also associated with compromising your system and downloading Malware and viruses.

Brainboost
This system seems interesting. It searches for answers to a given question. It then gives you a list of options to search through related to that subject.

WolfAlphafram
This can be used to search or for calculations. It not only gives you the answer but gives a step by step instruction so that the student can see where the answer was obtained.

Sweetsearch
This could be used by a student for credibility to a blog post or for information on research. It only searches for websites that have been proven credible.

AOL
This was very popular in the 1990's. It is still used by many middle age Americans as a search engine. It utilizes email and messenger. It can also be used as an Internet service provider.

Blog Post#4 How to ask effective questions?

How Do We Ask Questions in the Classroom?










After reading Mr. Ben Johnsons The Right Way to Ask Questions in the Classroom  and watching Ms. Joanne Chesley video Asking Better Questions in the classroom I found that most teachers do not expect to have to ask questions. Teachers assume after lecturing their students will automatically gain the knowledge they are attempting to teach.

The only way to know if a student has retained information is by effective teaching methods and by using the correct question for the subject matter.

For example, if you are teaching the students about History and you ask a close ended question such as "What year was the last battle of World War I?"  your response will only consist of one word. If you want the children to show comprehension you should ask a question such as "During World War 1, who were the allies and what role did they play in the year of the last battle?".

Children who love to learn and gain knowledge will give well though response and volunteer information. Children who either did not understand the subject matter or did not care for learning the information will cower from answering and may try to avoid eye contact, therefore it is better to randomly call on children and to never let the same child answer each question about the subject.

Many children are shy and may know the answer to each question. You should always offer several opportunities for answering questions. Perhaps you should have vocal questioning, then a worksheet. You may even tell children to study the assignment and write a paper or blog on their opinion. Have the children break apart into groups and question each other about the subject. There is no incorrect way to have children learn, you must think of every child and there ability and strengths.

So in response to what questions do we ask, we ask the children their comprehension, their opinions and to also recite the facts given to them. We are here to mold children into the ability to be well rounded and to respect each others way of learning.

C4K #1 Project #6 February

Phenomenal Kids and Their Ability to Express themselves freely!

Being able to read children's personal blogs is eye opening. These two students work hard at expressing their abilities to read, research and comprehend the lessons or problems given. They are able to themselves reflect on what they have accomplished as well as share with other students knowledge and questions they may not have thought about. I look forward to enhancing my abilities as a teacher by reading more reviews done by different aged students.

Cedrick D.

I enjoyed reading your book review. I can tell you have an enjoyment for sports. I noticed you used correct grammar and you had no errors. I hope you continue to read books you enjoy for your class. It is good that your teacher lets you blog about your experience reading. Keep up the good work!

Kaitlyn
What a creative way to show other students the use of adjectives. I am proud of you Kaitlyn. Keep up the good work and never lose your creativity in learning. It is great to see you have a wide imagination and wide knowledge in the arts. I am glad your teacher allows you to use many ways in helping classmates.

Effective Peer Editing Blog Post #3

 

Peer editing is a positive review of someone your age or in your field of study.  It is giving criticism and advising another person on how to improve their work.

When preparing to editing another individuals work you must follow certain criteria in order to be effective. You should first give a complement on the subject or a specific part of their work. Next you should give suggestions to the author on how to improve clarity and finally you should proof read the entirety of the material and make any grammatical or spelling corrections necessary.

When I start to give my classmates in EDM 310 peer reviews or to edit I hope to be a positive reinforcement. I plan on first looking for clarity and structure. Then I plan to suggest any additional content. Lastly I will look for any errors in grammar and spelling. I will look to make sure all pictures are cited appropriately.

Peer editing is important because it can help you and your reviewer learn more on the subject, learn you to accept criticism and give confidence in your writing skills.

Blog Post #2

I   Mr. Dancelot.
The YouTube video about Mr. Dancealot is a comical classroom setting showing that there are positives and negatives to technology. Some practical studies can be illustrated through technology but when it comes to certain subjects , you will need to use a hands on approach as well as utilize technology. It shows that you can not rely on technology alone. Mr. Dancelot's approach to learning can be effective if he were to also give explanation or have the students mimic the video while watching. We as educators must know our students strengths and weakness when approaching
technology for a learning aid.

II.   Teaching in the 21st Century: Kevin Roberts (John Strange Version)
To teach in the 21st century, you must be open to being a student as well as an educator. You have to work twice as hard to stay ahead of your student's ability to utilize technology. As a child you are open to new experiences as you have not began to only understand one method of learning. I believe a teacher should use all resources available to  maximize the students ability to learn. Teachers should be flexible to each individual student, and notice their individual abilities. We as educators should remember that at one time we were all children with the enthusiasm to learn and to be taught.
As a teacher I feel that I will be affected by the students in my classroom asking questions  I do not know the answer. And as a teacher, I should be able to find the answer and give an educated response, therefore I will have to prepare myself to be "ahead of the game" so to speak in technology.

III.   The Networked Student

Connectivism is where learning occurs by a process using diverse connections.Wendy  Drexler gives examples of how the teacher will empower the student to use connections to students and resources through social media to strength learning processes. During this they will achieve building a learning network. The teacher will explain the process of validating websites, find credibility within these resources, and utilize and structure the information into person blogs for a reflection on what has been learned as well as to share these blogs with other peers around the world.
A teacher will be essential to these processes for guidance, communication and resource information, organization of information showing how to validate the information they process.

IV. Harness Your Digital Smarts

Ms. Vicki Davis  argues that children are ready to accept using technology if someone is willing to instruct and learn how to use technology themselves.  She believes you are present to teach children to learn. Showing students how to rationalize and question, give them the tools they need but show them that they are responsible for retaining and applying the knowledge. I fee this is true in any method you chose to implement in your classroom. A teacher must be willing to learn, willing to admit mistakes and not become close minded about students ability to also teach the teacher.

V.   Who's Ahead in the Learning Race? (response to Dr. Strange) 

In my opinoin, children are ahead on learning for several reasons. They have not been exposed to the method of "brain washing" to learn. They have not been thrown into a classroom at age 3 and expected to quote back facts. Everyone is taught how to begin to learn at home. With technology more wide spread among young parents , such as cell phones and tablets, it is no wonder a 5 year old would be able to use a Mac Book or Ipad relatively quickly. 
In 1986, I was introduced to the public school system in Alabama, I remember being excited to learn and all we had then was a paper and pencil. I remember my mom being excited as I advanced to see textbooks being used in classrooms because when she was in school textbooks were a luxury. Children learn based on how parents, teachers and other influential adults present education to them. Children can learn in any environment, any means of resources and any instruction if the teacher shows enthusiasm and knowledge. So while I agree with Dr. Strange , I also believe the teacher is ultimately responsible for her student's ability to learn.

VI.  Flipping the classroom

This concept is new to me. I was educated in the 1980s during a more traditional approach to education. I do believe that having lessons at home the night before a school day would be beneficial. But I also question the cost of this, some students may not have the ability to view lessons at home. What if a student is unable to use media anywhere but the classroom. Society has advanced greatly, but there are still children living in poverty who would not have access. 
There are no doubts that the benefits of such a concept would outweigh the cost. But what is the cost to the poverty stricken student?

VII.  Bringing the Locker Room into the classroom

The discussion of bringing the locker room to the classroom  is a fun and exciting concept of getting students to work together for the common goal of knowledge. Using a "playbook" similar to the rubric method of evaluating learning skills and concepts of each individual student seems to be an approach most educators could appreciate. You can use many methods that coaches utilize to promote teamwork, responsibility for oneself, and rewards for achievements. For example, if you assign a paper be written on any given topic and that the student should post and discuss their papers among classmates, you are then imposing a competition, a psychological development, and a open discussion among the students that in the end could become a group project to compile data. I would like to use this method with Kindergarten or lower elementary children on book reviews and comprehension.

Blog post 1

Things that I heard prior to this class did not exist. I picked this class to explore technology. I hope to feel excited to learn utilization of the tools we explore into the classroom. I am apprehensive only for the group projects as I am more independent than I probably should be.

I am hopeful that this class will enhance my experience as a student and that I will not feel the pressure that it seems some of the others are feeling. I feel that EDM 310 will only further my interest in how technology will or will not be applied in my classroom.

Practice Blog Post 1

Outline
I. Name, Family, What made me the person I am
II. What made me choose education
III. My passion for life and children








Who Am I?
To know someone you have to know who makes that person complete. My name is Robin Scott formerly Robin Russell. I was born in Birmingham , AL and spent my life in that area from the time I was 4 until I moved to Robertsdale , AL in 2004.

I attended Fayetteville High School in Talladega County AL. My graduating class contained 25 students, so to say I am a small town girl is undertstated. I grew up with unlocked doors, open windows and communication consisted of face to face. I have adapted to technology and enjoy utilizing this to keep in contact with my friends from small town USA.

After graduation I began my journey to teaching, I attended Jacksonville State University for two semesters. I then chose to get married and spend a year enjoying life. After about a year of marriage I returned to college and focused on a degree in Business. I graduated May 200
4 with an AAS in Office Administration.

With this degree I began working in retail and utilizing my business skills, after the recession started and companies were laying off I attending Fortis College and became a certified medical assistant and worked in Neurology and Pain Management for three years. During this time I gave birth to two wonderful children.

Why do I want to become an educator?
My children are Delie (5 years old) and my son Daniel who is (2 years old). After my son was born  with a birth defect I decided to follow my passion again. I enrolled in USA with the desire to educate children with various learning or physical disabilities. I hope to work in Early Intervention as well as teach.

What are my passions?

My passions included reading, playing with my children and learning. I love to research methods of role play with my kids so that I can watch them develop the passion that I have to learn. I hope that by becoming an educator in the 21st century,  that the children I am fortunate enough to be a part of their education  will be able to communicate more effectively globally. Having technology to break language barriers, social barriers and economic barriers will carry education into many directions.