October:C4K Summary Post

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

~Angela Schwindt

C4K #5: Read...Read...Read

I think that the dad ordered that dog so meledey can have a partner to play with and help her. it is going to be crazy hard for the mom and dad to deal with all the people in the house and i fell bad for ollie the gold fish. i reallyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy like this book i give it almost five stars dun dun dun dum it is awesomeeeeee! pleze give me a comment or else!!

My Comment:

Hi Brendan,

My name is Briann Smith and I am a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama. I have a blog for my class too. I agree, Brendan. I think Melody’s dad got the dog to help and guide her. Butterscotch really helped Melody a lot. What other jobs do dogs do for people? What are some things you can do to help when you see a service dog? What themes or big ideas do you think that Sharon Draper is trying to get you to think about as you read the chapters? I can tell that you really enjoyed reading the book. You did a good job on your blog post and keep up the good work!

C4K #6: My Week at School
We hade buddies today. I saw grandma and grandpa did a comet on here. We went on a nature trail. I am liking school it is fun. Do you know how to leave a comet on kid blog? I am doing good on class dojo. We hade seating arrangements. We did mystery Skype.

My Comment:
Hi Josh, My name is Briann Smith and I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I really enjoyed reading your blog post about your week at school. I have a blog that I post to for my class as well. That is great that your grandparents made a comment on your blog. I bet you had a lot of fun on the nature trail! The mystery Skype sounds like it was exciting. Keep up the good work Josh and always do your best!



C4K #7: Maui and the Sun

Maui and the Sun

One day Maui was angry at the sun because it was too fast and it was always dark. Maui and his brother

did not get time to fish and hunt. Maui said he was going to catch the sun. Maui’s brothers laughed they were making ropes out of flax. They went to hide in a hole. The sun came out and Maui said, “Now.” They threw the ropes at the sun and it was trapped. The sun fought the ropes and it was tired. Maui let the sun go and it went slowly over the sky.

My Comment:

Hi Kefu, My name is Briann Smith and I Am a student at the University of South Alabama. I enjoyed reading your blog post about the story of Maui and the Sun. The story was very exciting and interesting! I liked the picture that you included in your story. I also liked how you used good punctuation, speech marks, and a conclusion in the story. You did a good job Kefu and keep up the good work!

C4K #8: Out of My Mind
One of the lessons that you can learn from ‘Out of my Mind’ is to not be prejudiced. So many people disregard Melody and ignore her, and don’t even want to know her name. She is a good person who can’t help that she can’t walk or talk, but people just don’t realize that. Prejudice doesn’t just happen to people with disabilities of some kind, but it happens a lot all over the world. 

An example of prejudice against Melody in this book is when Dr. Hugely is testing her, he assumes that sice she has cerebral palsy, she isn’ t smart. He doesn’t even think that she might not be able to pick up the blocks when he asks her to. A lesson that goes with not being prejudiced is to look past a person’s appearance and see their personality! A saying that goes with that is to not judge a book by its cover. That means that even though someone may look different, they might be a good person inside. For example, people walking by Melody shouldn’t just look at her and only see her disability, but they should look beyond that and see the person she is inside. Another lesson to learn from this story  is to not be insensitive to other people’s feelings. For example, Dr. Hugely doesn’t even think about Melody being right there when he talks to Melody’s mother about her lesson with him, and he just goes ahead and insults her. Everyone, even people with cerebral palsy  have feelings! One more lesson to be learned from this is that even the people you least suspect to be fun to be around or to be smart or good at sports may just be really good at it! Every person is really good at something, just it may not be the same thing you are really good at. In Melody’s case she really smart about plants and animals, but everyone else may not be interested in that, and they think she isn’t smart just because she is smart at different things then they are.  I thought that ‘The Hunger Games’ had a really boring cover and I didn’t want to read it for so long, but I am glad I finally did!


My Comment:
Hi Kirstin, My name is Briann Smith and I Am a student in EDM310 at the University of South Alabama. I have a blog for my class as well. I really enjoyed reading your blog post on “Out of my Mind”. It seems like you learned a lot from the story. I completely agree with you. I think that people should look past a person’s appearance and see their personality. You gave great examples of lessons that people can learn about not passing judgements on others. Have you ever judged someone, before you got to know them? Kirstin you wrote a great post and keep up the good work!

Blog Post #10

What Can We Learn About Teaching and Learning From Randy Pausch?

I had previously heard of Professor Randy Pausch and his story before I was given this blog assignment and I knew the great impact that he had made on so many people’s lives. When I first saw his last lecture, I thought that he was brave and very inspiring. I remember thinking how amazing and strong he was for never giving up! It was refreshing to watch his video on his last lecture again. His story is

amazing and his life lessons and advice are valuable and can be applied to all aspects of life. In his last lecture, Pausch begins his lecture by explaining to the audience in McConomy Auditorium that he has three-to-six months to live because of pancreatic cancer. Despite his terminal cancer diagnosis, Pausch is lively and strong. In his moving presentation, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," Pausch talked about the lessons that he had learned through the journey of life and gave his advice on achieving personal and career goals. He presented his advice and life lessons through  telling about different times In his life. He talked about his own childhood dreams of becoming Captain Kurt, winning stuff animals, and being a Disney Imagineer. His speech included how he achieved his dreams and how you can achieve yours and enable the dreams of others. Randy Pausch’s lecture was inspiring and motivating! I learned so much from it as a student and as a future educator.

In Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture, I took away so many things about learning and teaching. Pausch said that he was glad

that he became a professor and that this allowed him to enable the dreams of others. Being an educator allows you to enable and encourage  the dreams of students. In his speech,I also learned the power of using hands-on activities for students. In one of the assignment that Randy Pausch assigned to his students, they blew him away with the outstanding work that they did on their projects. Another thing that I learned about teaching and learning is to never underestimate the power and ability of your students. Pausch also talked about the importance of sharing the student’s work with others. In his speech he also talked about the importance of creating a sense of excitement with the students and allowing the students to create excitement for others. I learned several of others things such as having fun, make the learning experience fun for the students. The video was entertaining and Randy Pausch was an amazing person who impacted so many people.

Project #14

Lesson Plan #2

"Persuade Me" Essay

In this lesson plan 3rd grade students will learn about and create their own Persuasive Essays.

Here is a link to my website:

https://sites.google.com/site/theeducationalave/

Blog Post #9

What can we learn about teaching and learning from these teachers?

Back To the Future

By: Briann Smith, Amanda Weller, Heather Smith, and Lisa Smith

In Brian Crosby’s TEDx video, Back To the Future, he discusses how he guides his student’s learning in a model technology classroom. Crosby has been an upper elementary teacher for over 30 years, and now he facilitates STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education for teachers and administrators in six counties in northern Nevada. He has a background in outdoor education and educational technology. He has also integrated his “at risk” students use of technology with field trips, art, hands-on activities and a problem-based approach, to build their schema of the world while connecting them to it.

Crosby starts his presentation off by describing the students that he works with. In his fourth grade class, 90% of his students are second language learners and at risk students. He describes at “risk students” as students of poverty. On the second day of school, he gave his fourth graders a survey with a few questions. The survey included questions such as: What city do you live? What state do you live in? What country do you live in? and What is your address? An overwhelming number of his students did not know the answer to the questions. In his presentation he went on to ask, “why is there such a disconnect for these kids?". He explained how the goal when teaching children in these circumstances is to not have a narrowed curriculum. Crosby stresses how important it is to help build a schema or knowledge of the world for students. In his presentation he goes on to show how he personally used technology, creativity, and hands on activities to help his students learn and think outside of the box.

In his classroom his students have laptops and they all have individual blogs. He also uses an interactive whiteboard and the class has several digital cameras. The different technology tools and resources allow his class the opportunity to think outside the box and work on creative projects. One of the projects the class did was the “High Hopes” High Altitude Balloon Project. The “High Hopes” project involved the students learning about the different layers in the atmosphere. In the project, the students completed the following:

They researched the history of the balloon & ballooning

They built a payload to send the balloon up in the air

The sent a balloon up over a 100,000 feet in the air.

The students embed their videos of the balloon project on their personal blogs

The students used flickr to share & store their photos of the balloon project

The students had to write a story from the point of view of the balloon

They used free online software to create book covers for their stories

They illustrated all of their stories with the pictures from flickr

They then posted their stories to their blogs

They used their Personal Learning Network to invite other students to join their “High Hopes” Project

They used Google Maps to track the balloon in the air

They used Skype to present & explain their projects to another class in New Zealand

The “High Hopes” project was very creative project for the students and they learned so much while doing it! This one project allowed the students to use so many skills and resources like, 21st Century Learning Tools and so much more. The students were able to not only collaborate with others inside their classroom, but with other students internationally as well. The project also included several Common Core Standards such as:

English Language Arts Standards: Writing

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.6 With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of one page in a single sitting

English Language Arts Standards: Speaking & Listening

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.4 Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.5 Add audio recordings and visual displays to presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.

Brian Crosby’s TEDx video presentation was very informative and inspiring. He essentially changed and impacted those children’s lives forever! He

empowered them to become active learners and to use their creativity to think outside of the box. It was incredible to see the rapid change that took place in their learning. It is amazing to think that on the second day of school the students did not know the answers to basic questions like, what country do you live in? To think a few months later, for their “High Hopes” project they skyped with a class from New Zealand and presented their projects. This really shows how

much they learned and grew within a short period of time.Brian Crosby is an excellent example of how a teacher can effectively engage their students and allow them to be active learners. As future teachers, we can learn to engage our students and allow them to do hands on activities that promote their learning. Students retain and learn more information, when they are given the opportunity to be actively involved in what they are learning and to learn on their own. Teachers can learn to expand their curriculum and allow their students to build their schemas and make experiences on their own. The “High Hopes” project is also a great example for teachers, because it was essentially a science project, but the students were able to do so much with it. They used 21st Century Learning Tools, they collaborated with others, they used their History and Writing skills, and they created video blog posts. This project was a perfect illustration on how a curriculum can be engaging and diverse.Crosby strongly believes that providing exciting and motivating hands-on, minds-on experiences, although crucial, is not good enough for our students.They require the time to “Go Deep” and leverage their learning through all aspects of the curriculum including integrated, rigorous language arts, math, art and social studies work.

Blended Learning Cycle
By: Briann Smith, Amanda Weller, Heather Smith, and Lisa Smith

In this video Paul Andersen explains how you can use Lewis Diagrams and VSEPR Models to make predictions about molecules.

Here is an example of a Lewis Diagram

Youtube video:
Lewis Diagrams and VSEPR Models

The Lewis diagrams are a two-dimensional representations of covalent bonds and the VSEPR models show how the molecule could exist in three dimensional space. 

Pi bonding and odd valence electrons require an extension of this model.

Bozeman Science is the main topic covered in Paul Andersen's blog. Paul's blog is divided into several different tabs and content areas. Each tab provides you with different sources of valuable information pertaining to Paul's experiments. Paul provides several different youtube videos with useful instruction and information All of his videos are accessible from his blog site. You can click on any of the links to view videos with specific content areas.

This is the content areas that are provided in Paul's blog:

AP Biology

AP Chemistry

Anatomy & Physiology

Biology

Chemistry

Earth Science Educational

Next Generation Science Standards

Physics

Statistics & Graphing

Blended Learning Cycle Video:

In this video , Paul talks about some of his previous educational videos. Their success rates were not so high, but he did learn a lot from them which he

uses now. Blending learning is one of the sources that Paul learned from previous experiences. He has began to use this approach a lot with his class. He gives several examples of approaches that he has previously used. Paul has grabbed and made use of several classroom inspirations that he has gained from other teachers and outside sources. He visited China and took notes on the activities and approaches they used in the classroom. Paul brought back this approach to use with his class and to share with others.

Blending learning is defined by blending online and classroom learning. Paul defines the 5 E's and their importance; if you use this approach be sure to explain them to your students. There are 6 parts to the blending learning cycle, which are:

Question

Investigation

Video

Elaboration

Review

Summary Quiz

"The hook on learning is what really gets the students attention."

The students’ need to do investigations within learning. Video the students’ using a podcast. Teachers can use this approach to view with the students’ later instead of a classroom lecture. The review portion requires you to meet individually with the student to check their understanding. The summary quiz shows the students’ understanding.

Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners 
By:Briann Smith, Amanda Weller, Heather Smith, and Lisa Smith

Mark Church gives his students a collaborative assignment and asked them to create within their group a headline on their current study.The students talk openly about their thoughts and what their headline should be. The teacher then takes the headline and posts them onto a bulletin board so that everyone can view. Over the next few weeks the class will continue their study on the topic.Later, the teacher will ask how their individual headlines have changed since the beginning of the lesson and what they learned.

This type of learning process is great for getting a student that would normally be shy and unspoken to gain the acceptance of their peers and learn to work with other students. Giving a child the opportunity to think about their own thoughts is a great way to get their motivation in action and also it gives each individual team member a feeling of self worth.

Ron Ritchhart discussing the importance of thinking:
In today’s world teachers need their students to have flexibility in order to be able to discuss and/or create problems that result in working together as a group. It’s not just about the lessons, but more about the culture in which the lessons are being taught that set the groundwork for the outcome of the learner.

Chalk Talk:
Chalk Talk is one way of having something visible in the classroom to allow students to have thoughts to fall back on when needed. You post a question that is deep enough to have the students collaborate on and then document the students thoughts by posting them on the board. This allows the students access to information so that if they have questions the teacher may revert them to the Chalk Talk for their answer. This also shows a visible outline of what the students are learning in the classroom and would be easy for an observer to pick up on.

Roosevelt Elementary's PBL Program
By: Briann Smith, Amanda Weller, Heather Smith, and Lisa Smith

After watching Roosevelt Elementary’s PBL Program , one thing is clear: Every teacher and parent interviewed feels strongly about Project-Based Learning (PBL) and that PBL is an excellent way for students to learn!

So What Is Project-Based Learning (PBL)???

In-depth learning

Integrated thematic instruction

Based on “real world” problems

Research-based

Projects and presentations
PBL offers:

Teacher Collaboration

Cooperative Learning

Students can really show they 

    understand something
        *The application of knowledge is genuine

Students have the ability to make decisions in their own
        *Giving them a sense of power
        *Allowing them to experience what adult’s experience everyday

21st Century Life Skills/ Social Skills that builds upon each other:

        *Learn to perform presentations
        *Learn about public speaking
        *Learn what it means to be a good audience
        *Learn to be proud of their work
        *Learn to show what they know
        *Work independently and in cooperative groups
        *Communicate with each other
        *Solve problems
        *Support each other
        *Answer to each other (just like adults in the business world have to)

Community Participation: encouragement of adults from community to come to 

    school and give real life experiences

Student engagement: building background knowledge; igniting students to love to learn; and teaching self-motivation, student interaction, and self-reflection

School-Wide Problem-Based Learning:
        *Collaboration as a grade level (and across grade levels)
        *Bringing in more resources to support each other
        *Students given the ability to have conversations with other students
        *Creating a more cohesive environment at school
        *Community grows a lot stronger and tighter because of program

Like the teachers in

the video mentioned, PBL is NOT easy! It takes a lot of work from the teacher, the student, and the community. The rewards, though, are inspiring and more than worth it. PBL doesn’t just teach the required subject matter. PBL teaches children how to think for themselves, how to find that spark inside themselves to get them to question the things around them, and how to want to know more about their world. Just “doing a project” or “solving a problem” is not enough to count as PBL. A key component is that the problems — and the types of solutions students create — should be authentic. In other words, they should mimic the types of tasks people do in careers, outside of the classroom walls.

What Can We Learn About Teaching from Roosevelt Elementary’s PBL Program Even though I already knew the “basics” about PBL, the teachers and parents at Roosevelt Elementary have taught me so much more. Other than all of the information previously mentioned, I have learned that PBL is not just another traditional project. You do not simply give instructions and materials and have students make something to fulfill state standards. You give them tools and necessary information and “turn them loose” to research, discuss, facilitate, inquire, and interact. As a future teacher, I could only dream that I will be capable of incorporating PBL frequently into my classroom. I have realized how important PBL can be (when used correctly). Roosevelt Elementary is a prime example of a school and a community coming together in hopes of educating and pushing our youth to the highest peaks in order for them to achieve limitless opportunities. These high expectations are achieved through PBL and all it has to offer our future!

C4T #2 Blog Post

Comments for Teachers:

  I have really enjoyed reading Wesley Fryer's blog Speed of Creativity. He  is a digital learning consultant, author, digital storyteller, educator and change agent. With respect to school change, he describes himself as a “catalyst for creative engagement and collaborative learning.” His posts are filled with tons of great information about technology and the use of it in the classroom.  He uses his blog to digitally document his journey of learning and collaboration with other educators and lifelong learners around the globe. He focus mainly on topics related to engaged learning, web 2.0 technologies, digital storytelling ,educational leadership, literacy, blended learning, creativity, appropriate uses of educational technologies, digital citizenship, and educational transformation. His blog is informative and entertaining. I have learned a lot about different technological resources and events that can help me in the future as a teacher.

C4K Post summary #1:

In the first post that I read from Wesley Fryer's blog, he described his time at the 2013 Tulsa Mini Maker Faire. He attended the faire

with his children and a friend. At the Faire they learned about a really cool iPad remote-controlled robotic car created by Patrick Forringer. Patrick bulit some of the parts of the iPad controlled car with a 3D printer. He calls it MEP, short for Mecanum Educational Platform. The MEP creates a local wifi hotspot, similar to the commercially produced Parrot AR Drone. Welsey Fryer thought that this was one of the coolest and most inspiring things they saw all day at the faire. 
His son took a turn at playing chess on a large touch-flatscreen TV, which was connected to a grid computer running the Scorpio chess engine (free) running at the Tandy Supercomputing Center in Tulsa. The TSC is a nonprofit that provides access to academic, corporate, and government entities needing high performance computational capabilities. The chess program was a quick way to get an interactive, AI-based program running for the Maker Faire which would showcase their capabilities. He encouraged Oklahoma educators to get in touch with the TSC staff. He said,"they are eager to do outreach with and for K-12 students and are just getting started!" One of  my favorite things that he saw at the faire was a demo on “aquaponic gardening.” Aquaponic gardening uses a tenth of the water normally required for gardening. Agronomists from all over the world are using small clay fired pellets as a soil substitute to grow a variety of different plants, fruits, and vegetables as well as raise fish such as Koi.

My Comment:
Hi, my name is Briann Smith, I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I also have a blog, that I post for my class. I really enjoyed reading your blog post on the 2013 Tulsa Mini Maker Faire. It seems like you and your family had a great time at the faire. I have never been to Oklahoma, but I will add the Mini Maker Faire to the list of places that I should visit. It’s incredible that the faire has so many innovative gadgets and products. The iPad remote control car was fascinating, I bet that would be fun to use. I know a lot of people who would love to use the iPad controlled car. My favorite part of your post was about the aquaponic gardening. That is incredible that they can grow plants from only using a tenth of the normal amount of water! It always amazes me what people can create by using technology. Once again, I enjoyed your post and I look forward to your future posts!

C4K Post Summary #2:
In the second post that I read from Wesley Fryer's blog, he included his notes from Dr. Neeti Kohli‘s presentation, “Is the Pied Piper (Electronic devices with screens) taking our kids away?” In his notes he included the following:

Parenting is not easy: you must guide your children to decide what is right & wrong

The simple answer to our question today: Like the Pied Piper, “the screen” is attracting a large number of our children…taking them away from the realities of life and person-to-person relationships         

“because children have high levels of exposure, media have greater access and time to shape young people’s attitudes…”

What is digital citizenship?
- teaches our children about Internet safety
-federal requirement
-very important
-preventative
Digital citizenship: a “prequel”
- person to person relationship
- play outside
- homework comes before the screen
- don’t overeat in front of the screen
- avoid paying violent video games
- avoid scary scenes
The screen is not bad, we cannot take it away
- we must use it and be proficient with it
- we need to identify these harmful effects

• It is very important to involve everyone in this message: Needs to go to parents, to teachers, to administrators.         
• the younger generation is being taken over and dominated by screens to a large degree, we need to do something about this

My Comment:

Hi, my name is Briann Smith, I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I really enjoyed reading your notes on  Dr. Neeti Kohli‘s presentation, “Is the Pied Piper (Electronic devices with screens) taking our kids away?” As a future a teacher and current college student, I am constantly hearing about the use of technology and media in the classroom and the convenience of iPads. I think the use technology is great and convenient! I also believe that teachers need to be proficient and be able to effectively teach students how to use technology. I also wonder about the long term effects on the children. You brought up digital citizenship, which I think a lot of adults need to remember when it comes to children and media. You made some valid points and I learned a lot from your post!

Project #9

Podcast Video
Group Name: Raphael
Created By: Briann Smith, Amanda Weller, Heather Smith, Lisa Smith

                           

Blog Post #8

21st Century Learning and Communicating Tools

MasteryConnect

By: Briann Smith

                                            

As I have started my journey to become a teacher I have learned quite a lot of information. One of the new things that I have learned about is the Common Core Standards. What are Common Core Standards, you ask?  The Common Core Standards are a set of clear educational standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts and mathematics. These standards help teachers ensure their students have the skills and knowledge they need to be successful by providing clear goals for student learning. As I have continued to learn about the standards and the criteria that go along with them, I have wondered how teachers will incorporate them effectively in their classrooms. I have also thought about how teachers can adequately keep up with all of the standards and make sure that all of their students are actually learning them. As I was researching 21st century learning and communicating tools I came across the online learning and communicating website, Mastery Connect.

Mastery Connect is an amazing online tool for teachers. This online tool allows teachers to participate in a learning community. They can set up a personal learning network and public profile for free. The site also includes a news feed, that keeps the teachers up to date with the latest things in education and it includes the activities of the other teachers that they follow.  It is overflowing with tools and resources for teachers. It is also built around the Common Core Standards. The website has convenient State and Common Core Standard links. This allows for teachers to focus on teaching and assessing the core standards. 

Mastery Connect includes the following resources and tools:

• Curriculum  Maps - Mix and match standard sets, create custom standards, and easily drag and drop standards into any sequence.
• MasteryTracker  - shows current student understanding relative to Common Core and/or state standards.
• Free Common Core App - all of the standards in one convenient app, that can be downloaded by educators and parents. Get it on iOS, Windows, and Android. 
• Integrated Standards and Resources  - Easily view resources and content tied to both state and Common Core standards.
• Standards based Student Reports- Intergrated standards-based reports provide real-time information about mastery to students and parents.
• Class, school, and district level reporting tools - This makes  it easy for teachers and administrators to compare and collaborate data driven by common assessments and compare that data to benchmark  level data.
• Gradebook/ SIS Export - Automatically export scores to ANY gradebook or Student Information System.
• GRADECAM™ Bubble Sheet  Scanning - Scan plain paper bubble sheets right from your web or document camera and grade instantly!

Mastery Connect also has a creation and sharing center for Common Core assessments as well. This saves the teachers time and allows them to share assessments of any curriculum type including multiple choice, open-answer, rubrics, writing and oral assessments. The teachers can discuss and collaborate using the discussion tools. Teachers can download and modify teacher created resources for their own personal classroom use. Another great tool that Mastery Connect has is Resource Tools. Resource Tools includes interactive boards where teachers can pin and re-pin to their boards.They can create a collection of pins for any subject based on the documents,videos, and websites that they come across.The pin tool also allows teachers to pin resources according to the Common Core Standards.

Mastery Connect is a great tool that I would definitely use when I become a teacher. I would use it to create my Personal Learning Network to collaborate and communicate with other teachers. The Mastery Connect tool would also benefit me for the Common Core Standards. I would track my students progress and knowledge of assessments that correspond with the standards. The GradeCam Bubble sheet would also be beneficial to me as a teacher, it would help me to scan and grade my student’s papers quickly. I would expect great things from this tool with all of its amazing qualities. I am sure that I could connect with teachers nationwide and share and collaborate with them on Common core based assignments and lesson plans. I would also expect all of the apps and grading software to work smoothly and efficiently. The reason why I chose this resource tool and liked it so much was because it really focused on the Common Core Standards. I have never seen a online resource like Mastery Connect that provides teachers with the resources and support system that’s foundation is the Common Core Standards. It allows teachers to use the  support and expertise of fellow teachers. Overall Mastery Connect is a great tool for teachers and I will absolutely use this as a resource when I become a teacher!

Voki
By: Heather Smith

What is Voki?

Voki is a FREE service that lets you:

Create customized avatars (talking characters)

Add voice to your Voki avatars.

Customize Avatars to look like historical figures, cartoons, animals,and even yourself!

Post your Voki to any blog, website, or profile.

Take advantage of Voki's learning resources.

What is Voki Classroom?
A classroom management system for Voki

Students do not need to sign up!

Add and manage your Classes & Students!

Control students’ privacy settings!

Lesson pages automatically created!

Customized appearance & instructions!

Get unlimited email support!

What’s with the Name?
Voki is a combination of the words “vox” and “Loki”.

“Vox” is the Latin term for voice.

Loki is a Norse god from Norse mythology. Loki is a trickster who has the ability to change his shape. Fitting name since Voki gives students and teachers the ability to change the character’s appearance and add a voice!

Heather’s Thoughts:
I could use Voki when teaching by taking advantage of the cartoonistic features that kids love, by searching for and creating customized lesson plans, and by keeping the interest of my students through this 21st century tool. I expect that first graders will absolutely love this tool. It motivates students to participate, improves comprehension, introduces technology to students, and most importantly, it inspires them! I chose this tool because I believe it is very beneficial and will be useful in the classroom. I also believe that my students will love watching and creating using Voki. 

Glogster
By:Amanda Weller

Creativity is Learning

As I researched 21st century learning and communicating tools I came across an online learning tool called Glogster, also known as “Glog.” With Glogster you can do the following:

Engage your students

Inspire curiosity

Excite learners

Connect Everything
Glogster is a social network that allows users to create free interactive posters. “Glog,” is short for “graphics blog,” which is an interactive multimedia image. Glogster looks very similar to a poster, however readers can interact with the given content. Glogster provides an online environment to design and create interactive posters. When creating a Glogster you can insert:

Text

Images

Photos

Audio

Videos

Special effects
The posters can be shared with other users on the site and it can also be embedded in other sources. You can integrate dynamic multi-sensory resources into traditionally text-oriented tasks.

Glogster was first launched in 2009

Glogster allows teachers and students to use glogs as instructional aids

I found a wonderful example of a well organized Glogster.

Click here for a link that will take you to Traci Blazosky's Glogster

This is Traci Blazosky’s Glogster for her first grade class. I found this Glogster to be an amazing source for her students! Traci’s Glogster was organized by:

A video of her introducing you to her Glogster

A chalkboard that you can click to view the daily schedule

Another chalkboard for special schedules

Weekly news and homework

Traci’s Glogster also listed her email for contact purposes. You can scan through and click each individual session to see what Glogster is all about!

My Source: http://theconnectedclassroom.wikispaces.com/Classroom

Brain POP

By: Lisa Smith

Founded in 1999, BrainPOP® creates animated, curricular content that engages students, supports educators, and bolsters achievement. Their award-winning online educational resources include BrainPOP Jr.®(K-3), BrainPOP, BrainPOP Español™ , and, for English language learners, BrainPOP ESL™. BrainPOP is also home to GameUp®,

a free educational games portal for the classroom.
In traditional, blended, and "flipped" learning settings, BrainPOP supports individual, team, and whole-class learning. At school and in informal learning environments, our characters help introduce new topics and illustrate complex concepts. The Mixer™tool lets users tailor their assessments to meet all students' needs. A great fit for mobile learning and BYOD classrooms, BrainPOP’s educational apps have been downloaded millions of times and lauded in countless reviews.
All of their resources are fully supported by BrainPOP Educators, free teacher community. The content is mapped to the Common Core, aligned to academic standards, and searchable with our online Standards Tool. BrainPOP is easy to use, with no downloading, installation, or special hardware required.
BrainPOP was conceived by Avraham Kadar, M.D., an immunologist and pediatrician, as a creative way to explain difficult concepts to his young patients.

Lisa’s Thoughts: This tool could be used in grades k-6. It is a great way for students to study while learning in the process. This site is very engaging and can be used in multiple subjects. It’s almost like a “one stop shop” in education. I chose BrainPop because I know that kids already enjoy playing games and with BrainPop, learning is made into a game. The site is fun and will keep the student engaged. The benefit that I have found in using BrainPop would be higher grades because students will study and learn the material while playing on this site.