Final Project

Blog Post #14 Reflection Video

Project 13 Summary

My partner, Melissa Willis, and I had to come up with a lesson plan for the smart board without meeting face to face. This was hard to do considering we see each other all the time. It was cool though to get to use Skype a few times to talk to her about this project. Our most useful tool, in my opinion, was the telephone. We communicated with that a lot. We tried using Google Chat, but it was difficult to keep the conversation going and the ideas coming. Another useful tool we used was our emails. This helped because Melissa found some of the websites incorporated into our lesson. So instead of having to talk to each other, she just emailed the link which was easy to put into the lesson. We were also able to email each other pictures that we thought would fit into the lesson. I found that it was better when we were talking to each other through Skype and the telephone. Skype almost feels as if you are meeting face to face because you can see the person and keep the conversation going. While on the telephone, it was easy to keep the conversation going as well, even though you can't see the person. It became more difficult when we would try to use things that required us to type what we were thinking to each other. We had a great time doing this lesson, and I feel as if we both learned to appreciate the power of technology more.

Smart Board Project 15

PLN Final Report

My Personal Learning Network has been interesting. I have got to sit around and play with it and adding a lot of widgets to it. I have a lot of widgets that deal with school on there. I have things that link me to all of my classes that requires a lot of online work, like EDM. I also have websites that I have found over the course of this class that I have found interesting on there. Some other extra widgets I found had to deal with math, which I found very interesting since I want to be a math teacher. My emails are all connected because of this network. I also have access to my jobs. I coach volleyball and it is nice to have access to it because we find out a lot through the internet. I have enjoyed getting to add things to my PLN as the semester has gone along. The picture below is a picture of my PLN.

Blog Post 13

This assignment was TOUGH! There is no better way to describe it. I did really well when it came to no TV or computer, but when it came to my cell phone I failed miserably! This assignment in today's world is almost impossible. I think the reason it was so hard is because cell phones are how the majority of people connect with each other on a daily basis. I also had damily who was in the hospital so my phone was attached to me at all times just incase I got some news. I had read the assignment for this blog last week and tried once last week and failed, and then I tried today and yesterday, and, again, it was an epic fail. I did not realize how dependent I am on my phone to keep in touch with everybody including family members, friends, boyfriend, etc. I thought I would be able to do it for 24 hours, but I was not able to. I can understand why students will want/need some form of technology in the classroom. They will have grown up using it and will have become accustomed to it. It would be easy for them to become bored and not interested if you did not have some sort of technology in the classroom.

C4T #4

I was assigned originally Angela Rand. But I had to email Dr. Strange and get a new person to comment on because her link was not working. He assigned me a student named Muhammed. He did not have a lot of blog post on his website. I commented on one he had wrote about visiting other blogs, and i encouraged him to keep doing so, and told him that I hope he learned a lot and enjoyed doing what he was doing.
I also left a comment on Caren Carrillo's blog post. I did this earlier in the week before we got the other teacher assigned to us. I really enjoyed her blog post about using the power of assigning homework wisely. I believe that teachers sometimes abuse the power, and they think that their class is the only class the student has and assigns way too much homework. I liked how Caren put it in her post about assigning it wisely. The second time I posted on Caren Carrillo's blog again. She talked about the question some students tend to ask, :when will I ever use this?" I thought it was a great post by her. I would suggest people to go read the post because the answer was surprising to me when I read it. I have enjoyed reading her blog post tremendously these last few weeks. I feel as if she post relevant things, and she also puts things on her blog that others can learn from. I have really enjoyed all the C4T's this semester but her post had to be my favorite by far.

Progress Report On Final Project

Me and my partner, Melissa Willis, have talked trough Skype, on the telephone about our final project, and met a couple times to throw out some ideas for the final project. We have thrown out a few suggestions but have not decided on anything definitely. We hope to have what we are going to do for sure early this week, and ideally start our project later this week so it will be done in time.

Blog Post 12

The first thing I would say is to read an an article titled "Why Be a Math Teacher?". Then look on a website for math teachers and find a lesson that would work for your classroom and some classroom resources. Write about what you found on the websites.

I think the article is encouraging and explains that being a math teacher is a great thing. I liked how it was very encouraging. It talked about that today's students need more than the basics. They need to learn how to apply it and do it for their future in the workplace.
The lesson plan I chose was about significant numbers. I think the reason this website is helpful is because it has great suggestions in each lesson plans on how to approach teaching the subject. The resource I chose was The Math Forum. It gives helpful suggestions for math teachers and what they can do to keep up their credits and all kinds of things that could be useful for a math teacher.

Creativity and Curiosity: My thoughts- Special Post #12A

I think that schools do systematically destroy the development of curiosity in students. I know that I am not the most creative person, and I think that is because I have never had to be creative. I do not know if a curriculum could be created or not to increase the curiosity of students. Maybe if art classes were offered at younger ages, that would increase intrest in being creative and doing things that aren't "normal" or "typical" of schools. I feel as if it is the teachers approach to how he or she teaches and presents the material that can increase or decrease the students' creativity. In almost every class I have ever been in, there have been projects assigned. I feel as if projects are the one of the best opportunities for the students to show off their creativity because no project is exactly the same. Some things that could help me become more curious is being encouraged to do things that are not normal of students. Maybe when a project is assigned giving free range to what can be done, but still give what the teacher wanted. I think teachers have a huge contribution to pushing a students creativity. I feel once I become a teacher, I will need to incorporate ways for students to be creative in a math class some way.

Eli is a writer for GoodMeasure.net. You can get to know her through Google+. I will probably not try to contact her because I do not feel like it is that important to right now. I have a lot of school work getting ready for finals coming up, so I am focused on getting everything I need done, done.

C4K for April 2012

The student I was assigned was a girl named Maddy. She is apart of the Blogging Challenge. I commented on her post she wrote about where she is from. She is from Texas. I also read her about me post from earlier and I found out that she was born in Japan but neither of her parents are Japanese, which I thought was a fun fact about her.

Her second post that I commented on was about using CC license. I asked for a little more information because I was not completely sure what it was. I had an idea from what she wrote but did not know a lot about it.

The third comment I left her was about a post she had written about the Holocaust. She seemed like she was interested in the topic, and knew what was going on. I encouraged her to look up more information from different websites because she stated that the website she was reading, made it seem as if it wasn't a big deal.

The fourth assignment was a video of a class doing a Skype interview with a class from the USA. The entire blog had many stories of what their classes are learning and what they are doing. I thought it was really cool to get to see kids using technology in the classroom and learning what it is all about.

Bog Post 11

Mrs. Cassidy

I think Mrs. Cassidy has a great thing going for her kids. She is so encouraging and such a great teacher for those kids. I love that she is engaging her students in technology as a first grader! In first grade, I used a computer but not very much at all. I used it to take test, and to play learning games on it. Today, kids use the computer for so much more than what I used it for as a kid. Technology has developed so much and is such a bigger factor in the learning process. Technology is not foreign to kids in todays world, it is apart of their lives.

I think some benefits in using Mrs. Cassidy's approach is that it will keep the students interested in learning. If I use technology, they will be more attentive, and they will be willing to do the work because it isn't just sitting listening to someone talk. I think that kids once I am teaching, will expect technology and would be really discouraged if there wasn't technology in the classroom. Another benefit, is it gives the students another source than just the teacher. A student can look up what I am teaching, and maybe that will help a student learn something better. I can see parents being against all the use of technology. I would address this situation by explaining the benefits of the use of technology in the classroom and how it is helpful to the child.

Blog Post 10

The video "Do You Teach or Do You Educate" made its point very clear. I thought the music was overwhelming but overall the message was good. I intend to educate students in math once I am done with school. I intend on doing this by trying to make it the easiest I can because math is a hard subject. I need to be clear in my teachings and do more than the typical teacher and just read off problems to students, but instead really explain what they mean.

Another way I can be an educator is being there for the students and not just there in the class period. If I am able to reach out to the students outside the classroom, students will know they can trust me, and I am there to help them when they get stuck with a problem. I think I will do well as an educator, and I can not wait for the day when I get to start my career.

Tom Johnson's Don't Let Them Take the Pencil Home!

I felt as if Mr. Johnson approached the situation excellently. Instead of making a big commotion about the kids taking the pencils home, he tried to find a solution for the problem. This is a big thing I believe. Instead of just taking the pencils away, he gave them task to use the pencils for. He tried to come up with a reasonable solution instead of doing things drastically and taking away the children's pencils. It was a good post, and I think it is a great read for anyone who wants to be a teacher.

Blog Post 9

Mr. McClung's Blog
I loved reading Mr. McClung's blog because as a future educator I always wonder what it is like those first couple of years as a new teacher. I can clearly remember when my mom started teaching, it was tough but she absolutely loved it. My mom is actually one reason I wanted to get into teaching. But anyways, his blog post were so encouraging and helpful. He said how it was. I don't feel like he sugar coated the message. He was very helpful and encouraging. I think that his blog posts were very helpful for upcoming teachers, and even teachers who have taught for a long time can learn something from his blog post.

In his post, he gave advice. One of the ones that I loved the most was on his very first post, "Never Stop Learning." I think this is a great point that he makes. Just because we graduate and are now teaching others, doesn't mean that it exempts us as teachers from continuing and learning. It is a wonderful thing to keep learning and not be complacent with what we have already learned.

Smart Board Project 14

C4T #3

I was assigned Caren Carrillo. The first post I commented on was titled "Awkward Classroom Silence" She posted some advice she was given about what to do when the classroom goes silent when the teacher asks a question. I am glad she posted what she learned on her blog to share with others. I think that her blog post is very encouraging, and it reassures you that if there is an awkward silence, it is natural and going to happen.

The second post I commented on was titled "No Lessons--Just Ban It." This was a very good post to read. She focused on how schools are just banning things left and right and not even explaining why they are doing it. The example she gave was of a school banning hugging. The main point was that we need to teach lessons on why the students behavior was bad or good. She also focused on saying yes more than no. It was a well thought out post that was very interesting.

C4K for March 2012

The student I received for March was a site with many post on it. I commented on Kaitlyn's post. It was a quiz she had made up. The sad thing is, I knew none of the answers. I got to check out the entire website and see many of the other kids post, and they were all really good.

Blog Post 8

Richard Miller: This Is How We Dream Parts 1 and 2

I thought Richard Miller has a brilliant idea. The videos he showed were very interesting. He made a point to show what can be done during his talk and video. If we are going to be successful, we need to be able to express our ideas in a way that can be understandable. Richard Miller did this in his videos.

He talked about how we dream. It is interesting to see him incorporate all the uses of technology into his presentation. It is also interesting how big of a role that technology has in how we dream and come up with plans for the future. He was able to write things and make things with his computer that I would have a hard time trying to figure out.

I think this video was a very useful video for this class. It was able to show the possibilities of what technology has to offer. I also believe it showed how essential technology is in the world today. The video opened my eyes and kinda made me want to learn more about how to do some of the cool things with technology.

Carly Pugh

When I read Carly Pugh's Blog Post 12, I thought she was very creative and a fantastic writer. The way she wrote made it very interesting and lively. I could tell that she had worked hard on her blog post and that she took it very seriously. I feel as if that would have been an assignment that Dr. Strange would have assigned. I believe she really understood what Dr. Strange was going for in that project.

EDM For Dummies and The Chipper Series

I had already watched these videos before at the beginning of the semester. The main idea is to do your work on time, don't procrastinate, and if you do the work you will learn things. I think both videos get the point across very well about what this class is all about. I guess if I had to think of some videos I would want to create would be on how effective the stuff we learn in EDM310 can help us in the classroom. Maybe the video could show a teacher doing her lesson with the technology available and showing how interested the class is.

Learn to Change, Change to Learn

When I watched this video, I liked some of the points that were made. I believe that we will always have the school system, but I believe it will be changed dramatically because of the use of technology. I think teachers will have to incorporate technology into their lessons or they will never keep the attention of the students. I liked when one woman in the video said, "We ave a classroom setting when we could have a community setting." I think this video implies that using technology will make it more of a community. People will learn from other people around them, not just the teacher.

"Scavenger Hunt"

The first thing I found was a video tool. I went to PhotoPeach. This was a website a teacher could use to make slideshows. Some of the special features included being able to sign up student accounts without emails, projects can be organized and presented for parents and students to see, download unlimited shows in burnable CD, create unlimited photo albums, and many more. This site seem very helpful when creating power points.

The second thing i found was how to make my poll. This was my first poll question:

Replace audience response hardware with Poll Everywhere

.

The third thing I found was how to make my own comic strip. This was a very thing to do. I always liked reading the funnies when I was a kid in the newspaper so it was fun to make one of my own, (even though it wasn't technically funny).

I will be adding all three of these to my PLN, because I can see them being useful in the future.

"The Selfish Crocodile" (Project #11)

Book Trailer

PLN Progress Report

I have created my PLN. It is still a work in progress, but I can already tell this is going to be a very useful tool I learn how to use from this class.

Instructional Timeline 9b

Blog Post 7

The Networked Student


This short video was different. It had a narrator who used paper cut outs to illustrate what he was talking about. His topic was about the 21st century teacher and student. The examples were of what a student goes through in a modern day class. It gives various examples of what he is required to do for the class. It shows that it is a lot of self-learning, and it is not a lot of the teacher teaching the class like the norm.

During the video the story shows the student having to learn different techniques, like the ones we are learning in EDM310. It shows that he is having to learn how to use the Internet for his benefit. He is able to find resources about his class and is able to learn on his own. He also gets to explore what others have learned about the same topic, and he creates a blog about all that he has learned so that others can observe what he has done.

At the very end of the movie, the question was, "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?" There are a few answers to this. Some of the answers consisted of the teacher is there to help them build the network and to encourage the student to take advantages of the many opportunities out there, be a guidance for the student just incase they get stuck at some points, to teach the student how to decipher good and bad sources from the Internet, and to teach them to be organized. There were more answers to the question, but these are a few of the answers. As a future teacher, I will need all of these qualities and more to be a successful teacher in the 21st century. I am eager to graduate and get started in education and be the best teacher I can be in the 21st century.

The 7th graders PLE was encouraging in a way because I thought to myself if a seventh grader can do it I can do it. I think this is a good thing for her. She was able to keep up with what is going on in classes and she had a her own personal stuff all on one page. Hopefully, once I get my PLN started, it will be as helpful to me as her PLE was to her.

Blog Post 6

Randy Pausch

Wow! This video was great! I was not looking forward to watching it because it was so long, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! There were so many things that Dr. Pausch said that really made me want to know more. When he talked about there are different ways to say something to someone, this really stuck to me. Multiple times I have had teachers say things that were very discouraging just because of the way they said it. As a future teacher, I need to be cautious of how I approach a student, and how I will have to try to keep my students encouraged and interested in what they are doing.

I plan on being a math teacher. There are a number of students who do not like math. I think one of the important things that I took from this video was "to make sure people are having fun while they are learning something hard." I know that my favorite math classes are the ones where I enjoy the teacher and what we do in the class. I know as a teacher, I will have to figure out a way to make my math class fun and interesting while I teach a difficult subject.

Another thing I really enjoyed was when he was talking about his coach was being tough on him one day at his football practice. When the assistant coach told him "When nobody tells you you are doing wrong, they've given up on you," I thought this was so true. Not only do I want to teach, I want to coach as well. But this statement can be applied to the classroom. If I go in thinking that a student is hopeless and is never going to get it, and I begin to give up on him, that student will never accomplish the goal for the class. I think I learned that I need to have different teaching methods for different students, and that I never give up on a student.

Another quote that stuck out to me was, "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted." I had never thought about that, and it is a completely true statement. If we did not have learning moments from something we did not succeed at or did not get, we would never learn or know better the next time the situation arises. I think that Dr. Pausch hit the nail on the head with this statement about experience.

This video had a lot of great points. I would recommend this video to others to watch and hope someone learns as much as I did from the video even if the person wasn't going into the teaching field, there is something to learn from this video for everyone.

C4K for February 2012

I was assigned Moses from Mrs. Bark's class in Auckland, New Zealand. I found it amazing that these kids have been doing this blogging stuff for so long. I was able to see all of the work Moses had posted on the internet. Although he did not have any new post for 2012, I was able to look at all his work from 2011. I thought it was awesome that I was able to look at his work while I am in America, and he is in New Zealand. I think it is a great thing that the kids are learning about this at such a young age. Moses' Blog

Lauren's video on measurement was great. The main point of my comment was that I thought it was a great thing that she was learning while hang fun. I think this is important for kids. If kids think learning is fun, they will not dread going to school and being bored. I thought this was a great video.

My second child I was assigned to comment on was Taylor. She had lots of new post on her blog. I commented on a post she did about the Super Bowl. I encouraged her by telling her how great of a writer she is. The first thing I saw when I looked at her blog was a picture of her holding her hands together as a heart for Valentines Day. Taylor's blog was very good and interesting. Taylor's Blog

The third child I was assigned to was Hana. She had many post. From what I could tell, she has been doing this a long time. I left her a comment on a post she wrote about sportsmanship and teamwork. I personally enjoyed this because I was an athlete all the way through high school and I currently coach. She had a good definition of what she thought sportsmanship and teamwork is. Hana's Blog

My last child that I commented on for the month of February, was very interesting. It was chapter one of a story. It reminded me of the story of Cinderella. I think it was suppose to. There were many stories posted by the child. I was not able to find out what the child's name is. This is a link to the blog.

Podcast Project 8

C4T #2

Kathy Cassidy's Blog

I was assigned Kathy Cassidy for my second teacher. She has an amazing blog. the post I left a comment on was about kids bringing in their Nintendo DS' and teaching from the DS. The students were able to bring in their DS' and get to play on their DS while doing classwork. My comment mainly said that it was a wonderful idea. I did not know you could use a DS to teach first graders.

The second post I was able to read and comment about was on a thing called "Unplug'd." She mentions about how a bunch of people who are passionate about education come together for a weekend and get to learn and come together. The reason it is called "Unplug'd" is because the location of the conference is where there is no cell phone service, no internet, and so forth. This was a very interesting blog and I enjoyed it very much!

My Timeline

Blog Post 5

Dr.Mcleod

I found out that Scott McLeod is a very important person when it comes to education. When I was reading his "About Me" section on his blog, I found him to be a very interesting person. It said that "he was the founding director of CASTLE," which is "the nation’s only academic center dedicated to the technology needs of school administrators." A lot of information can be found at his blog. His post, "Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please?" was interesting. It really pointed out that yes, there are bad things that can be found on the internet and that technology is not always used for good, but it is very beneficial! I found myself enjoying it, and was very glad we had to read it and comment on it.

Travis Allen Videos

I thought Travis Allen made excellent points in his videos. He started out so young making an impact on the education system. His iSchool is a wonderful idea. To be able to have everything that goes into school at your fingertips is a fantastic thing. He showed a power point presentation about what the benefits are for using the iSchool. The main thing was money. If people invested into the iSchool, it would cost around 150$. It would save students at least 600$. This is incredible!

Using the iSchool would also save the school money. This is very important, especially in today's economic situation. We need to learn ways to save money and still teach effectively. Using technology is a great way to gain the interest of students as well. Our generation needs some form of entertainment to keep us interested. We do not do well when we just have to sit and listen. When we get to use technology, our attention is so much better. I believe usin technology in the classroom is essential for kids today. This was an awesome video and really opened my eyes to the possibilities.


Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir - 'Lux Aurumque'

I actually have seen this video before. I remember it blowing my mind. It still amazes me that the people never met, and yet they are all singing together. This just shows how powerful the internet can be. If you would like to see the video you can click on the title to get there.

Teaching in the 21st Century

Watching 21st Century Students was really a video that made me think of hohw important it is that I start mastering the skills of the technology that is out NOW! If I get even more behind than what I already am, I will not be able to teach to the best of my abilities. As a young person going into the field of education, I have to realize things are different than from how I learned growing up.

I think it is essential now-a-days that people are knowledgeable about the different kinds of technology out there. I think this is especially important for teachers. If teachers are using technology in the classroom, this means the students are getting to learn about it. I think the video is a good thing for future teachers to watch and think about. I think that our generation of teachers will use technology in the classroom more than any other generation before, and technology will keep increasing in the classroom.

Reading Rockets

While exploring Reading Rocket's Website I clicked on Reading Guides under comprehension. The reason I chose to look at this one a little more closely, was because I feel as if I struggled in reading comprehension throughout school. It was never my strong subject. Because of this, I have never enjoyed reading that much. While looking at the suggestions for reading guides, I found them to be helpful. If a child is struggling, I can use the suggestions that the website offered.

The next thing I looked at was First Year Teacher information. I clicked on that because hopefully in a couple years, I will be a first year teacher. It gave very good information for people who have never taught before. This website is very useful. It has so much information and can be very helpful for teachers. If I was struggling to come up with something to help a student, this website would be a perfect place to go to help me become a better teacher.

My Sentence Video

Blog Post 4

I was so happy to see this assignment. I was excited because I did not really know what a podcast was. All of these videos were very beneficial to watch and to read about. I feel more comfortable and confident that my group will be able to put together a great podcast because of the things I learned from the information I obtained from the videos and readings.

I can not believe that children so young are podcasting. The first link that I read about was first grades creating their own read-along books. This blows my mind. I have just begun to hear about this stuff, and 1st graders are the ones producing a podcast! I think this was a good thing for us to learn more about because it is becoming more and more popular in society. If we are going to utilize blogging and other benefits of technology once we start our careers as teachers, it is very important for us to learn about this now while we still can.

The second was about the benefits of podcasting. This is what helped me the most. I am a visual learner and so seeing the benefits are more important to me than just hearing about them. I know that for my group's podcast, we will be able to utilize some of the techniques that I learned. I learned it can just be conversational or it can be many other things. I also learned that it helps teachers because if a student is absent they can out the lecture online. There were many benefits to podcasting in the classroom.

The third I watched was about what an actual podcast is. This one was very beneficial to me as well. When I first heard about the podcast assignment, I was kinda intimidated. I did not know what it was. This gave a definition and links to show useful tools to use for my own podcast.

All three links were very good. I enjoyed them, and was glad they were provided for us to learn more about podcasting.

Project #5

Blog Post 3

Technology in Special Education

I loved this video. I have never work with special needs children, and I did not know how much technology has helped them in their lives. In my mind I did not understand how long it would take a child to do their assignment before the help of technology. I think that putting the focus on technology is a great thing. Before they had technology, students were having to literally spell everything out by pointing at letters to communicate, but now they have laptops and can type quicker and communicate faster. This enables the children to be able to learn more because less time is spent on trying to communicate everything by pointing at letters to spell it out.

Technology can be used in the classroom for special needs to communicate. It can also be used in more simpler ways. One way that was shown in the video was a boy who had trouble reading small print. Because he has a computer with a special device on it, the font is enlarged, and he can enjoy reading. I think there are many possibilities when it comes to technology in the classroom and helping special need kids. This video was a great demonstration and eye opener for those who did not have a good idea of what technology can do to change someone's life.

"My App For the Classroom"

I chose an app called "Math Dictionary for Kids." I chose this application because there are so many terms when it comes to math. I could use this app in the classroom very easily. If a student had a question about a term, they could look it up with this app. Instead of me having to repeat definitions, they could look it up for themselves and have a better example than what I could give.

"Gary Hayes Social Media Count"

All I thought was "wow." Watching all of the numbers change constantly was amazing to me. The numbers mean to me as a teacher, everybody is using technology. As a teacher, I need to be able to use and teach how to use the technology that is out there. As I watched the numbers ride and rise by the second, I could not help but think "oh my goodness." For some reason the numbers just amazed me. The numbers show that the majority of people are online and using the internet. It shows how much the world has changed and relies on technology to communicate.

Facebook was at the top of the list. This number was rising quickly. Facebook has become how a lot of people communicate with former friends, classmates, and co-workers. Another number that was a high number was how many text messages that were being sent. As I was looking at the sight, I received two text. I think that the technology is going to keep improving and make our lives easier.

"A Vision of Students Today"

I absolutely loved this video. I ad to watch the video twice because the first time I watched it I thought of it as a student. It was hard not to, considering I am a student and a lot of what was going on in the video I could relate to. The video really had me thinking about each of the situations that was presented in the video. Something that stood out to me was how often they are using technology in class, but not for the class. They use it for other purposes. I think as a teacher, they should incorporate technology use for the class so that students are using technology to learn and not just blow off time.

I thought it was funny at the end of the movie when they wrote the advantages of using a chalkboard. The only advantage they showed was it "challenges the teacher to move around." The disadvantages were there were no videos, animations, etc. We are a generation who looks for the videos and animation to keep our focus and to entertain us. I think the education system will eventually be all about electronics in the classroom because people will demand for it.

C4T#1

I was assigned Julie Vincentsen as my teacher to comment on her blog. The first comment I left on her blog was about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It had a video along with it. It showed how people were treated and it gave parts of Dr. King's "I have a Dream" speech. The blog mainly focused on how times have changed and how much of an impact Dr. King has made a difference in our society. It was very interesting and really made me think of how far our country has come as a nation.

The second post I left on her page was from last semester around report card time. The main idea of the post was to encourage people to make their child feel important and like they have done something good. She mentioned about how kids want to impress and make their parents happy. My comment focused on how I thought it was important for parents to reward their kids when they do well on their report cards, and I mentioned how I was rewarded as a child for my grades. I really enjoyed both blog post that I had to read from her blog.

Blog Post 2

"Did You Know?"

When I watched Dr. Strange's video, "Did You Know?", I found myself raising my eyebrows at the statistics that were on the video. I found it amazing about how many people in China would be speaking English as a second language. It was definitely and eye opener. I also found it interesting about the statistics shown about the kids in India. I think this is a important piece of information to motivate teachers to do the best they can in teaching to the best of their ability so that student benefits.

Another piece of information in the video that I was not as surprised to see, was the numbers on how many people owned a computer. It is almost impossible to go to school now a days without a personal computer. Not only does the computer allow you to do research and do school work, most people use computers to communicate. I was also not surprised to see the number of how many students owned a cell phone. Most everyone has a cell phone. It is easy to keep in touch and you can use it whenever. They come in handy if you get stranded, or your car breaks down, or something like that happens. If you do get caught in a bad situation, you have your cell phone to call for help.

"Mr. Winkle Wakes"

Watching "Mr. Winkle Wakes" really made me think how school has not changed. It is all about getting up, going to class, and listening to a teacher talk. The world around us changes constantly, but school is always the same. It feels as if the world is upgrading in every aspect of life, except in the way we do school. I think that if the school system was "upgraded" people might not like it because people are so accustomed to the way things are done in school, and everyone knows how school works.

I think that if people from a hundred years ago could come into our world for a day and see how everything is changed, they would not know what to do, kinda like Mr. Winkle. When he did not know anything familiar, he left. Once he found something familiar, he stayed and enjoyed it. I think this video was very good, and it makes people think about if the way school is done should change or not.

"Ken Robinson Says Schools Kill Creativity"

I found this video to be very interesting and humorous. I had never thought about how the education system is the same in all countries. Mathematics and Languages are the most important, and then humanities, and on the bottom is art. Everyone thinks that if you are focusing on art, music, and or dance, they will not be able to have jobs. In today's world, you can get jobs in the arts. I found myself thinking about how often I had to take art classes; I have only taken one art class, my senior year of high school. I was never pushed to be a creative person. I was focused on doing my academics and focusing on good grades. I also played sports. I do not consider myself to be a very creative person. As I watched this video and I thought it might be because arts and being creative was not as important to me as my school work and sports were.

Even though I might not be the most creative person in the world, I am not the least creative. My mom has been a teacher for 10 years, and I plan on doing the same. I believe it is important for teachers to come up with new ways to teach and grab the students attention. I also coach a volleyball team, and when one way doesn't work, I have to come up with another way to teach it to them. I feel as if being creative is essential to teach. As a teacher, you have to be able to teach in different ways because not everyone learns the same way. Hopefully in the future, there will be more importance on being creative and the arts just as there is on mathematics and sciences now a days.

"A Vision for 21st Century Learning"

The main arguments for this video was that technology is a huge part of everyday life. It is how we communicate, learn, teach, and do what we have to do. The point of this video was that technology allows people to learn. With the new technologies we are able to learn about the past and know how far we have come. It is very important for us to use the technology we have to allow us to learn more.

"Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts"

I think that Vicki Davis is doing a great thing. She is utilizing the technology available to teach the students. This is similar to what we are doing in this class. I loved how she said she did not have to know everything to be the teacher. This is a common thought in a lot of peoples mind. If the teacher feels like they know everything and can not do no wrong, the students may feel as if they have to perform perfectly. I think it is important that when you make mistakes you should learn from them.

I liked how the students were teaching her new things. I think this makes the students very self confident of themselves. When a student gets a to teacher something new, I feel as if this makes them feel accomplished and proud of what they are doing, and make them want to do more and learn more.

Wordle Project #2

Blog Post 1

About Me


I am a 19 year old sophomore at the University of South Alabama. I was born in Montgomery, Alabama, but I have lived in Mobile the majority of my life. I have an amazing family. I have a mom, Joann, a dad, Milton, a little sister, Emily, and my grandmother lives with us (we call her Domomma). My boyfriend's name is Kevin, and we have been together for over a year. The most important thing about me is I am a Christ follower. He is my Lord and has blessed me more than I deserve. I am a member at Dayspring Baptist Church and attend on Sunday morning's, but I am involved with the youth and college group at Government Street Baptist Church. I love getting to help with the youth group and making a difference in their lives. I also love working with kids. I have worked at a daycare and a day camp before. This upcoming summer I will be working with kids at CentriKid camps across the country. CentriKid is a Christian children's camp.
I am at South Alabama because it is convenient for me. I am able to save money by staying at home and not having to move out. I have felt the Lord has called me to be a teacher. He has blessed me with good math skills, and I feel like I should use my gift to help people younger than me. My mom has been teaching for 10 years, and I believe this has had a huge influence on my decision in becoming a teacher. I chose secondary education and math because I want to teach math. Like I said before, I am pretty good at math, and I know there is a need for math teachers. 
Some other fun facts about me. I played volleyball from 6th to 12th grade. I was on a state championship team my sophomore and senior year. Once I finished playing volleyball, I started reffing volleyball games, and now I am coaching. I am a coach for Mobile Storm Volleyball. I have a 14 year old Regional team. I love getting to coach and teach the girls the skills they need and to love the game like I do. I have gotten to travel a lot, in cars and on boats. I have gotten to go as far west as Texas and as far north as West Virginia. I have gone on four cruises and loved every one. I have been to various places in Mexico and to the Bahamas. This summer I will be going to Guatemala on a mission trip and can not wait.
I have had a great life and can not wait to see what the Lord has in store for my future.



Dr. Pausch on Time Management


When I watched Dr. Pausch's video on time management I liked when he said 
"if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail." I have been a very organized person my entire life, and I think this is because of my mom and dad. They made it very clear to me that I need to be organized and have a plan to succeed. Also in Dr. Pausch's video, I liked how he said it is important to have a "to do list." This helps people see visually what they have to do and not just rely on their own memory. It is better to write it down so incase a person gets busy and forgets about it, they have their list so they can double check and make sure everything is done.  

Practice Post

My first Post