Technology is the Future (Class Reflection)

As I sit here, at Barnes and Noble, sipping my caramel machiatto at 10:30am on a Sunday morning, I am realizing just how effective and "instruction" changing this course has been for me. Although I have taken technology courses before, I've never seen such success with technology within my classroom before this course. My literacy project blog and my Read180 digital story were possibly two of the top highlights within my classroom throughout the entire year. I also have no doubts that the Web 2.0/ Webquest will be the third.    Through this course, I have developed many useful skills and time savers related to technology. I will definitely be using Evernote in the future, along with Google Docs, Google Sites, and Blogger. I think the most important concept I realized in this course was that in order to use technology, you need to be engulfed in it constantly. In the last class I took with Arzt, I had no real application of it due to in being in the summer. My goal for this summer is to keep blogging and researching technological tools for the classroom. Practice makes perfect right? 

Web 2.0 Turned WebQuest

As I thought about what I could create that would technologically inspire and engage my students, I found that letting them use a web 2.0 tool in the classroom simply wasn't "big" enough for me. I also was contemplating about what I would teach/instruct for the last four weeks of school due to the level of inconsistency with testing, field trips, talent shows, and field days. One night it all clicked. I decided to create a "move at your own pace" webquest where students move through an interest inventory, into a career information "race track" using Drive of Your Life, and finish by creating an Xtranormal movie about their career of choice. I am SO excited to implement this within my classroom. I feel as though they are going to love it! Especially at the end of the year, where their minds are typically everywhere but on instruction. Below is both the link to the webquest and my own Xtranormal creation of my possible career choice as an astronaut!!

Ms. Freitag as an Astronaut!!!

Creative Careers Webquest

Literacy Project Literally Worked!

As I've stated in previous blogs, I used a classroom blog for my literacy project. In January the administration staff at my school asked me if I would take some of the lowest performing, behavior prone students into a group to work on their reading comprehension skills before CMTs. They basically gave me free rein of what I was to do, so I decided to switch things up and create a novel group where the majority of the discussion was online. Students would respond to comprehension questions online and also get a chance to view others' responses, which I found to be very rewarding for the students. I have to admit, this group was EXTREMELY successful! Especially for the student population involved. They gave their best effort daily, and even had some students released from discipline in the office in order to participate in the group! Honestly couldn't have been more happy with the results of this group! :)

Project Progress

Luckily, my Literacy Project has been occurring since January 31st through the form of a classroom blog. A small group of reading intervention students have been reading Diary of a Witness with me three times a week for forty-five minutes. We read a chapter a day and reflect on our reading through responding to blog posts. With the CMTs, the science fair, and spring break complete, I can now resume our group. We are approximately 3/4 of the way through the book, so I am excited to announce that I BELIEVE that the students' final project associated with the book will be complete before our class is complete! If you'd like to check out our blog so far, click here!

Hicks' Human

After our Skype session with Troy Hicks Thursday, I was happily surprised to find that he is an extremely down to earth guy. He doesn't have all of the answers. He's still trying to fight through his own problems and short falls when it comes to technology.

What I especially enjoyed was that he wasn't afraid to throw out many other resources and tools that we're found in his book. Since the class has ended, I've checked out little bird tales and using PowerPoint for creating digital books. Both great tools/resources and I definitely recommend you checking them out as well! Overall, I thought the Skype session was incredibly beneficial and engaging; nothing better than receiving tools and advice straight from the experts!

My Reading Wiz's

I could not be more proud of my Read180 students for helping me create an introductory piece for learning the reading strategies. Each student focused on a different aspect of this video. From recording to editing, from writing the script to acting, my students helped me make this vision reality. I cannot wait to show them the final product after our spring break. They're going to be thrilled! But enough about what I think of it, check it out for yourself!




Soo... what'd you think?

Overall, I had a blast creating this digital story. At first I thought it would be a little much for my students (and also take a lot of time away from direct instruction). However, we quickly developed a system and only used 10 minutes a day on it! Although my students and staff have not seen the final product yet, they were already proud, stunned, and inspired just by viewing the rough draft. As stated above I CANNOT wait to show them the final product. If I could do anything differently, I would definitely have more than one student be filmed for each speaking segment. I found that some students were difficult to be heard due to their tone of voice. It seemed like I could either have them scream or not be heard at all. Non-speaking roles might be better for these students. Other than that, I feel as though this piece will definitely be used in classes to come!

School Survey!

Remarkable Readers

My class has agreed to help me teach others the strategies we use everyday in our reading room. Although this is a rough, rough draft, I feel as though these guys are really getting their point across already! :) Please let me know what I can do to make this more effective for my future classes and school!

...after reviewing this on Blogger, I realized that half of the digital story is missing! That will be the first thing I fix.

Simply Making a Difference

As my South American Adventure gets closer and closer, I am so lucky to have the love and support from not only my family and friends, but also my colleagues. Fellow teachers have supplied me with a plethora of resources, strategies, and tips. One teacher has shared with me what her daughter is currently changing in Costa Rica. Her daughter's school is part of the World Leadership Schools. This week, she is taking a group of students to Costa Rica to help change lives! How inspiring. I am definitely going to enroll my future school in this program when I return home. What is better than traveling with kids ;)! Here is her daughter's blog, if you'd like to check it out for yourself!

Living a Life I Love

This weekend I attended the Landmark Forum. Due to the fact that my school (Breakthrough Magnet School) was created through this course, my principal offers this course to all new teachers. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. When I found out that it was from 9am-10pm Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I realized I really really had no idea what I was getting myself into. Little did I know, this long, long course ended up changing my life. According to Wikipedia, the Landmark Forum offers educational programs in personal development. Talk about not giving credit where credit is due. The Landmark Forum coaches you through concurring your past, understanding your present, and creating "problems" that you actually want. The Landmark Forum creates an entire new way of seeing and living life. For anyone who is "stuck" where they are right now, I HIGHLY recommend you check out Landmark.And for those who aren't? I PROMISE you, you'll become a better person in 3 short days. :)

Hicks the Hero

Troy Hicks' text, The Digital Writing Workshop, reconfirmed everything I thought and loved about integrating technology into the classroom. In addition to helping me organize my classroom blog, Hicks has also exposed me to new ways of using technology in the classroom. One use of technology that I had not previously thought of is to use Google Docs for rough drafts of major assignments and projects. By having a working Google Doc with each student, as a teacher, you can explicitly coach students into writing exceptional pieces of work. Saving trees doesn't hurt either. :) Another use of technology I hadn't previously thought of is to have students use their blog as a portfolio. By having students add lengthier, major projects, viewers will not only be able to see the student's blog work, but also what is occurring within the classroom. All in all, Hicks truly helped me envision what is possible within my classroom. Above are my students working on their own blogs!

Wonderopolis

One website that I've recently become obsessed with is Wonderopolis. This website posts a new "wonder" each day. I've already made plans to replace my daily "Do Now" journal entree with one of these wonders at least once a week. Although some are rather silly, such as "Do Rabbits Have Good Eyesight?", others really get kids thinking! When you click on the wonder, you come to a page with information regarding the wonder, suggestions of projects you can implement, and even wonder words! Wonder words are words related to the subject at hand; so for the rabbit wonder, words include eyesight, vitamin, essential, pigment, balanced, placement, predator. These words could even serve as vocabulary words for the day. One other aspect of this site that I love is that other classrooms post on the wonder as well. Through this feature, you can see what other classrooms are doing associated to the wonder. I HIGHLY recommend you all check it out!

Tablets vs. Textbooks

I feel as though this course has exposed me to so many resources that I've been on technology overload. Not only have I created a diigo, twitter, and blog, but I've also created a classroom blog and am currently creating a digital story! I love the idea of creating foundation pieces for the classroom through technology instead of traditional posters and text books. After reading The Future of Education: Tablets vs. Textbooks, I'm still torn. Although I am still somewhat hesitant regarding letting RSS run my literacy centers, I have to admit, it's a change I'd rather be making sooner than later. What's your opinion regarding turning your classroom into technology headquarters? Do you think your students will advance their learning as much as technology tells us it will?

Photo courtesy of  zowchow.com

Dig Deeper!

What I've found when researching/reading anything is that an amazing author often has numerous mediums to share his information. After reading Troy Hicks' "The Digital Writing Workshop", I went surfing the web for more information about him. Not only did I find his amazing blog, but I also found his wiki, and twitter too! Check out his other resources for additional information about everything technology.

Google Docs as an Instructional Tool

After reading from Hicks' text, I really began to get excited about the actual act of teaching abroad. He brings up and discusses many integrative ways to include technology within the (ESL) classroom. Google Docs would be an AMAZING tool to use to monitor my students' writing and comprehension skills. I would be able to give each English Language Learner undivided attention after each class in regards to their progress. This new realization has made me so eager to get started! My only concern is that there may be a lack of technology where I am teaching. Does anyone have suggestions for getting technology into the classroom? Do you think a site like Donors Choose would sponsor me to get iPads for my classroom? Help!

What will you create...

that will make the world awesome?

 I came across the following YouTube and was seriously inspired. Check it out!



What will you create that will make the world awesome?

Over-prepared Teacher

Although I do not yet know where I am teaching, who I am teaching, or what I am teaching, I am still slowly becoming obsessed with ESL lesson plans, activities, multi-media resources, and units. I have found myself surfing the web for hours, creating hypothetical lesson plans that may never get implemented because of my placement. In general, I've really begun to enjoy thinking up lessons that would (hopefully) help ESL students learn and enjoy English. My two current favorite websites are ESL Kids Stuff, which has lesson plans, flash cards, videos, and worksheets, along with Everything ESL. Everything ESL serves as a database to hundreds of other websites, specialized in certain age groups. This website will certainly come in handy once I know where my placement is.

Epiphany

Yesterday, as I was writing a paper for my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) Course, I realized that I could be using this blog to help me accomplish and achieve my goals instead of simply fulfilling graduate course expectations. From this point on, you will see that everything posted on this page will be relating to my journey to South America in less than one year from now. Not only will I use this blog as a form of preparation, but I plan on also using it to share my experiences and adventures when I am teaching abroad. This can serve as a form of consistent communication for my friends and family, along with serving as entertainment and professional development for aspiring TEFL teachers.

iPad Integration

With technology quickly surrounding the teaching profession, I believe that it is important to keep up with how to exactly incorporate these technologies into the classroom. I, myself, have had trouble in the past navigating through blogs, wikis, and iPad applications. Luckily, some fellow teachers have noticed this breakdown and created blogs to help us turn these breakdowns into breakthroughs. Two blogs I particularly like are iPad Apps 4 School and Free Tech 4 Teachers. Both of these blogs are authored by Richard Byrne. Flip back and forth between these two blogs and you'll be a tech pro before you know it.

Diigo = Deal

After months of Arzt encouraging Diigo, I have finally taken the plunge, and must thank her! Since my last class with her I have continued to tell myself that the Bookmarks bar is enough and that Diigo is unnecessary. When I heard her suggest that we all use Diigo in this class, I figured there was no out this time, I'd have to check it out. What I've found is that it is really just a massive folder for work. As of now, I've only added minimal pages; however, I am looking forward to adding more! Here's My Diigo Page. Do you have any suggestions in regards to how to organize it further?

Peer Pressure Possibilities

I've created my Animoto! This Animoto will be used as a hook or introduction to our Peer Pressure Unit. Students will be reading articles about the negative effects of peer pressure as well as researching positive actions students can take to avoid peer pressure. We will be talking about drinking, drugs, bullying, and cyberbullying within this unit. Students will be participating in a cyberbullying webquest as well. In regards to the NETS standards, teacher standards that are met include digital citizenship and student learning. Student standards that are met include research and information and critical thinking. One aspect of the program that I was disappointed in was that I couldn't add everything I wanted to it! I guess that's part of the purpose of the Animoto program. Because of this breakdown, I have decided that I will make a supplemental SmartBoard slideshow of other areas of the topic I'd like to expose my class to. Hope you enjoy Peer Pressure Possibilities !



Try our video maker at Animoto.

RSS > Overwhelming?

I love the idea of having all of the sites you follow send you updates, but is this too overwhelming? I just set up my Google Reader and added a few sites and am already confused and overwhelmed. It's just too much! Especially when all of the information seems interesting and relevant to my life! I need help! How do you bloggers stay on top of everything streaming into you? How do you manage to still be productive? I'm not sure if I need to organize my feed better or what, but I'm in need of some help. HELP!!

Exposure Central

I must say that since I began taking this course, I have really grown as a teacher. Not only have I explored various teacher and classroom blogs, but I have already made the connections (even if it is just following a site/blog) that will continue to help me grow as a teacher in the future. With the upcoming year filled with firsts (including teaching in Argentina), exploring the net and the blogging world has only helped with my endeavors. I've diigo-ed many useful ESL sites along with begun following a classroom blog in Argentina! Just goes to show that the internet really DOES have everything!!

Animoto-ing Real Issues

I've found that many of the Animotos I've viewed were light and "fluffy". Many include cartoon characters, wording, or songs. I've decided to take a different route and create a statement piece on the power of peer pressure; our next sixth grade unit. One animoto that has given me many ideas is this Civil Rights animoto. Check it out! Another example is below!!

Global Friendships

I found the online article, Online Collaborative Inquiry, extremely informative for the 21st century teacher. Not only did it state numerous statistics measuring how the technological classroom has been proven to be more effective in teaching, but it also recommended and discussed numerous ways to incorporate technology into the classroom. One quote that I believe sums the whole article up is, "Students should not be mere consumers of technology. They should be composing and creating effective communications with the tools to develop advanced literacy skills." The author of this article explains that we need to teach students to build relationships with others through posing and solving problems collaboratively and cross-culturally. She wants educators to design and share information for global communities in order to meet a variety of purposes. I think this author is right on the money. We need to make sure that the technology we use in the classroom has a real meaning, not just using technology because it's there. Technology can be used as a bridge to other classrooms, communities, and cultures. 

Here are a couple of great ideas for today's technological classrooms.

• The Global Read Aloud
• This read aloud is completed by more than 30,000 teachers and students yearly. Classrooms across the world read the same novel within a five to six week span. As they read, classrooms communicate with others through blogs, wikis, twitter, skype, edmoto, kidblog, and other tools.
• Quad Blogging
• This blogging system sets your classroom up with three other classes. Each week, a different classroom is in the "spotlight" with the other three classes commenting on that class's blog. This assures that blogs are constantly being viewed and commented upon.

Animoto Intros

After watching many, many, many animotos, I've come to the conclusion that animotos can be used for virtually anything. As a middle school special education teacher, I have been hesitant in creating animotos for my students. Animoto obviously cannot be the main form of instruction for my classroom. With the wide array of ability levels and personal preferences within my classroom, I was unsure where to begin or what to focus my animotos around. Now that I have viewed various animotos, I feel as though they would best be used as an introduction to a unit/hook to a lesson. By creating an animoto with stimulating pictures, key words, and questions, I feel as though it could work as an engaging introduction to any unit. 

Teachers Teaching Teachers

When exploring the web for classroom blogs, I found that there are equally as many classroom blogs as there are "teaching" blogs. What I mean when I say teaching blogs are that many teachers are posting their instructional strategies, struggles, and successes through blogs. When investigating these blogs, I found that many teachers are doing exemplar work within their classrooms involving technology. One blog I definitely recommend all teachers to take a look at is Tech for Teachers. Not only does this blog give information regarding classroom blogging, but also talks extensively regarding iPads in the classroom, progress monitoring, student engagement, and how to check website validity before sharing sites with our classrooms. It seems to me that the major setback for most teachers is actually getting the technology into the classroom, not actually using it. So I pose this question. How can teachers be proactive in getting the latest technology within their classrooms?

Technology Within Technology

Richardson's chapters three and four only reinforced the idea that we need to expose our students to technology in the classroom. It also reinforced the idea that blogs and wikis can be easily and safely implemented in most classrooms in a variety of ways. I, myself, was hesitant at first to implement a blog within my classroom. Especially being special education, I wasn't sure if it would be successful at all. After reading Richardson's chapters and browsing the web for ideas, I can confidently say that my classroom blog is a success. Some of the classroom blogs that I found particularly engaging and productive were Mr. Avery's Sixth Grade Blog and Ms. Chaffey's 3/4 Grade Blog. I found that both of these blogs incorporated other technology within their blog, which only strengthens the educational use of technology in the classroom. What do you think?

New Norms New Literacies

With all that is advancing in the world today in regards to technologies, I am not surprised that NETS for Students and Teachers has developed. When reading about the new literacies, I was pleasantly surprised that they are not that different from what is currently going on in my classroom today. I see the new literacies in relation to the scientific method. Students form a meaningful question and connect sub-questions to this idea. Next,  students must explore the Internet (and other resources) for related pages. Once they find these pages, they must make sure that the information presented is accurate through evaluation of the website and sources. When this is complete, students can critically analyze the information and synthesize the information given in order to relate it to the original question. Once this is complete, students must communicate when they have learned to their peers around them. In simpler terms, students must learn how to navigate the Internet in order to successfully answer posed questions.


The NETS for students' purpose is to prepare students for the technological world ahead of them. As teachers, we need to make sure that students are able to use technology to learn, explore, and analyze all that is around them. By giving them critical skills that will help them prepare to be digital citizens, these students will be much more likely to successfully work and live in the digital communities of the future.


The NETS for teachers' purpose is to assure that educators have the necessary skills and knowledge to teach, work, and learn in a society that is becoming more and more digital. It is crucial that teachers understand how to teach students to become technologically savvy adults. Not only do teachers need to teach their students technology but they also much be refining their instructional strategies through technology and being digital citizens themselves!

One example of how I incorporate the new literacies and the NETS in my classroom is through research projects. Not only are my students required to have multiple sources from the Internet, but they must also required to prove that the sites they found information on are accurate and professional. For more information regarding how to incorporate the NETS into your classroom, check out NETS for teachers.

I leave you with the following question. How can related service workers accurately be evaluated in regards to these standards when they can only take partial ownership over student learning?

World's Changing...Is Education?

When reading Richardson's text, titled "Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts", I found myself agreeing to many of his ideas. The overall theme seems to be that "The world is changing around us, yet as a system, we have been very, very slow to react." I completely agree with this point. As an educational system, we are hesitant on focusing on technology and instead, continuing to focus on aspects of learning that are less effective, especially when it comes to standardized testing.


With today's search engines and social media sites, students are being exposed to an extensive amount of knowledge and information that was not as readily available within our own childhoods. Because of this, I feel as though we need to put a great deal of focus into modifying our pedagogy and CURRICULUM to assure that our students are prepared for the world around us. As we have heard and seen, careers are being created around technology. The business world now relies heavily on technological programs in order to run successfully. If we want our students to become successful and efficient adults, we need to start incorporating technology into the classroom.

Another point I strongly agree with is that, "today's students, of almost any age, are far ahead of their teachers in computer literacy." I feel as though many teachers are set in their ways and are not comfortable learning a new skill, such as managing a social networking account or creating a classroom blog. With such accounts and blogs in place, not only will students further their learning (especially at home), but they will also be exposed to creating, managing, and contributing to a technological measure.

When I related chapter 2 to my own school, I felt as though we are on the right track; however, not yet there. Breakthrough Magnet School (breakthroughmagnetschool.org) has a very parent and student friendly website. They even have a website full of student resources that help further student learning at home! Additionally, they have grade level "Peek of the Weeks" that give parents a summary of what is going on within the classroom. Other school-wide announcements can be found here as well. When exploring further, I found that many of the teacher pages/peek of the weeks were outdated, some even from the last school year! I think this is another problem when incorporating technology into the classroom; staying up-to-date on postings!

I compared my school's website to lewiselementary.org. What I found was amazing! Not only was the main page updated almost daily with current news and events, but the teacher notes were extremely detailed and informative as well! This is what all schools need!

Finally, when looking for wikis and blogs, I found that there were none where students and parents could contribute to the information/posts. As Richardson states, critical reading and writing skills, management skills, and collaboration skills can all be refined through blogging activities. Personally, my one concern is how can I incorporate a successful blog into my classroom due to the fact that I work with special education students. I do not have these students daily, or for a specific subject or task. 

How can I create a blog that not only is informative for students and parents, but also helps to work on specific student strengths and deficits for special education students?

Hello!

Hello!

My name is Jamee Freitag. I am currently in my second year of teaching at Breakthrough Magnet School in Hartford, Connecticut. I work with nineteen talented middle school special education students. Student disabilities range from learning disabled to OHI to autism. On top of working with the students during school hours, I'm also the volleyball and basketball coach!

In my free time I love to dance, hike, and rock climb. I used to love to snowboard as well...until I broke my wrist this snow season!! My next big adventure includes moving to Argentina for a year to teach students English. I am currently preparing for this through a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) course and Rosetta Stone. Buenos Noches! Como esta?