WOW....simply the most amazing tool I've probably ever used!
I have used Google Earth in the past, but that was right when it first came out. And I've never used it in a classroom setting. But that's definitely going to change!
Just looking at the layers all kinds of lesson ideas started coming to mind. I haven't had the chance to look at the potential resources listed on the 20/20 things but I plan on doing that soon. I was having too much fun playing with the different layers and features.
A few things that I really liked were the historical imagery. I've done lessons on Urban Sprawl in the past and it's nice to be able to look at historical maps to see how neighborhoods have changed through time, even in the past 9 or 10 years. I looked at the area where I live and even in 10 years things have changed drastically.
I also really liked several of the layers. Those include "Everytrail" (a description of different hiking trails)and "Webcams.travel" (shows different webcams at different popular tourist areas).
I can totally see students loving to use this. However, I also think that the teacher really needs to provide thorough guidance while the students are using this as the possibility of getting off task with this is highly increased with all the cool things the kids can do!
From a personal standpoint, I enjoy just looking at places that I have been or never been but want to visit. You can actually get a decent idea of what a place is like just based on that and find tons of information on it if you do want to go. I'm a big outdoor enthusiast so it's a great took for me to use to plan hikes, camping trips, etc.! Thanks for allowing us to work on this as part of our class!
Monday, January 4, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Voice Thread
I remember doing this during our training session in September I believe. I really enjoyed using these and I'm definitely planning on using this with my students. For my Quadrant D lesson, I'm doing a project on designing a National Park. To introduce this project, I am going to use a voice thread. I just created one using photo's from Flickr under the creative commons search of some different representative national parks around our nation. I have embeded this Voice Thread into this post. I would love to hear anyone's thoughts on this before I use it with my students 2nd semester.
Google Docs
Google docs is a tool I was first exposed to last year at Timberview via Terra Trent and a Tech10 time she did during a staff meeting. Also, last year Tom Andrew (AP at TMS), used Google docs during an in-service on school behavior and expectations. Finally, Tony Pimental did an inservice on Google docs last year for us in April at TMS.
With that being said, I came into this item on the 20/20 things with more experience than other parts. I really like the idea of "technological collaboration." I think we have all seen projects where one student does all the research and another puts together the presentation while the other group members simply sit around and "ride the coat tails" of the others.
I plan on using Google docs in the upcomming quarter at TMS. I do a project where pairs of students choose a particular sport or recrational activity and analyze the physics of that activity. This year, I am going to put together 2 things for each group; one will be a word document that they will be able to use to help compile their research. The second thing I'm going to do is create a power point for the groups that want to use this as a medium to present their project. I think the ability to track who revises it and what they add will hold all members of the group accountable for their part of the project.
I would also like to explore the "form" feature within Google Docs more. I have created one that I could use with my team of students at TMS but haven't formally employed it yet. I think it would be a great way to do surveys of the student body if all students had the ability to log on and take the survey that was created.
I used the e-mail rodney.pierson@asd20.org to access google docs. Feel free to include me in any of your google docs in the future!
With that being said, I came into this item on the 20/20 things with more experience than other parts. I really like the idea of "technological collaboration." I think we have all seen projects where one student does all the research and another puts together the presentation while the other group members simply sit around and "ride the coat tails" of the others.
I plan on using Google docs in the upcomming quarter at TMS. I do a project where pairs of students choose a particular sport or recrational activity and analyze the physics of that activity. This year, I am going to put together 2 things for each group; one will be a word document that they will be able to use to help compile their research. The second thing I'm going to do is create a power point for the groups that want to use this as a medium to present their project. I think the ability to track who revises it and what they add will hold all members of the group accountable for their part of the project.
I would also like to explore the "form" feature within Google Docs more. I have created one that I could use with my team of students at TMS but haven't formally employed it yet. I think it would be a great way to do surveys of the student body if all students had the ability to log on and take the survey that was created.
I used the e-mail rodney.pierson@asd20.org to access google docs. Feel free to include me in any of your google docs in the future!
Thoughts on Wiki's
To begin with, I looked at an elementary page that was established by 2 teachers working with upper elementary students. It was well set up and provided resoruces for students as well as examples of student projects.
I also took a look at the wiki's from Greeley West High School. I specifically looked at 2 different science pages that teachers have developed. The first teacher used it as a way for students to post answers to research-based questions she posted. The second teacher used it as a way to document student projects. I specifically looked at some of projects from his biology class on Taxonomy. For both of these science pages, I found them well structured, however I did not think that projects and/or the questions were "academically rigorous." I did not think that the students were using higher level thinking skills to answer the questions posed or to complete the research projects.
I also liked the Princeton Public Library wiki and all the book reviews that were on this website. It was a decent sized resource for people looking to find out what other people thought about a particular report.
In regards to classroom and/or school uses, I can definitely see some positve ways to use wiki's. First of all, students can use it to help compile research for classroom projects. I don't think that using it as a way to display student research projects would be something I would do (at least not in the format the Greeley West teacher did). I can also see it as a great tool to use for teachers and professional development. For example, if you have a team of teachers who are working on a specific topic (differentiation for example) then teachers can contribute thougths and ideas to the wiki without having to meet in person as often. We all know how busy teachers are and how precious there time is outside the classroom so this would be very positive.
I also took a look at the wiki's from Greeley West High School. I specifically looked at 2 different science pages that teachers have developed. The first teacher used it as a way for students to post answers to research-based questions she posted. The second teacher used it as a way to document student projects. I specifically looked at some of projects from his biology class on Taxonomy. For both of these science pages, I found them well structured, however I did not think that projects and/or the questions were "academically rigorous." I did not think that the students were using higher level thinking skills to answer the questions posed or to complete the research projects.
I also liked the Princeton Public Library wiki and all the book reviews that were on this website. It was a decent sized resource for people looking to find out what other people thought about a particular report.
In regards to classroom and/or school uses, I can definitely see some positve ways to use wiki's. First of all, students can use it to help compile research for classroom projects. I don't think that using it as a way to display student research projects would be something I would do (at least not in the format the Greeley West teacher did). I can also see it as a great tool to use for teachers and professional development. For example, if you have a team of teachers who are working on a specific topic (differentiation for example) then teachers can contribute thougths and ideas to the wiki without having to meet in person as often. We all know how busy teachers are and how precious there time is outside the classroom so this would be very positive.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wordle and TagCrowd
I was able to access TagCrowd and Wordle. However, Wordle would not work for me. It was some issue with the way Java was working on my computer. I worked through all of the suggestions on how to fix it but it still is not working. I will attempt to look at Wordle when I return to school on my school computer.
On TagCrowd, I wasn't overly impressed with the "word bubble" it created. It was pretty standard and didn't really show much I felt. I did like the small versions that I looked at on Wordle. There was much more diversity and creativity in the formats of the "word bubbles" that were created here.
I did take a look at the 10X10 website that was suggested in the Curriculum Connections section. Of all the things in the Social Networking/Tagging section of this class, I found it the most interesting. The collection of pictures, tags, and articles is quite comprehensive. I like the ability to "go back in time" with the history feature and look at grids from previous dates. This tool could be very interesting for a social studies class to look at as they conduct research on current issues.
The only hesitation I have with this, is that when you click on a picture, there are numerous articles that have nothing to do with the picture shown. For example, for today I clicked on Charlie Sheen's picture which was under the tag "violence." No articles appeared about Sheen's troubles in Aspen. Instead there were articles on the Detroit bombing suspect, Pakistan, Iraq, and Iran. As visual as students are, I can see this causing some confusion. But when moderated correctly, this 10X10 resource could be valuable.
On TagCrowd, I wasn't overly impressed with the "word bubble" it created. It was pretty standard and didn't really show much I felt. I did like the small versions that I looked at on Wordle. There was much more diversity and creativity in the formats of the "word bubbles" that were created here.
I did take a look at the 10X10 website that was suggested in the Curriculum Connections section. Of all the things in the Social Networking/Tagging section of this class, I found it the most interesting. The collection of pictures, tags, and articles is quite comprehensive. I like the ability to "go back in time" with the history feature and look at grids from previous dates. This tool could be very interesting for a social studies class to look at as they conduct research on current issues.
The only hesitation I have with this, is that when you click on a picture, there are numerous articles that have nothing to do with the picture shown. For example, for today I clicked on Charlie Sheen's picture which was under the tag "violence." No articles appeared about Sheen's troubles in Aspen. Instead there were articles on the Detroit bombing suspect, Pakistan, Iraq, and Iran. As visual as students are, I can see this causing some confusion. But when moderated correctly, this 10X10 resource could be valuable.
Social Bookmarking
I've been working this morning on the "Delicious" website. I've explored the one that has been created for the 20/20 Things Class for D20. I did find a few good links on this one. One was called "abpc - Transforming Learning." It was all about inquiry and project based learning which is right up my alley.
However, I really don't see much use for myself with this website. I can see how it can be good for some people, but maybe my brain doesn't operate the same way. The main way it would be useful to me is by clicking on the links on the right side of the page to see the different "tags" such as "webquests" or "teaching."
I did do the additional challenge and create my own "delicious" website. I already had a yahoo ID so that made it easier. When I did import all of my bookmarks from my home computer, all the tags were already the folders I had my favorites organized into. I try and keep my bookmarks organized both at home and at school. So for me, putting together a "delicious" website is redundant. It's the same exact organization as what I already have done in my favorites through internet explorer.
However, I really don't see much use for myself with this website. I can see how it can be good for some people, but maybe my brain doesn't operate the same way. The main way it would be useful to me is by clicking on the links on the right side of the page to see the different "tags" such as "webquests" or "teaching."
I did do the additional challenge and create my own "delicious" website. I already had a yahoo ID so that made it easier. When I did import all of my bookmarks from my home computer, all the tags were already the folders I had my favorites organized into. I try and keep my bookmarks organized both at home and at school. So for me, putting together a "delicious" website is redundant. It's the same exact organization as what I already have done in my favorites through internet explorer.
Social Bookmarking
I've been working this morning on the "Delicious" website. I've explored the one that has been created for the 20/20 Things Class for D20. I did find a few good links on this one. One was called "abpc - Transforming Learning." It was all about inquiry and project based learning which is right up my alley.
However, I really don't see much use for myself with this website. I can see how it can be good for some people, but maybe my brain doesn't operate the same way. The main way it would be useful to me is by clicking on the links on the right side of the page to see the different "tags" such as "webquests" or "teaching."
I did do the additional challenge and create my own "delicious" website. I already had a yahoo ID so that made it easier. When I did import all of my bookmarks from my home computer, all the tags were already the folders I had my favorites organized into. I try and keep my bookmarks organized both at home and at school. So for me, putting together a "delicious" website is redundant. It's the same exact organization as what I already have done in my favorites through internet explorer.
However, I really don't see much use for myself with this website. I can see how it can be good for some people, but maybe my brain doesn't operate the same way. The main way it would be useful to me is by clicking on the links on the right side of the page to see the different "tags" such as "webquests" or "teaching."
I did do the additional challenge and create my own "delicious" website. I already had a yahoo ID so that made it easier. When I did import all of my bookmarks from my home computer, all the tags were already the folders I had my favorites organized into. I try and keep my bookmarks organized both at home and at school. So for me, putting together a "delicious" website is redundant. It's the same exact organization as what I already have done in my favorites through internet explorer.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
