Day 6 in Computers in the Classroom

Today was a very interesting day in class. I was exposed to something that I had never used before, Skype. I was really excited to learn how to use and it learn about all its applications. One of my best Friends is studying in Italy right now and the other is in Spain, and the only way to keep in touch with them is to skype. Unfortunately, I had never been able to use it. BUT NOW... I will be able to talk to them all the time (pending time zones). Thanks so much for introducing me to one of the newest and I think most popular ways to video chat with people from all over instantly.

Day 5 in Computers in the Classroom

I'm not going to lie, but I thought today's class was so beyond me.  In high school I was only exposed to blackboard in one of my classes, and it was only used for simple powerpoints, and even then, I was always so confused as to how it worked.  

Although I was very confused and felt a little embarrassed with how technology illiterate I am, I did think that this class was very beneficial.  It was a good introduction on how to use SmartBoard, but if I am going to use this in my classroom, I am going to have to go through much more training and practice using SmartBoard much more in order to understand it.  It is amazing how many different details go into a simple activity, lesson or game.  You have to understand how to incorporate color, fonts, themes, pictures, animations, sounds, and different ways to interact the students with the lesson or activity that you are presenting.  I thought the coolest part of SmartBoard, was being able to record what you are writing on the board, and then either save it for a student who is absent, or include it in a slide, so the whole class can see it while you are giving the presentation.

Smartboard is definitely beneficial and brings much excitement and engagement into the class room, however........ I hate to say it, but even with all the training in the world, I do not think that I will ever fully understand how to use SmartBoard and all its applications.  

COMPUTERS IN THE CLASSROOM -DAY 4

Today's class was the most interesting one to me so far. I think one of the reasons why I liked it so much was because the technology that we learned about and used was easy for me to follow, which definitely peaked my interest in the area. This lesson also proved to me yet another way that I will be able to incorporate technology into my math classroom and lessons.

What I loved about the training was the fact that we investigated every site thoroughly, to explore every aspect and concept of the web pages, giving us an expert understanding in how to manipulate each site. I really appreciated that we had to go into each contributing website of thinkfinity and explore certain lessons and activities that were of interest to us. Although some of the web pages didn't pertain to my major, it allowed me to see how different content areas set up lessons and the variety of lessons that they offer. To me, history is a very boring subject, but after playing around with the activities, some areas really caught my attention and allowed me to express a new interest in history. I feel if a simple website can do that for me, I'm certain it will help other students that find certain areas either boring or difficult, develop a new sense of appreciation in the subject. As a future math teacher, I have observed that many students ask how math is going to help them in life? Many of the activities that I came across show students how math will relate to certain everyday activities, and presented a fun approach to practicing this type of math.

I enjoyed this website so much that I sent the link to my roommate who is an elementary education major. When I got home, I showed her how to use the website and she was so excited about it. On the walk home from class, I called my mom, who is a teacher herself, and raved about thinkfinity. She said that it sounded so interesting that she was going to mention it to her principal and suggest that he put the link on the school website so it would be available to teachers, students and parents.

What I liked most about this lesson was that we spent the whole class examining this website and there is still an endless amount of information to be discovered and exposed to our students.

Day 3 in Computers

Today in class, I proved to myself that, "you cannot judge a book by its cover." The looks and sounds of making a podcast always seemed too hard and complicated for me to understand, and I always just assumed that I could not do it. I admit, it took me a lot of questioning and a while to get the hang of it, but once I did, I was able to create a podcast no problem. I learned so may different audio effects that could be used to edit my podcast and make it more audible and interesting. When I tried to "rename" my file, I somehow did something so that it would not open anymore. At first I was discouraged, thinking I was never going to be able to do this on my own. After getting over my fear of technology, I attempted to make another podcast and was able to do so very easily. I had no problems and this made me realize how fast I will be able to catch on to the current and future technology that will be used in the classrooms.

Throughout the class while we were discussing the ways to use podcasting in the classroom, I was trying to come up with ways to use it in a math setting. For a while, I could not come up with any, discouraging me from using it in my classroom. BUT....when I am doing math problems, I find it easier to work through a problem by talking about it out loud. For some students, this may be the perfect learning method for them. While a student is doing a problem, they can make a podcast of what they are doing, explaining every step they take and the methods they used. After posting it on the internet, this student as well as other students can listen to this podcast while doing their homework, using it as a reference to aid them through problems they need help with. I believe learning how to make and use podcasts will greatly benefit myself and my students in the classroom and in the school as a whole.