After Tool # 11

My new favorite is tool is skype and I have enjoyed skyping with my class while I am out on maternity leave. I feel like I am still there with them and I think it will be nice when I go back that I haven't been completely out of the loop. I plan to set up a math review game with another class using skype.  

11 Tools has transformed my thinking in math ways. Before 11 tools I felt like I was pretty technology savvy, but this has showed me that there is so many other technology programs out there that I had no idea about! I need to make sure I am staying current with all of the new technology available so my students learn in new exciting ways and I guide them to become 21st century learners.

Tool # 11

The 3 things I want to make sure my students understand about being good digital citizens are:

1. Digital security and safety, and predator identification
2. Digital etiquette/Cyberbullying
3. Digital literacy

I think the best way to teach these lessons is by using brainpop or other video resources like the video I found on skyping etiquette. I also think it is important to guide them like we would in any other subject through the websites that are safe and accurate. The library resources page is a great a tool that students can use when they are working online.

Tool # 10

I teach math and found the following apps beneficial for math class, workstations, and early finishers.

ArithmeTick:  flash cardd for facts
Sudoku- kids love this puzzle!
KenKen Lite- uses math concepts to solve puzzles
Math Drills Lite- math fact practice
Learn Chess- Chess is a great game of strategy that I think every kids should learn.
Unblock Me Free-a puzzle game that you have to move pieces around to get the red block out in the fewest amount of moves. Can be addicting!

I have had a chance to play with the iTouch and love it. There are so many different apps that the students are really going to love playing with, and probably won't remember that they are learning at the same time!  I am excited for my classroom to get ours so that we can begin incorporating them into our daily lessons.  

Tool # 9

I think Jing will be great in the classroom for several reasons. It will allow me to create a video for a particular lesson and then students can review it from home if they are having problems doing homework or before we take a test or quiz. It will also be beneficial when students are absent. I also think parents will enjoy seeing how a particular concept is being taught because I often get emails asking about this, since somethings have changed since they were in school.


I love skype. I am currently out on maternity leave and skype has allowed me to stay in touch with my students and team members. I was also able to skype with parents during school conferences. I can't wait to skype with other math classrooms to play review games before tests. I think skype will also be great in social studies class because you can visit all of the places you are studying.

Tool # 8

I found these 2 videos which would be great in the classroom.

http://www.blinkx.com/watch-video/basic-math-lesson-6-video-clip-2-types-of-fractions/MQQ7E4Jn-Uiq8rdT0BMBKg

This video introduces mixed numbers and improper fractions. This will be perfect for my upcoming math lessons. I always try to use technology in my daily lessons because the kids always get excited and pay attention more than if I am just telling them about it.

http://teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=202696&title=Skyping_Etiquette_for_the_Classroom
This video has kids discussing proper etiquette for skyping in the classroom. I love that it is other children presenting the material because I think my students will be able to relate to them. This is the perfect video to show before you skype or video conference to help review proper manners.

Tool # 7

I created a photostory about the Texas GSP rescue, a dog group I am involved in. Making the photostory was much easier than I thought it was going to be, but I did have problems uploading my file to the blog. I work with 5th graders and I think they could work in small groups to easily create their own photostory. There are some many possibilities for this in the classroom- book reviews, book reports, learning about new vocabulary, or student of the week. I think the kids are really going to enjoy working with photostory.

Tool # 6

Wikis are a great place for students to post data that we could use when learning about different types of graphs and statistics. I visited http://mrsibrahim.wikispaces.com/ and was very impressed with all of the work the 2nd graders were doing on their wiki. I loved the word wall with math vocabulary and I also like that they were tracking how big a 1,000 was by asking people to enter their name. I edited their wiki and put in my info to help out! Wikis could be used in the classroom to collect data from all of the world!

Tool # 5

At first, I was a little confused as to when I would need a website that would bookmark all of my favorite sites, since I can easily access all of them from my computer. However, the more I read on Diigo, I realized what a great website this is! I can access all of my favorite bookmarks on any computer or my I-Touch, on vacation, on husbands, or if my computer was to die,God forbid, I would still have access to everything with Dingo! I also like that you can add sticky notes or highlight key points on specific sites and Diigo saves them for when your revisit. This will also be helpful in the classroom when I am using the activboard to show my students highlighted points from specific websites that are all easily accessable in one place!

I searched Diigo under the math tag and found 2 great website.
http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/
This site has tons on great math, language arts, and geography games. It will be the perfect place for my students to go and practice their math facts at home, in workstations, or as an early finisher activity.

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html
This site allows you to search for virtual math manipulatives by grade level and skill. This will be a great website to use when making flipcharts for your activboard. It also has puzzles you can download and play.

Tool # 4

I love Google Reader! It makes it so easy to follow all of your favorite blogs in one place! I think this one site will make it so much easier to stay up to date with new posts.

I have also enjoyed working with Google Docs. I love that you can share your documents with other teachers. I have already shared several math docs with the other math teacher on my team and she can edit it to work for her or make changes that I can view. I also uploaded all of my students' email accounts so I can share class notes with them or other important papers. Since google docs is available from any computer, students will have access to class notes even if they forgot their notebook at school. Parents will love this! This is also a great and easy way for students to work on group projects without having to all be in the same place at once.

Tool # 3

 I created a wordle with math vocabulary and used spell with flickr to add a cute message on my blog.  Both of the sites would be a great and fun way for students to practice their spelling or vocabulary words. You can also use wordle in any subject to introduce or review vocabulary words.

Tool # 2

        I think building a PLN is a great way to communicate with teachers and other professionals that you might not ever have a chance to sit down and meet. Blogging gives you the opportunity to have a conversation with someone that might live in another state or even country! This is a great way for teachers to share ideas or even problem solve on an issue you might be facing in your classroom.
    The main point that stuck out to me was don't be afraid to comment. Making one comment starts the converstation rolling. It encourages the blogger to learn about you and also comment on something you might have put on your page. I never thought about it but the more you comment, the more you feeback you will get on your blog.

The 5 blogs I commented on are:
http://dorothybean.blogspot.com/
http://bloggingbhe.blogspot.com/
http://seracentanni.blogspot.com/
http://laladylowdown.blogspot.com/
http://sciencerocksatbhe.blogspot.com/

Tool # 1

Just finished setting up my blog on blogger and it was much easier than I thought! I had a lot of fun creating my voki and I love that she can talk to people when they come to my blog. I think this blog will be a great place for my students to come and reflect and respond on a particular lesson, or ask questions about something they need extra help on.