Thing 24:

Finally! I feel that most of these discoveries and experiences were very beneficial. This was a very educational journey and experience. I did notice that some of the links were dead, so those need to be revived or replaced. I plan to add some web 2.0 resources to my RSS feed so that I can keep up to date. I will make the resolution of using the tools that I now know, keep up with new tools, and apply them in my future classroom and job as an educator.

Thing 23:

"23 Things" is attached to Learning 2.0 and was designed by Helene Blowers. She loosely based it off of Stephen Abram's article and website about "43 things I (or you) might want to do this year". After learning about Creative Commons and the copyright law, I have become a more careful researcher. I will definitely pass this information along to my students as deemed appropriate. We were required to make a copyright tutorial for this class, so I fully plan on using that with my future students.

Thing 22:

Using LiveBinders was a little difficult for me. It seemed very complicated. The titles of my three LiveBinders are:  "Inclusion", "Bullying", and "Brain-Based Learning". I chose these specifically because I had previously gathered these resources in my other education classes. As a teacher, I could use LiveBinders for my personal development as an educator, to compile research. If I were teaching older students, they could use this tool for compiling research as well. They could work in groups and collaborate one or work on them individually and share them.

I provided the link to my Inclusion LiveBinder:
http://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=700643

Thing 21:

I noticed when creating an account with Animoto, it can take photos from your Facebook, Instagram, Flickr, or Picasa accounts. I use both Facebook and Picasa, so that added some ease. I really enjoyed this "thing". I did not like that you could only create 30 second clips for free. Making slide shows has always been fun for me and now you get to see some of my photos!


Make your own photo slideshow at Animoto.

I could see a teacher using this if he/she took pictures or video of the class and could use Animoto to create a slideshow or compile the videos to show to parents, post on the classroom blog/Facebook/etc. the video/slideshow could be played for the kids and their family at the end of the year.

Thing 20:

I have used YouTube many times. I do not like the advertisements with the video (but who does?), but I guess they have to make their money somehow. Some of them can be inappropriate though and can ruin the quality of the video you are trying to watch. I chose this video/trailer because I saw it on TV a while back and still have not seen the movie. It gives me chills and looks like it will be really good. Our schools need reform and there are efforts being made.

Thing 19:

TeacherPop is very much like a Facebook for teachers. I thought it was very neat. As far other online communities, I am a member of Yelp. Anytime that I am on vacation, I use Yelp mainly for restaurant reviews to decide where to eat. It also houses reviews for pretty much any service you would ever need. I find the reviews from others on there very helpful. I use IMDB, which is a movie database, but I am not a member of it. I have also heard of last.fm and GoodReads, but never really used them. TeacherPop is really the only one that I could see as beneficial to teachers. Maybe the others listed could be used with or for activities and lessons in the classroom.

Thing 18:

This "thing" was easy because I already have Twitter and Facebook accounts! I joined Twitter before I graduated high school so that I could be updated with what my friends were doing without having to text all of them separately. I have since added a Twitpic account so that I can tweet photos too. I created a Facebook after I graduated high school so that I could keep up with all of the people that graduated with (the ones I cared about anyway, haha!). Both social networking sites are a great way to connect with people, sometimes people you have never even met before. I am a firm believer in that you can learn something from everyone you meet (not saying that you have to meet these internet people in person, but figuratively!). I am not sure about using Twitter in the classroom, maybe on a school or district level to make important announcements. I think Facebook might work at the classroom level. The teacher could make a group or specific page for the class. I would assume that these would only benefit the parents. Of course, parents are allowing their children to have these accounts at younger and younger ages now. The good thing is that teachers or school staff can make these profiles private or public, so that parents or whoever do not have to have an account to view them. With Twitter, you can have updates sent to your cell phone or if you have a smart phone, then there are apps for that and Facebook. So, if there is an emergency, parents can be alerted immediately.


I'm pretty sure both of my profiles are set to private, but here are the links:
https://www.facebook.com/jessica.shaw.391
https://twitter.com/openxarms

Thing 17:

I had never heard of social bookmarking before, but I have heard about Delicious (not knowing what it is). I think that this is a great tool that everyone can use, especially teachers. I think it is great that your bookmarks are public so that others, including fellow teachers, can benefit from what you have found. I like that it is not tied to just one computer like regular bookmarks/favorites. This definitely a tool that I will use preeminently in the near future, since I will be buying myself a new laptop for Christmas. In that process, I will also be adding some websites that I can use in my future classroom.

Thing 16:

For the customized start page, I chose iGoogle which probably is no surprise. Google has never failed me, so I like their products. There are so many different themes and gadgets to choose from; it is very customize-able. I chose to add the Google Calendar, Google Translate, and Google Maps gadgets to start with. I chose a theme that pictured snow covered trees near a creek. I was disappointed to see, however, that iGoogle will not be available after November 1 of next year. So, I probably would not use this as my personal homepage. I do not use my current one as it is, except to check my email.
For online calendars, I chose to explore 30 Boxes. I did not really like this set-up. I would rather just keep a planner or a physical calendar instead. If I actually write it down, I am more likely to remember it. If I need important reminders for events in my calendar, I put them in my phone's calendar or I use my iPod touch's calendar app to alert me.
For online to-do lists, I explored Remember the Milk. They even have an app for that (literally)! It looks like it can also work with your Gmail account, Google Calendar, Twitter, and even Microsoft Outlook. It can email, text or instant message you reminders which I thought was really neat. You can even share your lists and put the tasks, like errands, on a map. This seems to be a very handy service. However, again, I like to actually write down my to-do lists so that I am more likely to remember them. This could serve as a back-up though with the reminders.
I also explored Zamzar which is an online file conversion service. It convert files to pretty much any kind of image (jpg, bmp, gif, etc.), document (pdf, ppt, html, etc.), music (wma, mp3, m4a, etc.), video, e-book and other formats. It will convert files under 100MB for free; if you want more, you will have to pay for it. It sends the converted file to the email you provide.
I would definitely recommend all of the above tools to others, minus the 30 Boxes online calendar.

Thing 15:

I use wikis, especially Wikipedia on a daily basis. I only use it for quick information on something or someone. I know to never use it for serious research purposes. I use it mostly to look up actors or actresses, usually to see what other roles they have played or how old they are. It is just convenient for me to get quick information on things that pique my curiosity, even though I know that information may not always be correct or true.
I think wikis are a great way for people, including students, to collaborate on various topics, given that they are sharing accurate information. However, if inaccurate information is shared, then it gives others a chance to correct it. It looks like many libraries and schools are using wikis. I really like the idea of doing a literature circle wiki. I can see using a wiki in the classroom as part of a Jigsaw activity being fun for the students. Divide the students up into groups and each of those groups would be assigned roles. Students with the same roles would collaboratively research a specific topic and then report on the wiki to share with the rest of the class. The whole class could understand the different relevant topics without doing all of the research. It would be a time-saver.

Thing 14:

To my understanding, a flowchart can help someone understand a complicated process more easily and a mind map is used more for brainstorming an idea. I chose to explore Gliffy and MindMeister. Both were fairly easy to use. Gliffy offers more than just creating flowcharts, you can also create Venn diagrams, floor plans, and technical drawings among many other things. I feel that something like Gliffy would probably be used more by me as a teacher to present a lesson to my students. I feel that students could use MindMeister themselves to help organize their ideas or even help them with essays or papers.

Thing 13:

I really like the idea of web-based productivity sites. Zoho Writer offers a lot of useful features, like online file storage, secure file sharing, and tagging. Of course, most of those features are not free - such is life! Google Drive has similar features, but it is free. I like that Google Drive will sync with the documents you have already created on your computer.Although, Zoho's prices are reasonable for what they offer, I would probably prefer Google Drive since it is free and a well-known name/company that I feel that I can trust. Students could use these web-based productivity sites to work collaboratively on group work or cooperative learning activities. They could also use these sites to share individual projects or work with their fellow classmates, teachers, or even potential employers.

Thing 12:

Google has become a commonly used verb in my vocabulary. It is my go to search engine! Google alerts is interesting. I like that you can narrow your alert results or keep them broad and general. You can also decide when you receive the alerts (as-it-happens, once daily or weekly). You can also get all the results or just the best ones. I think Google Calendar would be a great tool for teachers. They can post their daily schedules on there, so parents know what subject(s) their students will miss if they leave early. Teachers can also put field trips, other special events, and various reminders on the calendar to share with parents. Google Translate would come in handy with communicating with parents, like at parent-teacher conferences, who may not speak English at all or very well. I like that you can even attach a file to it and it will translate it. If you are not sure which language it is to begin with, Google Translate can handle that too.

Thing 11:

I liked Google Blog Search the best just because I am more familiar with the Google interface. I also liked Technorati; it gave me more relative results to what I was looking for than Topix did. Topix had pop-up advertisements on it, so that loses some points for me. It was a little more confusing for me to navigate. Bright Hub Education was a neat blog that I came across using Google Blog Search. It offers lesson plans, fun activities, and even teaching tips and strategies. It covers preschool all the way through high school. It even offers homework help! It has been added to my RSS feed via Google Reader.

Thing 10:

I like that RSS and Google Reader are easy to use. They make relative information convenient. I think it would be great to use once I start teaching, when I need ideas for lesson activities. I can have all the sites in one place, instead of having to visit each individual website. I subscribed to Apps in Education, Free Technology for Teachers, the Education Optimists, I Heart Nap Time, Juggling with Kids, and Smashed Peas and Carrots. The last three blogs are where I have previously found some awesome crafts to do with kids. Free Technology for Teachers was on the recommended feeds from Dr. Wall. It gives some great technology tips for teachers to use in their classrooms with their students. Apps in Education and the Education Optimists are the blogs that I chose to comment on for Thing #4. I wanted to keep up to date with them as well.

Thing 9:

For this thing, I used Image Chef and Happy Face Generator. I think these generators would just be something fun to incorporate into the classroom. They could be printed off and put on a bulletin board or a calendar. Seeing an image of a reminder like that might help some students remember whatever it is.

Thing 8:

Using Flickr in classroom could be beneficial when you need to show your students something that they cannot see locally. Flickr mashups could be fun for the students. I used the Spell with Flickr mashup only because it was the easiest one to use. Students could use it to create a name tag or to tell others something about themselves. I also liked the idea of the Mappr mashup because you could put multiple photos on a map to chare with students for a geography or cultural lesson. I think the Jigsaw mashup could be fun for students especially the ones who strongly exhibit logical and visual intelligences. Sharing photos online is an iffy subject for me. Anyone can see and possibly take your photos, if you are not careful. However, if you want a lot of people to see your photos, it is great way to do that.

Thing 7:

Photography is one of my hobbies. I have worked at a summer daycare for the past five years. At the end of each summer, we put together a slide show of photos of the kids for Family Night. At one of those Family Nights, a parent and I were talking about my photography and he recommended that I get a Flickr, but I never did. So, now I am seeing what I have been missing out on! Flickr looks like it is very easy to use. I noticed that you can upload photos from third party apps, like Picasa (which I use to edit my photos). So, that is very convenient! It seems to be a social networking site specifically for photographers, which is unique.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." - Ghandi

Photo credit:  Feggy Art

I found this photo here. This is one of my favorite quotes. I consider myself to be easily inspired and I want to inspire my students. I hope that all of them will change the world in some way, no matter how small. This quote will definitely be displayed somewhere in my future classroom. I would really like to have a bulletin board dedicated to inspiring quotes like this one. Maybe, if I end up teaching the upper grades, I can have my students pick out their favorite quotes and put them on the bulletin board as well.

Thing 6:

I chose to explore Grooveshark because I love music. I had heard of Grooveshark, but never checked it out. It is very similar to iTunes and Pandora. You can upload music to the site. You can create playlists which might come in handy in the classroom. You could have a playlist for transitions between subjects and activities. You could make playlists for each subject. You can search by song title, artist name, or album name, which is very useful. The only thing I did not like is that Grooveshark does not have stations for similar sounding artists like Pandora does. However, it does have stations sorted according to the genre of music. This site could be used to help musically intelligent students that might be in the class. Grooveshark could prove to be a very useful tool in the classroom.

Thing 5:

"School 2.0" is basically the entire point of this class. We are also experiencing it in the other classes we are taking, by use of D2L. "School 2.0", to me, means learning on a whole new level by teaching using technology, sometimes even outside the classroom. I think schools of the future will increasingly use more and more technology. I mean we already have homeschooling available online. What is next? I think "School 2.0" will allow teachers to better modify their lessons and mold them to address the various learning styles in their classrooms. "Web 2.0:  A Guide for Educators" confirmed my thoughts. The Internet is constantly growing and changing. More and more people are using it. The Web has become second nature to many kids. The Web has also become part of daily life for most of them. The Horizon Report (2008) mentions:  "Web 2.0 and social networking tools are increasingly being adopted for educational use," and I have to agree. That article also addresses the increasing amount of various portable devices which eases the transition into "School 2.0".

Thing #4:

I think commenting helps create a sense of community and interaction because you talk with people who have similar ideas and views to your own. It is a great tool to share experience with others. The Cool Cat Teacher Blog mentions that through commenting, "you show the blog author that you 'hear them'". Others can reaffirm your thoughts and ideas, and vice versa. The Cool Cat Teacher Blog also says that by commenting, "you become part of the life of the blogger you are reading". This is very true. When you start commenting, sometimes you cannot stop. So, you keep up to date with the blog and consequently the blogger's life.
I chose to comment on the following blogs from our group:

• 23 Stehle HOOTs
• Ava's 23 things at 32
• Hemingson's 23 Things
• Mixon's Magical 23 Things
• Blair's 23 Things

And these two blogs from outside our group:

• http://eduoptimists.blogspot.com/
• http://appsineducation.blogspot.com/

These blogs caught my attention for one reason or another. I just commented on posts I agreed with. I also gave some of my opinions and ideas. As far as the blogs outside our group, eduoptimists gives some great info and the author is a parent. So, it is great to get that perspective. Appsineducation offers some awesome app suggestions for teachers to use. However, not all of the apps suggested are free.

Thing #3:

I would like to use a blog in my future classroom to keep in contact with the parents of my students. I can post on there what we do each day in class. That way if a student misses part or all of the day, they can know what we did. I could also post photos of the students (with their parents permission) doing some activities. I could also link parents and students to websites for study tools (interactive games) for whatever lessons we are going over in the classroom. Maybe have a featured student of the week or something like that. I can use the blog as a paperless classroom newsletter as well.
I could also have a separate blog where I can interact with other teachers. I can post about experiences with different activities and lessons. I could use it as a place to reflect on things. I can share my ideas and other ideas that I have been brought to my attention.

Thing #2:

As I said in the previous post, I have created a blog before. So, creating this one was not entirely difficult. I have never used this site before, so it will take some getting used to. It will take some time for me to get acquainted with everything on here.
Creating the avatar was fun. I had never done that before. I should probably go back and edit it a little bit. It will be okay though. I tried to make it look like me because I thought that was the whole point. It is not really dressed like me, but it does have the curly brown hair and glasses like me. Finding out where to put the avatar on my blog was rather difficult. I do not think the directions for doing so were accurate. I got Mrs. Richardson to help me with it after class one day.
I decided on my posting name because it is my email, so it would be easy to remember. I decided on the blog title of "23 Things" so there was no confusion on what it was about. I also could not think of anything creative to call it.

Thing #1:

I have created and used a blog before, but this site is set up a little differently. So, it will take some time for me to get comfortable with everything here. Through this experience and this class I want to learn about technology tools that will aid my future students in their learning.

Being a lifelong learner has been instilled in me since elementary school. In fact, it was part of our mission statement that we recited every morning! I also want my future students to become lifelong learners too. Out of the "7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learning", I would say that habit #1 ("begin with the end in mind") is the easiest for me. I am a planner and I am always looking toward (worrying, usually) about my future. "Accept responsibility for your own learning" (habit #2) is another easy one for me because if no one can accept that responsibility but me. Habit #3 ("View problems as challenges") is probably the hardest for me because problems throw off my focus and challenges are difficult for me, but I guess they are called "challenges" for a reason.