School Blocking of Sites
When I looked at the Teachweb 2.0 list, there was a site that I found called Protagonize, which is a creative writing community dedicated to writing various forms of collaborative, interactive fiction. Basically, one author writes a few chapter than anyone else that is a member of the site can write the next few chapters, and so and so on. The result is a story that tons of people have contributed to. A member can also write what the site calls a “solo” story, which is a story that the member alone writes and no one else contributes a chapter to it.
From an administrator’s viewpoint, the reason to block it might be because a member can read a story with mature content on it.
However, I believe that the site should be allowed for students as long as it is closely monitored by the teacher. This website would be great for an English class. For example, if an English class did some work with creative writing or if they wanted to do a poem, they could use this website. When it comes to blocking the mature content, it should be pretty easy because stories marked as mature content do not show up in many areas of the site, including the home page.
Overall, this site should be used because it can be a great resource for teachers and students, if managed effectively.
Digital Film project
I did this video with Photo Story and the video is basically a representation of William Blake’s song “The Clod and the Pebble”.
My Voice Thread Link
My voice thread is about the history of Halloween. I thought it would be cool to do since Halloween is in two days! 
PicLit, Scratch, and Voki
Every time I am in class, I learn something new and interesting. How cool is that? PicLit, for example, is an amazing tool that students can use in the classroom. The website is about matching beautiful images with words and creating an inspiring effect. This could be a good way to use as a visual aid on a presentation. Or say a teacher is decorating his or her classroom to get ready for the new school year, they could use this website. PicLit is also good for strengthening creative writing skills. Kids could look at images and try to come up with creative words to go with them. After all, when we do creative writing, we’re trying to create some kind of an effect on the reader. I myself will definitely be using for my classroom some day. Also, I will be telling my brother about this because he graduated from GA Southern this past May with a degree in Music Education. He could definitely use this website for his classroom.
Scratch is another great website. This requires more creativity and imagination. Students can snap together “blocks” that look like Legos or puzzle pieces to create an interactive animated story. There are numerous possibilities with this website. Students can use this to tell a fictional story about a real historical character. Or they can use Scratch to depict historical events. They can even use this to accompany a book report. Again, how cool is that?
Last but not least, Voki is a great website for the classroom. This website is about using speaking avatars that are personalized and using them on your blog, profile, and emails. I spent about twenty minutes playing with this and I am fascinated. Students can use this for their presentations or their personal use.
All three of these websites are so creative and interesting, I can’t believe I didn’t know about them before. Thank goodness for this class!
Mabry Middle and Dr. Tyson
Wow, I wish I had gone to this school when I was a kid. I was so impressed with the videos that the students had made for their annual film festival. Oh how I wish I had had the opportunity to do this. But I digress.
I am just so amazed with Dr. Tyson. He is truly a great principal and teacher. He has made a real effect on the school and the kids. He inspires everyone to learn and to challenge themselves. He is also helping teachers get more familiar with technology so that they in turn can relate to their students better. He created the film festival and the school website, which features podcasts, video, pdfs of classwork, homework assignments, review activities, and many others. When I look back at the website for the middle school I attended, it pales in comparsion.
When I watched Dr. Tyson’s keynote address, it only served to reinforce my impression that Dr. Tyson is a creative and caring principal. Why can’t there be more principals like him? He has managed to make learning fun and educational for the students, something that can be hard to do. All the students in his school treat him with great respect and they admire him. I can see why. He has expanded everyone’s minds, student and teacher alike. He has broadened their horizons by applying technology to great use in the classroom and outside the classroom. Every principal and teacher should strive to use their creativity in the classroom, like Dr. Tyson does.
Chapter 6 Response
This chapter was very interesting. Thanks to the internet, we definitely have a lot more resources than we ever did before. We are also able to connect to other people and share our ideas with them.
It was interesting to read the chapter’s take on Twitter. Myself personally, I think Twitter is kind of silly. It’s really nothing but status updates. But I never thought of connecting with other teachers or wannabe teachers like myself, through Twitter and sharing ideas with them. I was really surprised when I read about YouthTwitter.com. Kids can post their updates in a permission only environment. That was amazing to me. Also, we can do what Dave Basler did, sending journal updates to Twitter accounts while on a field trip so that students can watch the updates in real time.
When it comes to social bookmarking, I think that is such a useful tool. The only reason I haven’t used it myself is because my computer is much too slow and I am afraid of it slowing my computer down even more. Correct me if I’m wrong though. However, I am excited about using the social bookmarking.
As far as Twitter goes, it might take me some time but if I use it, it will probably be for the classroom.
Glogster, Gabcast, Wordle, and all that jazz
Throughout this class, I am frequently being surprised by websites that I had no idea existed. I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about the Internet but I find myself being corrected on that. I am not complaining though, I love finding out about these new websites. (Well, new to me anyway).
One such website is the Glogster website. This is a great website to use in the classroom. Instead of writing a paper on what their life is like and who they really are, the students can get far more creative by going to Glogster. Basically, the website is about creating posters. It is very creative and colorful, and the kids would have so much fun if they could use it in the classroom. When they do a presentation, instead of using a normal poster, they could go online to Glogster and create a poster about their topic. Plus it would save them money as far as buying markers and glitter, etc.
The Gabcast website would be great for students that are auditory learners. They could listen to a clip about Jane Austen or whatever topic the kids are discussing at the time. They could also create their own audio clip. In presentations, it would probably be a great tool. For myself personally, I wouldn’t use Gabcast because I wouldn’t really be able to get the information I needed. Plus I was a little overwhelmed by the site.
Wordle is probably my favorite although it doesn’t really serve any purpose that I can think of in the classroom, other than using it for aesthetic purposes. For example, the kids could use Wordle as a graphic on their brochure, PowerPoint, poster, etc. It would make their presentations more creative.
The Museum Box website is one of the best websites to use in the classroom. When the students are doing a history project or a book report, they can go to this website and place items in a virtual box that would describe the person, event, or historical period. I saw this and my first thought was that I wish I had this available when I was in school. When I tried to create my own museum box however, I got a little confused. It took me a while to really learn all the ins and outs of it. That is my only criticism is that it can be a little confusing.
TimeRime is another excellent website for the classroom. You can make your own timeline for any event, person, or historical period. It is much simpler than Museum Box. Also, it is a secured environment and teachers have admin rights. I really like this website and I can see myself using it in the future.
Overall, I really liked all these websites and I will definitely use all of them in some way, except maybe Gabcast. Thanks to these websites, you can make learning and the Internet fun and creative. I am excited about using them in my classroom someday!
Media Lit article
Again, this is late…I really got to get a better computer connection. It’s too darn slow. But enough whining….guess I’ll try to start doing these posts at school.
Anyway, I really liked the opening quote of the section. “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn”–Alvin Toffler. That quote is so true.
I never really thought about the roles of media literacy until I read this article. According to the article, one of the roles is to prepare citizens to engage and contribute to the public debate. In the past, citizens have mainly just observed the public debate on hot issues. However, now people can offer their opinions and to be skilled in media literacy, we need to develop our critical thinking and analyzing skills when it comes to the media. Basically, don’t just believe everything you see, hear, or read in the media. Question it.
I definitely like the analogy of the classroom being a portable tent where students gather before they go out to explore and learn. Like the article says, we can’t just give the students information. As teachers, we need to encourage our students to seek to learn and to guide their learning process. We need to instill a sense of excitement about the world and hopefully then, the students will WANT to learn and explore.
I was looking at the chart detailing the 19th-20th century learning and the 21st century learning, and I was blown away. I knew things had changed drastically but I had no idea just how much. I think the best result of this change though is that students are now participants and contributors to their learning. Now they don’t just sit back and daydream, pretending to listen to the teacher, now they actually offer their opinions and contribute to the discussions. Most of the students do, anyway.
Overall, I think media literacy is EXTREMELY important. After all, the media has so much influence on us and kids as well. It’s best to use that influence in a good way. We have to learn how to use the media’s influence to work for us and for the kids as well. Also, we are bombarded by images and text in the media. If we are going to be constantly pelted with it, we should learn how to interpret the images.
Cybersell Article
Today I finally got the Internet back and thank goodness, because I was going through withdrawal. Anyway, here is my long-awaited thoughts on the Cybersell article.
I definitely agree that we need to teach our students to become more skilled at interpreting the websites that they come across in their daily lives. These kids shouldn’t just react to a wesbite that is specifically targeted at their demographic, but they need to think about why the website was put together the way it was. Basically, they need to expand their critical thinking skills.
This article illustrates that as teachers, we need to use the media to relate to our students. Like the article says, kids spend about 3 hours online a day. Nowadays, kids aren’t that interested in reading books for their pleasure or books for academic reasons. So why not turn to the one of venues they are interested in? Television or the Internet? If English teachers would turn to them and use them effectively, then they could improve their student’s analyzing and critical thinking skills.
I went to the Doritos website and I was blown away. It just seemed so crazy to me that they would go to all this trouble to create an interactive website for a bag of chips. But maybe I am too old-fashioned. Even though I’m only 21, I can’t see myself going to the website of one of the products that I frequently use, like Crystal Light drink mix. I can’t see myself going to the Crystal Light’s website purely for my own amusement. However, I have to remember that kids today are becoming more and more adept at using the Internet than ever before. Therefore, I need to become more skilled at navigating the Internet and analyzing it, so that I can teach my future students and relate to them better.
Editing Wikipedia
I decided to edit the Wikipedia page for Percy Jackson and the Olympians book series. More specifically, I edited the plot for the first book in the series, The Lightning Thief. I felt that the previous plot was too detailed and gave too much away. So when I edited it, I decided to make the summary shorter and that way, there are not any spoilers. I chose to edit this page because when I did my field experience last spring, I had to read The Lightning Thief so that I could help the students with any questions and so I could discuss the book with them. I ended up falling in love with the series and bought all of the books. Even though it’s geared towards middle school age kids, they are fantastic books for anyone to read, no matter their age.
Anyway….here is the link to the page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Jackson_%26_The_Olympians
