Thing 17 Social networking, and microblogging

Ning Classroom 2.0 kind of blew me away. What a massive amount of information, and tools. It was more than I expected, and I know I will be returning. I read a few threads from the forum, perused some photos, watched some interesting videos, and looked for some upcoming events which gave me ideas of other places to visit online. I think I can get some valuable ideas from the forum, and will use it to help develop my PLN. I do not see myself setting up a ning for my class at this time, but may in the future. I was able to find a Ning that I think could be useful with future lessons. It was called Video snacks , and I got some helpful tips on using videos in my lessons. I am going to have to make more time for ning in my normal schedule.

I have been a texter for a little over two years, and find it a useful tool to communicate with other coaches, students on my teams, and of course my family. I have not thought about using it as a professional part of my PLN, but can see how it could be effective as a tool to get quick answers. I also recently started using Twitter, but have not put much effort into it. I could definitely see my students enjoying a private microblog communit. they would get a big kick out of twittering from there cell phones in class. I do not usually have trouble with discussion topics, but waiting for a turn to speak is a big problem in my class. Being able to respond as soon as you are ready would be a bonus for my students. The lack of impulse control would allow them an immediate outlet as well as giving them a physical act to concentrate on. It is very possible that it could cut down on behavior problems in the class. I think there would be a positive Hawthorne effect, but wounder how long it would last. Most of my experiments are good for 1-3 hours.

Thing 16 Social Networks

It goes without saying that Social Networking has its pitfalls if used unwisely. I personally will not use Facebook, or Myspace, and I am glad they are blocked at school. There is not a kid I have taught who does not have a space on one or both of these sites. Kids with extremely low reading levels, and no computers at home have sites. As we are well aware, teachers can get themselves into trouble if they are not cautious about what they post on social networks.

I felt cautious about social networking before this coarse but can see the value of creating a PLN. I have gotten a lot of great information from my Google reader, and when I am able I take the time to click away on interesting articles and let them take me where they will. I have ended up more than six links away from my reader on several occasions. I have dabbled with twitter, and have yet to develop a network, and am not seeing the value yet.

I have used social networking with my coaching, particularly wrestling. I have professional contacts from all over the nation who share insights, tips, and the love of the sport. When I go to a local wrestling event and meet new people, many of them already know me through forum posts, blog responses, or general reputation. I have been at it with the wrestling world for about six years. I think I can build my education PLN much quicker.

Thing 15 Google Docs

I had no experience with Google Docs before this course. I had only used Google as a search engine. I did not even know about image searches till fairly recently. I like the fact that I do not have to access my hard drive to get to documents that I have created on Google Docs. The freedom to pick up where I left off at school from home is a big advantage. The cost savings on Flash Drives, plus the fact that they are so easy to loose also makes using Google Docs a big advantage. I am thinking of converting my final exams onto a Google Doc with the auto grading format just for fun. Using Docs was just as easy as Word, but it did not cost me a thing to use it. I am going to incorporate Google Docs as my main processing tool from now on. As soon as I get some files created, and get organised, I may just copy all of my good files to Google.
I know I can set the files to private, but I still feel a little squeamish about putting any of my IEP files out there. They are going to stay on my hard drive, and Flash Drives.

Thing 14 a lesson in loading.

I viewed several videos on anger management for my social skills class. A couple of videos were not bad so I am putting them here for you to view.



I was introduced to youtube a few years ago by my students. They would look up funny videos, and fights when they had free time. We would end up huddled around a monitor enthralled by what we were seeing. Before this assignment I never looked to youtube as a possible teaching tool, but easily found some appropriate video that I could use with my class. I can use these videos as a time out tool to give my students a chance to cool down when they get heated, or as a precursor to help prevent problems.




This is my instructional video. It combines a technique I like to use with a technique that Dennis Horne likes to use.





This one is just for fun.

Teachertube was a little more friendly for instructional materials. I did not end up sorting through as much inappropriate materials looking for something useful. I will look at teachertube more in the future for lesson ideas.

On a side note, I have DSL on my home computer, but it is no where near as fast as my school connection. This was extremely slow and laborious at home. If I did work like this on a regular basis, I would definitely invest in faster connections, and more memory.

Thing 5C

Sometimes my Google Reader can be overwhelming, so I have gotten very good at skimming and finding the articles that truly interest me. I stared the following article just for this post. I always enjoy things that are free. As Tommy Lasorda always says"If it's free it's for me". Free Technology for teachers is right up my alley. This particular post informs us of Big Huge Labs. This site does not require signing in to do work. I have enough passwords and user-names floating around so I really like the fact that none is required. I tried Hockneyizing a picture from an earlier project. It only took a minute. Try this site out if you have a minute, that's all it took me.

Thing 13 stretch

This is an interactive lesson I will be using with my Social skills class. I may let some other students comment as well.

Thing 13 Voicethread.

I don't recall ever seeing a voicethread before this course. I enjoyed listening to comments from younger students especially in the Pecos Bill, and the dragon voicethreads. The science experiment and science fair experiment were also great examples of students using this technology to present material in a professional manner. I am going to attempt to set up a short lesson using voicethread and see how it goes with my students. I am going to use the same pictures I used in my slide show, and give the students an opportunity to make comments. Unfortunately we do not have wireless in my classroom, and my laptop is the only computer in the room with a microphone, so the use of this tool may not be totally practical at this point, but if I was at a school with those capabilities, I would use this tool a lot more often. I think voicethread could be a much better tool for me when compared to slide shows. The ability to interact will definitely enhance the involvement, enjoyment, and retention of my lower learners.