Reflection

Today is the gallery walk for STEP and I am excited. Being a part of this year's STEP team has really opened my eyes when it comes to technology in the classroom. I have always used some form of technology in the classroom. Since I started working in PGCPS, I have been blessed by being able to use an LCD projector and a overhead that is way much better than the standard. Plus I use my laptop for more than just checking email.

I tell my students all the time that they are blessed to be in the height of the technology age. Ill be 30 this year and I still remember when it was a luxury to have a computer in the classroom. Now most modern classrooms have anywhere between 4-8 up-to-date computers plus a school lab. My students found it funny when I showed them the game Oregon Trail, especially when they saw the graphics. To think playing 8-bit games was the highlight of my childhood.

Learning about wikis and voicethread I truly enjoy. Especially since I was taught how to incorporate them into the classroom. To think the programs is out there FREE to use. I enjoyed seeing my students actually light up. using the programs I felt like a teacher but more of a facilitator. I didnt feel like I had to lecture to get the point across.

All of Rob's Blogs :-)

Here are the blogs that I have been keeping in Word...

12/15-12/29

Since this is my first blog, I want to share what I have done so far this year J. On a regular basis, I use my LCD projector, Elmo and and SMARTboard with my 4^th grade students. I usually use my SMARTboard during math class and use the Elmo during reading. I use the SMARTboard to make working problems more interesting and the program allows me to save pages of problems that the kids solved that I can save and go over later. I use the Elmo to display pages from the practice book so explain the seatwork while I pull small groups. I am looking forward to using these technologies in new ways and using new technologies to enhance my educaiton. During the coming week, I am going to think of new ways that I can use the my laptop to enhance my reading lessons.

12/22-12/26

Students are not in school this week but I am planning ways to make lessons more interesting with technology. One idea that I am bouncing around in my head is finding a way to use technology to review for different quizzes and tests. Maybe incorporating our CPS clickers into some review sessions would make reviewing for tests more interesting. Next week, we will still be on spring break but I will be thinking about how to approach my wiki.

12/29-1/2

We are still on Winter Break and I am beginning to plan out my ideas for my classroom wiki. I want to use this wiki as a review tool but I am not sure which class to use it in. I am thinking it would probably work best in Science but I am looking into using a Social Studies video as well since we will beging studying the history of Maryland once school resumes. Next week, I will be working on using technology to prepare my students for their tests and quizzes using technology.

1/5-1/9

At this point in the school year, I need to make sure that all students know their math facts. I will be using www.multiplication.com to help students practice their facts. There is a great game call Math Magician on there that times the students and gives them a chance to print off their scores. There are also several games that ask students to know their math facts. Next week, I will look to continue using these websites and develop a a more efficient computer rotation chart for math.

1/12-1/16

I have worked hard to develop a more efficient math rotation chart. My old chart had students grouped alphabetically, which did not always work well because students that needed extra support from me would miss their turn on the computer. In my new rotation, I have students grouped based on ability now and it helps when I am pulling small groups in math. I can now see all of the students that I need to see at one time and there is a much more efficient rotation beween small groups, computers and seat work. Next week, I am going to shift my focus to reading and focus on my at risk students to help them to develop their very weak reading skills.

1/19-1/23

My 4^th grade reading curriculum comes with a cd that reads the leveled readers to my students. I have had a hard time using these because they work best in small groups but my laptop is used for the whole group lesson so it takes time to get that unhooked and hooked up again in the small group section of the classroom. I ave decided to start moving the whole group lesson along a little faster so I can have time to get the laptop to the small group section of the classroom. Right now to assist students who are strugglign with reading fluency, I play the cd for the students to read along with in small groups. Alternating between student reading and the cd reading helps students to focus on comprehension. Next week, I will be looking into ways to improve note taking in class using technology.

1/26-1/30

This week, I worked out a great way to help students take notes during reading class. I now use my laptop to type notes and comments made by the class for tsutdents to put into their notebooks. I have found that students are much more engaged and want to see their ideas shared on the laptop. I have also found that this helps to better organize the notes and is easier to follow than notes written on the chalkboard. It is also nice to be able to save notes to go back to at a later time. During the coming week, I am going to turn my focus to science. We have a science test coming up and I want to use technology to help the students prepare for the test.

2/2-2/6

I have created my first Wiki! We have a test coming up soon on Earth Science so I have created a wiki that has a video about different tpes of sedimentary rocks. After watching the video, the students are to make a post in the discussion area describing a certain type of rock. I am looking forward ot reviewing what they record in the discussion area. Next time, I will share what I have observed about my first wiki experience.

2/9-2/13

The wiki experience was a disaster L. Students watched the video in the computer lab but when it came to making posts, students completely missed the point. I learned quickly that it would have made more sense to maybe have a practice wiki to expose the students to wikis. Most of their posts did not have significant information and some students tried to chat with each other over the discussion board. I am going to create a new wiki in a few weeks to review for our next test. I will that what I leanred from this experience to create a new wiki in generally the same way but with the students being more experienced. Later, I am going to do some invesigation into www.teachertube.com to find videos pertaining to the Early America.

2/16/2/20

This was our first week of implementing www.studyisland.com. Students really bought into the program and enjoyed seeing their percentages. The competitive aspect of study island (comparing student scores to other students and schools) has really motivated students to score better and try harder. I found that students were using the program at home and were imporving their scores by playing the game as often as they could. I will definitely continue to use this program in future weeks.

2/23-2/27

The success of TeacherTube earlier encourages me to find a video pertaining to erosion. I was able to find a cartoon that clearly explained the roll of erosion in nature and it effectively reinforced the information from our curriculum. The fact that it was a lively catroon kept my student’s attention and made the information more fun. I would definitely suggest that any other teacher use TeacherTube to find videos for their students. It eliminates the inapprpraite videos and advertisements that might istract the students and focuses them on more relevent material. Next week, I am going to continue my search to make reviewing for tests more fun.

3/2-3/6

I did not incorporate anything new into my lessons this week regarding technology but I was able to find a cool collection of sound effects. I will be able to play a version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” with my students with the sound effects that I downloaded. I need to figure out a way to make sure that all students are involved in the game since it traditionally uses one person. I am thinking that I might have students answer two questions then call someone else. Next week, I will begin to look into using the CPS Clickers in my lessons to perform a formative assessment at the end of the lesson.

3/9-3/13

This was the first time I have used CPS clickers with this class to conduct a reading comprehension quiz and I think that it could have gone better. The students were definitely motivated but I had difficulty finding a place to put the censor in a place where all students would point at it. I ended up having to hold it up and turn it in different directions to get all of the responses. I think that next time, I will probably use the SMARTboard to help up the censor while the projector projects onto the board. Next week, I am going to try the Clickers again with a Maryland Pop Quiz.

3/16-3/20

The pop quiz went pretty well with the Clickers. The students were still motivated and the technology worked well throughout the activity. One thing that I would change would be to add a few more quesitons and more variety to the questions. I stuck to traditional 4 selection multiple choice problems and I think I would want to mix in more of a variety, maybe some true and false and well. Next time, I am going to try an accomodation strategy that will also improve the trying skills of my students. I am going to have a student take notes on my laptop while the screen projects onto the chalkboard. Hopefully this will go smoothly and I will be able to print off notes for students who have a hard time taking notes and need to focus more on staying focused in the discussion.

3/23-3/27

My attempt to imporve the typing skills of some students completely backfired. They took a long time to type the notes and the idea was not time efficient at all. The notes were not taken very well and I needed to take a lot of time re-explaining different parts of the lesson. This has worked well when I have done it in the past and I will continue to display typed notes for my kids but I will think twice before getting my kids ot take notes for the class. Next time, I will go back to me taking the notes and the students recording. I will keep in mind the idea of printing off notes for students who would benefit more from taking part in the discussion.

3/31-4/3

I found an interesting video on the American Revolution for my students to see that showed some people conducting a reinactment of the war. It was important for students to see this video to get a better idea of how things were back in this time. It was also an easy video to find. I will definitely use this resource more often. I had not used TeacherTube in the past but I found it to be reliable and provide usefull videos. We are getting into heat in Science, so next week I will try to use a video from www.teachertube.com to assist the learning process.

4/6-4/10

This week I am finally getting a chance to use my “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” review game with the students. We will be using it to review for our civil war quiz coming up at the end of the week. I am planning on using the review questions from the end of the chapter to quiz the students. I am going to call on students to answer two questions at a time and see how far they can get in the game. My plans for next week are pending on how this review session goes. If the game works well, I will use it again for next week’s Science test. If things do not go well, I will continue my search for a fun way to incorporate technology into my review sessions.

4/13-4/17

The review session last week was a big success! Students really enjoyed the review game and it went smoothly. I will be using the game again this week to assist students in preparing for their science test. I will be making a slight change to the activity this week. Last week, I read the questions out of the book which worked OK. This week, I am thinking that I will show the question using my ELMO. We lost sometime because I had to spend time repeating questions. If it is shown on the ELMO, students can answer the questions easier. Next week, I am going to look into getting back in the computer lab and using the SMARTboard to create a review sessions for our fractions quiz next Friday.

4/20-4/24

This week in the computer lab, the SMARTboard session went OK. I think the students enjoyed using the SMARTboard but we ran into some technical difficulties. My plan was to have students working on www.multiplicaiton.com and working problems in their notebooks while students worked on the SMARTboard but the computers were really slow. I heard that the county as a whole had a very slow system recently so I had to work with frustrated students and encourage them to be patient. Next time, I will continue to use the SMARTboard in math class but use it as a way to record notes that students can copy into their notebooks.

4/27-5/1

This week we are reviewing probability and are using the SMARTboard to represent the lesson in an interesting way. The pictures were nice but students manipulating the figures really helped them to grasp the information. I was happy to see my below grade level students benefiting from a more hands-on activity. Next week, I am going to complete my Voice Thread with the students.

5/4-5/8

I had difficulty preparing my voice thread this week. I had videos picked out to use but I realized that I did not completely understand how to use the Voice Thread. Instead, I took the students to the comptuer lab to work on www.multiplication.com and work on their multiplication facts. Next week, I will use the Voice Thread to introduce Lattice Multiplication.

5/11-5/15

It is finally time to use my Voice Thread. I still came across some difficulties because not all of the voices recoreded . I tried putting the microphone in different positions but many of the voices still did not go through as well. I hope that I will get another chance to work on this, but I also need to get back into using Study Island. I will look at what my students need and pick the best choice for next week.

5/18-5/22

This week, I am making sure to spend more time in the computer lab. We have not used Study Island as much recently and I feel that it is important to use it in order to prepare for 5^th grade. We will be spending time every day in the lab this week to make sure that we are ready. We will be focusing on Math since we have spent some time working on reading recently and need to get caught up. Next week, we will turn our attention to reading.

5/25-5/29

This week, we are still doing Study Island in the computer lab but we are turning our focus to Reading. The students have performed better on reading tests that math tests in the past so I am not anticipating any problems with these concepts. I know that the material is a little harder than what they are used to but I am confident that there will not be any problems. This has been a rewarding experience and I am looking forward to using more technology throughout the rest of the year and in my future teaching experiences.

Stacey Morrison June 4, 2009

I thought that June 2 was going to be my last blog, but I realized that I forgot to mention my trip to MICCA! Actually, I did mention the the Podcast session. I realized that I forgot to talk about my session called Gadget - A - Go - Go. It was so much fun. The presenter is a school librarian who has this great WIKI where she evaluates all of this cool techie stuff. She was such a fun presenter! Here is a link to her WIKI (which she encourages everyone to visit): mhmsmedia.wikispaces.com/gadget

Stacey Morrison June 1, 2009

6 – 1 – 09
Finally, my last blog! I still am not a big fan of blogging! However, I am a great big fan of Podcasts! All of the kids loved the Voice threads! They could not wait to do their reviews. I will definitely use Voice thread next year. It will be a year long part of library. The book reviews are really cool and I think that all of the grades will really get a kick out of it! Here is a great site for kids who are interested in book reviews! http://www.spaghettibookclub.org/

Stacey Morrison May 26, 2009

5 – 26 – 09
The Kindergarten Podcasts are so cute! I will say that next year when I do a podcast with any students, I am going to have to make sure that they speak very loudly. Some of the kids were so quiet that you have to strain your ears to hear them. I could tell that they were nervous to be using the microphones. One of my students was “star struck” when he saw his picture and drawing on the computer. I had to nudge him to get him to start talking! I wish that I would have found this site sooner, but take a look! http://www.123techs4me.com/voicethreads.cfm

Stacey Morrison May 18, 2009

5 – 18 – 09
Right now, I am trying to have the 6th grade finish up the WIKI. This has really been a work in progress. I can see how the kids are still going to want to continue to work on their stuff long after it is turned into the STEP Portfolio. I can honestly say that the kids have really enjoyed working on this. I have even had students who were not part of the class ask if they could join the WIKI.

Stacey Morrison May 11, 2009

5 – 11- 09
Book Fair is gone and it is time to concentrate on the Podcasts. I have decided to do my second Podcast with the kindergarten students. I am going to reread them a book that they all loved called “How to be a Pirate”. After I read the book, I will ask them to draw their favorite part of the book and then they can describe it on the voice thread. Not a bad idea!

Stacey Morrison May 4, 2009

5 – 4 – 09
I still have not done any voice threads with the students. It is hard to find a quiet time in the library. Go figure! It seems that lately, everyone wants to use the library when there are not classes scheduled. After the book fair, I will schedule some quiet library time! I do have to add that while at MICCA, I went to a session on Voicethreads. It was really neat and gave me some great ideas. A super, fantastic site that I got from the session was Bernajean Porter's Digitales Website. Here is the link: http://www.digitales.us/

Stacey Morrison April 27, 2009

4 – 27 – 09
I told my 5th grade students to start thinking about their favorite books that they have read. I want them to write their reviews first for the Podcasts so that we can go over them. They seem to be excited to do this since they could pick a book that they have already read! It doesn’t hurt that I just got I a big order of new fiction books for the library.

Stacey Morrison April 20, 2009

4 – 20 – 09
I think that I am having a problem with my WIKI. The video that I uploaded onto my classroom WIKI has disappeared! I am going to have to search for a new one.

Stacey Morrison April 13, 2009

4 – 13 – 09
I have been enjoying Spring Break! Tomorrow, I will be back at school and “stepping” with my students. I am going to have to get them motivated to finish their graphic novels and comics so that they can upload them to the WIKI!!

Stacey Morrison April 6, 2009

4 – 6 – 09
We met with Marilyn at Kenmore Middle School on March 31 to go over Podcasts. It was really neat and I am excited about creating a Voice Thread. I am going to do one with book reviews. I think that the students will like to be able to voice their opinions on books that they have read.

Stacey Morrison March 30, 2009

3 – 30 – 09
I figured out what I was missing and it was a whole WIKI! I skipped the entire part on making a Portfolio WIKI. I feel pretty stupid. I am going to begin to set up my portfolio WIKI. I submitted my classroom WIKI but I just did not even start the Portfolio WIKI.

Stacey Morrison March 23, 2009

3 – 23 – 09
Well I got my WIKI evaluation back – not so hot. I am missing a bunch of stuff. I did get a positive comment, but I don’t understand what I am missing. I am going to have to read the whole STEP stuff again.

Stacey Morrison March 16, 2009

3 – 16 – 09
I think that I have finally become comfortable with the WIKI. It is about time! I have been playing around with it for a long time. I was having an issue with posting a picture but I finally figured out that I was not saving it as a jpeg so it was not coming up on my WIKI. I was extremely proud of myself for solving my problem on my own. Just think – I didn’t have to call for the Calvary!

Stacey Morrison March 9, 2009

3 – 9 – 09
The students are beginning to edit the WIKI and one of the kids posted their entire cartoon on my front page! I am trying to delete it but I am having no luck! I am going to have to have a long talk with much too carried away group of students!

Stacey Morrison March 2, 2009

3 – 2 - 09
I am going to have to explain that my WIKI is a work in progress. It is one that I have made due to the fact that I am participating in STEP, but I am also using it with my students to complete a year long product. The kids are really enjoying it. I have to admit, that the students are just like the adults – there are those who can pick up the technology stuff in an instant and there are those who have techno blues!

Stacey Morrison February 23, 2009

2 – 23 – 09
I have been out of school for the past week and I am not allowed to return for another week. I have come down with a nasty infection – so STEP and the WIKI will have to wait!

Stacey Morrison February 16, 2009

2 – 16 – 09
Our classroom WIKIS are due in a couple of weeks. I must confess that mine is not looking so hot! The student work part of the WIKI is not complete. They have been working on their graphic novels or comics but we have yet to think about posting any products to my WIKI. Now with MSA’s coming up, it is hard to be able to pull my group. TESTING UGH!!!!

Stacey Morrison February 9, 2009

2 – 9 – 09
I am a bit nervous about the WIKI. The students LOVE the WIKI. They are having a blast and they want to come to my room at all times. I have to admit the discussion board on the WIKI is pretty cool. I wish that I would have been able to communicate with some of my teachers when I had a big project due!

Stacey Morrison February 2, 2009

2 – 2 – 09
Well, all of my permission slips came back except for one, so I called the parent and spoke to them. They were just confused about what the project would entail. After our conversation they said that their child could participate and post. I was very happy because I would hate to see the kid miss out on all of the fun. I will introduce the WIKI tomorrow!

Stacey Morrison January 27, 2009

1 – 27 – 09
I started to tell my students about the upcoming WIKI project and they seemed to be really excited! I sent home the permission slips so that they would have parental permission to post on the WIKI. I know that some parents will be a bit “hinky” about the computer and the Internet. Being a parent myself, I understand their fears. Everyday, I try to talk to any of my parents before and after school while I am on duty. I have been talking up the WIKI project, so hopefully, they will all sign the permission slips ASAP!

Stacey Morrison January 20, 2009

1 – 20 – 09
I am having fun creating my classroom WIKI. Once that I started to play around with it, I became more comfortable. It also helped me to take in the 5th grade class to the computer lab and watch them use their classroom WIKI on the Revolutionary War. Lisa did an outstanding job on her WIKI. Mine is so far pretty basic but I am making progress.

Stacey Morrison January 13, 2009

1 – 13 – 09
Thanks to my wonderful colleague, Lisa, I now have a better understanding of the WIKI! I am really jealous of the people who can grasp this technology stuff on the first outing! However, I feel pretty good with my abilities. I have definitely come a long way from 15 years ago. How I remember the issues I had with using a mouse!!

Stacey Morrison January 6, 2009

1 – 6 - 09
Finally 2009! Blogging still seems to be an issue. I was glad to find out that the blogging issues were not just me! PHEW! After contemplating what I would do for my WIKI, I decided to tie it in with my 6th grade TAG students who are doing a product on graphic novels. Now that is easier said than done. I really understood the WIKI stuff when Jack and Marilyn were at Magnolia. However, now that I am by myself, it is getting a bit confusing! I found a GREAT video on YouTube. It is called pbwiki - What is a WIKI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmByB0sIPog You should watch it! It is a bunch of teachers explaining WIKIS and their use!

Stacey Morrison December 15, 2008

12 - 15 – 08
YIKES! Already, I am having big issues with the blogging! I tried to enter and I somehow ended up on the Payroll page. I hope that I do not look like a big dummy! Believe you me, I do not want to be anywhere near that page again. The problem is that I can not delete my name for the page! OOPS! I thought that the blogging part would be a breeze. I am so wrong! I have notified Jack and Marilyn. I did some research on blogging and found this site to be helpful http//codex.wordpress.org/Introduction_to_Blogging

Stacey Morrison December 8, 2008

12 – 8 – 08
Well, I decided to do the STEP thing again this year. After looking back at last year and all of the hard work, I decided that it would be to my benefit to do it another year. It was actually a lot of fun and I learned a whole lot. I will miss Ebony – she was such a great teacher and motivator. I am sure that Jack and Marilyn will be just as nice and I hope just as patient!!

Clueless

This initiative is real hard. One lesson after another makes me thoughtless. I couldn't think of any sane idea that is helpful to create a master piece that is reflective of my experience in STEP training. On the contrary, I felt excited to try a part of my wiki to my kids. That was just a great consolation that I'm with this important task, getting every student as wired as possible to succeed in their learning process.

Master Clicker

Kept trying all opportunities behind the keyboard and mouse. That's how determined I was to get rid of STEP work. I would have thought of completing the work with pride and fulfillment. But, this surely meant a real hard work. Good luck to me and to the rest of my fellow STEPPERS. Cheeeze!!!

Click, Click, Click

Take a little time after school to click your mouse and keyboard. There is always a chance to learn fresh ideas. Who knows?

Browsing Notes

I did nothing . except read and read our notes in STEP. Hoping to get a little understanding. At the end of the day. I just didn't get what I've read. The longer I spent time reading my notes, the harder it was for me to apply in computer. I discovered that there were ways to create interactive presentations without having to go by the prescribed rules. Short cut with a little eye-hand coordination makes it possible. Piece of advice: Dont give up clicking or playing around with mouse and keyboard.

Lifeline

HELP!!! Somebody please help.!STEP due is coming very close. I'm not dome with my wiki. It's good to have friends who are computer literate. They are indeed, life savers in times like this. I need a little polishing in my wiki presentation. And that friend was serious about sharing her techno wiz.

WWW

In technology, you can never bank on your own. That's why it is known as www (world wide web). We need someone from else where to get the work done. STEP has brought stressful impact to me. But, its pay off is remarkable! I gained a lot of learning that I could ever have imagined; visual, text, graphics and multitude of images. These are what really work for our students.

Last Minute Rush

Slow down on hectic days? Not anymore. Tomorrow is tomorrow. That' for sure! All STEP works are due ! I'd rather stay late at school finish my bloggs over going home early. I'm having belly ache now. I couldn't imagine myself stuck for 2 hours for just one image to be pasted in my wiki.
At last, my self discovery worked! I really need to go home eat my dinner.