Pintrest

Melissa Holt

Assignment 6 

EDT 5372

Dr. Zhang

            After completing the readings, as well as using my own personal experience using Pinterest this week, this Web 2.0 tool can easily be implemented into classrooms in any content area and any grade level.  Three ideas of using Pinterest for teaching and learning are listed below:

Pinterest Idea #1

        One way that Pinterest could be used for teaching is by utilizing the website as a way to gain instructional ideas that correlate to specific content areas.  An educator could search through Pinterest in order to find and pin images or videos that will help facilitate lessons in various content areas.  Educators would have the added benefit of selecting pins on Pinterest that are aligned to state learning objectives and state performance standards.  This approach is the primary way that I currently utilize Pinterest in my 5^th grade Science classroom. One neat idea that I found on Pinterest was on ways that thinking maps can be used in Science.  The search results from Pinterest inspired me to create an interactive tree map for physical properties as my outdoor classroom display.

Pinterest Idea #2

        Another way that Pinterest could be used for teaching is by having educators use their pins to collaborate with other educators at the school, district, city, state, national, and global levels.  Using Pinterest as a way to network, build, and share ideas allows educators to grow and improve upon their teaching strategies, techniques, and overall pedagogy. Pinterest has features that assist in the ideology of sharing ideas.  One such feature is the ability to link pins found on Pinterest to a Facebook account.  This is a great way to use social media as a way of reaching many people.  This approach would work well with my 5^th Grade Science curriculum, because it would help contribute to my professional development through educator collaboration.

Pinterest Idea #3

       A final way that Evernote could be used for learning is by having students create their own Pinterest accounts.  In EPISD, all students in our district have e-mail accounts through Office 365.  Students will be able to use their district e-mail accounts to set up a Pinterest account.  Once students set up an account, they could all share their Pinterest url’s by using the Office 365 cloud.  Students would be able to build boards on different concepts that they are learning about in various content areas.  This would work well in my 5^th grade Science class.  Students would be given a topic such as states of matter, complete metamorphosis, or incomplete metamorphosis and would find pins that correlate to the unit of study that we are learning out.   

Pintrest Link

The link to my Pintrest Education Board is listed below!  :o)

https://www.pinterest.com/holt1038/educational-resources/

Evernote in Education

Melissa Holt

Assignment 5 

EDT 5372

Dr. Zhang

            After completing the readings, as well as using my own personal experience using Evernote this week, this Web 2.0 tool can easily be implemented into classrooms in any content area and any grade level.  Three ideas of using Evernote for teaching and learning are listed below:

Evernote Idea #1

            One way that Evernote could be used for learning is by having students create notebooks and sharing their digital notebooks with other classmates.  This idea would work well in my 5^th grade science class.  Specifically, I would present the class with science based questions in which they would respond with their typed responses in Evernote.  This would allow me to perform a type of formative assessment to check for understanding when students are providing their written/typed responses, as well as respond to any misconceptions they may convey through their Evernote responses.    

Evernote Idea #2

            Another way that Evernote could be used for learning is by having students create audio recordings on what they learned at the end of each week.  This idea would work well in my 5^th grade science class.  Specifically, at the end of each week, students would be expected to provide an audio response to be place in Evernote in which students would begin their recording with, “What I learned this week was...”.  Students would have to provide at least 3 things that were learned throughout the course of a week in science.  I would also have students add at least 3 pictures that correlate to what they learned.

Evernote Idea #3

            A final way that Evernote could be used for teaching by educators, is that it can be used as a research tool. This idea would work well in relation to my 5^th grade science classroom.  Evernote could be used as a research tool or educational resource for upcoming lessons.  There are a plethora of great ideas and teaching strategies easily accessible through Web 2.0.  Therefore, after researching interesting website, blogs, and/or videos, educators can compile all newly found information into a “Best Practices” notebook page that would be easily assessable and easily shared.  This notebook page in Evernote could also be built upon throughout the school year.     

Evernote

Prior to this week, I had never heard of Evernote.  This Web 2.0 tool is really neat.  I can't wait to use it in the classroom setting, and I know my students will be just as excited about it as I am!  :o)

All the best. 

The link to my Evernote notebook is linked below~

https://www.evernote.com/shard/s611/sh/e9c4c405-b757-4e7d-b993-4fd926011361/fe3e387acce267f94cff8e76930879bc

-Melissa

Self-Directed Learning using Feedly

Melissa Holt

Assignment 4

EDT 5372

Dr. Zhang

After reading two educational post from the educational technology blogs that I subscribed to, I found all of the posting very enlightening.  The first educational post that I read was entitled, 6 Essential EdTech Tools for Your Classroom, through the Educational Technology and Mobil Learning blog. This educational blog post provides Web 2.0 users with technology based websites that can be easily integrated and implemented into the classroom setting; thereby, allowing educators to build upon their teaching as well as enhancing student achievement and academic learning.  The blog post recommended Classdojo, Schoology, Seesaw, Edmodo, Kahoot, and TedEd.   While I do have personal experience using both Edmodo and Kahoot, I have never had knowledge or exposure to the other recommended websites.  Classdojo seems like a great way to keep students engages and promote active learning.  Schooology seem to be a great approach to increasing classroom management with the use of technology.  Seesaw would be a great approach to maintaining parent, teacher communication and building a positive working relationship with parents.  Finally, TedEd would be beneficial because educators can use TedEd as a visual resource that can help facilitate best praxis in the classroom setting.

The second educational post that I read was entitled, Cultures of Perpetual Learning, through the Will Richardson blog. This post offered an interesting look at the current educational framework which is systemically traditional in many regards.  However, educational reform on curriculum, educational approaches, and techniques are necessary when educators aim to prepare students for the future.  There were two thought provoking questions within the post that were points of contention and self reflection. The two questions were...

·         Do educators in our systems see themselves as the CEOs of their own careers?

·         And, maybe most importantly, are we working to help our students understand what it means to be the CEOs of their own learning?

Although I do consider myself as the CEO of my career as an educator, I am not confident that teachers at all grade levels are working to help all students understand that they are CEO’s of their own learning.  I agree that as educators and future administrators, it is imperative that we create and maintain a culture of students who will always be perpetual learners.

Links

http://feedly.com/i/entry/1hZj1r0OT4P4I5IOPJJsEJ6PSTCi0yfkVE6nPpF4LcU=_1571f13b8dd:682f276:42111050

http://feedly.com/i/entry/Qo1Unnk9fhExJm36xkfjsh96z2BJkGJhgcY7MoUIGvY=_1571481258f:cddb03d:e6b2a59c

Blogging In Education

Melissa Holt

Assignment 3

EDT 5372

Dr. Zhang

            After reading the 3-D blogging framework developed by Richard Byrne in A Complete Guide to Using Blogger in School, ideas that I have for using blogs for each of the three purposes (distribution, discussion, and demonstration) in my current 5^th grade science classroom are listed below.   

      Blogging for Distribution

            Blogging increases opportunities for information, ideas, thoughts, feelings, and learning to be shared among web users. For the purpose of distribution, I would create a blog page for the parents and guardians of my 5^th grade students. In this blog, I would utilize my blog as a way to communicate to parents about homework, and upcoming important dates (i.e. science fair, planetarium field trip).  I would not only provide information that pertains to my 5^th grade science classroom, but I would also use it as a way to communicate to parents about campus events as well.  While the purpose of this form of blogging does not require much discussion, I believe it would be a great approach to maintaining basic communication with parents using Web 2.0 tools.

Blogging for Discussion

            The characteristics of Web 2.O allows web users to not only utilize the web for reading purposes, but also to write and have a contributing role using various Web 2.0 tools. For the purpose of discussion, I would create a closed blog page for students, parents/guardians, and myself.  I would post a daily question of the day that get’s parents and students thinking together.  Students would be required to provide a short answer response of at least 2 sentences to begin with, and as the school year progresses, students will be required to have more in depth responses.  In addition, students would also have to reflect on at least 2 other students blogging update each week with reflections being composed of at least two sentences to begin with. Eventually, students will be required to have more in depth responses to their peers.  Parents/guardians will be encourages to read their child’s post each week and join in our classroom discussion and our learning process.  I would only allow parents/guardians to participate in the blog if there was a way to ensure that parents/guardians can only see and respond to their own child’s blog entries.  My reasoning for limiting parent/guardian responses, is that some parents/guardians can be overly critical of other students. However, I believe that by allowing parents/guardians to comment on their child’s posting, this might be a neat way to get parents/guardians involved in our students learning in the 21^st century. 

Blogging for Demonstration

            Blogging in the educational setting can help facilitate the learning of students as well as help students develop critical thinking skills. For the purpose of demonstration, I would have students create their own blog pages.  Students would be required to upload new information on their blog on a weekly basis on weeks that school is in session.  Each week I would provide students with a narrowed topic.  Each week students will have an assignment correlated to the narrowed topic with questions being aligned to state standards.  Students would have to complete their assignment updates on their self-generated blog pages.  Students would be encouraged to upload or hyperlink articles that they may find interesting on the topic of the week, or students might upload pictures of labs being conducted during class and/or upload science based drawings that they may have completed.