Creating a TeacherWeb was great practice for the future, as well as a fun way to prepare myself and think further into what my philosophy as a teacher is. I will use this program, or something similar, for my classrooms to keep myself, as well as my students, organized and engaged in our assignments. TeacherWeb is an innovative way to keep the teacher, the students, and the parents actively involved throughout the semester. It is easy for students to keep track of assignments and grades so that they know how they are doing in the class on a regular basis. Parents are also given a single location to review what their child is learning and whether or not he or she grasps the concepts.
TeacherWeb is also a valuable tool for teachers to stay organized; keeping up with daily agendas, uploading handouts, and keeping track of grades not only shows parents and students that the teacher is consistently handling each class with care, but the teacher is given the extra push to think about the class period beforehand, as well as reflect on how the day actually went.
Students have many chances to become engaged and stay involved in class with the use of TeacherWeb. While surfing through their daily sites, students are likely to reach the TeacherWeb more often than reading through a typed up syllabus to make sure they are on track.
Teachers are also able to check out what other classrooms are working on. This is yet another way that teachers can team up with their department. If teachers are working on lessons that compliment one another, TeacherWeb links can be useful for the students. Teachers also have an easy way of knowing about others' due dates, so that students are not swamped on some days and bored on others.
I definitely plan on using a class website when I begin teaching--TeacherWeb was a great practice for the years to come!
Monday, September 28, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Blogs and Wikis in Education
When I Googled "educational blogs" I was given many sites that listed their favorite blog pages. Navigating through them gave me an array of educational subjects--school politics, teaching strategies, teaching theories--but for the most part the blog was a place for educators to collaborate on their approaches to teaching. Searching for "educational wikis" brought up pages that gave more direct examples of Wikis in the classroom, rather than actual pages from the teachers' perspective like the blogs. Through Bing I was directed to many of the same pages as through Google, but given more blogs on teaching techniques and websites to register for a Wiki page formatted for educational/classroom use. Lastly, I searched through Ask Jeeves. I was given the same blogs and Wikis as through Google and Bing.
By skimming through blogs, like Successful Teaching, I was able to find dozens of web resources, even some interactive pages! I plan definitely on including some of them in my Teacher Web page. Literacy is Priceless was my favorite find of the day. The host includes tips on teaching, technology tools, and posts free literary resources. Being an English major, I will be sure to check out Literacy is Priceless more in-depth for further insight and ideas. As far as finding ideas relevant to student use, 24 Hour Blog explains the benefits of allowing young minds to give their two cents through the internet, and more specifically, through video. Monitoring the use of comments through blogs and videos allows students to build confidence through expression, as well as technology skills through hands-on practice.
Educational Wikis had examples of activities students could do, from a variety of content areas. English Place serves as a Wiki version of a writing space were students, mostly ELL, can practice their English reading and writing skills. Wikis in Education was a website designed for teachers to create classroom appropriate Wikis, through the use of the sites templates and ideas. This site can be a quick go-to for putting together a Wiki for a group classroom activity.
Blogs can be used in the classroom for curriculum development, for sharing ones thoughts on education, and for giving support to fellow teachers. Wikis give students the opportunity to create an interactive workspace for small group or whole class activities.
For the classroom, RSS feeds can help students collect information for research assignments, as well as help keep them with current events relevant to their interests.
By skimming through blogs, like Successful Teaching, I was able to find dozens of web resources, even some interactive pages! I plan definitely on including some of them in my Teacher Web page. Literacy is Priceless was my favorite find of the day. The host includes tips on teaching, technology tools, and posts free literary resources. Being an English major, I will be sure to check out Literacy is Priceless more in-depth for further insight and ideas. As far as finding ideas relevant to student use, 24 Hour Blog explains the benefits of allowing young minds to give their two cents through the internet, and more specifically, through video. Monitoring the use of comments through blogs and videos allows students to build confidence through expression, as well as technology skills through hands-on practice.
Educational Wikis had examples of activities students could do, from a variety of content areas. English Place serves as a Wiki version of a writing space were students, mostly ELL, can practice their English reading and writing skills. Wikis in Education was a website designed for teachers to create classroom appropriate Wikis, through the use of the sites templates and ideas. This site can be a quick go-to for putting together a Wiki for a group classroom activity.
Blogs can be used in the classroom for curriculum development, for sharing ones thoughts on education, and for giving support to fellow teachers. Wikis give students the opportunity to create an interactive workspace for small group or whole class activities.
***
RSS readers are tools that wrangle up news content of ones liking and then group them into a single page. I just created my first RSS feed, and added a couple of the blogs that I found while searching "educational blogs."For the classroom, RSS feeds can help students collect information for research assignments, as well as help keep them with current events relevant to their interests.
***
Blogs and Wikis can be useful for hands-on participation and practice with interactive sites. It is important to monitor what students can do and see while online. Using both blogs and Wikis requires responsibility as well as trust in one's students. If my class proves they can handle the freedom and fun of the web, I'll surely be creating assignments paired up with blogs, Wikis, and RSS feeds.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom
Of the nine categories, my strengths in regards to Multiple Intelligence are Intrapersonal and Musical Intelligences.
Intrapersonal: This means that I demonstrate effective awareness, or understand others' feelings, attitudes, and outlook. I have a strong ethical awareness, as well as self-regulation and metacognition. Since I am somewhat of a tactile learner, these intrapersonal traits serve as positive characteristics when working directly with others.
Musical: Learners that benefit from music or rhythm have heightened listening ability, use patterning and resonance to focus and remember, and think musically rather than verbally. Being a strong auditory learner along with tactile techniques, thinking in terms of rhythm rather than words allows for identification with patterns as an expression of experience.
Students with intrapersonal intelligences will benefit from teachers who use analogies in making comparisons, have students create classroom goals, and examine current events in terms of social justice. Specific activities could consist of journals, self-assessment, and class discussions.
Creating a welcoming environment for students with musical intelligences would entail drawing visual patterns, identifying rhyme scheme, and being attentive to sounds in one's environment. Adding music and multimedia presentations to a lesson will engage musical learners.
In my future classroom I will work towards creating a comfortable environment for all students and all types of intelligences. Although I benefit from musical and intrapersonal approaches, I must remember to continue to use tactics that will benefit other learning styles.
Intrapersonal: This means that I demonstrate effective awareness, or understand others' feelings, attitudes, and outlook. I have a strong ethical awareness, as well as self-regulation and metacognition. Since I am somewhat of a tactile learner, these intrapersonal traits serve as positive characteristics when working directly with others.
Musical: Learners that benefit from music or rhythm have heightened listening ability, use patterning and resonance to focus and remember, and think musically rather than verbally. Being a strong auditory learner along with tactile techniques, thinking in terms of rhythm rather than words allows for identification with patterns as an expression of experience.
Students with intrapersonal intelligences will benefit from teachers who use analogies in making comparisons, have students create classroom goals, and examine current events in terms of social justice. Specific activities could consist of journals, self-assessment, and class discussions.
Creating a welcoming environment for students with musical intelligences would entail drawing visual patterns, identifying rhyme scheme, and being attentive to sounds in one's environment. Adding music and multimedia presentations to a lesson will engage musical learners.
In my future classroom I will work towards creating a comfortable environment for all students and all types of intelligences. Although I benefit from musical and intrapersonal approaches, I must remember to continue to use tactics that will benefit other learning styles.
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