Week 7:
Top 10 tech tools I can’t live without:

First, I must add qualify this answer by saying that I have been out of the classroom for 6 years.  Many of the new tech tools were not available when I was in the classroom.  While I have been extremely busy during this class, and at times wanted to quit, I am very thankful for all the updated information that I learned in this class from my professor as well as my peers.  I had an interview today at a job fair and one question was “How will I incorporate technology into my classroom?”  I was able to answer this question with confidence and examples of how I can organize some my favorite websites (through delicious. com) and employ bubble.us to include the graphic organizers I always like to include in my lessons.

1.   Bubble.us

2.   Smartboard

3.   Qomo

4.   Delicious.com

5.   Glogster

6.   Animoto

7.   Power point 

8.   Microsoft excel

9.   Microsoft publisher

    10. Blogspot.com

Week 6:  Mobile Apps

I write words

This mobile app is great for pre-kindergarten students as they play a game helping Mr. Crab collect the numbers in order by dragging their finger form number to number while writing letters at the same time.

http://giggle-lab.com/iWriteWords.html

Teach Me: Kindergarten

Kindergarten students or advanced pre-kindergarten students can practice basic addition, subtraction, sight words, and spelling on this interactive and animated site.  Kids can work towards earning a coin after getting 3 correct answers.  Kids can purchase stickers to use for their “scenic picture.”

http://www.techlicious.com/guide/Great-early-learning-apps-for-iphone-and-ipad/

Play Sight Words

This is a great mobile app which is appropriate for both pre-kindergarten as well as kindergarten students.  There are three different levels of spelling and matching word games with graphics and music, which make these games very appealing for younger students.

http://www.eflashapps.com/app/play-sight-words-free.html

Park Math

Park Math is a wonderful mobile app for primary students who are working on adding, subtracting, sorting, and patterns.  Students can physically manipulate the objects by counting them.  The fun theme park has several different types of animals to change up each game with their concepts.

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/mobile-app-reviews/park-math

ABCMouse.com

ABCMouse is a mobile app which has been provided to all public school in the United States, as well as Canada.  This app is great for learning the fundamentals of math and reading, as well as an introduction to science, social studies, music, and art.  Even the youngest computer users can navigate these activities. 

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/website-reviews/abcmousecom

Week 5:

Why is it important to be a good digital citizen? What value does a good digital reputation have?

Living in an era in which technology has advanced so rapidly, has advantages.  Human beings have most everything right at their fingertips: no more waiting for the newspaper to check on the news, no more having to drive to the library to help your 7 year old research facts about a tyrannosaurus, and no more mailing those birthday invitations in the mail  (when you can “evite” your friends). As a person interested in arts and crafts, I particularly love that I don’t have to wait each month for my Mailbox magazine – I have Pinterest!

Living in an age wherein there is access to seemingly everything also increases one’s responsibility to be sensitive to the rights and privacy of others. Digital citizenship, therefore, is crucial. I can’t only broadcast my own feelings about others in an instant, I can access others’ information, and even their research, much more easily and rapidly than in previous eras. Thus, I must not only respect one’s thoughts and feelings, but also their work. One form of stealing – plagiarism – is especially rampant in academia, but good digital citizenship means always citing one’s sources when working on an essay, a research paper, or simply engaging in a debate on a social networking site.

As an educator, I am also becoming wary of the increase in what has come to be called “cyber bullying.”  Cyber bullying – which is the art of demeaning, slandering, or even threatening another person through the medium of the internet – is increasingly common in recent years. It is, it seems, even easier to hide behind a computer in the comfort of one’s own home or office and hurt someone’s feelings than it is to “pick on” a vulnerable person in the schoolyard. We need to be respectful of the thoughts and pictures someone sends to us, and we need to be respectful when posting our own thoughts and images.

Stealing someone’s personal identity can be very easy, apparently, since so many people shop online using their credit card, with their paypal account, or use their social security number for activities such as online banking.  However, when someone’s identity is stolen it can be very traumatic and life changing.

Just as a parent says to their young child who is entering school, “treat others they way you want to be treated,” so should internet users consider their citizenship in this way. 

Week 4:
Worksheet and puzzle generator

I would like to learn how to utilize the worksheet and puzzle generator sites.  Teaching in the primary grades, I feel that being able to design my own worksheets would allow me to modify worksheets to each individual learners’ needs.  Sight words are a big part of the curriculum, therefore, being able to change the words to each child’s reading levels would allow me to reach my students’ needs.  Some students are ready to work on a higher grades sight words list, while others may be struggling with the beginning words for our grade.

http://worksheets.theteacherscorner.net/make-your-own/crossword/crossword-puzzle-maker.php

Certificate maker

An educational generator, I think, would be used quite often as a certificate generator.  Teaching in the primary grades, I often give awards for reaching a sight word list goal, reaching an Accelerated reader goal, learning all the math facts, etc.  I also give certificates for birthdays and star student awards.  As these can be purchased in a teacher supply store or online, they can become costly.  Another reason I would like to be able to create my own is to be able to individualize each award to the student and their specific goal.

http://www.123certificates.com/

Whiteboard activity software

A software that I see myself using on a daily basis is a whiteboard activity software.  With the growing use of interactive whiteboards, such as QOMOs and promethium boards, many schools now have these available in each classroom.  Interactive whiteboards allow the whole class to become engaged in an activity.  They are very motivating for students. These can be used as a whole class activity, independent, or small group lessons.  I have seen teachers use starfall.com on the promethium board for the entire class as she was preparing the room for the next activity.  The children were engaged in the story, which helped with the classroom management while the teacher was not available.

http://its.leesummit.k12.mo.us/smartboard.htm

Five Types of Instructional Software

Week 3:

“Drill & Practice” software allows newly learned information to be transferred into long-term memory.  This type of software is particularly popular among teachers who work with students who have learning disabilities.  This type of software is well liked because it gives immediate feedback, which does not require the teacher to grade.  This type of software is motivating for students because they get to use the computer.

“Clicker 4” is a program I use with students for drill and practice.  It helps students with reading and writing.  Students who can’t simply read the words can listen to the words read aloud to them by the program if they are unable to read them.  I like this program because it reaches all types of learners.

http://atto.buffalo.edu/registered/Tutorials/clicker4/index.php

“Tutorial Software,” a self-contained instruction, is used in place of a supplement to other instruction.  Students should be able to learn without the help of other materials.  This particular software should address all 9 instructional events.

“Whizz Education” provides fun math games that are interactive.   The animated math games also provide a unique tutoring method.

http://www.whizz.us/

“Simulated Software” is a software that allows learners to choose a task to do and also the order in which they want to perform those tasks.  There are two main types of simulation:  those that teach something and those that teach learners how to do something.

“Primary Games” has math games, reading games, puzzles,  printable coloring pages, along with many other games which are free:

http://www.primarygames.com/arcade/simulation.php

“Instructional Games” have game-like rules and are used to increase student motivation and are designed to be an entertaining form of instruction. 

*My favorite from among the “instructional games” is the Easy Jeopardy Template by Elaine Fitzgerald:

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/technology_tutorials/powerpoint_game_templates_technology_tutorials.htm

“Problem Solving Software” is designed to teach problem solving skills to learners and is directed to challenge learners to achieve a goal when a solution is not obvious.  Three of the components are: recognition of a goal, recognition of a process that will help one reach one’s goal, and a mental activity:

https://www.selectsoftnow.com/software/Problem-Solving-Strategies_-Primary-Grades-2_3

http://www.athens.edu/vinsobm/Elementary%20Mathematics%20Specific%20Software.htm