Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Another post about Diigo...
So, obviously Diigo is my favorite new technology. I just wish I actually had the time to read and explore everything I add to my Diigo! I wanted to include it in my blog somehow.... the auto posting was nice, until I realized how much I read it and how useless it really is for me to post those each day. I mean, I kind of like having it in the blog, but I can see on my Diigo library when I saved the sites, etc. so it was a bit useless to post. If I really find something I want to post about I'll create it's own post, and that way I'll have my thoughts to expand upon instead of just the link to the site.
Anyway, this leads me to my RSS feed on my blog for my Diigo account instead! I have been wanting to put something like that up on my blog and my wiki site for over a year, and I finally figured out that it could be done after reading the RSS chapter in the Richardson text for my Digital Tools class. So simple! I can't tell you the countless hours I spent searching for a widget or a gadget that would allow me to do this. And all I had to do was add it as an RSS feed! You learn something new all the time!
Anyway, this leads me to my RSS feed on my blog for my Diigo account instead! I have been wanting to put something like that up on my blog and my wiki site for over a year, and I finally figured out that it could be done after reading the RSS chapter in the Richardson text for my Digital Tools class. So simple! I can't tell you the countless hours I spent searching for a widget or a gadget that would allow me to do this. And all I had to do was add it as an RSS feed! You learn something new all the time!
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Diigo links of the day (weekly)
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Diigo overload
So, I just came on here after a while of being to busy to even think about blogging and noticed that I use Diigo a lot! I suppose I already knew that, and even though I like the postings... perhaps moving it to a week would be best, or every two weeks. What I really wanted was to have a widget of some sort on the side of my blog that would show my diigo links, but I could not get that function to work.
Until I can figure that out, I'm going to move my Diigo updates to weekly. Hopefully, one day, I'll get this blog to look exactly like I want =).
Until I can figure that out, I'm going to move my Diigo updates to weekly. Hopefully, one day, I'll get this blog to look exactly like I want =).
Monday, November 1, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Diigo links of the day 10/30/2010
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iPads in Education - Exploring the use of iPads and Tablet computers in education.
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100 Incredibly Useful YouTube Channels for Teachers | Online College Courses
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Langwitches Blog » Creative Commons: What Every Educator Needs to Know
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Diigo links of the day 10/25/2010
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The 10 iPad Book Apps: Using the iPad for Reading Books at School
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onlineteachingguide / Front Page
tags: onlineteachingguide teachers resources wiki technology
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Diigo links of the day 10/23/2010
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Diigo links of the day 10/22/2010
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
Meeting with MIT today...
So today I was in a meeting with researchers from MIT who are partnering with the Community Foundation of South Wood County. It was a very interesting meeting, and I must say I was a bit intimidated meeting with people from MIT. These researchers are working with the Community Foundation and are interested in how technology is being used in schools, how students are connecting, etc. There are a variety of other things involved here, but it got me thinking about my community service project for the WISE program as we were talking in our informal meeting. The subject of where students go to get access after school in our area was brought up. Is there a public place for students, and community members, to go to. The answer is no. I know it would take money, but if the organizations involved here are willing and able to give us funding, which it sounds like they might be, it would be great to open some sort of place for people in the community to go to, without having to drive into Wisconsin Rapids, to get access to computers and the internet. Something to think about...
New technology frustrations...
One of the great things about new, online, technology resources and tools is that they are constantly being improved and updated. But that is also something that can be a bit frustrating. Last year I went to work on my wiki and pbworks had changed a few things around. Buttons looked a bit different and were arranged and placed in different orders. It wasn't anything major, but, since it had been a while since I had to edit my page, it made me wonder if I remembered what I was doing for a moment. Generally these changes are easy to adapt to. However, if I had a moment of, "What the heck is going on here?" I know that many of my colleagues and others in the profession who are not exactly "tech friendly" would possibly have a melt down with things changing so often. I get calls from teachers wondering where to locate something on a drive because the icon moved. Getting some teachers to want to use technology is a big step, but once they use it and don't feel comfortable with it because it keeps changing, what do we do then? Most will just give up because it is too stressful for them. I personally don't see this as a problem, again I said I thought it was one of the best aspects of these new, online, resources... but I fear this great thing about it might turn some teachers away from using these valuable resources.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Love this video
I saw this video on others' blogs and just had to post it on my own. It is so creative and just makes me happy. I love it when my students create projects like this because they always have so much fun and their creativity really shines.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Edmodo
I'm not sure how many people are familiar with Edmodo right now. I started using it this year and told a few other tech-savvy and interested teachers about it who have also started using it for their classes. I love it! But the one problem I am finding is that I have to get used to it and check and update it regularly, something that is a bit of a struggle for me at times with all the classes I teach.
So currently I have it available to all of my classes, but I'm really focusing one class around it. So far so good. The thing students really like is that they can turn their assignments in the day something is due, as long as it is in by 11:59pm the day it is due. I'm happy to give them that time!
I have many students who are anti-technology. I don't knwo why, but they are. Every new tool I give to them that I find really cool they find a way to bring down. I find a very simple and helpful tool and they can't figure out how to use it. It's a constant battle. But Edmodo, which is Facebook-like in it's look and set up has not been a problem and is something that these anti-tech students have really gotten into using. Ahhh... success!
The other things I love about Edmodo are the calendar function and the way I get to color code my classes. Students have the ability to make the class colors whatever they want on their own, and I can do the same. So having 5 classes I can easily see what is coming in from what class, or on the calendar have it color coded to classes so I know the due dates coming up for a class simply by noticing the color or the entry.
Now, I do need to be more on top of this calendar function, but when I have my units ready I have so far been able to update the calendar with all necessary due dates. Something I need to keep on top of.
If you haven't checked out Edmodo yet I highly recommend it!
So currently I have it available to all of my classes, but I'm really focusing one class around it. So far so good. The thing students really like is that they can turn their assignments in the day something is due, as long as it is in by 11:59pm the day it is due. I'm happy to give them that time!
I have many students who are anti-technology. I don't knwo why, but they are. Every new tool I give to them that I find really cool they find a way to bring down. I find a very simple and helpful tool and they can't figure out how to use it. It's a constant battle. But Edmodo, which is Facebook-like in it's look and set up has not been a problem and is something that these anti-tech students have really gotten into using. Ahhh... success!
The other things I love about Edmodo are the calendar function and the way I get to color code my classes. Students have the ability to make the class colors whatever they want on their own, and I can do the same. So having 5 classes I can easily see what is coming in from what class, or on the calendar have it color coded to classes so I know the due dates coming up for a class simply by noticing the color or the entry.
Now, I do need to be more on top of this calendar function, but when I have my units ready I have so far been able to update the calendar with all necessary due dates. Something I need to keep on top of.
If you haven't checked out Edmodo yet I highly recommend it!
Let's get this started...
I've always wanted to start a blog and actually keep up on it, so I suppose this is my chance =)
What I'd like to do here is reflect on the things I find useful for myself as a teacher. I'll be linking to articles, embedding information, etc. in order for this to be a place for me to reflect on these resources and my teaching practices. Reflection is something that I know I need to do more of as a teacher. I have tons of resources at my disposal and on my diigo, but I don't always take the time to evaluate these resources or their usefulness, how I have used it/implemented it, or how my students responded. I think that this blog will be a great place to do that, among other things...
I am choosing to focus this on my role as an educator, but when I feel the need (like in the summer) to post other things I will do that. So here's a brief start and I will be adding more this week and in the weeks to come!
What I'd like to do here is reflect on the things I find useful for myself as a teacher. I'll be linking to articles, embedding information, etc. in order for this to be a place for me to reflect on these resources and my teaching practices. Reflection is something that I know I need to do more of as a teacher. I have tons of resources at my disposal and on my diigo, but I don't always take the time to evaluate these resources or their usefulness, how I have used it/implemented it, or how my students responded. I think that this blog will be a great place to do that, among other things...
I am choosing to focus this on my role as an educator, but when I feel the need (like in the summer) to post other things I will do that. So here's a brief start and I will be adding more this week and in the weeks to come!
Diigo links of the day 10/12/2010
Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.
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