Thing #12

The two Google tools that I really like and could really see myself using in the classroom are: Google Alerts and Google translate. For example, with google alerts I can get updates on current world events. If I was teaching about Italy I could receive updates on the Vatican and the process of selecting a new pope or on weather systems such as hurricanes or earthquakes. I am also very familiar and quite enjoy google translator. This has helped me with Spanish homework and if I had a student who was still learning English I could use this site to help me communicate more easily and translate homework and test directions to make some modifications to curriculum.

Thing #11

I've always found using google to be the easiest search engine to use. This is still a true statement after doing the research for this post. While this might be a case of teaching an old dog a new trick I'm just going to stick with what I know :) But it was still nice to see what other options are available to me! Technorati was the most confusing for me but I will definitely recommend it for others to try.

When I entered school library learning into Google I was overwhelmed with a plethora of blogs and information! This is such a blessing as a future educator. I don't believe in having too many options or too much information. There is always a new way to teach an old concept! I really don't use any other search feeds to find information so I'll have to research this further and broaden my horizons.

Thing #10

I really appreciate how easy it was to look up blogs that related to my interests. I was able to make a list of all of the blogs within the content area that I will be teaching. This is exciting because blogs are always being updated so it will help to keep me up to date on what I can teach my students :) This is also easy enough that students could use this for research projects.

Thing #9

These are just a few of the signs that I made that could be put in my classroom. The first one I used the happy face generator and I thought that would be a cuter way of displaying class rules that just having a boring list. And then I also made just another nerdy teacher sign on custom sign generator :) I know that if I display my excitement for what I'm teaching that it will eventually rub off on my students!

Thing #8

            

The site that I decided to use was Spell with Flikr. I can use this site to help jazz up presentations, make posters more interesting or to make fun flashcards. For young students they learn best when there is some type of visual interest and this site couldn't be more simple to use! As for how I feel about posting pictures online I believe that is a multifaceted answer. Many students will not have been taught how to be safe and responsible with what they post online. You never know when a future employer will find that "silly" or "dumb" picture you uploaded in high school and when it could cost you a job. 

Thing #7

This is probably going to be one of my favorite blogs. At first I was a little apprehensive about howI would be able to utilize Flikr in the classroom but now I seem that the possibilities are potentially endless. One of my big platforms as a future educator is to really teach students about the world outside of their town, state, and the U.S. With Flikr I can literally take my classroom across the world and expose them to numerous cultures. Coming from a VERY small town I know that many people don't have the opportunity to travel and this can help to instill biases and in a world of increasing interconnectedness that will only hamper them in their futures. I can also use this site to show different geography and cultural sites and students can explore areas around the world. Anther fun idea that I had for older students is to have the class set up their own Flikr group and they can upload pictures that relate to what is being covered in class to enhance their own learning. So in short, I am a Flikr convert :)

Thing #6

I found the tool PowToons. This tool can be used to easily create very visually interesting power points, videos and more. I really liked this because of the fact that it is so easy to use and it isn't very often that I find something so easy that can turn out so neat. This will definitely enhance student's experiences because of all of the visual interest to keep students involved with the lesson. This is also an easy tool for students to use to create their own presentations.

http://www.powtoon.com/