Thing 21-Share Everyone!

For my Slideshare debut, I chose to show an online tool I found based on an online tool I was introduced to in class (confusing huh? Love it!).  In Thing 12, I was introduced to wallwisher.  I did not blog about my exploration, but was inspired by reading other blogs to create a wallwisher adventure.  I made a wall for a test review where my students could post questions/answers to help one another study. I also posted some questions for them to think about and answered some of their questions.  My students and I loved it since they were not studying by themselves.  However, the site crashed…a lot.  It was not helpful if we could not access it.  So I went hunting for a new wall and found Stixy!  It is amazing and it has post-its (or sticky's)…with different colors!  (The office supply obsessed person inside me cannot get enough!).  It is great for both personal and professional use because you can share the “wall,” make it private, or make it password protected.  By the way, it is FREE!  My favorite word!

My view on Slideshare is rather complicated right now.  I like the concept of it, but it was a trial and error process.  The first presentation I upload, the font got changed and so did my formatting.  I went exploring then and I saw that I could upload a PDF, so that is the option I went with.  Nothing got changed or moved the second time…it was exactly the way I wanted it!  I usually upload my presentations using Google Docs and the students can watch it there or print it.  With Slideshare, I do not have to go through as many steps and it looks just the way I want it to (in PDF format that is).  I really like being able to embed the presentation!  Makes my blog engaging-looking! I can see using Slideshare as a way of students turning in presentations they make, which they either email me or embed in their blogs.  Slideshare is great for not having to juggle all the flash drives, hoping I got everyone’s project on my desktop.  It is quick and easy way to upload and share.  I give it 4 Stars (Minus 1 Star for the changing of my layout)!

Thing 21 - Slideshare stixy.com

 

Thing 20 - Let's Catch It!

Jing is very interesting so far… my computer HATES IT!  Every time I try to use it, my computer freezes and says that it is working improperly.  I like the concept of it, but it is not cooperating with me.  Hopefully by the end of this, I can get it to work in my favor!  


(PS, I did get it to work! This is what I get for getting frustrated and taking a break…I jumped the written gun!)  :)

I can see Jing being a great resource in education.  It is perfect for walking students through what you expect them to do.  The Jing I made was showing new students how to use the Online Textbook and navigate it.  I use the Online Textbook quite often in class and I have tried to create step-by-step directions for students to follow, but they always struggle.  With this Jing, they can watch as they do.  Much simpler!

The image capture function could be great when presenting diagrams.  I could just project the screen shot with the incorporated arrows and text that is easily created instead of taking 30+minutes to create this in Paint or some other program that can be tedious.  I am already excited to Jing some diagrams of electrical circuits!

Another use of Jing in the classroom is to use it for student presentations.  They could create the normal slide presentation, but then add some Jing to it so it is more active.  Instead of a bibliography at the end of the presentation, they could use the video feature to show the different websites they used.  The more active the presentation is, the more engaged the students will become!  I am ready to Jing some more!!!

Thing 19 - Google my Love!

I have been using Google Docs for the past few years.  It is something I usually depend heavily upon since I do a lot of work at home and I have a tendency to lose my flash drives (yes I have more then 1 and I lose each of them daily).  I just upload whatever document I am working on to Google Docs or I just make a new document in Google Docs. It is a life saver and a convenience I have learned to not live without.  I have been teaching my students all year about Google Docs so they do not have to borrow a friend's flash drive.  They are quickly becoming as addicted as I am!

To show all the possibilities of Google Docs, I chose to have my blog post be in a Google Doc!  I hope you learn to love Google Docs as much as I do!!! Click here for access to the grand world of more Google love.

Thing 18 - Being social is a good thing!

Wow.  Classroom 2.0 is very overwhelming!  I looked at the website over a week’s worth of time, trying to take in as much information as possible, but I think I still need more time before I have seen everything I want to.  I really did like Classroom 2.0 and I think I am going to join them.  I like the idea of having a professional social network where I can pose questions and get help from outside people.  Sometimes you just need a new eye to see the solution to your problem.  I read some discussions where I wanted to comment, but could not since I am not a member yet.  I liked how many different groups there with different focuses on for each, so I can get my fill on every topic I am fascinated by. 

I really enjoyed reading a discussion on “Looking for examples of science classrooms using web 2.0”.  I found the discussion by searching Groups for “science.”  The discussion was started in 2009 and has posts as late as 2010.  They were offering great ideas and suggestions for Web 2.0 in the science classroom.  I am interested in Prezi now.  Click here for the presentation the author of the discussion post created based on feedback to her post using Prezi.  I hope one day (when my membership is approved of course!) to be able to take part in a discussion just like this one.  Classroom 2.0 is an extremely helpful and awe-inspiring website for educators to join and find help/ideas from other educators who are just like them!

Thing 17 - Video Sharing = too many memories

I have never really been hooked into the world of YouTube.  I think the videos are funny that people show me and I like being able to find music videos I want to see, but I cannot spend hours upon hours just searching like a lot of people I know.  That being said, it does not mean I am not a fan!  When I actually have something I want to look up, youtube.com is the best place to go and it is always my first stop.  I can always find good videos to show in class that helps my students learn a concept based on a lab we may be able to complete.  Sadly, we cannot access youtube.com from school, so I have to use a YouTube convert to download the video, but that does not take long. 

When I was searching for some videos that relate to physical science, I decided to focus on electricity (since I had my webquest floating around in my head).  I found two great videos.  The first video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmbbfKWsFUQ) teaches students about series and parallel circuits without having a lecture.  It is very engaging with the flashes of phrases and images.  The second video is an oldie but goodie!  I had completely forgotten about School House Rocks! Electricity! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8iahHwEfNg) This is a great video for introducing electricity and getting them excited.  Who doesn’t love simple animated music videos???

For my video on how to do something, I struggled since at that moment I did not want to know how to do anything…YouTube is hard to search when you do not have a clear purpose!  I eventually landed upon a video that made me happy: how to sew on a button (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QusBUu0xnCg).  I know how to sew, have since I was little, but I still bring my shirts/jackets to my mom’s for her to do it for me. :)  This video is made for bachelors who probably do not have a mother who lives less than 1 hour away.  It makes me very happy to watch him sew this button…maybe it will motivate me to sew my own!

My last hunt on YouTube was for a nostalgic video.  Well, I had an eccentric childhood so this was the hardest search I completed.  I really wanted to re-live my soccer days, but I could not find a video of a child running away from the ball!  I tried all different types of searches, but no luck.  I guess no one wants to embarrass his or her child too much…or no one is quite like me.  I was pretty bummed after my search produced nothing, but then I had a light bulb.  I would search for my favorite summer past time: Doom 2.  Viola! I found it!  A video of someone kicking Doom 2’s butt to oblivion (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XorJfexzF4M).  I have beaten this game numerous times, while listening to 99x, but I have never been able to do it like this guy did.  It made me want to re-purchase the game (I will not though, because I lost all the cheat codes…). 

I do think there is a place for videos in the classrooms.  Students love making them and showing everyone how cool they are.  They are perfect for culminating projects.  You do not need to know how to edit a video to make one…use the old fashion version of recording, stopping, recording or going to the next scene.  I have been doing it for years with school projects and we never once edited one of our amazing videos (I was always the camera person…I have mad record/rewind skills!).  It is even easier to make a video now that almost all still camera’s and phones have video capabilities. 

As my final word on videos, I decided to show a video that is close to my heart. It is both a how to and a nostalgic video: How to beat Mario in less than 5 minutes.  Happy Videoing!  

Thing 16 - My podcasting debut!

Here is my first attempt at podcasting!  This episode is about how podcasting can be used in the science classroom.  Enjoy!

Thing 15 - Podcast Fanatic

I enjoy listening to podcasts!  I have always loved the radio and it just a talking version of the radio that I can put on my ipod!!!  I already subscribed to a few podcasts, but it was fun to look for new ones to become addicted to.  I wanted to start with finding a science podcast since I have nothing that relates to teaching.  I found a few that I added and I have tried listening to them, but got bored rather quickly.  Most of the podcasts I found sounded really good when I just listened to clips, but when I tried to listen to the whole episode, I could not!  Some of the podcasts were just lectures recorded, which can sadly are boring when you can see the person, but it is 100% worse when all you can do is hear them.   I did find this lecture interesting (http://webcast.berkeley.edu/course_details.php?seriesid=1906978358) but I was not willing to listen to the entire lecture.  I found myself fast forwarding quite often just because I could.  I think I need to keep searching (maybe not science though) and hopefully I will find a professional resource out of a podcast!  

For personal use I went right back to my favorite podcast place: NPR!  I already was subscribing to Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, so I decide to find my other favorite NPR show that I never catch in the car: This American Life.  This show picks a different topic every week and then different people narrate their stories that relate.  The episode I listened to was about “Oh you shouldn’t have,” which discussed the giving and receiving of gifts, both good and bad.  I really enjoyed listening to the podcast instead of music while I graded, however, I kept trying to “see” the people talking!  When I got wrapped up in a student’s paper, I would click (I was listening from my Google Reader online) and go through all the windows until I realized it was just audio…I did this 5 times!  I love podcasts, but podcasts + grading = NO.  I have to focus and people talking to me does not help the focus.  

Webquest Pre-Plan - It's Electrifying!

For my webquest, I decided to focus on Electricity.  The students will be asked to design a new lab layout including the electrical designs for the electrician.  Once they have submitted their designs, they will help the electrician by evaluating his plan and offering suggestions that will fix the problems he made.

Intro

Welcome future electricians!  I am Principal Circuits and I need your help with the electrical design of our newest Physical Science lab.  As you travel through this journey in figuring out the best electrical layout for the new lab, you will be learning about electricity and electrical circuits.   Once you have made your electrical design proposals, I will still need your expertise in helping me supervise my electrician and make sure he does the best job possible.

Task

-Stage 1: Students will research the basics of electricity including vocabulary words, how electricity works, and types of electrical circuits.

Provided websites, videos, and online labs will be used to build the students’ knowledge on electricity as well as the students creating vocabulary flashcards using quizlet.com.

-Stage 2: Students will implement their knowledge of electricity by submitting electrical diagrams for the Physical Science lab-remodeling project. 

Video will be used to show students how to create electrical diagrams and what the appropriate symbols are for their diagrams.  They will upload their diagrams to VoiceThread where they will explain why they chose the design they did.

-Stage 3: Students will evaluate the work the of the electrician hired to do the Physical Science lab remodel (now that the best model was chosen), where they must critique his work and offer suggestions to help the electrician do the job to the best of his ability.

Students will have to explain to the principal what corrections the hired electrician needs to do and why. They will also give a new plan to help him out.  Students can write a formal letter or create a podcast/audio file presentation.  There will be help videos for either option showing the students how to successfully accomplish the task.

I am still working on all the pieces, trying to flush it out and make it usable.  I am thinking of using this after the students have learned about electricity, but before they have learned about circuits.  I am not sure though :)  Everyday I think on this project, I come up with something new.  My project keeps evolving!!!