Thing #24: the one last thing!!

This project has been a great learning experience and shown me so many new tools I can use on the web that I had no idea existed. I enjoyed getting to blog about sites I already use daily like Facebook and Youtube, but I also really liked exploring new sites that will be useful in the future. My favorite activities are the ones were we we got to use picture to create different images (the puzzle, magazine cover, video slideshow, etc) and things like Shelfari and Google Reader. It is nice to know that I now have a way to keep track of books I read and want to read, as well as stay up-to-date on news related to my favorite sites and ones that will be goof resources as a teacher. I will definitely continue to use some of the Web 2.0 tools that we explored through this activity and will probably start creating more blogs for personal and professional use. As a teacher, I think it will be a good way to stay involved with students and their parents, and keep the line of communication as open as possible. I was surprised by just how many tools we have available to us and for free. I still don't like the idea of putting my email address in too many places; however, I love pretty much anything that is free and can see how these sites in particular might be worth putting it out there. I like seeing sites that allow for private settings so I can monitor who sees my information. I wish all sites would do that.
I do not think that this activity should be changed in anyway. Each one had its benefits for life as a teacher and exposes anyone in the education program to resources they can use in their classrooms. In doing all these activities, I have found a sense of community and learned how important that is. New teachers need to feel that and know they can get advice from others teachers, and not just from a face-to-face situation. All these forums provide us outlets to share our own thoughts and experiences with others in the profession and learn from them because as more than one of my professors has said, it is acceptable to  "beg, borrow, and steal" . Educators need to help each other out, especially when teacher accountability is being looked at more closely now than ever. This blog and other applications we explore in the last 23 things will help us help each other and we can grow as a community of professionals who want to make a different in students lives. That is my biggest goal in becoming a teacher: to influence the lives of young children/adolescents in the most positive and loving way that I can.
Thanks for reading my blog!! This may be the end of the 23 things, but I will be returning to  the blogoshere in the future!!

Thing #23

This appears at the bottom of the 23 Things homepage; it shows that this project is based on someone else's work and modified. I did not know Creative Commons exited before taking this Educational Technology class and I think it is important for everyone to know. It seems like a much easier and convenient way to have your work copyrighted and make sure you are not plagiarizing. Teachers need to be very careful about this because the last thing any teacher needs is a lawsuit. Also, teachers need to set a good example for their students and show them that cheating is not acceptable. Creative Commons will introduce them to a simple way to check for a copyright and they may want to have their own original work copyrighted. It is great that Creative Commons does not charge for the copyright; it will make a lot of people's lives easier. I, for one, will introduce this to my students and possible for myself if I ever get to writing those novels I want to write. Well, wanted to write when I was younger, but the idea still floats around in my head from time to time. As much as I love to write, I cannot image how it would feel to actually have a published book. That would be an incredible feeling!

Thing #22

The three live binders I created are called Education-Resources, Educational Blogs, and English Education Webpages. It took me a while to figure out how to navigate the Livebinder website and add different tabs in my binders. I was very frustrated at one point and was ready to give up when I somehow managed to get multiple tabs. I am not sure how I did it, but whatever I clicked worked. I do see that this tool can be useful because it's like having all your binders in one place (online) and can access them anywhere. It is nice because it provides a way for people not to have to lug binders around with them like most students do. We all know how painful and annoying it can be to have to carry multiple binders for the day and this tool could potential save people the hassle of doing that. In my observations I have noticed that many of the students, even in the lower grades, have big binders full of stuff. It is evident that some struggle holding their binders do to weight and amount of papers they have. Plus, it would save a lot of paper! As a teacher I could keep online binders for each class period and won't have to worry about forgetting them someplace; whether I am at home or at school I would be able to access my binders. I think Livebinders has some serious potential to be useful in the classroom setting.

Livebinder

My binder titled "Education-Resources" contains an academic vocabulary document, common core standards reference, and the Teacher Vision website. I put these in it because they are going to be important to have as references when I become a teacher. They are tools and concepts I will need to know and integrate in my daily lesson plans and unit plans.