Final Reflection

Web 2.0 tools are able to support learning and help learners become prepared for the twenty-first century.  The web is an interactive place for continuous learning.  Web 2.0 tools motivate learners and can connect people in a way that was previously not possible.  I learned a vast amount in this course and I am excited to be able to use many of these tools in my professional and personal life.  I think I will create more educational sites in the future using Google.  I have already been consistently using Google docs and Google Presentation.  Creating a Glogser or a Wix is a great tool to creatively display information.  I have only used LiveBinders for educational purposes, but I can see myself using the program to organize personal information as well.  I also really enjoyed Mixbook and I can see myself using that program often in the future.  I learned about different social networking tools as well.  I feel I will continue reading blogs and using twitter to follow other librarians and teachers.  It is great to learn though peers and professionals.  I feel more comfortable using the web to plan and implement lessons than prior to this class.  I am glad to be moving forward as a teacher and learner in the twenty–first century.

Day 4

Gloster is a great tool and can be used for many reasons.  Teachers and students can be creative and make their Glogster site into anything they can imagine.  Glogster can be used to teach lessons and post student work.  Other great tools are Wordle and Tagxedo.  These sites produce word clouds and can be used to have students analyze text.  Today I also learned about Livebinder.  Livebinder is a great way to organize information by using tabs.  The site is easy to use and users can add text, links, pictures and videos.

Book Trailer using Photostory

After creating a book trailer on photostory, I was excited to see the final product. It is amazing how simple the program is to use.  It is a great feeling to know how many wonderful learning tools can be created from using photostory.  I think that photostory is a great motivating tool for students. I look forward to creating more presentations in the future.

Day 3

I really enjoyed learning about Google forms.  I was surprised how easy it was to create surveys.  surveys can be used in so many ways to improve education.  Teachers can use the surveys as a pre or post assessment.  Teachers can also use surveys to help learn about students interests. Google Presentation reminded me of PowerPoint.  I liked the fact that is was simple and easy to use.  The best part of Google presentation is that a number of people can edit the same presentation at the same time.  It is great to be able to have a class collaborate on making something special together.  Digital storytelling is a tool that can be used in a variety of ways in your personal and professional life.  Photostory is a great tool in where you can record your own voice to a presentation that you made.  Another favorite tool of mine is Mixbook.  Mixbook is easy to use and the possibilities are endless.  Users can collaborate and work on the same project together.

Day 2 for Web 2.0

Today I learned about social networking.  I have never used twitter and I find it very interesting and exciting.  I am glad to be able to follow people who have the same interests as me.  I am sure I will be able to use twitter to learn more about a variety of topics. I have already been using good reads and I love the program.  It was interesting to be able to explore Shelfari and Librarything.  I loved learning about google docs and found it really useful.  It was great to see how quickly edits were updated.  I am feeling much more comfortable with a wikis as well.  Today we created our own wiki for an efolio purpose.  I can see how useful wikis can be in a classroom setting. I am used to using google images and today I was able to learn and explore more about Flickr. I can definitely see myself using many of these programs personally and professionally in the future.

Using Blogs in the School Library Media Center

Blogging is a way to keep teachers and students motivated and learning.  When blogging, users are able to learn from others.  I would love to incorporate blogs into the classroom.  I think students can reflect on books, authors, illustrators and a variety of different topics though blogging.  Students can respond to and interact with one another through blogs.   Technology today allows teachers to extend learning beyond the classroom.  Students can practice their literacy skills as well as use higher level thinking skills when creating or responding to a blog.  Students feel empowered and important when their work is published.  A blog allows others to see the effort they put into their blog.  Students are able to be creative and are excited to post their thoughts for the world to see. Blogging is a great tool to enhance many skills the students are learning.  Blogging is important for teachers and for students to continue to learn about the digital world.