ILP "Design" - Digital Audio Tools (Garage Band)

          I choose to use the digital audio tool garage band and make and audio podcast for a classroom. I found making the podcast was really fun and simple to do and I had a lot of fun making it. Since I love to talk this was one of the most perfect things I could imagine and don’t know why I don’t already have my own podcast where I could just rant my life away. This has also been so great because I finally know how to use Garage Band and may experiment with it more sometime soon. 
         History is one of my favorite things so I thought it might be fun to do a "Fun Facts Friday with Ms. Pate" for a late elementary or early middle school classroom. I thought it was very fun to research even though it did take a couple of takes to complete it was somewhat frustrating at times but still very fun. Overall the experience was really fun to create and I may just be in love with this now, be on the look out for a podcast from me...

Here is the podcast for Fun Facts Friday with Ms. Pate Fun Facts Friday

Vacation like a Pro Survey

https://fsu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_24dAaUIYYbpK5nv

# 9 Flipping upsidedown

Through using the Flipped Classroom teachers can utilize their time in the classroom so ensure students understand the lesson and get help on their homework. Through children watching premade videos on the lesson before coming to class then they are able to ask questions about the lesson while in class and doing the homework. I know personally in the past my mom has done this type of system and it worked really well with her students because they came into class already knowing what they were learning and could come in and do the homework and ask questions. I know one website that my mother has used in the classroom a lot along with instructed me to use myself are Khan Academy videos. I have personally used these and find them very helpful for students of any age.

When I searched online for open sources discussed like in the podcast I found that open sources and content are software and or programs that can be modified and distributed for any purpose educational or otherwise. According to the website that I found an open source is licensed in a manner that provides users with free and perpetual permission to engage in the 5R activities: Retain, Reuse, Revise, Remix, Redistribute. https://www.opencontent.org/definition/

While working on the PowerPoint Information Dissemination assignment I have learned a lot about what I can do to use PowerPoint in the classroom to make things more fun. I learned how to make a master slide that I change myself which was very difficult but will be very useful in the future. I also learned how to hyperlink things into the same PowerPoint, which I used icons on a map to take you to the slide about the icon itself. I found it really fun to make it this interactive and feel I could use this a lot in the classroom in the future. I don’t think that I would use the sound aspect rather just go through it myself, but the lecture notes could come in handy if I have a sub or something someday. Finding an online template was actually very difficult because I couldn’t make up my mind and I had already started making one without an online template but it was very helpful and I really liked using it. I learned a lot in this project and had a lot of fun and will definitely use what I learned in the future.

Everything You're Doing Wrong With Your Pitch

Everything You're Doing Wrong With Your Pitch & How To Fix It de Clark Van Der Beken

There are 7 deadly sins of of pitching and these slides simply and easily explains what they are and how to stop doing them. Along with helpful tips on how to improve your pitch as a whole. This presentation is simple and very straight forward which is very helpful for anyone looking for good tips without all the fluff. 

# 8 Education in full Bloom

Last week we visited the Sports Psychology lab, which was really interesting and fun to learn about. One of the things that stood out to me specifically for the use in the classroom was the glasses that we were shown. I found it interesting how we were told that these had been used in the classroom to see the difference in new and experienced teachers in different situations. Along with reversing the situation and using it to see where students look and view. This can be helpful when you have children who are easily distracted so you can know what by and how to help that problem.

In Blooms Taxonomy is almost a guideline when it comes to educational goals, going along the lines of simple to concrete to abstract, the categories and subcategories go with skills and abilities that are considered necessary when it comes to educational goals. PowerPoint can be applied to all of the categories in Blooms Taxonomy in these ways...
Create: Students being able to create their own PowerPoint’s gives them the presentation abilities, creativity used to make it, public presentation along with often times collaboration.
Evaluate: A teacher may use PowerPoint’s to create games to see what level of comprehension the students are at on certain topics to evaluate where they are struggling and improve that.
Analyze: Classifying and or categorizing information or vocabulary words, along with true or false questions and having students compare and contrast topics being able to analyze them deeper.
Apply: One of the best things a teacher could effectively use in the classroom during presentations is the use of discussion questions to really get the students involved and can apply them to their own lives.
Understand: PowerPoint is really great when it comes too presenting great notes making it easy to understand the topic fully.
Remember: Doing short quizzes or random questions in the PowerPoint along with at the end of the presentation will help students remember the lesson.

http://www.edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2015/12/5-tech-trends-could-supercharge-education-2016
This website shows trends in education that could energize the classroom in the future. This website as a whole is specifically about education and technology constantly coming out with new articles about the new trends in the classroom along with other things. This specific article talks about new technologies in the classroom such as the virtual reality, 3-D printers and wearable technology. These technologies are predicted to become very influential and highly used in the classroom in the future.

# 7 A Helping Hand

Assistive technologies can be very helpful in and outside of the classroom; one thing that I have learned about in the podcast was through the American with Disabilities Act. Along with how accommodations are required to be made for people with disabilities that need help in and outside of the classroom. Some examples include, voice recognition software, joysticks instead of mouse, braille printers and spelling checkers. I have never known someone who has had to use these devices but I have seen people with them before either around school or college. My mother actually had a student one year who was blind, so she received a braille printer from the school so she could print out his work. Some of the challenges I perceive using these adaptive technologies in my classroom is sometimes technologies do not work and it can be expensive and time consuming to fix. Along with as in the podcast says, it is important to match the right technology with the right person, not everyone can use anything and making sure people have the right thing is important. 

While working on the Web Page Design assignment I have learned a lot while using weebly. First of all I learned how to embed a Google calendar and edit it to actually put events with descriptions. I found placing the survey questions very helpful for if I was an actual teacher taking my kids on a field trip and needed to know specific information this would be great. The project was really fun to make and be creative on but next time I would change the theme and really have fun with the colors and fonts along with making it even more interactive.  http://abigailpateeme2040.weebly.com

Working with Diigo I have learned so much and I think it is really a cool and useful tool overall that I will get a lot of use out of. I think it is really useful if I find a good article that I would like to show the classroom where I can annotate on the sides for good points that I want to tell the classroom. Also I feel that this could be very helpful when collaborating with other professionals. Being able to share cool websites, articles and other things between teachers that could be helpful to read or use is a great idea.

ILP Design: Pinterest Profile on EdTech

I have chosen to create an educational Pinterest profile with different boards that have to do with either education, technology or both. I currently have five boards which are "New Technology, Educational Links, Trends in Education, Educational Quotes, and Ed Tech" which I feel that all can be very beneficial to new teachers. I am selective on exactly what I put in which boards along with annotating each with a description of what it is. Many of the pins are links too new helpful websites or they have the information on the pin itself. I plan to continue to pin more onto the boards along with making new boards when a new category seems fit. I am very excited about this and feel that I will be able to use this more and more in the future! https://www.pinterest.com/abbeypate31/

# 6 Schools and their Sandboxes

             The school website that I used for this just happens to also be the school that I do my Observational Learning at for another class which is Cobb Elementary School. I was surprised to find when I was going through different class pages that they did have a lot more information public than I thought they would. Some class pages had more information than others but all of them generally had pages such as a Welcome page, Meet the teacher, Class Calendar, and a Student Resources page shown in the 7th grade Civics/Yearbook class below. Some pages had a lot of detail put into them along with many resources for the students such as assignments and an online book. The schools home page has access to information about upcoming events, clubs and the magnet program with a very positive outlook on the school as a whole. 

           Using productivity tools has become very important in the classroom and I plan to use as much as I can myself to keep up with the technology-consumed society. There are many different things that can be used such as classroom management software, productivity software and even twitter is becoming more common for classes. I would like to be able to use these programs to keep my students up to date and actively engaged in all activities. While going through some of the classroom sites I came upon something that I found very interesting to use in the classroom and very helpful for students. Instead of using twitter this teacher had a classroom Instagram, where she would post at the beginning of each week the agenda for the upcoming week. There were also posts of positive messages, if there was a notebook check the next day and even fun and informational pictures of maps for class. I find this a very interesting approach and would truly consider using it myself in the classroom. Children are always on Instagram, so what better way to take advantage of that than use it to update your students to keep the classroom productive and always prepared. 

 
            Going to the tech sandbox last week was so much fun. I was able to see the new technology that we hear about all the time and actually get to use it myself. One of the items that I felt would be very helpful in the classroom would be the Smart Table, which is specifically designed for preschool/elementary age children. With useful applications of telling weather, seasons, colors and so much more, enabling multiple children to stand around the table and all be able to get involved would be very beneficial. Along with the actual Smart Board itself, which many students who graduated high school within the past couple years, are familiar with using in their own classrooms. I remember using the Smart Board in the classroom all the time it was specifically helpful because the teacher could write on her notes and it be projected up and the students can get involved and write on the board too to solve problems. Something new that I had not seen before with the Smart Board is the 3D cube aspect to use while teaching. Essentially what it is is there is a cube that you can get that goes along with the 3D application on the Smart Board. Then when the cube is placed under the video projector on the screen showed an image of your choice, whether it be the human ear, a skeleton or even the moon. By rotating the actual cube you would be rotating the new 3D image of your choice on the screen in very high quality. I would love to see this used in my own classroom one day and think that the technology to be able to do this is so amazing and it is just going to keep getting better.

# 5 The Social Life

Paragraph 1: Web 2.0 is all about social connection, communication, collaboration and sharing. The newer version of Web 1.0 it upgraded to include things such as twitter, wikis, and Diigo. I feel that all of these will be very useful inside the classroom but I would not use twitter when it comes too the classroom. Just for the fact that since twitter is such a widely used social media and can be unpredictable sometimes when it comes to middle and high school students because you never know what can happen. I feel twitter is better used for teachers keeping up to date with new technology due to the fact that twitter can be very personal. I feel that blogs would be great for high school and middle school students getting them connected without it being too personal.

Paragraph 2: https://www.pinterest.com/

To utilize the Web 2.0 tools I would use one of my favorite interactive websites of all time, which is Pinterest. I personally know so many teachers who have used this in the classroom when it comes to new teaching ideas, decorating and getting children into technology. I would love for students to have their own educational pinterest boards of different categories using what Pinterest has to offer. Even having students look up study tools and tips I feel Pinterest would be very helpful in the classroom with children and teachers. The website is so easy to navigate and able to use for anyone I feel like it would be very helpful in the classroom. 

Paragraph 3: When it comes to emerging technologies and the promise for our education I feel that 3-D printing is going to be a big piece of technology used in our schools. 3-D printing can take an idea for a project and bring it to life revolutionizing school projects. Teaching students coding, using collaborative websites and helping creativity this could help schools tremendously. There is also an aspect of fun seeing an idea come to life which could in turn encourage students to get excited about technology and pursue it more and more. Being used for math, science, geography and much more the 3-D printer has so many applications and could really be successful in a school setting.

# 4 The Digital Divide...dun dun dun

Paragraph 1: My early experience with twitter within the course has honestly been slow but I have been able to utilize it more and more as we go on. I do love the ability it has to connect my peers and I along with seeing how teachers that I follow interact with one another. I have been primarily interacting with the EME page and going off of that and with my peers. It has been very helpful with the reminder to post and retweet each week and keeping me up to date with my assignments. In the future I think twitter will be a great tool to use when it comes to new ideas in the classroom and with education in the nation.
Paragraph 2: When it comes to the digital divide depending on which side you are on it can really affect how students advance in technology and learning In the podcast where two situations of students were compared, one with a dad in IT with plenty of technology access and one child in another family with no technology access at home. A student without a computer at home will most likely be at a disadvantage and a different level of knowledge when it comes to technology as a whole therefor less likely to go into a field of technology. Along with this when it comes to using any kind of Microsoft software from Word to PowerPoint the child with limited technology experience will be less likely to be able to navigate these tools that will prepare them in high school and into college. Also other software’s of application and active learning, tutorials, educational games and stimulations all of these help better the child in different ways to help them comprehend the material and present it too them in a different way. These have become essential to the new way we use technology in learning and would be very difficult without them.
Paragraph 3: Specifically there are five points when it comes to evaluating a website and those are...

A: Author "credentials, can you contact the author?"
B: Bias "is the resource neutral or biased toward the topic?"
C: Content " Is it appropriate for student-aged viewers, accurate with spelling and grammar?"
D: Design 'is it visibly pleasing/Are the images clear'
T: Technical elements 'is it easy to navigate, quick to load/ are all parts functioning?'

When I was younger and we first started using technology in the classroom my teacher told us what one of the most important points to keep in mind when doing research and that it to always look at the URL. Whether it is .com, .edu, .org or .gov, each one of them tells you something specific about the website and its credibility and it is very important. 

# 3 ELA Standards and You

The first ELA standard that I would feel most prepared to teach would be RHST.7 "Multimedia: History/ Social Studies: includes charts, graphs, photographs, videos, maps, research data". I feel that I could most easily do this because I have already had to integrate multimedia before into teaching experiences that I have had previously. I feel that using multimedia gives an extra tool for the children who are visual learners to understand. Along with being able to utilize these tools in lessons giving something to go off of and make lessons a little more exciting and engaging this way. The ELA standard that I would need more preparation for would definitely be "SL.5 Use Digital Media: Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations". I would have to do some preparation for this because I am not very skilled when it comes to audio use and recordings, along with making interactive digital media elements. 

I would truly like to utilize using technology in the classroom as much as I am able too using the Internet, blogs, videos, and take advantage of academic portals. But when it comes to digital citizenship one of the concepts that I would definitely address would be to be polite and respectful in all interactions. It is so easy to sit behind a computer and be critical and sometimes rude to and of others work. Along with refraining from sharing or posting personal information about themselves or others, it can be so easy to think posting where you are or your address is not a big deal. But it can easily make children targets for stalkers and predators so any amount of personal information is not advised. Since I do plan on working with middle school ages 11-14, this is one of the most important times to learn to be nice on the Internet along with not sharing personal information.

Through working on the Newsletter I have learned many new skills such as using multiple text boxes with how to arrange them. Also I have learned how to make borders and use word art, which I haven’t used in a very long time since many college professors and high school teachers are not a fan of word art when it comes to essays. I did not like having to figure out what to write and it was difficult making it sound different than the example, but I feel that this has helped me to be able to come up with my own ideas to do better next time. I will definitely be able to use this in my future career by actually having to make newsletters for my future classrooms. 

# 2 MS=Good, Copyrighting= Bad

Microsoft word has been an essential staple in work in and outside of the classroom especially when it comes too assignments. When it comes to papers and any written work that needs to be completed MS word is typically used to get the job done with its handy tools such as spell check it is every student’s best friend. I have used MS word for every one of my papers due from the time I was in elementary school to now I still continue to use it. All of my teachers have used it when it comes to giving us assignments, syllabi, quizzes, or test, basically anything you can think of when something needs to be written out and presented to the class. This program is one of the easiest to use which is why so many students and teachers use it and I feel will continue to use it as long as necessary.                                                                 

When it comes to Copyrighting it is the protection of the ownership of creative works, granting exclusive rights to determine who can use it and when along with the financial gain that comes along with it. Due to the internet giving us such easy access to copying almost anything you have to be careful about copyrighting as a teacher along with your students understanding what that means. But under the copyright laws there is a "fair use" section, enabling educators and students to use copyrighted material only if certain criteria are met. I personally recall how much copyrighting and plagiarism was stressed to me as a student starting in elementary school. I feel as a teacher the best thing that I can do to benefit my students is to help them understand what copyrighting is and what these criteria are that are to be met. I also would utilize the organizations and websites where educators are free to share their creative ideas and works without it being copyrighted to help benefit one another.                                                                                                 

 Throughout the years through new technology developing all the time I have learned so many new skills, from learning how to correctly and efficiently do research to as simply as enhancing my typing skills. Specifically through twitter and personal learning networks I have learned that when it comes to education I will never be on my own. There are so many sources to utilize for help and ideas when it comes to being an educator, utilizing these sources will help me to connect with my peers, collaborate and access information that could be very useful to my career in the future.

# 1: Technology & Today

Paragraph 1: When I look back on how technology has been used throughout my whole education starting from the very beginning what stands out to me the most is the use of computers. While in elementary school getting to go to the computer lab one day was a privilege and something to be excited about, while in middle and high school it just signified more work that had to be done and was less of an excitement. While using computers can be very useful and helpful in getting what needs to be done accomplished there are some major downsides to having all children in one-classroom use computers. One of the biggest concerns is the fact that many schools have very diverse populations of students when it comes to socioeconomic status, in which that higher statues children are more comfortable and used to having computers and using them while lower children who may not have access struggle when in the computer lab. This takes extra time for the teacher to go one on one with the student to help them and show them exactly what to do and how to do it. Overall slowing the process and sometimes not even using the computers at all. Not only this but the fact that the role, played by teachers is getting overtaken by technology itself. Al children do not learn the same and computer systems do not change based on how the child learns. They need that one on one interaction and guidance from the teacher to help them succeed the best way possible. These problems addressed in the first two chapters are very real issues that need to be considered when technology is used in the classroom. 

Paragraph 2: Looking through the ISTE standards makes me happy that there are standards like this in place to truly mold and help the next generation grow. The standard the gladdens my heart would be the first one "Facilitate and Inspire student learning and creativity", this makes me happy for the simple fact that a child’s creativity in learning is so important to the process. A child’s imagination is one of the best tools a child has when it comes to learning and I believe that we should promote and engage that as much as possible when relating to the real world and problem solving. The standard that seems outside of my skill set would most likely be "Model digital age work and learning" simply because of the fact that the digital world and technology are not my strong skills. I feel that I still have a lot to learn about other kinds of technology necessary in the teaching environment to communicate properly with others. 

Paragraph 3: The term "digital native" has been very controversial for this generation because they truly are the first generations that are digital natives. This term meaning being born into a generation/society where technology is so easily accessible. Our parents never had to deal with that which is why it was so different for them growing up. You are able to tell with many older teachers while I was in school that were digital immigrants mainly because there were students having to help the teacher with technology many times. Along with many older teachers sticking to using chalk boards or white boards and the younger teachers using smart boards due to that comfort level that has been established there using technology in everything they do. A main difference that I anticipate between myself and my future students in terms of how I use technology is too make sure that I stay up to date on the technology at the time which is going to influence how my students learn. It will be important to know how they learn new things at home through technology so that I am able to transfer it into the classroom overall making it simpler for them to focus and learn.

# 0: My Discoveries

Paragraph 1: My prior experiences using technology are about as extensive as using my smart phone and laptop, but not much more. I have been able to know the basics when it comes to making projects and papers but when it comes to the nitty gritty details my knowledge ends there. I wish I could be that person who is able to pop their hand up when there is technology assistance needed but unfortunately I am not. Other than being on my elementary schools news team in fourth and fifth grade there is not much more that I am able to contribute to the technological advancements of society.

Paragraph 2: I do hope to learn the advancements within technology and our education today along with seeing how much technology goes into our education which most do not think about. I find it fascinating how different our childhood educations have changed involving technology in the classroom. I am interested in learning so much more about computers and the things that we use on a daily basis so that I have a base knowledge of what I am working with and on.

Paragraph 3: What I have learned about my learning style is, first of all that I am primarily an Active rather than reflective learner meaning that I prefer to be very hands on in the process with a try it first attitude. Which I completely see and agree with once I have thought back on it and how I typically learn faster. Also I am pretty in the middle when it comes to Sensing and intuitive learning but being slight more intuitive than sensing meaning that rather than facts I prefer possibilities.  I am very positive and agree with the fact that I am all the way a visual learner but I am very in the middle when it comes to sequential and global learning. Seeing that I am slightly closer to global than sequential I prefer to get the big picture of it all then focus on the details.