What is your take on Web 2.0?

Have you used Facebook?  Twitter?  Flickr? Evernote?  If you have, congratulations for moving into the "Read Write Web!"  Some years ago the web was only for reading and accessing information but the developer of the WWW, Tim Berners-Lee, wanted people to "a collaborative medium, a place where we [could] all meet and read and write".  With the idea of more critical thinking, problem-solving oriented tasks, and collaboration the use of Web 2.0 tools give students the tools they could use to optimize their learning.

The the use of cloud technologies makes the access to this information even more accessible!  How about Apple products?  You can read a book on your iPad then move to your phone, and if needed go to the mac computers!  Now that is awesome and the android market has tools very similar in the cloud.  I have Evernote on my tablet, computer, and phone.  So if I have an idea on something, I can add it to my app and then find it on my computer the next day. 

The possibilities are endless so my challenge is to get yourself out there!  I read somewhere that about 90% of people are lurkers and 1% are true contributors to the read write web.  The more we share the bigger our potential can be.

What are some web 2.0 tools you use??  Share how they have improved your learning/instructions?

Web 2.0 Glog Info

How Flat is Education?

Recently I completed a Flat Classroom teacher certificate course offered by Julie Lindsay and Vicki Davis.  These two innovative ladies developed an idea on how to connect students around the world while learning 21st century skills.  This did not happen over night, but they recently released a book with all the steps needed to complete tasks of becoming active in a Flat Classroom.  This opportunity was enlightening as it gave me more insight on collaboration in a virtual world and how to compromise, communicate, and problem solve to build stronger connections.  

This idea brought me back to the school I work in right now.  PA Virtual is on the edge of innovation and building new ideas everyday to improve  education for its students.  Our school is flat and will continue to make the connections needed to learn about community and collaboration. First we can make the connections locally within our flat school, then we can move to schools in the US to find a more national connections.  Finally a global connections can only give students opportunities to learn about global issues that will impact their learning and development of their future!  Think of all the connections we can make by just using technologies at our fingertips:  email, FB, Twitter, Wikis.  The list can be endless and the connections can be so great.  There is a world out there full of willing teachers and students that want to learn about different places and we can make those connections.     As teachers we always make decisions that will improve instructional practices that will enhance a student's learning environment.  Innovation happens in education everyday and I feel we need those in charge of making policies to understand why and how.  April is Advocacy month at ISTE and as a member of the ISTE Voices Carry Advisory Group I feel it is important that we are aware of decisions and make our voices heard as they will change education for the better!  Share with me your experiences of how we can make education better and what steps you have taken for this improvement!!

Job Through Microsoft

Take a nice job along the Microsoft website to learn about some great tools! The run will be worth it!

http://www.jogtheweb.com/run/e9xga8UDp2uT/Jogging-Through-Microsoft-Tools

Test! I have to take a Test! AHHHHH

I can remember being in Mrs. DeMarco's sixth grade history class getting ready to take a unit test on the content we just finished. How bad is it that I just remember it was a history test and not what was on it! I started feeling sick to my stomach and nervous about the questions. Mrs. DeMarco was reading through the directions, passed out the test and I read the first question. I remember drawing a blank as I did not know the answer. So I went to the second, then the third and still nothing. Short of getting out of my chair screaming I closed my eyes, took a deep breathe, and began the test all over again. I made it through the test, and could not tell you my grade on it (I don't even remember the content) My memory never forgets this test scenario every time I took a test after that day. Even now I get worked up about completing a task that may be evaluated or judged by my supervisors. The reason I made it through this test and knew to regroup my thoughts was because of something my mom said to me that morning. She told me to take my time, check the answers, and if I did not know the answers skip the question and move to the next one. She said, "Kath, have confidence that you will do fine!" Because of her encouragement on the day of the test, it helped me through. However I also knew about the test, what kind of questions on the test, and how much time I had to complete it. The same goes for the PSSA for our students! To prepare the students, let them know about the place they will be taking the test. The time they will be leaving, coming home, signing in, and what they will do at the testing sites. The more information students and parents have about testing will ease minds of all. During the next few weeks you will receive information for testing, what to bring, the time frame of the assessment, and some policies for testing. Continue to work through your curriculum, complete the test taking strategies, and continue to build your student's confidence in answering questions on their own. The more they feel confident, the better they will be able to complete the test. Finally, as a parent you may be feeling some anxiety for your student. That happens and very natural to want to help our students gain success. Make sure that your student does not feel, see, or sense your fear for this assessment. Just like any of content topic you may dislike, a student will take on those same fears if they know you have them. This can be a challenging time, but preparation for all avenues of testing will be helpful for students and parents! What are your thoughts of assessments and how to you ease the sense of anxiety?

Digital Writing: How can it help my student?

Writing can be daunting task for many students at any ability level. As educators, we can guide students through steps that can assist in organizing their writing, but the true content of writing has to come from the thoughts or reflections of the writer. Students need to understand they can be a writer just like they can be a strong reader, mathematician, or even scientist. Helping students find the connections between their thoughts and paper is where some anxiety can occur for our students. Writing is a process that needs to be learned over the course of a student's educational journey. Each year students take steps to understanding connections between the content of study and their knowledge within that content. Being able to build that bridge to improve gaps could be using motivational tools to achieve understanding. This is where digital writing comes into play! Any educator will tell you the best way to engage students would be to find their interests, learn how they are motivated, and letting students be responsible in their learning. Once you have covered all of these areas we can engage our writers by looking for tools that invites them to new avenues of expression. You may have heard of wikis or blogs but how do they really engage students? Well first knowing that these are two types of collaborative tools opens up conversations online with other writers. A student could keep a writing journal online in a blog for family members and friends to see. Once a student knows that other could read their essays then they see the connection between learning the steps of writing and sharing thoughts in a safe environment. Over the summer, my son read a book and wrote a summary of each chapter in a blog we created for him. I was the only one that read it and would comment on his reflections. Each day he would check to see if I commented and what I had to say. He started to comment back which opened us up for more dialog for the book he read. We still talk about the book as his comprehension was strong in this area which also has helped with his motivation to read. Baby steps all around:) I believe there needs to be small steps when creating a digital imprint so making a safe environment for sharing and collaborating will allow for a student to express their thoughts through digital writing but also develop skills as a global communicator which is a skill needed for the 21st century learner!

Motivation!!