Final Reflection

The Beginning
I was extremely overwhelmed with this class after the first class meeting. I was not looking forward to the blog posts and projects. I did however find it nice that I already knew how to set up my blogger account and how to make it look unique. I even helped out a few of my fellow classmates as the class was being instructed on how to create their accounts. Some of the people in class were falling behind in the instructions and since I knew what we were doing, I took time to show the few people around me what we were being assigned to do.

As The Semester Progressed
I was familiar with some of the projects that we were assigned to do this semester. I was able to complete them and post them to my blog better than I did last semester. Finishing my blog posts and comments was going pretty well until around the beginning of July when I kept getting behind. I picked myself back up and finished my work. My favorite assignment was the Smartboard Lesson project where we had to create a lesson and film us teaching the lesson using the tools on the Smartboard. My partners in this project were two friends I made last semester in other COE classes. I liked the interview projects too that I did involving my roommate and then the other one involving Dr. Baggett. I believe that these projects helped my to come out of my shell a little bit because I knew that all of these project videos had to be posted to YouTube.

As The Semester Comes To A Close
The work in EDM310 seemed to be piling on top of me as did the work from my other classes this summer. I was extremely overwhelmed but found a way to work on an assignment one by one until I had everything completed. I ask myself, "What have I learned?" This is simple to answer now that the semester is almost over. I have learned how to stay on task, how to manage assignments, how to look ahead for work due and how to work with others on projects for hours outside of class time. I have definitely advanced technologically with the help from this class. I also strive to be a teacher who creates her class blog, incorporates the class blog with classroom curriculum, and teachers her students the values of technology at an early age.

The End: Reflection
"What experiences have been especially meaningful to me?" This question would have been more difficult to answer throughout the semester. This is because I was more worried about getting work done on time than actually absorbing the lesson. I did take in most of this semester though. The experiences I enjoyed the most was exploring the class blogs from around the world. By taking EDM 310 this semester, I grew a greater respect than I did last semester. This is because I was able to understand the purpose of technologically literate teaching this time around. I hope to have my own class blog one day and have many students from around the world visit it and comment on my lessons. This class has changed my view of technology from that of just using Facebook to using programs like Symbaloo to organize my internet world, using Glogster for presentations, and many other sources that I have discovered through my second journey with EDM 310.

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I have actually already talked to multiple friends about this class. Some will have to take it due to degree requirements and others have never heard about it. I have spoken many positive words about EDM 310. I know that there are a few negative things to say about it, but I also stressed the importance of the class. If I were to talk to a friend who was taking this class next semester, I would stress on the importance of keeping up with your work. Getting behind in the work is the biggest issue with this class. If you stay on task, the semester should run smoothly. I would also recommend actually trying to absorb the lessons and techniques that you learn from other blogs and videos. The worst thing to do with the material is to skim through it and not get anything out of the time spent on the assignment! I would go ahead and advise my friend about a few programs that would help out during their EDM 310 experience. I would mention Symbaloo, Glogster, Delicious, Skype, Google Docs, Gmail, Blogger, and many more! I could show my friend some of my video projects to give an idea of what kind of assignments we have done this past semester. I would also stress that it is important to follow the class blog because I have forgotten to a few times and it has hurt me. Maybe showing what happened to me will help my friend realize the importance of staying on task with EDM 310. Hopefully what I have said to my friends and what I would say will help with their experience of EDM 310.

Post # 13 (part 2)

I commented on Anna Dumas' blog entry about her teacher interview. She interviewed Mrs. Charlene Dindo at the Fairhope K-1 Center. Below my comment is the link to her post.
*"Good Job Anna! What great technology that is being used in this classroom! I love how there is a documentary feel to this video with the elementary teacher. She seems to be extremely technologically literate. Yay!"

Teacher Interview

I commented on Katie Cummins' blog post about her Personal Learning Network. She used Delicious which is not what I used for my PLN. I used Symbaloo and love it! She also mentions using Facebook as part of her PLN. Me too! Below my comment is the link to her PLN blog post.
*"Good job Katie! This program that you have used is such a cute way to keep organized! I use Symbaloo which is very colorful as well. And of course I also use Facebook to help keep up with friends and family.

Katie's PLN


I commented on Stephen Akins's blog post about his advancement with Twitter. He uses Twitter as a part of his Personal Learning Network and has chosen to discuss his new additions to his Twitter friend list. Below my comment is the link to Stephen's Twitter post.
*"Great post Stephen! It is awesome to see how well you are doing with Twitter. I barely have used it myself, but after seeing such progress with you I will definitely start exploring."

Stephen's Twitter

Post # 13

This assignment is to visit the very creative videos of the Alba Middle School students. The first video is called "The Mean Oil Spill" and is suppose to be a spoof about the latest BP oil spill. The second video is called "Just Pray" which had a more serious tone. I visited both videos and commented on them. They were really touching and the insight that these students had on our surrounding environmental situations was right on point. Below are the videos and my comments that I left for them.


The Mean Oil Spill

"Hello! My name is Rachel McGuire and I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I thought that this video was a great message to others about this awful oil spill. You did such a great job with this video and I am anxious to see more of your work!"


Just Pray

"Another touching video! Great job with this one including the interviews and the entire message to the public. What a fantastic idea to use technology and our love for nature to try and save what is in harms way. Good work!!!"

Marine Biology Google Form

I chose to use Marine Biology questions as the theme of my Google Form. I asked questions that had all of the different answering methods included. Some questions that were asked are like, "Is Mobile Bay an estuary?" and "What moves particles in the ocean?" They were more difficult questions than any easy question such as what is the blue substance that fills the ocean. That is just a ridiculous question. I like to think that my question form pushed the reader to think hard about one of nature's greatest creations. I sent my form out to multiple classmates but only one person responded. The one person that responded actually did fairly well with my form. I am pleased with the outcome of this form. I took a screen shot of the form to give an idea of what the results turned out like.

Final Project Summarizing EDM 310

My Voki

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

C4K 4

The video that I was assigned for the 4th C4K was a very touching piece. It is called "The Beauty of Blood" and uses interviews from blood donors to help show how easy giving blood can be to save lives! There is a young girl who tells her story of her battle with cancer and how donated blood helped save her life during surgery. This was a great video to show the positive aspects of giving blood. I commented on the video and explained how I have given blood my entire life until a couple of years ago. For some reason, my blood clots super fast after just a little fills the bag and no more will come out. They aren't able to use a bag of blood unless it is completely full so I am unable to donate anymore. I also mentioned how well put together this video was because it definitely got it's point across! Below is the link to the "The Beauty of Blood" video created by the Cinema Owls.

The Beauty of Blood

My PLN

For my Personal Learning Network (PLN), I am using Symbaloo! This website is SO easy to use and has just about everything you need organized on one page. It uses tabs to organize your internet life in separate categories. You are even allowed to add tabs if you want more than the original page offers. Some of the tabs that are already there when you sign up for an account are the basics...Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Gmail, Pandora, and Blogger...all that I ever need or use! Then there are plenty more tabs to explore and personalize. You can even personalize the whole page with the backgrounds that Symbaloo offers or even your own pictures. This website is so amazing and I am so glad to have found it so I can stay organized with my internet surfing. It could keep me busy for a while just playing around with it. The link below is the Symbaloo website so you TOO can start getting organized!!!

Symbaloo

Teach Someone Project

For my 'Teach Someone' project I decided to teach my friend Tiffany how to personalize her Blogger account with a website I found by being in EDM 310. The website is called TheCutestBlogOnTheBlock.com. It works with blog websites including Blogger and provides backgrounds and other accessories to help make your blog look GREAT! I love using this website and I have actually shown others about this website and how to use it in blogs. Below is the link to the website and below that is my video!

The Cutest Blog On The Block.com

Post # 12

Mr. McClung's most recent reflection brought up many good points as he explains the switch in his job. He talks about switching from the 6th grade to the 8th grade and how he had to adapt to the new environment and learning styles. In 'The Path Least Traveled' section, he talks about predicting outcomes. I enjoyed his quote, "I had to approach this portion of class with no expectations of the expected outcome of the conversation and leave all my opinions and bias at the door" because I myself try not to expect too much out of anything. He also discusses how a teacher must not be a control freak however hard it may be. I feel that I can be a control freak at times but he reassures me in this post that its alright to be one sometimes..."I feel like as teachers we need to teach our students how to preform task in the classroom rather than depend on us to do it for them", says Mr. McClung. This recap post is a great insight into changes that might happen in education jobs and there are many great pointers discussed. Below is the link to Mr. McClung's post.

Mr. McClung Year 2


The M-Cubed Presentation video was cool to see how this program is used in the classroom. It is a very different printer and program that is being used and I have never seen or heard about it before! The students in the video are creating shape nets that they put together using different tools on the computer. Then when it is printed, they can cut it out and fold it together to make the shape that they have created! Below are some more videos that I have watched involving this program and the printer.

Create a Shape Net's Permutation
This video shows you how to create different shape net permutations so you can create different shapes. It has a step by step description of how to move items around in order to choose the shape you want to create.

Fab@school 3D Printer
This neat video shows a printer, the Fab@School 3D printer, building a mini rotunda using silicon. It is in fast motion so the printer looks like it is going really fast but is just to save time. How cool is it that this printer is creating a 3D item in a school!?

Creating unique shapes and custom shapes
This is another tutorial that is explaining step by step where to go and what to use to select shapes. It gives really detailed directions so it shouldn't be hard to choose a unique shape the first time using the program. There are different folders that allow you to choose already known shapes.

Post # 11

Ms. Cassidy's first grade class was absolutely adorable. This was like a video of the perfect class where everything seemed to be going right. There were so many uses of technology in this classroom and all of the kids were loving it! I saw the smartboard being used along with many laptops and I SO hope that I get a chance with this much technology in my future classroom. I do worry that some students might not take to technology as well as others and this may cause a delay in learning, especially with the younger groups...but maybe there will be many ways that I can catch every student's attention and they fall in love early! In the Skype conversation, Ms. Cassidy mentioned that she received many pieces of technology and was able to use them as centers. I hope that I too will get the chance to have multiple laptops or other devices that I can create learning centers out of. This was such a cute video. Below is the link to the video so anyone can check it out!

Ms. Cassidy's First Grade Class

Post # 10

This 7th grader that shows her PLN in this video really has a lot organized. She already knows so much about how to use the technology that is provided for her. There are a few programs mentioned in the video that would be a lot of help with lessons in class. I have to admit, she does have a lot more going with her PLN than I do with mine. I also do not have to do so many activities and projects that she has to do with her technology. This is a great example of how students are learning with technology these days!

"What is your sentence" and "Was I better today than I was yesterday" were the two questions mentioned in this video. It asks you to think of just one sentence that would describe what you have done/will do. With everything that I wish to do after graduation, I would say that my sentence would have something to do with helping others. Maybe something along the lines of, "She gave her time and helped those in need." Yeah, that sounds nice. The next question that asks, "Was I better today than I was yesterday" has a different answer daily. Some days I might feel as though I am in the slumps and have done nothing right. On most says I would answer 'yes' to this question because I try to better myself with each new day.

C4K 3

May 18th Post


Above is the link to the post that I commented on for C4K 3. The post was about a Topographic map lab that the students got to experience. I said how impressive this lab was and that it sounded really intriguing. I also said that I have never experienced anything like this lab during my years in school. I was a little jealous! The post has a picture too showing some of the kids "in action".

Smartboard Project

4th of July

My parents and I visited Panama City Beach this past weekend for the 4th of July. It was absolutely beautiful and the oil has not made it anywhere close! The picture above is of me with my brother and dad...we are at my brother's gig while his band was on a break. It was so much fun! And I am sooooo thankful that I got a weekend at the beach with NO OIL! =)

Post # 9

Morgan Bayda's post called "An Open Letter To Educators" was a new view that I have not yet come across concerning my education in college. She includes a video made by Dan Brown that supports her opinions in her post. The video is of this young man who has dropped out of college because he felt that his schooling was interfering with his education. He explained how college today is not the best way for people to be educated because of some ways the classes are taught. I agree with this because I have been in my fair share of classes that I have learned nothing. He explains how education was not always available to everyone and that only the highly privileged were allowed to have access to much of the world's information. He continues with telling how times have changed and now anyone can have access to any information just as long as they can pay for it. It is strange to think how we have to pay so much just to know more than those who aren't able to attend college. I do agree with Dan Brown because he knows how people aren't getting educated properly with the way some classes are run. I agree with him in all of his points except one. I will not drop out of college because right now this is the best way for me to get educated for my degree. Yes, I have been in those huge classes that don't get individual attention from the professor, have to do countless amounts of irrelevant work, and don't ever get what they need to out of the class itself. I have been to a good few of those classes. I am not in any of those classes now though. I am further along in my college career now and I am getting the education that I need. I stuck in there for those horrible classes and now I am in classes where the teachers know me, I am doing work that will help me in the future, and I am retaining the knowledge that I am taught in class. Yes college gives a bad education experience from some, but I am where I am suppose to be and my knowledge is growing. Morgan speaks about her computer class and how she uses everything that she learned in that class. I agree with her about the computer class, because I am learning so much in this class and will definitely be keeping this knowledge with me throughout my life. She lists the different uses that she has been taught in her class and that she continues to use them. I also would like to help in a low budget form when I get out of college. I want to join the Peace Corps after I graduate so that I can take two years before I start work to help others overseas.

Post # 8

"What I've Learned This Year" by Mr. McClung was a really great read for beginner elementary school teachers. I wont be teaching for another couple of years and I still find it enlightening. He writes about 'How to read a crowd' and that being flexible is important. The quote, "When things go wrong, simply work with it and try to better the situation"is a positive line for beginner teachers. Communication and being reasonable are also two important factors of teaching, according to Mr. McClung. He says that the best way to resolve any work place issue is through communication. Also he says that we can forget that we are dealing with children and that we should encourage them to try again when they don't meet our expectations. I find that to be an amazing tip considering that we can get so frustrated with children. He writes that we shouldn't be afraid of technology. I know that I am not, but I still find his section on that helpful. The 'Listen to your Students' section talks about taking interest in the lives of your students because it means so much to them. And finally, Mr. McClung tells us to never stop learning. I totally agree with this piece of advice because I believe that we never do stop learning our entire lives.