Winding Down

As I sit here winding things up I am reflecting on the ITS program. I can definitely say that the experiences that I have had are priceless! I never imagined that I could learn so much and I created many new relationships that I pray will last a lifetime. From wondering how Vygotsky was related to my teaching to playing the simulations that I hated, I can now see how it all falls into place. I can not wait until August when I see those little scared faces. Yes, they will be starting a new adventure in life. It is my hope and prayer that I can influence their lives and instill in them the importance of education. I also am looking forward to utilizing many of the strategies and lessons that was created during the ITS program. I have learned in the leadership course that the important key is to share the knowledge. Knowledge is only powerful if it is shared!

Who is to blame?

As I sit here mad with the world, I ask myself who do I blame? Not only could I not get my portfolio to work, my lap top crashed, and now my desktop is wanting to act up too. Who do I blame? Do I blame the people who created the machines? Do I blame myself for not knowing what is actually wrong and how to fix it? Do I blame Bill (LOL!!) for making me do the portfolio and work on the computer? Well, my answer to these questions are you blame life! Sometimes, things happen in life that you have no control over. Get mad, cry, deal with them, and move on. So now that I am feeling better - I am moving on!

Now, I must say that I enjoyed Bill's new toy last night. My husband begged me for a GPS. I told him Mapquest is free and does the same thing. Well, he disagreed and now has a GPS in his truck. Don't tell him but the other day, I actually wished that I had one of those darn things in my van. I could not figure out the closest way to get home and I have driven home a million times. GPS systems are cool and I found myself wondering how they could calculate all that information so precisely as well. Now, when Karen takes you the wrong way - which she will do (we quickly found that out - good thing we knew how to get home) don't get mad with her. Just remember, it is life! Get mad, cry, deal with it and try to find your way so you can MOVE ON!

Lights, Camera, Action!

As I sat in class and watched the Katie Couric video clip, my mind started wondering (hey no jokes -LOL!) about the endless things that you could do with clips. The world of technology has created endless opportunities to create videos with animation. I am excited to learn how to make digital videos to not only incorporate into my lessons but to use personally.

No fun

OK. I now know how students feel when everyone else is responding to everyone else's blog but theirs. Does it take away from the authenticity when you assign people to respond to others? Or does it relate to being fair? Does it have an effect on the way a person responds? Are they just responding because they have to or because it is interesting to them? These are questions that I wonder able as I am learning more about blogging and considering using them in the classroom.

digichat

This morning I had the opportunity to chat with my mentor about the culture of my school. After reading Danielson's Teacher Leadership book it truly has me thinking about my position/role as a leader in my school. The former principal was a dictator who did not respect the opinions of staff or students. The current principal is the complete opposite; however, the attitudes of the teachers have not changed. I think they are afraid of being hurt like they were by the last principal. The collaboration between teachers is nonexistent. Everyone stays in their own little world.

To help start getting teachers to collaborate, I have the idea to first join the hospitality committee since they are in charge of school celebrations. (It is all a part of the game plan). Then I want to start a monthly breakfast in which each grade level will be assigned a month to bring the food. That way everyone will contribute to the food and the committee will not have to increase dues. The ticket to get in to the breakfast is an idea to share with colleagues. The idea must be typed up on paper and then shared orally. The typed copies will be photocopied for each teacher. It is my hope that by sharing ideas, the teachers will start to open the lines of communication and start sharing outside of the breakfast.

This week, I had to opportunity to attend the dedication of a section of our school to a deceased custodian. The one thing that touched me the most was that even though she did not have a diploma from a college, she was just as much a teacher. Danielson states that even non - instuctional staff needs to be part of the culture. Ms. Betty was definitely a big part of the culture and its impact is still felt today. Students that graduated from high school returned to speak about how this lady influenced their life. I hope that one day people will view me as a leader much like Ms. Betty.

small progress each day

Whew! I am excited that I was able to create this blog. I have no experience using blog. Am I living in the Flintstone ages? I wonder if my students (our students in my school) have blogged. I have heard of the term blog from the morning news cast that I watch. They ask viewers to blog on a topic. I thought it was people going online and posting their opinions. I am excited to learn about blogs and how to use them with my class. One problem that will occur is that my students are so young that they are not able to spell proficiently and some are not able to write in complete phrases/statements. Several questions I would like to have answered at the end of this course are: What is blogging? How can I incorporate blogging into my curriculum? Are my students too young to participate in blogging? Am I able to create a blog and have my students respond to it as an assessment? So, without avail - LET THE BLOGGING BEGIN!

awakening

I am really starting to worry. I woke up at 3 AM thinking ab0ut what to post. This is getting scary. Needless to say, it did not take me long to realize that blogging could wait and that I would probably be able to come up with something a little later. Well, now that I am finally on. It has taken me 30 minutes to log into blogger. I have no idea what the problem is. It just finally popped up and let me in. It also did the same thing the other day. Alright, so what is my point? As a learner, I can understand students frustration when they face a challenge.

On Wednesday, Bill showed us examples of blogs used to create teacher webpages and school websites. This is a great idea. It makes the parents more accountable for their child's learning. I would make sure that comments could not be posted on the site. If the parents would like to contact me they could do it via email. This would also eleviate the waste of paper and pencils. At least three students newsletters are returned to me each week in their folder. At the end of the week, I am the one that throws it away.

Amy mentioned that their is a blogging site that reads the blog aloud to the student. I am wondering if this is one that Kindergarten would be able to use. I could have an older student type in the statements for the Kindergartener. But would the blog remain authentic or would the older student change the terminology and wording of the blog? There are so many unanswered questions.

After reading Chapter 1, of Blogs, Wikis, and Podcast: I can see how the Web has made significant changes since I was young. It is amazing how young students enter schools knowing how the use computers.