Reflections

My favorite tools I now have in my personal technology toolbox are having my own blog, knowing how to use more Google Tools, Wikis and all the other tools that we were forced to do. I am now better prepared to be a digital citizen and to guide my students in being productive 21st century learners!!! I would like for my students to use digital storytelling for presenting their bird research project in the fourth nine weeks. I enjoyed exploring the blog world, but I still would have preferred enjoying my summer vacation a bit longer without having to worry about completing this assignment when I returned home...

 

 

#11 Digital Citizenship

Three things that I would want to make sure my students understand about being good digital citizens:
1)Be safe: ask the teacher questions if you aren't sure if something is appropriate for you.
2) Be helpful: you can teach others what you know.
3) Be responsible:  follow teacher's instructions and do your best.

I would "teach" the idea of digital citizenship to my students by simply "being" the best model of a good digital citizen to them. I would always model how to be a safe, helpful, responsible digital citizen and also have them practice modeling to others.

#10 Apps

I just wish there were more free high quality educational apps specifically for kids in SPANISH!!!!

#9 Jing and Skype

Jing is a tool that can be used to save time and energy. It's a great tool for demonstrating procedures and instructions. It would also make it more interesting for students to view and listen. Skype could be used to communicate live with other second grade students in a Spanish speaking country so my students can be more exposed to native Spanish speakers!

#8 Video Resources

Videos are useful resource for my students because it visually enhances their understanding of the second language they are acquiring and even their first language. They can absorb so much more information!
The following videos I plan to use to welcome my students to my Spanish class each day!

#7 Digital Storytelling

I used Photo Story to create a photo slide show and share a small glimpse of my five week summer vacation in El Salvador. I used a few photos I took that showed the various landscapes and beautiful places I visited. I added sound and wrote a title page. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to upload it yet to my blog. I'll keep trying!...OK here it goes!

I would have my students use digital storytelling for all kinds of projects. They can use it to introduce themselves, share experiences from trips or everyday life, create group presentations and so much more!

#6 Wikis

Using wikis is a very effective and efficient tool for students to use by making it simple to communicate and edit their own or others writing. It allows for an easy process of collaboration with other students who aren't necessarily in their classroom.  It also makes writing more interesting!

#5 Tagging and Social Bookmarking

I signed up with Diigo. The websites I discovered are:
The Best Spanish Websites
Spanish Resources

The tags I used are "spanish" "resoueces" and "spanish" "websites"
Social bookmarking will be useful in my classroom in that I will save time when looking for resources in Spanish to use in my class.

#4 Google Docs and Reader

I uploaded several files that I'll share with my new partner to give her examples of how we kept track of our two groups last year.I also set up Google reader and subscribed to five blogs. I think that these two tools are excellent resources to use in my classroom to communicate more effectively and efficiently with teammates, administrators and other co-workers.   
 

#3 Use of 3D Notebook and Captioner

I would use 3D Notebook to model how to make class journal entries and also as a science/social studies notebook. I could use Captioner to introduce a topic. They could infer by looking at the image and by reading the captions and then voting on what the subject of study will be instead of me simply telling them.They would add to the learning process in my classroom by serving as a fun tool to personalize information and capture my students' interest.

#3 My Vacation 3D Notebook

#2 Building Community and Comments

1) My thoughts on building an online education community and participating in a PLN are that it is a great opportunity to grow as a 21st century educator, share meaningful information with other professionals in my field and to view information through other perspectives. 

2) The point that stood out to me from the commenting advice was that we need to purposefully teach our students how to make meaningful comments. I liked how the bloggers giving advice on how to comment gave a list of things to consider in a way that was easy to read and understand and provided examples. 

3) The blogs I selected for my comments so far are Dancing Girl's Thoughts and Kay's Second Grade World.     

#1 Back to the beginning of endless possibilities and preparations...

I recently returned from a five week vacation in Central America so I'm still adjusting to the changes one can expect after being out of the country for so long. Part of me is still in a relaxed and carefree mindset in the diverse and beautiful  landscapes of El Salvador. The other part however is quickly awakening to the tick-tock of the clock that signals that a new and exciting school year is quickly approaching and all the preparations that must take place...

In my opinion the first assignment was fairly simple. I enjoyed adding little personal touches to my blog. I do wish there were more options in layout and design when creating the blog and the avatar. I believe that sharing this type of assignment with my students would greatly motivate them and engage them in learning from each other, expressing their personal style and sharing ideas and information. Great tool for kids!