My Final Reflection

Finally my Reflection is here. This is why you should never wait until the last day to do an assignment because something will always go wrong. Now that you tube has decided to work correctly I can share it with you. Thanks Dr. Strange for being so understanding I saw on facebook that I wasn't the only one having difficulties. Well Goodbye EDM 31o classmates and Dr. Strange. I never thought I would say this but I am so sad to be leaving this class. I will miss you all....

Final Project 16

Smart Board Ppt

We hope to help future students use the smart board with our project. The great thing about this project was we could all work on it at the same time from home so we only had to meet one time. Thanks everyone!

Comments For Teachers Summary Post # 4 (part 1 and 2)

I commented on John Burrows blog. The first comment was on the link that Dr. Strange gave us and teh second was on the new site at  http://www.burrowsart.blogspot.com/ . Here you will find his work along with his students work as well. The blogs that were chosen for me to comment on had few words with them. With art work you don't need many words because artwork tells a story in it's own and everyone that looks at the same picture can have their own story. After reading several blogs on this site I learned that people paint for many different reasons. A few are money, talent, loneliness, anger, enjoyment and so many more. I believe this is why no two pictures are exact because they come from the heart.

This blog had several pictures representing different important things about Black history and each one was very unique. I commented on this group of pictures.

Hi my name is Lara Bishop and I am an EDM 310 student at the University Of South Alabama . Black history month is a very important part of history and the past and I love each piece and what it represents. I could never pick one piece of art work out of the five here because they each represent a different aspect of black history and they all play an important role in history.

My second post was on the picture below of a coke bottle. My comment hasn't been approved yet so you can't see it on the post. This picture is so real looking and is awesome work. i love how it's centered and the colors he chose makes it look real. I think this piece could be a piece that he could sell and see in a gallery one day. With work like this he is sure to be recognized for his work one day. 

Blog Post 14

1. I believe that there are several reasons that people missed the metaphor in the post. first of all when we read something sometimes it is hard to tell the emotion, feeling, or sarcasm in it. This is why text messages are so easily misunderstood. Some may not have read it through correctly. For me I have no clue because once you said it I was like Wow, Silly me. This taught me to really look closely to what I am reading.

2.Metaphors are used so much that we take them for granted and don't even realize we are using them. Some that I can think of are.

• Time is a thief
• Take a moment to digest the info
• Apple of my eye
• Blood is thicker than water

3. As educators we can teach our students to read between the lines and better analyze what they read. We can also teach them to write using metaphor and how to use them in life. When I teach my students about writing I will be sure to talk in depth about metaphors.

4.Good metaphors suggest new ways of thinking about things and suggest new ideas. They bring out creativity in our writing and in our thinking.

*Metaphors let us prod the language into new meaning, stretching and enhancing its usage

Final Report On PLN

My PLN is still not finished but it has everything on it that I need at this time in my life. I can't say that it will ever be finished because it is something that I will continue to add sites to as I use them. For now my PLN is complete for me and what I currently use the most and this is why it is now my home page. I love opening the computer and having everything I need in front of my face. This is one piece of this class that will always be with me. Thanks Dr. Strange! Below are many of the things that I have included on my PLN.

My Personal Sites

• CNN.COM
• YELLOW PAGES
• TRAVEL
• WEATHER
• GAMES
• SPORTS
• PHOTOBUCKET
• FLICKR
• PICNIK.COM
• MY PERSONAL PHOTOGRAPHY PAGE       http://www.wix.com/lmb808/laramichelephotography1
• SHOPPING
• EBAY
• CRAIGSLIST
• AMAZON.COM
• COMPASS BANK

Learning and Education sites including teachers I follow

• ALABAMA VIRTUAL LIBRARY
• ALEX
• ENCYCOPEDIA
• ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
• ACCESS
• MRS. YOLLIS CLASSROOM BLOG
• MR. MCCLUNG
• EDM 310 BLOGSPOT
• EDM 310 HOMEPAGE
• MY EDM BLOG PAGE
• MY CHECKLIST
• USA.COM
• USA ONLINE
• BLOGGER

******** GOOGLE ( MY MOST USED)********

This is my list and I made it to personally accommodate just what I use the most. I know that this list will keep changing but for now this is what I use.

Blog post 13

ALEX stands for Alabama learning exchange. There you can navigate to many different sites such as lesson plans, podcast, web links and much more. This site can be used by teachers, students, or anyone wanting to just learn. it's an awesome site with many resources for teaching and learning. I absolutely loved the lesson plans section. You can go there and get ideas and add things to them or take things out and make it your own.

 I clicked on podcasts and what i found there was great. Videos that you can use in your classroom as teaching tools on different subjects. I will most definitely be using Alex in my classroom. You can also find all of the Alabama content standards. This site can be used for so much and it will be my future friend. Wow, just when I thought i had found all that I could I see that they even have ways of incorporating blogging into the classroom.

ACCESS is a distance learning tool. You can use it if you are struggling in a class or even in college. You can use it to improve student achievement in more than one way. It has test prep on it, offers college credits, and so much more. I believe that this is a tool that needs to be announced in all high schools and students should start learning to use it and let it help them in areas of weakness and benefit their strengths.
I graduated in nineteen ninety six and I wish that we would have had something as this to use for tests and study and college credits. it's amazing what technology has to offer now that i never had. I must say that I have really enjoyed this blog because I will be using these two sites in my future.

Summary Post C4K 7,8,9,10

We had several blog posts to read this time. We read from students and teachers. I enjoyed reading each blog and seeing what imagination these kids have.

 Blog Post # 7 Lesson Three – 9:23

The student's blog post from Mr. McClung's Class

This week our track team attended their first meet of the season in Bentonville. Overall we had a pretty good showing as a team, but I would be re-missed if I didn’t acknowledge the performance of my distances runners for that evening.

·         Our 4×800m team of Jordan Pilkington, Luke Renner, Andrew Henry, and Ramsey Jones finished first with a time of 9:23.

·         Ramsey Jones finished 3rd overall in the 800m run with a time of 2:17 and 3rd overall in the mile with a time of 5:12.

·         Luke Renner finished 8th in the 800m run with a time of 2:22.

·         Patrick Ragan finished 20th overall in the mile with a personal best time of 5:44.

This was an excellent first meet for us as a team and we are only looking to get better and stronger as the season continues.

I responded and told them that I am not to familiar with track but I know that it takes hard work and dedication and that I was proud of their team.

Blog Post #8

This week was a class of ten and eleven year olds. The following is the blog. 

This week we had a lot of hard work but it  was worth it as we learned a lot of new information and we increased our knowledge. This week i learned about the UN and WTO. I learned that the UN stands for the United Nations and that WTO stands for TheWorld Trade Organization. I also learned about what the UN is and same for the WTOas they all help our world. I also learned about Journalisim writing and we did a report. I thought I did very well, thanks to this website:http://writingfun.com/. I also learned about angles and how to measure them and why they are useful. Also in maths we learned about lots of different types of diagrams such as a Carrol diagrams and Venn diagrams.

Thanks KH

Below is my comment back:

Hi my name is Lara Bishop and I am in EDM 310 at the University Of South Alabama.One of my assignments was to read and comment on your blog. As a future teacher I absolutely love your blog. I really love that you are so passionate about learning so much this week. I also want to be a writing teacher and I love writing. This is why I looked up the website you provided. I really liked that and I will save that to share in my classroom one day. You keep up the great work because education is something that will stay with you forever and it is great to always continue to learn.

Blog Post #9

Mrs. Yollis is a 3^rd grade teacher of  24 years and an amazing one at that. Her blog was about her class blogging and how she uses it in her class blog and incorporates the parents into the class. I commented back to Mrs. Yollis and told her how much I loved her idea of blogging and the safety that she introduces with it and how she has inspired me to incorporate blogging into my own class. Mrs. Yollis is an absolutely amazing teacher. 

.

Blog post #10

Miriams  blog was about her vacation to Hawaii and kayaking to captain Hook Monument. She had several pictures of her vacation and her kayaking and being close to the dolphins. she had a beautiful vacation and displayed beautiful pictures to show us that, I also told her that I was kind of jealous and that I wanted to go and see Hawaii and those dolphins. I also told her that I was proud that she was given an opportunity to go somewhere so beautiful. 


Wow that was our final comment for kids. I will most definitely continue to follow these students and the teachers. 

Blog Post # 12

Blog Post 12


Watch the video below on Glogs. This video shows an interactive way to make projects more interesting. After you watch the video answer the questions below.





1. What do you like about Glogster?
I love the idea that there is no mess, no waste of paper. The best part is that you can interact with it and actually use it as a research tool and what you write on the paper isn't the end of what you can learn.You can actually dig deeper and learn even more. So many paper projects are boring and leave you hanging and this never would.



2. What do you dislike about Glogster? The only thing that I worry about is the cost of it.


3. Do you think Glogster will benefit the classroom or not? Most definitely by making projects more interesting, less time consuming and you can learn more than what you see on the poster.

4. Is Glogster something that you would have in your classroom. Why or Why not? Most definitely. I cant wait to finish this blog and go research it further.

Progress Report on Final Project!

My group for the Final Project in EDM 310 includes Olivia Bush, Rachael Gammil and Dana Johnson. We will be posting our Final Project in the near future. We are not telling what is now though because it will be a surprise when we are all done! So stay tuned for that Final Project! Surprise Surprise!

Project 15

Teach Me Project # 14

Blog Post # 11

First Graders Using Technology In Mrs Cassidy's Class

Time has surely changed since I was a first grader and that is great! We have children as small as first grade that already hate school. I think if more classes were more like Mrs. Cassidy's classroom more students would be excited about the school day. I love how the student said they still like to write in their books but they like the blogs better. They seem to like the encouragement form family and friends on their blog. I also love the fact that this is already teaching them about internet safety. We have teenagers that only get on facebook, youtube, and other social networks and not on the internet to learn. By giving children access to the internet at an early age they will learn more about what it has to offer and they can balance learning and social. I have to say to hear about first graders blogging really shocked me. Our children are getting smarter through the years and this is outstanding. I do believe that we owe a lot of the credit to the internet. Watching the children make videos was great! This will make the children want to learn so the video will be just right. Skype in the classroom is like a  free field trip to explore new things. I am thankful to the video because I haven't thought about this. Mrs. Cassidy has made me want to go back to first grade and be in her class. I guess instead maybe I will teach first grade and make my class this interesting and more.Way to go Mrs. Cassidy and Dr. Strange for proving just how rewarding technology in the classroom can be.
I loved how Mrs. Cassidy used so many different safety features in her classroom such as not using the students last name and not using the right pictures on the names of the students. This is one of the reasons that I was worried about blogs. I wish she would have been asked about the use of the  nintendo ds in the classroom. I would like to know how she incorporates this into learning other than what the one student said. This is something that I would love to use in the classroom. A child learns better when they are having fun and not realizing that they are studying. I will be looking for more posts from Mrs. Cassidy as well as follow her on you tube.

Computers are powerful tools that provide students with a place to practice what they are learning!

A Midsummer Nights Dream By Alma Bryant High Theater Department

A Midsummer Nights Dream By Alma Bryant High Theater Department

Shakespeare's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM will be performed in the Alma Bryant High School Auditorium April 7 through Sunday, April 10. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday performances begin at 7 PM and the Sunday matinee begins at 2 PM. General Admission is only $5.00! Tickets at the door. The show was amazing last night! My Son Kyle Pipkin has one of the lead parts in it. Come out and enjoy!

Blog Post 10

An Open Letter To Educators


The blog is by Morgan Bayda, a teacher in Canada. Dan Brown is who you will find in the video and they both agree that education is going downhill. Dan Brown mentions in the video that he dropped out of school because it was interfering with his learning. He was fed up with big classes. long lectures. high tuition and books. never opening some books, boring classes, and memorizing facts and spitting them back on a test. Basically he believes you are just learning facts. "Society don't care how many facts you know." I can agree on many levels with them both because I to pay high tuition and buy books that are never used and I often walk out of a class not knowing what I just heard or didn't hear. some times I feel like I am teaching myself so why pay the tuition. Some classes are so bad you could just stay home and study and learn more so why pay a teacher to read to us. I will say this about Dr. strange, his class is very demanding and he set's deadlines and you best make them to pass. But in the end we will leave EDM 310 knowing what we learned and using it in our classroom one day to make it different than what these educators above are talking about.

Don't Let Them Take Pencils Home

This post was somewhat ridiculous to me.Seems like instead of finding ways to encourage learning teachers are more interested in doing studies on pencils and testing scores. Wow! That has got to be the craziest thing I have ever heard. How is a pencil going to make a difference on a test store.The point about the low income families was just really inconsiderate. Some principals and teachers need to wake up and realize that test scores can be helped by adding technology and imagination in our classrooms. We as a generation need to broaden our imagination and focus more on what we are teaching and not what we have at home. We need things at home to help parents teach with us at home. 

Comments For Teachers # 2 and # 3 Summary

My C4T # 2 was to comment on a page called Cooperative Catalyst and there are many different teachers and many different blog posts. At first I was like wow, how do I choose between all of these and then I found one about a book and I was sold. I am a fan of reading and during my breaks from school and summer I love reading. This is why I chose to read the blog titled, The Influence of Teachers by Teacher Ken (Kenneth Bernstein). Bernstein is a social studies teacher at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Prince George's County, Maryland public school. I found him on twitter and am now following him for more insight on teaching and great books to read. Like I said above I love to read so my next book to read will be The Influence of Teachers: Reflections on Teaching and Leadership.  I have already found the book for the kindle at Amazon and I will be sure to get it next. The reviews made me want to read it even more. In Bernstein's review of the book he gives a brief description of many things including tenure, pay, classroom settings, learning, teachers getting along with each other, and much more. He focuses more on what he calls the heart of the book and that is the last few chapters. In the last few chapters the author talks about drop out rates and what Dr. Strange refers to as a burp back education and how this he believes in making our drop out rates go up so much more. Kids want to be engaged and not just watch a lecture on power point. The author and me and even Bernstein relate to this the same. If a child is engaged in the classroom and the material then they will be excited to learn and that is our job as a teacher to do this and be devoted to more than a burp back or regurgitated education. In my comment I stressed the importance of us as teachers not just looking at teaching as a job but as a place to make a difference in a students life and give them something to remember and hold on to for life. I also added how as teachers we influence these children more than some of their parents do at home and some strive to be just like us so we have to do our best at being the best that we can possibly be.

My C4T # 3 is also by teacher Ken. Yes you can tell I love him and his writing and most of his views. His blog post is No Independent Thought or Discussion Allowed in AP class. This blog was really short but it hit home with me because my son has recently gotten in trouble for commenting in an AP class. The blog speaks of this very same thing and states that teachers take the creative thinking out of the classes. In this particular class that my son is in they either watch a lecture and listen as she speaks off of a power point or she hands them hand outs of a power point. There is no extra work, no class discussion, no reviews, nothing. I emailed her and she said that she is only preparing them for what college will be like.  Like Bernstein in his blog mentions, all AP classes can't be bashed but many are turning into the same thing. Many of our teachers need to read the book above. Don't you think?The most important thing in this blog to me was this one sentence, "And if we elevate these skills and develop good ways to chart our progress in conveying them, perhaps our children will finally be invited, encouraged, and made to think." 

Comments for kids 4-6

My C4K # 4 was a child from Mr Stephen Wolfe's class in Birmingham, Alabama. This is the closest child that I have commented on so far. I'm not sure it the children wasn't allowed to use there name but I never found a name on the blog. The blog was sad because the child was having a bad day and nothing was going the way that it should. The best thing about the blog was the teacher was paying attention and read it and told the child sorry for making the day worse in math. Even children have bad days where it seems everything just goes wrong and as teachers it is our responsibility to try and engage that child in things that will change the day and make it better if possible. I responded and said that I too had bad days sometimes and no matter who we are or our age that we all have our bad days, but it's how we keep our head high and work through them that matter the most. I tried to use encouragement to brighten the day!

My C4K #5 was Bobbie Grace in her 8th year of school at Pt England School in Mrs. Nua's class in classroom 20. Her Blog was about how to put a tent up and she went through every detail of how to do it. I responded to her blog telling her how she inspired me because in my Edm class I also had to teach someone to do something. Being nervous about the project seemed silly after I saw that she could do it and was brave. 

My C4K #6 was Micaela in Mrs Ms. Engalhards class. Micaela wrote a story called Zannaiahs journey and it was incredible. She wasn't finished with it and the way she ended it left you hanging but wanting more. I will be sure to go back and read it. Below I will share it with you because its just that great and she deserves more comments. I commented and let her know how much I enjoyed her writing and how well I thought she wrote. I also encouraged her to never stop writing because it will open many doors in the future. 

Zanniah was staring at a tall, shadowy figure.  “Zanniah,” she said, “You must travel to five of the ten dimensions to save them.  You are their only hope.  Even I cannot go beyond the border of this dimension.  Only you can save the world.”  Then she began repeating ”Only you can save the world.”  That was the last thing Zanniah heard before the mysterious person vanished into nothing as she awoke from her sleep.    That was the fifth night in a row she had had that dream.  She knew she had to do something.  It was a Saturday morning, when Zanniah was awakened from a sound sleep by the early morning sunshine.  She blinked as the golden light glinted in her eyes.  Then she scrambled out of bed and raced to her dresser to put on clean cloths.  She couldn’t wait to go outside.  She had been digging a huge hole and was eager to work on it again.  As she scrambled down the stairs and gulped down her breakfast, she thought about finally, after a whole week of dreams, getting her hands on her trusty shovel.  Then she told the mother she never had that she was leaving as she dashed out the door of the broken down house that she lived in.  She had no parents and the only thing she liked to do with her life was dig holes.  She didn’t know why, but she felt like the holes were the answer to the dreams.  “If there is something I have to do, this must be it,” she thought.

She ran all the way to the wash and started digging.  After only half of an hour, her shovel punched through the dirt into hollow space.  Quickly, Zanniah dug out the rest of the earth covering the hole.  Then, without a second thought, she jumped into the hole.  It looked like an ancient mansion, but it was not crumbling or falling apart.  She walked down a long, angular hallway that was painted a color that Zanniah thought didn’t have a name.  It looked sort of like mustard, only a tad bit more golden.

As Zanniah pause to consider these things, a huge wave flooded into the hall.  It swept Zanniah up and plunged her under into it’s current.  Zanniah was gasping for air, flailing her arms and legs against the current, but it was useless.  Just as Zanniah thought she would drown, the water flowed into another room, leaving her near a doorway.

Zanniah crept through, and then she saw that only a few feet away, was the top of a beautiful water slide that looked just like a river with a water fall.  It ended in what looked like island paradise.  Zanniah couldn’t resist, she slid all the way down the water slide, feeling the cool water slosh against her body.  She could hear different song birds twittering peacefully.  It felt purely wonderful.  When she was at the bottom, she stepped out.  After only a few steps, she was greeted by to by two boys bouncing with energy.  The taller of the two looked about her age; the other looked about six years old.  “Hi,” said the older boy,”My name’s Matthew, and this is my brother Andrew, but you can call us Matt and Andy.”

“Let us take you to our mother,” said Andy.  I don’t think she’s had any visitors since before my brother was born.  I’m sure she’ll be glad to have you here.”

Zanniah was totally taken aback, but she followed them nonetheless.  When the group reached the boys’ mother, Zanniah stared.  Their mother was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.  Her hair was wavy and black as the night sky.Her brown eyes twinkled in the sunlight.  She looked to be in her thirties.  She indeed looked glad to see her.  It looked like she might fall over.  After she got herself together, she said,”Hello, my name is Agitha.  Come with me, there is something I must tell you.”

Stay tuned to find out what Agitha has to say.

Blog Post # 9

What I've Learned This Year By:Mr. McClung

Mr. McClungs blog was what every aspiring teacher needs to read. There are so many truths in his blog that I already know from teaching a 4-K class and Sunday school. The thing that I can relate to him the most on is patience. Wow what patience we have to have as teachers and not only with our students but with fellow teachers and even ourselves. We have to learn that everything won't work out the way planned. That leads me to the quote he stated. No lesson is ever perfect. The lesson you teach and the one you plan are always different". That quote speaks so much truth because no matter what you plan, practice or write down you will think of things as you are presenting them. Just like if I wrote this blog again it would never be the same. This morning as I taught Sunday school my lesson turned a different way and had a different outcome than I had planned or ever expected. As teachers we have to strive to open up a door to our students and let them help teach with their ides, their imagination and their help because you never know what will come out of that. I think that it is awesome that Mr. McClung shared with us what he has experienced as a teacher so far and would love to keep in touch and hear more from the classroom. As a future teacher I am nervous about many things and need all of the inspiration that I can get to help me through the initial stage. 

Blog Post # 8

Richard E Miller This Is How We Dream Part 1 & 2 By: Richard Miller

Richard Miller, an English teacher at at Rutgers University was inspired at an early age by his home being filled with books and he loved reading them. His lecture emphasizes the speed of technology in our world today. As teachers we need to wake up and realize that change is appraoching fast and it is our job to keep up and learn all that we can to pass on to our students and classroom. The more we learn the more we can give back to our classroom. Just the fact that in three days his video reached nine thousand views is proof that technology is being used more now than ever.
Am I prepared to to write with multimedia?
Before I started this class I would say No. But now I would say that I am almost there thanks to EDM 310. I am now on board with technology and have worked up the courage to try and learn more and dig deeper. I can't teach my students to do something unless I know how to do it. So Yes I am now ready and excited to learn more.
Will my students be able to do this?
Yes they will because I am and I will do what it takes to pass it on to them. Kids are now introduced to so much technology at an early age so they are more adapt to learn faster. It also takes imagination when using it in the classroom. Our jobs as teachers is to present the new technology in a fun and interesting way so they will be ready to learn.
Miller inspired me in many ways by showing us how much technology is changing and it is only evident in EDM that this is true because we never open a book and have learned so much.

Chipper and EDM 310 for Dummies By: EDM 310

Chipper is a student that argues that procrastination is when you can still turn your work in late and still get it done. After watching the entire video you can see that Chipper completes nothing in life because of this. We have to work for what we get in life and this class is a great example of that. EDM 310 requires nine hours so the syllabus states. I can assure you I spend more time than that in this class and still feel like I sometimes don't do a great job. It's amusing how Chipper wants to be taught so she doesn't have to learn but wants to be a teacher some day. Wow! You have to continue learning throughout your career to be able to teach and give back to your students. The video was a great idea because it really made me think of how your life really does follow you so we have to strive to do things right and set an example. 

EDM 310 For Dummies is a book that we all need in this class and the video was exactly how me and a few of my group members have wanted to act about the class. I love how the video suddenly changed to the things that EDM has taught through all of the confusion. This is so me I have been so overwhelmed by life and work and school and assignments in this class but when I have done them and it's time to turn them in I feel so good and know that I now have something to offer my students that I wouldn't have before the class. In order to graduate we all have to take this class so we need to put forth our energy and do the best that we can and let it help us for our future in education.I am thankful for EDM 310 and Dr. Strange and all of the lad associates that have helped me make it this far. A special thanks to Anthony Capps who is always there lending a hand and giving us encouraging words to make it through. He has motivated me so much to finish my assignments and keep pushing through when things seem to get tough. Thanks EDM for helping me adapt to the new age of things. 

Learn to Change, Change to Learn  By: The Pearson Foundation


In this video many different educators share opinions on one similar idea and that is technology in our children's lives. " We have a classroom system when we should have a community system", is one of the many quotes used in this video and it really stood out to me. Our kids live as a community texting, chatting, emailing, facebook, myspace, youtube, and many more. But the school system takes the community out of learning. There is so much that we as communities can teach each other. Our students love technology and use it at home. Why not give it to them in the classroom. Instead these things are banned in the classroom.
Technology is not choice we have to have it now because the world revolves around it.
In EDM 310 I have had to change to learn and learn new things and from that I have learned so much. Change is not always bad it can be good and can be a learning tool in life no matter what change we have to make and as teachers I believe that change will be something that will face us forever. So let's all change to learn together and be better equipped teachers of the future.









The Secret Powers Of Time By: Professor Philip Zimbardo


Time is the secret to life for many reasons. We are always in a hurry and rush things when we should enjoy life. The first part of the video is so true people reflect on their lives in many different ways. People dwell on many different things in life and we have to move forward and not look back and create our own world.
I agree that our children especially guys are letting video games ruin their minds. I believe that there can be an unhealthy relationship with video games. I have a nephew that has no social skills and lives behind a tv screen and video game. I also believe that video games can be healthy as well and it is the parents job to monitor these activities. I still believe that technology in our classroom is a great addition to our school system.
The stats on family meals really surprised me. This is such an important part in family success. No matter how busy I get I will alway make sure that family time comes first.

Drive: The Surprising Truth of What Motivates Us By: Dan Pink

I am a firm believer that what we do for free to help others is much more important than anything that we do to for money. Sure being paid is great and we need it but knowing that we have made a difference in the world is worth more than money. I want to work hard as a teacher to make a difference in lives not just to make a paycheck. For an example, My major was nursing because I wanted to make good money but in my heart I longed to be a teacher and make a difference in a child's life. I quickly changed my major and let the better paying career go. 
I love when he said that people will work for free when they love what they do because they want to get better. They will also work other jobs for pay and do more work for free to do something that they think is making a contribution. In life we tend to be driven by doing good things for others. I know that I am. The above video is something I found that is similar to what Dan Pink was saying.

Smartboard Presentation

Project #10 1st Progress Report of PLN

I have set up my personal learning network and I was so excited to use it once I got it all working properly. I used symbaloo and found it to be a simple website. At this time I have added my EDM 310 blogspot, facebook, skype, gmail, youtube, cnn, google, twitter and will be adding much more soon. I have also introduced this site to friends and my teenage kids and they all love it. I will definitely use this tool throughout my teaching career in the future. 

Project #11

Comments for Teachers #2

                                                            http://blog.ischoolinitiative.com/
The teacher that I commented on was Travis Allen. He is a 21st century student that talks about how technology is improving education. In the first blog that I commented on he is talking about Ipads being a distraction in the classroom. He isnt saying that they are but he is telling how others complain about them.He uses the example that anything can be a distraction in the classroom and uses a pencil as a demonstration. Students doodle in all classes. On tables, papers, bookbags, desks, and even themselves. Everyone will get bored at some point especially if the teacher don't do his job to keep them engaged in class.
I commented and agreed because I myself find myself doodling in class if I get bored or drawing etc. We have to stay engaged in learning and that takes the help of our teachers. I believe with anything comes responsibility and if you choose to learn you will and if not then you won't.
His second post was about his first impressions of Ipads. It was a pretty short post but he had pictures and talked about how you can take notes.make flash cards and stay organized with the Ipad. I commented and said that I believe that having Ipads woul dhelp classrooms and how my daughter has her books in high school at home on the computer.

Blog Post # 7

Randy Pausch has a wonderful story and I encourage everyone to go watch this video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo . He began his journey with the fact that he is terminally ill and has tumors and has only a few months to live. If he wouldn't have spoke a word of it I never would have guessed. His physical appearance would never give you that idea and the enthusiasm that he shows is not what you would expect form someone so sick. This from the beginning proves his passion for life and education. He began his lecture listing his dreams and I was thinking ok where will he go with this. He proved that we all have dreams and goals and no matter how simple they are all very important and even when we don't achieve the dream we do achieve experience.
This lecture really made me want to work harder as a teacher to add fun and creativity. I love what Pausch said about not giving up on someone. In my past no one gave up on me and thats a blessing because we all need people to keep us going and help us keep our head high. I want to be this type of teacher to always stay right behind my students and helping them along the way and who knows maybe in the future they will remember that about me. Pausch will forever remember his football coach because of this.
Pausch continues by telling how he said next I can help other children achieve their childhood dreams. I love how he not only worried about his dreams but also others. He was a teacher that pushed you to believe that the impossible can happen.
 He believed in surprising others and making other people smile so he began a class where students can use their imagination and technology and make people smile and laugh and get excited about things. Pausch said that the course helped in bonding with each other. He believed that the world was good if people were standing close to each other. This is so true and it made me think of how close our world is today. Our world has lost that bonding and many are all about helping themselves and I love how Pausch was the type of teacher to help others.
The creativity that Pausch believed in while teaching is exactly how I feel about being a teacher. I want to have fun and have creativity in my classroom as I believe that will help the student stay engaged and learn more. Dr. Strange I want to thank you for introducing me to Pausch because I now have a teacher to look up to and strive to be like him. I want to teach edutainment just like he did and have fun while learning. He was a man that taught about loyalty, fun, excitement, creativity and never giving up on yourself or each other. Another great link for the last lecture is http://www.thelastlecture.com/.
To know that you have a terminal illness would make many think about themselves and only themselves and their family but he didn't. He still believed in others and inspired them, even by leaving this legacy of his last lecture. To top it off he ended his lecture with a surprise for his wife. What a heart! Thanks Randy Pausch!

Blog Post 6

The Networked Student
The idea of a networked student has some positive and negative things about it. One positive thing is students will be technologically advanced and where they need to be when they graduate and not lost in this world of rapid change. They will also have a world of possibilities to research and explore many areas of study. There are also negative things with every positive and with the networked student one negative would be the one on one attention from a teacher.Students will always need a teacher to be there for guidance and help.Therefore, I believe that in many ways we can combine the networked student and the teacher and have a wonderful combination. Sure we can throw the books out and depend on technology but we always need that teacher there to back us if anything fails. I believe that a teachers role will always be more important than any computer. I am so excited to build my personal learning network and use it in the rest of my education and career.

A 7th graders personal learning environment (PLN)
What a wonderful introduction to the Pln from this seventh grade student. I am so convinced that she will always be organized. Before this blog I had never heard about this before. What an amazing tool to use to learn entertain and organize. This makes me want to make one now for my personal use and to use in my classroom. I love how this student mentioned that she has her work, games and even facebook on it. She stresses that it can distract you but you have to make choices to be responsible and that is with life and school and everything. So I agree that it helps students schedule there work around play. Thats still hard for me to do so you go girl! So ready for mine now! Wow

Smart Boards
I am so confused at this point about the smart board because they can be looked at from all types of views. I myself believe that the smart board can only do as much as the teacher is willing to let it do. So sure they can be boring and useless if the teacher treats it that way. Ferriter and Staton really made me doubt the smart board in many ways. After our project in class using one I hope to come to my own opinion about them. I went and researched smart boards and everything that I found was so much fun and interesting and really kept the students wanting more. I believe that teachers need to learn more about the smart board and not let one teachers judgment ruin it for all.As an upcoming teacher I hope to have the oppurtunity to use a smart board in my curriculum.

Project #7 Comments For Kids

I discovered a lot while commenting on kids from other countries. I think it’s awesome their classroom has access to blogs. Below I will tell you about each student and reveal to you our blogs and comments. So comment on ours and tell me what you think.

My first student was Rhys and lives in Cananda, His teacher is  Mrs. Lurgins.

                                             Ski Trip

skiing at asessippi was funny.It was funny because one time when i was going down the hill to this icey trail mackenzie was be side me then he feel and i was going all pro. then this other time every one was going down this icey trail and at the end every one fell and it was soooo funny.At the end though i had a very great and funny time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I  

My Comment to Rhys

I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Mobile Alabama and one of my assignments is to comment on your blog and get to know you, where you are from, what school you go to and anything that you are comfortable telling me. My name is Lara Bishop and I have children in school as well. My daughter is in 9th grade and my son is in 10th. Being a mother I know how exciting this ski trip must have been for you. I have never had the chance to wear a pair of snow skis but I did tube once and that was fantastic. I am glad to see that you had a blast and that you felt like a pro and all, well until your big fall. I wish you luck in all of your studies and I hope that learning will be as fun as the trip above for you.

I made a mistake and commented on the same student again but chose a new blog and didn’t realize this until today so my next blog is from Rhy also.

                                  Underground to Canada

In the last chapter Adam dies and Lester makes it to Canada. Adam dies because of the chains on his ankles.the chains on his ankles were tight on his ankles and made them bleed and he couldn’t walk.My favourite part in the book is the part where they hve to hide from the copes and the masters.Now heres the part where you say “what happend to Julily and liza” well I can’t tell you, you have to read the book to find out. The thing I don’t like about the book is the beggining because it’s confusing it makes now sense well to me eneny way.I give this book 4 stars because it was confusing to me but some people will give it 5 stars because they understanded it more then me. well that’s all i’m going to tell you read the book it’s good.

My name is Lara Bishop and I am assuming your name is Rhy. I have been excited about receiving a reply from my last comment. So far I haven’t received anything but I just know after this one I will hear from you. You can visit my blog or you can comment right here on your own blog. By visiting my blog you can get to know some about me. You can click here to find my blog http://bishoplaraedm310.blogspot.com/. On my blog you will see that I have 2 children myself. They are 14 and 17 and are both in high school. They both enjoy reading as I see you are a reader too. It excites me to see a child your age read. The reason I am telling you all of this is because I believe that education is the most important part of your life. Reading is a huge part of education. Reading teaches you new vocabulary as well as teaches you comprehension. I see above that you are having trouble understanding some of the book you just read. Don’t give up because with every book you read you will get better at understanding. Reading is also fun and can take you anywhere you want to go so when you read let your imagination take you anywhere you want to be. Your blog above really makes me want to get this book and read it. It seems like an awesome book. So looks like I will be finding our for myself what happened to Julily and Liza. Now don’t forget to read, read and read some more and comment back.

My last student to comment on is Rauf and is in 5^th grade at Pt. England School in Auckland N.J. 

  The Holiday

Diving into a lake I found out it was too deep for me to swim in so I quickly jumped on my board and paddled back. I was at the sand dunes.
After that I hopped out of the water, ran up a hill and then I ate.
Slowly walking back to the lake I saw a bridge that had some people bombing and flipping off. Later on I asked my Mum if I could go play on the bridge too. She said, "You can go soon", so I went and played with my brothers and sister in the water. Finally I got to run to the bridge and jump off it.
After a fun day at the sand dunes we packed up and walked to our car. I had lots of fun jumping off the bridge and diving into the water too.

Well Hello Rauf, My name is Lara Bishop and I am a student at the University of South Alabama and I am studying education. One of my assignments was to blog on your page so here I am and I am glad that I was assigned you because I love to swim to so we have something in common and jumping off of something is one of my favorites.Your day at the lake seemed really awesome but more than that your writing is awesome and you should keep that up. You can write things that you have done or even do things that you want to do and use your imagination. You can visit my blog and see that I will post a blog about your blog on my page for other students to see as well.

Timetoast Timeline Instructional Project #9b

Time Toast Project 9a

My Sentence Movie