Summary :)

I am finished with the 23 things, but that does not mean I am finished exploring Web 2.0 tools. I really think this is just the beginning of a new phase in my teaching career. I have learned so much and I excited to apply this knowledge in my own classroom. Also, I feel like I can take this newly acquired knowledge back to my school to share with other teachers. I realize that I am beginning my teaching career in a 21st century technological boom. I want to use these tools to enhance student learning and participation. Students use these Web 2.0 tools everyday and I think it is ridiculous if we don't use this medium to reach children.
Things #13-18 were my favorite on this journey. I feel like I learned the most from these things because I have always had a fear of social networking and sharing my work with others. Now I see that there are educational networks out there that can help me in my personal and professional career. My administrators really stressed the importance of collaboration this year. Educators need to team up and support each other because it will benefit the students. It's our job to provide the best learning environment for our students.
I like that the 23 things were designed like an independent study. I learned so much because I was had to practice, practice and practice. The only dislike I have about this program is the level of interactivity among students. I didn't get as involved as I would have liked to in the commenting process. I wish I would have done more than that. Maybe comments should be set up where each student must comment at least ten times during the week because this is a shorter session. I felt like I was so busy with my standards I forget about this important process.
Lastly, I will continue using and researching Web 2.0 tools for personal and educational purposes. I plan to create a classroom wiki for each class section that I teach. Also, I will create a blog for my classes. I have a lot of work to do before the summer ends.
~Kat

Thing #23 Creative Commons

As you can see, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommerical-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Teachers and students must be familiar with copyright laws and Creative Commons makes this easy. I can not believe that I did not know about Creative Commons before this class. Now, I know exactly what to look for. It is important that educators teach students about Creative Commons so they are not in violation of these laws. I really like how you can search for images in Creative Commons. That way you know exactly what type of licenses you are looking for and there is no ambiguity. Creative Commons will be a tool that I use in my classrooms because we have major discussions about plaigiarism and the penalties that are associated with this crime. Students need to be aware of these penalties and how this is an issue not to be taken lightly.

Thing #22 Podcasts

The podcast that I listened to was Just Vocabulary from the Education Podcast network. This podcast helps build your vocabulary and provides two words a day for you to practice. I have to take the GRE very soon and thought this would be a great podcast to help me prepare. I found Learn out Loud and the EPN very easy to work with. I will start using podcast in my classroom because it is a great tool for mixing up instruction. You are always trying to find new and inventive teaching strategies and I believe student response would be great. I found a couple of podcast for educational and personal use. I really will enjoy the Learn out Loud because I can get audio books. I could listen to a book instead of ads on the radio.

Thing #21 Animoto

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

This was so much fun! I just made my first video. Animoto was easy to use and I would use this in my classroom for sure. The only thing that disappointed me was the music. I wanted some music without vocals and my only choice was classical. I made this video in about ten minutes. I didn't take long for it to upload either which was great. I had ten pictures of my dog, Rudy, so I used him as my mini project. Isn't he cute? I really enjoyed creating this video and plan to use Animoto in the classroom setting. Students would really enjoy using this site as well....

Thing #20 Youtube

Youtube....is anyone else a Youtube junkie at times? I picked this video because it is a great Motivational clip to show to students when they are lacking motivation or say the famous "I can't" line. I always tell my students "Dream bigger than you know you can achieve" and that they can be anything they want to be in life. Youtube is blocked at my school but there are ways to get around this. All you have to do is download the videos onto a flash drive. I am glad that Youtube is blocked at school because students would become easily distracted by this site. I would not want to be held responsible if one of my students went to inappropriate videos. I have used TeacherTube and this is a great site to use where students can watch videos or create their own videos. I love the Youtube Edu and will use this in my classroom. The only thing that I dislike about Youtube are the ugly, sometimes nasty comments.

Thing #19 TeacherPop-Ning

Wow, this has been one of my favorite 23 things. I have always been skeptical about social networking sites and I am not exactly sure why? Anyway, this "thing" opened my eyes because I wasn't aware of all the social networking sites. I just automatically think of Facebook or Myspace. I have really enjoyed setting up my TeacherPop and can not wait to make some friends and maybe mentors along the way. I think it is important for educators to have mentors or someone you can go to for certain advice. TeacherPop will give me that opportunity. I also checked out the Goodreads site. Reading is one of my hobbies so I decided to check out Goodreads and I spent way too much time on this site. I think I might be addicted! I also would recommend the Fuzzster if you are crazy about your pet. I have a Yorkie and I have not been able to find any local breeders. I thought this might be a good way to find breeders and make some money :) haha ..Also, Craftster is really amazing.

Thing #17 Social Networking

Educators and students should take advantage of social networking/bookmarking sites. I always save my useful sites in the standard bookmarking fashion, and when I really need a my URLs I never have them with me. Social bookmarking sites such as Del.icio.us, Furl and Ma. gnolia allow us to forget the hassle of creating hundreds of separate folders. You just simply use the tool bar to organize bookmarks. However, these sites are more than just great organizers. Educators could create, research, publish, and have a way to collaborate with other users world wide. Educators could share their great ideas with others, and the beginning teachers would have another source for gathering new materials. More importantly, staying organized with your research is a huge bonus. This is where students could create bookmarks and add tags to share with other students and their research projects. Using these sites might also create a sense of unity among peers that would encourage others to open up and share their ideas with the class.

Thing #18 Social Networking

Here is my Facebook account: MK May (alias name)

I believe that social networking sites can be beneficial to educators. The main benefit is collaboration! Educators need to stay up-to-date with current ideology, technology, etc. More importantly, it is a great tool to see what teachers out of state are doing. This offers global collaboration and gets educators out old habits/routines. Not only do these sites offer collaborative features, they also offer great support lines.

Dislikes--Home page is really crowded!

Likes--You have the ability to control privacy settings and the advanced search for finding friends

I wouldn't use Facebook in the school setting because it is not advised at my school, and many social networking sites are blocked at my school. However, I do see the benefits of using social networking sites for personal use at home. I believe educators must know how to use these sites professionally or they risk being in dangerous situations. That is why I don't use these particular social networking sites as part of my classroom or school application unless it is community based?

Insight--It was interesting to see how much Facebook has changed in just a few years. I used to have a Facebook account but I deleted it because I wasted too much time on it and couldn't keep up! They have made it more user friendly and the setup was definitely easier this go around.

Thing #16 More Web 2.0 Tools

I chose iGoogle as my start page because I have a Gmail and this one just made sense. I did make it my permanent home page because it has everything that I need: e-mail, news, weather, calendar, and Google search. The online calendar is useful to me because I can set important reminders, look at my month at a glance, plan future events through my Google calendar. I also looked at BackPackit and found this site extremely user friendly because of the sidebar. Also, BackPack incorporates calenders, notes, images and files. The to-do list that I have been using is Remember the Milk and I have found it to be really useful but somewhat time consuming. All you have to do is create tasks, locations, or events and you get an instant reminder. Eventually I would like to get the app for this site and be able to use it on my phone! I think I would use this site more if I had it on my phone and did not have to log in with my computer. Another cool tool that I found handy is the Stickynotes. I'm in love with Post its so this site was instantly attractive to me. The tools that I would recommend for home:

1. iGoogle

2. Backpack

These are the sites I would recommend for school!

3. Remember the Milk

4. stickynotes

Thing #15 Wiki

How might I use a Wikki? Well, I've brainstormed numerous possibilities:

1. Literary Circles?

2. Wikis for unit plans? Maybe you have a great idea but need some materials? Other educators might be willing to share?

3. Wikis for research? Students could create a Wiki Research page instead of the standard research paper. Each group would have a specific section?

4. Book Reviews? This is like the Princeton Book Lover's Wiki

Yes, I'll admit I'm a control freak so the concept of a Wiki is alarming in some ways. However, I think they would be an awesome tool where students use technology to publish ideas, research, etc.

Click Here to see my Wiki: Sophomore Seekers

I created this Wiki for my Sophomore (English II) students. It is a work in progress....Eventually, I would love to post units, literary circles, research projects and other materials!

Thing #14 Go with the Flow

Bubbl was a great tool for me because I found it easier to use than Mindmeister. I used Bubbl to create a brief outline of one of my lesson plans. This would be great to show students as an introduction to the lesson to show them how certain skills build on one another. Also, in this particular unit plan students have to create a graphic organizer. This would be an excellent tool for them to use when designing their graphic organizers because it is very intuitive. Students can even print the organizers when they are finished! I would recommend this site to students because its free and easy to use.

I also explored Gliffy and was able to begin creating documents right away. However, the only negative thing about this site is you only get a 30-day free trial. This site is cool because it creates flowcharts, Venn diagrams, Floor plans, and other interesting diagrams. I can see why they charge you after 30 days because there is so much stuff! I think this would be a great resource for students, but there are other sites (such as Bubbl) that are free.

Character Quiz

Characterization quiz

1.  What draws a reader into a story?

2.  The ______________is the main character of a story.

3.  The ___________ is the character or force the protagonist struggles against and must overcome. 

4.  What kind of characters add depth and complication to the plot?

5.  Static characters grow and change.  True or false?

TWM Quiz 1

Tuesdays with Morrie Quiz #1

1.  Who is MItch?

2.  Who is Morrie?

3.  What does Mitch discover late one night while channel surfing?

4.  What is Mitch's profession?

5.  What is wrong with Morrie?

Bonus:  What is a common name for Morie's illness?  

Thing #13 Zoho

This is not the first time that I have used Zoho. There are many things that I love about Zoho. For example, one of my students introduced me to this site this year before we started presentations. The day before research projects were due, many students came to me (even though we had exhaustively talked about procrastinating) saying they did not have a printer, or a jump-drive, Internet, etc. Zoho allows students to save all of their work online where they can access it right before giving their presentations. Also, this site is great for those who do not have Microsoft Word or other word processing systems. Zoho has saved me a lot of headache, and I tell my students that now they have no excuses for not turning in their work on time. So, thanks Zoho!

See above TWM Quiz 1 and Character Quiz posts!

Thing #12 Google

Google Calendar--http://www.google.com/calendar/render
I have mixed feelings about this particular feature of Google. It was frustrating at times because I had to read a lot of links to figure out how to use this thing properly. I do think that this would be a great tool to use in the classroom. You could make a class calendar where you could communicate with students and parents because you can make this open to the public. However, if I were to use Google Calendar for my own personal use I would never make my calendar open to the public. I think that would be a little creepy knowing someone could look at what I'm doing for the whole month!

Google Docs--http://docs.google.com/#all

This is great for people who might not have a jump drive when you need to save a presentation, document, etc. It's always great to have a backup plan and a safe place to store your creations. I know that students are not allowed access to their personal email accounts at school, but this would be a great way for them to keep up with their work.

Thing #11 Feeds

For me, Google Blog Search and Technorati were the easiest for finding feeds. I just went to these sites, used the indexes and this helped refined my searches. I thought the Syndic8 was much harder to search for feeds. I found some really good feeds such as The Daily Beast, Todd Finely (he is an English Professor Blogger), and more. These were my favorites. I found a highly unusual feed about Lady Gaga and the Yankees :) I mainly used the tools on the 23 things website. I did do a basic google search for top 50 interesting feeds and found some cool feeds. I was a little overwhelmed at the beginning of this Thing. However, the more tools I researched I was able to find feeds that interested me.

Thing #10 RSS

There are a few things that I like about RSS. 1. I like that everything can be syndicated to one place. Can you imagine subscribing to each of your favorite websites, feeds,etc just so you can keep up? That would be exhausting and annoying. 2. I like how it keeps me organized. With out the user interface I would not be able to keep up with what I've read. 3. I like that I can access this information on my phone.
I would be able to use this in my personal life and in the classroom. I try to stress the importance of keeping up with current events in the classroom. Teachers could use RSS to create unit lesson plans that have "cross curriculum" ideas in mind. Maybe this can be a new way for finding up-to-date research!

Thing #9 Image Generator

ImageChef.com Poetry Blender


I had a hard time uploading these images to my blog!!! I really liked the ImageChef Poetry Blender. This would be an awesome way to present a poem in class! Poetry Blender was really easy to use and I had my creation in about 30 seconds. You can add text and images to the poetry blender. I also used the Happy Face Generator to create another image but had difficulty uploading the image!

Thing #8 Mashups

I explored many of the Flickr mashups and Big Huge Lab was my favorite. I see myself using Big Huge Lab for personal use and in the classroom. I have a couple of projects where students could use BHL's Map Maker, Magazine Maker, and the Writer in group projects. For example, The Map Maker would be great when we study Homer's The Odyssey. I usually let students create a map of Odysseaus' travels, and this would be a perfect tool for this project! These tools allow students to think and write creatively. I also worked with Spell with Flickr and Splashr. I had a little trouble working with Spell with Flickr. I was unable add the image in my blog. I would love to use Big Huge Lab to create documents to send as gifts. See the puzzle above! Isn't it precious?

As previously mentioned in Thing #7, I don't like posting or sharing photos online. I think the main reason I feel this way is because I am a private person and I don't like the idea that I am leaving a digital footprint behind that I might not can get back?

Thing #7 Flickr

In a way I was dreading this particular post because I have never used a photo hosting service before. I am really cautious when it comes to uploading pictures on the web because of safety, privacy, and professional reasons. Even with the privacy settings I still feel a certain vulnerability. However, once I set up my Flickr account I felt more at ease Everything was right in front of me! believe I will continue using Flickr for personal use and hopefully incorporate Flickr into the classroom setting.It would be neat to create a group for each class. This photo above is a picture of a bulletin board in my classroom. I keep this board filled with school-related activities such as athletic events, club scheduling, newsletters, etc.This is just a way to show students you involved and express interest in their school careers and other school-related functions.

Thing #6 Discovering Web 2.0

As I scanned over the Web 2.0 award winning nominees there was one website that caught my eye immediately. Remember the Milk is unique because it's portable, easy to use, and most importantly free! Whether you are extremely forgetful like me or like organization in your life, RTM is for you. RTM is great for creating to-do-list, setting goals, setting reminders for important dates, or just setting friendly reminders to not forget the milk before you leave the grocery store :)

Users can even access accounts in Gmail, mobile hedsets, Skype, etc. I might download the app so I don't have to return to the web site every time I want access. As previously stated, this is a free service. However, there is a Pro that cost around $25 a year that allows users extra support, access to new features, and access to the service on mobile devices.

I really like the blog feature because people are always sharing new ideas for using RTM. There was a guy who used RTM to organize his bills. Also, there is a "Location" service that allows users to look at Google Map and find those directions. I am horrible with directions so this is a great way for me to look them up and save them under a new task. Lastly, you can share, send, and publish task with friends around the world. There really isn't anything that I dislike about this site except for the $25 Pro fee. I would highly recommend this site! Below is the hyperlink to the home page. Try it out.

http://www.rememberthemilk.com/

Thing #5 School 2.0

When I think about School 2.0 many things come to mind. Really, I started thinking about all of the excuses that I could come up with so I could just forget about using School 2.0 in my classroom. Why? Mainly because I have had bad experiences and frustrations while using technology in the classroom. However, the more I researched School 2.0 I began to see how closed minded I was being. School 2.0 allows us to open windows of opportunity such as collaboration, professional development, effective communication, visual stimulation, and student enrichment to name a few. I thought I was doing my job by incorporating my power points, e-mails, videos, etc. School 2.0 has so much more to offer administrators, educators, parents, and students. Like Susan McClester said in her Web 2.0 article, "our generation has found Web 2.0 applications integral to daily life." This really hit home because it shows how we depend on technology to make our lives easier! So, how can we not use technology in the classroom? I agree, education must get on board.
Here are some questions that I had while researching School 2.0? How many schools within my district are using this concept to aide instruction? Why have I not heard about School 2.0 or even Web 2.0? Am I the only one that has been in the dark? Now that I know what Web 2.0 is, I have great hopes that our schools will embrace School 2.0. I believe that sometime in the near future educators with be required to use School 2.0. Just like a class set of novels, maybe one day students will have a class set of computers! Maybe that's a stretch?

Thing #4 Commenting is Important

Commenting is important in the blogging process because you want to make a small community where people share their ideas and feel like they are supported. It is important for creating connections with people that you know and don't know. This helps people make fair judgments and assessments. Also, commenting on others blogs can lead to important discoveries that you may have missed.

One important piece of information that I acquired from the literature was "Commenting Etiquette." I learned that there are rules and guidelines that one needs to follow when commenting.
Also,

APSU
Amy Eubanks--I really enjoyed reading Amy's blog because it was very professional and well written. I commented on her Animoto blog and I believe we share common interests.

Susan Estes--I commented on Susan's Social Networking blog. She helped me see the positive impacts that social networking can have in the classroom and for personal use.

Thomas Farley--Thomas had an excellent idea about incorporating Wikis into the classroom to promoter higher order thinking was great. I hope to do the same and wanted to commend him for his great idea.

Matt Schmitz--Matt had some really cool images that he created using Image Generators. I was able to share an idea with hime about the inclusion of comics in the classroom.

Annabelle Lee--Annabelle commented on my Thing #5. She made some valid points about this particular thing and I wanted to thank her for her insight.

Other
Mr. Miller's English 10 blog in Brandford, CT-- I posted a comment on his blog asking him questions about his blog and what kind of responses he has received as a result of creating this blog. I will be creating another blog for my classes at GHS and am hoping for any advice he might have to offer. I hope I get some feedback.

NTIP Beginning Teacher TDSB--First, everyone needs to checkout this site! It is a great site for beginning teachers. I wanted to share my thoughts on the importance of celebrating your success as an educator and sharing them with others.

Thing #3 Using My Blog

I had no idea how a simple tool such as "blogging" can be used in so many different ways to enhance student learning. I would love to use blogs to create literature circles where students can take advantage of discussion topics that maybe we didn't have time for in class. Also, it would be neat to see their reactions to in class activities, homework, etc. I'm sure this would be a way for students to provide honest feedback without feeling "put on the spot." Students not only would interact with their classmates, but they would be able to better explore their own unique writing styles. I believe this would provide opportunities for all learners to feel like they are in control of creating original writings. I struggled the most with covering the Media and Communication Standards mainly because of old and outdated sources/technology in the classroom. This would be an amazing tool that would provide them with a deeper understanding of appropriate communication through various mediums. It is evident that the only downside to using blogs and other technology is that it is to be expected that not every child will have access to the Internet, much less a computer that is easily accessible.

I'm hoping that I will be able to meet new people, collaborate and share teaching strategies, gain new knowledge about other technologies that can be used in the classroom, and share my thoughts and opinions!

~Kat

Thing #2 Blog and Avatar

I think creating the blog and avatar took some time but it was not extremely difficult. I decided to pick a posting name (my last name with first and middle initial) that was easy for me to remember because I am bad at memorizing passwords and usernames. Hopefully, it will be easy for other people to recognize my blogs too. I did encounter some problems trying to save my Avatar to my blog. I took some time and I'm still not sure if I did it right :) I wanted to create an Avatar that resembled my looks and personality. My whole life has been consumed with sports so I went with "the athlete." This was definitely a new experience. Maybe I'll find some mentors while using this blog! Especially people that are good at this stuff...

~Kat

Thing #1 Lifelong Learning

Wow! I can't believe I finally made it! Briefly, I will go ahead and admit that I have difficulty when it comes to technology. I found myself feeling very anxious while working on the setup, Learning 2.0, creating a Google account, remembering passwords, etc. I must admit that it was very straightforward and easy to navigate through the Learning 2.0, but I can't help feeling uneasy during the process. However, I know I will get better at it with practice. I've never used a blog before, and if this tells you anything, I don't even have a Myspace or Facebook account! Shocking, right? I do like the Learning 2.0 because you can work at your own pace. The Lifelong Learning and Learning tutorial was a great refresher and reminder of why I want to be a teacher and coach. Surprisingly, I don't look at it just as homework, but something that is helping me to further enhance my career. This makes it all the more rewarding. The hardest lifelong learning habit that I tend to struggle with the most would be #6 "Using technology to your advantage." I have never been the one to sit behind a computer screen for more than ten minutes a day. Most of this stems from a lack of knowledge on how to properly use technology, and my busy lifestyle. I am excited about this class because I want to use technology to enhance my instruction, engage cooperative learning among students, and create a better learning environment for my students. The easiest lifelong learning habit is #2 "Accept responsibility for your own learning." I can remember coming home from college one afternoon and complaining to my father about a horrible physics teacher I had. To make a long story short, my father told me something I really didn't want to hear at that point in time. He said,

"Kathryn, it is truly up to you to decide how much you want to learn no matter the circumstances you are faced with. You have a book, you have a teacher, and you have all the resources that you need. It's up to you to learn. So, quit making excuses and if you have done everything that you can do, you will be successful."

To this day, I have always had the initiative to take responsibility for my own learning whether I'm learning a new recipe, a foreign language, a new offense for basketball, etc. I have found this to be the easiest because this is something I do have control over in my life.