So Long - Farewell ... Goodbye!

Farewell is a word,
So simple, so dour
Saying what started
but did not endure.
Farewell is a feeling
of something that’s gone
Farewell is a memory
that stays for too long
Farewell is everything
that’s been left unsaid
Farewell is the greeting
of someone
who’s dead.

I learned.....................TONS!

EDM 310 taught me several things actually, more than I thought it would.I feel like I am capable of getting by but not much more than that. It gave me insight how much I have ahead of me to learn! I did not know what a PLN was until I took this class.I believe that I did learn a lot from this class,I really did know so little before this class. I know that today I am more technologically literate than I was when I first entered the classroom.Several of the thigns we learned I had heard of but never used myself and knew nothing about it - NOTHING! I have friends that have used blogs and stuff but the most I ever did was look at them.All I knew about Twitter was that some famouse people liked to "TWEET". Of course I did ise facebook all the time, so I did know one thing.ITunes, skype, podcasts, were all also very interesting to learn about and play with.I really never thought I could use so much of what I have learned, it is so vast!!This is actually the first and only computer class I will take in my college career, kind of sad since I really need to know so much about it!
I truly have enjoyed many aspects of this class. I even started a new blog for my friends and family to view, it is about my baby. It was really fun to create! I think as teachers we should take classes like this yearly , because the technology is changing SO much!

Collaborative Professional Blog

I think that collaborating is usually always a great way to go! I can always use someone else's advice or their point if view.I found the 'at the teachers desk' blogspot great. I enjoyed the post that talked about the children creating fake money. This teachers blog made me aware of issues they were discussing and thigns they were working on in the classroom. What a great thing for other teachers to follow suit in doing!!!

Access

ACCESS, or the Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators and Students Statewide, is a distant learning program aimed at Alabama High schools. Their vision is: The State of Alabama will provide equal access to high quality instruction to improve student achievement through distance learning. It allow high school students to take part in AP and other courses that may not be offered to them in their current school. It is also a way for educators to share ideas and gain new experiences with coworkers and students.I am a huge fan of the AP curriculum because I took those classes when I was in classes. I found them to be very helpful in my college career as well.
I think that ACCESS is a great tool for students who go to schools that don't offer the classes that they need or want to take, because i know of several friends of mine who truly would have excelled in these programs but were unable to take the classes because they were not offered at their school. I feel that this gives opportunities to talented students who might otherwise never have had this chance.
The goal of ACCESS is to continue to meet objectives of the ACCESS plan, expanding the availability of ACCESS Distance Learning to all public high schools in the state.They provide access to advanced diploma courses,courses one might not have had,dual enrollment opportunities,access to remediation if needed,teachers have more tools to use at their disposal,and also allows access to sources through the Supercomputer.

ALEX

ALEX, or the Alabama Learning Exchange, is a easy to use tool for teachers, students, and parents. The website is http://alex.state.al.us. It is a project of the Alabama Department of Education, and is designed to compile educational materials and information into a time-saving one-stop resource for teachers and administrators in Alabama. Their goal is for Alabama's students to reap the benefits of Alabama educators sharing their wealth of expertise and knowledge with colleagues. ALEX is a way for teachers to share and write lesson plans,share and find resources, connect to course study standards, and show students the benefit of learning. ALEX has a library of lesson plans for all subjects and grade levels. Alabama teachers can log in to their account to access a personal space to create and adapt lesson plans. However, teachers everywhere can access the lesson plan library. Although lessons are targeted to Alabama state standards, they can be easily adapted to any school's curriculum. There are over 2,000 lesson plans supplied by Alabama teachers available on ALEX. These resources are designed to engage students and teachers in 21st century learning, and expand new opportunities.


I never knew that this site existed! This excites me so much because one day I will be a teacher and I will use this!!! I love that it has state-approved lesson plans on it and that it shows how long they will take. I like that it has a search engine in it, so that I can find what I'm looking for quickly! ALEX has won various awards so I know that it is a valuable teaching tool!

Mr. Chamberlain's class blog and Dear Kaia

I am sure Mr. Chamberlin's class was so excited when they found out who their speaker was going to be!!! I thought this was neat and a great way to get students involved more. A great example of intrinsic motivation!!I believe it is always good for students to see the benefits of learning and hard work. Real life examples are the best! What an amazing way to teach and to learn!!!!!!!!! LOVE IT!

Dr. Wesch

There are so many pros to being an older student in college. I can get out of bed and never even look in the mirror before I head to class, there is no pressure to be in a club or worry about going to a party. I feel as though we are surrounded by people who are always telling us the things I don't care about, I should. I feel as though , even at 26 I still have friends who are terribly concerned with what they look like and how others view them.Does it ever end? I am afraid it is never going to end. People will not stop being self absorbed until the media and television stop being so incredibly self absorbed. I worry about my future students and the esteem issues the I am sure they will face because of these factors.Teachers are going to have to really build up their students and reinforce the things in life that truly matter.

Blogs.. and why I love them!

There are several reasons I feel it is important for students to post on a blog.For example, I have had to post many writings on a blog for my mirocomputing class this semester. It has helped me learn a great deal about computers and also educated me on subjects dealing with teaching.
I can post all kinds of useful tools on my blog as well. I have even gone on to make new blogs since this class for my personal use. I would have never done this prior to taking this class.You can follow my blog at:julehays'edm310blog@blogspot.com I have set up a twitter account , one I thought I would never use, and I love it! My twitter name is ComplicatedOrda and my email is juliejhays@gmail.com. In addition, I have learned a great deal about igoogle and how to use several aspects of it. If you would like to learn more about this website just go to : http://www.google.com/ig

A Good get to Know You ...

Please go to this form and answer the questions I have listed. Enjoy!

This Is How We Dream...

Well, I think I am having trouble finding the words for this one. I feel this could possibly have been the worst video we have been assigned to watch so far this semester. It was beyond boring, and I have just wasted 15 minutes of my life. Now saying that, I know I need to address writing using multimedia a little bit.

I think is great that people can write and publish it to the internet and others can read it for free, but I absolutely love books, and I get worried that they will eventually go away. I feel there is a happy medium that people can attain.

I definitely think that using multimedia in the classroom with our students will benefit them and help them to understand things more fully. I believe writing and multimedia combined can be a great thing in the classroom if used correctly.

The Networked Student

I absolutely love the way this video is set up. It is such a creative way to capture our attention, but honestly watching these videos about the same thing are getting a bit old. I feel like all of the videos are starting to repeat themselves, and it is getting boring.

I thought the question, "Why does the networked student even need a teacher?", was interesting. I feel like teachers are most definitely needed because blogs are great, but just like the video said, they are people's opinions, not facts. This is why I don't really like blogging unless it is a teacher giving information to their students, or someone updating people on what is going on in their lives. People can write anything they want, so I am very weary about trusting blogs, I just take the information with a grain of salt.

Teachers are needed to guide and direct their students in the right direction. It's good to know that our teacher is there to answer our questions and help us when we need it. Also, I think that having a Personal Learning Network will help prepare me to be able to teach students who also have a Personal Learning Network. Overall, this was a good and informative video.

I responded to Mr. McClungs' blog, and it can be found on his blog at: http://attheteachersdesk.blogspot.com/2009/05/what-i-learned-this-year.html

I thought the blog posted by Mr. McClung was wonderful! It was so refreshing hearing good advice from a new teacher. Advice from teachers who have been teaching a while is awesome, but to hear from someone who has only been teaching for one year is great. I thought his blog was extremely eye-opening. I was reminded that it is all about the students. My lessons need to be geared to them. This may seem obvious, but I think it is too easy to get consumed by just making it a productive lesson, and not think about the students and how they will get it.

I truly want to make a different in the lives of my future students. I want them to know that I care about them. I loved that one of Mr. McClungs' students wrote and told him that they really felt like he cared about them. I want to be like that when I am a teacher. I want to be a great teacher and I want my students to know I truly care about each and every one of them!

Duke

When searching online for using iPods in instruction I came across this website, which is actually a PDF form, but has some really great information on it. It talks about how useful iPods in the classroom would be for the students because they already use iTunes often for music, and it would be super conveinent to be able to put the lecture on ancient Roman ruins, for example, and skip to the part you were confused about. It would be absolutely fantastic! This is the website: http://www.principalspartnership.com/iPods.pdf

I also read the Duke University report on using iPods in instruction. I loved it! I think it is fantastic that they gave 1600 incoming freshman in 2004 20GB iPods. The best part about it is they ACTUALLY used the iPods in many of their courses during that school year! I think it is wonderful to use something that this generation is so incredibly confortable using, and allowing it to be a productive tool to help us in school. I really think it is amazing that iTunes has developed iTunesU, and I believe it will be an amazingly useful tool in the future, the more popular it becomes. I believe iPods are a great way to help students in school!

i Tunes University

iTunes University is sooo cool!! I love it! This assignment was the first time I had ever heard of iTunes U, and I am so thankful. I did not know much about ITunes anyway before this so, I began exploring things that interested me. For example, I have recently become interested in reading, which I hated in high school, so I selected literature under the categories section in iTunes U.There are so many cool things under it!
I cannot wait to have more time to explore iTunes University. They have really wonderful podcasts in it. I believe iTunes U is extremely useful for anyone who has a desire to learn.

Dr. Christie

When I first arrived at Dr. Christie's website, I immediately noticed that "comprehensive resource for educators" was in bolded letters on the home page. I suddenly became interested to see what her website had to offer for teachers. Her website is extremely interesting and has many great things to offer teachers such as safety when dealing with children and the internet, which is extremely important. The one thing I am absolutely thrilled about is under the Workshop tab on the sidebar, is a link where she discusses Virtual Field Trips. This is awesome!

I really think Dr. Christie's website is extremely thorough and I found the information it contained extremely useful even as a student. I am thankful that it discusses how technology can be used in practical ways in the classroom, and even has lists of researching resources to use. I love this website, I have made it a favorite on my computer!

4.0 or 4. NO!

This youtube clip just proves that just because there is new technology out , that may be cool, does not mean that it is the best thing for society. So I can pull up my email while I am driving, but when was the last time I called my mom? So I can surf the web while in the tub ,but when was the last time I read a book? Now these questions do not really apply to me because I talk to my mom 500 times a day and read at least one new book a month, but I believe this is the case for many Americans today. While the new wave of stuff my be cool and connect you to certain things, it is disconnecting you from ,what I believe, are more important things.Even the advertisers recognize this because they are putting more money into web advertisement than other places.Watching this clip also made me very aware of the rate that our societies intelligence may be decreasing. If we are too consumed in watching TV or surfing the web then what kind of new, enriching material are we taking in?One of the most dishartening parts of this clips was about the decline of political talk on Twitter when Micheal Jackson died. As my grandmother always says" garbage in is garbage out!"

Truly an Inspiration !!!

Wow, to listen to this man was really encouraging. Talk about a "glass half full" mentality.To hear a person who has a terminal illness say how much life they have left to live is truly inspriring. The goals that Randy Pausch has mananged to meet throughtout his life our incredible. His desire to make sure others try and reach their dreams is great! He wants to teach people how they too can achieve goals and he shows them this by telling his story.

Some goals Randy set for himself may have seemed unattainable to many people. They may have also seemed too long term for someone with his disease, but Randy pushed towards them anyway.He wanted to be a Disney Imagineer - and he was; he wanted to be in zero gravity - and he was.Randy Pausch aslo wanted to platy in the NFL,while he did not do this, he did play in amatuer leagues. I am sure through all of these circumstances,trials and achievements he learned many vauluable lessons,lessons to pass on for generations.

There are several ways in which Randy beleieves on can help another achieve their goals.An important point that I have liked was learning to work in a group.I am taking a class currently where most of of work is done with a group. I really thought I knew how to best do this, but have found it is not always an easy task. Learning to evaluate your peers and be a good team playing can be difficult at times.But, I do feel that working in this group has been very positive for me and therefore I totally agree with Randy's thoughts.It is also a great way to mixed thigns up in the classroom. I feel diversity and keeping the studetns involved and having fun is crucial.
Not only has Randy learned all of these ways to teach others how to achieve their goals, but he has also learned very much himself through doing all of this. His priorities are his family and he loves the life he has been given.We should all be so thankful for what we have! The best way to sum up Randy for me is by using one of his quotes: "Brick walls are there for a reason: They let us prove how badly we want something."

Mr, Fisch

I am completely amazed by Mr. Fisch! I totally agree with him. The thing that amazed me the most was when Mr. Fisch said, 80% of the parents that came to conferences, at least one of them said they were never good at math.I have actually never been a math person. Last semester I had to have my husband help me almost every nght with my math homework and I was constantly telling him how bad I was at it!He would tell me I was not, I just had to look at it in a new way. By the middle of the semester, I was doing the majority of my homework on my own and was so proud of myself. I had just spent so many years hearing my parents say they were not good at it and that I was not good at , I believed I could never be good at it.

I also agree with him in that, it's almost like people are proud of the fact that they are illiterate about some things. I learned so much reading this post. I definitely don't want to be an technologically illiterate teacher, which I often have said I would be. I want to be the best teacher I can possibly be! Truly, his post was extremely eye opening! I cannot wait to share it with my parents and friends!

It is not about technology.

I thought Kelly Hines blog was extremely insightful and true. I definitely agree with her views and thoughts. Technology is important, but it is not all about the technology. I loved her points about teaching, teachers most definitely have to be learners, learning and teaching are not the same thing, and technology is without a doubt useless without good teaching. These are all extremely good points that I completely agree!

I feel like many teachers today have technology in their classroom but do not use it properly, and they waste so much time figuring out how to work it when it doesn't work. Technology can be a wonderful thing if it is used properly by a good teacher, but definitely does not substitute for good teaching. Last semester I observed a teacher who had a SMART board in her classroom, and she used it really well. It was not distracting in the slightest bit. She took classes to teach her how to use it properly, and it was evident. She was not only a good teacher, but used technology in a way that benefited her students. I feel the biggest problem with technology is that it wastes too much time if teachers do not know how to use it properly. I completely agree with Kelly and her blog was absolutely wonderful!

A Vision of Student Today - well a vision of some...

Wow.... this video was very cool! The music went great with the theme of the clip. I loved the way they showed several different quotes in so many ways,although at times, the way the camera moved made me sick! It is always very interesting to see so many statistics and realize how true they are. Sometimes I do not realize how much my life may be similar to a freshman, at a college in another state. There were several things I found did apply to me in this podcast. The amount I spend on books,how many email I will write and papers, the fact that I may have a job when I graduate that does not even exists today and that there are people in my class who pay and yet don't come to class. There were also some things that I thought applied to many students,just not me. For example, their average class size is much larger than mine,some students said they only complete about half of their reading assignments,and one girl said she will read over 1200 facebook profiles... I will NOT be doing that. Towards the end they mentioned they did more in a day than there was time for,thus having to multi task. I totally agree with this. I am not sure a student could function in today's college setting without learning how to do one than one thing at a time. This truly was a great video and I thought it was well put together.

My Presentation

Podcast Resources

The first sound clip that I listened to was from the NPR Ideastream and I really enjoyed it. Every aspect about this clip seemed very professionally done and kept my attention. Typically, I am I visual learner and need to see things as well, but I felt as if they discussed things so clearly I did not need any visuals. Before I knew it, the clip was over!
Second I listened to is the Eagle Nest Radio & Class Blog (3rd Grade Podcasts). I loved this podcast even more than the first! It was also very well done. My favorite part was the precious little kids voices in the background! How sweet! Not only were there voices sweet, but they seemed well informed about the topics and spoke very well. Being able to have a pod cast with my class someday would be wonderful! The picture of the class was priceless, I enjoyed being able to look at it during the pod cast. This class was great and shows others that making a great pod cast can be fun, educational and accomplished by me too!

Video Cast from Last Year

The music in the background was clear and easy to listen to. I felt like the people in the video could have done a much better job of communicating with the audience. Their eye contact was almost non existent and they did not speak in a tone that was easily understood. These two issues, in my opinion, made the pod cast much less interesting than it could have been. A different setting may have made some of the directional aspects better in the video. On the other hand, I did like how clear the focus seemed to be and the microphone picked up okay, it’s just too far away for some of the people to be heard considering how low they spoke. These students could have picked a much better topic to use I think. A more exciting topic would have made a huge difference in the way their entire pod cast was viewed. The entire pod cast seemed a little too scripted for my taste. I found Dr. Strange to do a good job as the mediator. It was a little redundant and it took my computer like 15 minutes to load and then it seemed as if the video cast would never end!!

Next Generation Learning

This video was neat! I haven't seen an interactive whiteboard before now! I really liked how the students who could not afford a laptop were able to have the access to rent one from the school! I also enjoyed how the teacher stayed connected with parents through their blog even while the kids were away on a field-trips.Being a parent myself, I would love the opportunity to see the field trips my child went on when I was unable to attend with her.This would give us conversation that night.I am not really sure how I felt about the Wii activities,but on a small scale it may be beneficial. This video offered several wonderful points and was very put together.Each child being put on the same level is fabulous. I think this shows the kids at a very young age how they should treat everyone the same.

Picture Modifier

Podcast!

Prior to watching the podcast I was assigned I had never listened to one. In fact, I did not even know how to find a podcast on the web, much less know what to do once I found one! I never really understood what their purpose was or how one might be beneficial to any aspect of my life. After viewing the six podcast tonight, my view as somewhat changed on this topic. They are educational and interesting. In addition, they are a fabulous way of getting different perspectives on subjects and also communicating with people all over the world. People that other wise you might never be able to have a conversation with.
There were several aspects of the podcast that I enjoyed. The talks were very informative and easy to listen too. The spokes people seemed to be very knowledgeable on the subjects as well. Instead of being bored with a constant monetary tone, some of the podcast added music to the beginning of their show or kept it playing throughout. In some cases I liked this but in others it was distracting. If the music was not calming of too loud it was difficult to hear everything that was being mentioned. I do however think the concept of this is good. Some of the shows were only one episode of many,instead of just being a one time airing. I think this is great because it gives the option to learn more about their topics and also a person is able to email or call in with any questions they may have. If the show was only a one time deal, like a documentary of something, it may be educational, but the listener may also be left with unanswered questions. For some, like myself, they may not know where to go to find the answers after the show. Some of the podcast had more than one speaker, which was FANTASTIC because when you are not viewing a show, listening can tend to be boring and listening to the same monotone voice Can be even worse!
More than one of the podcast had a few commercials aired prior to their show starting. I a not sure if this was for their funding or if this was just a little added entertainment value. I found it really did not make a difference to me. The adds tended to be slightly scrambled and very loud so I actually could not even tell you what it was selling. So, from a listeners point of view, I feel that they are not beneficial to the show and probably not helping the advertisers either. One podcast I listened to had a very different sound to their broadcast.The speakers sounded similar to Darth Vader.It almost sounded as if the microphones may have been messed up, but after listening to more than one of their episodes, I believe this sound as intentional.I found this effect incredibly annoying and personally would NEVER use it. It was also very distracting.
After all the podcast I have heard tonight, I definitely think I will listen to more in the future. I still am not overly computer savoy but feel more comfortable with this application then I did prior to this assignment. I did not realize podcast were just a radio cast and thought initially I was going to be bored to tears when I found out I was not actually going to be viewing anything! I was pleasantly surprised at how much I did like it though. I am looking forwarding to viewing more podcast and learning to develop my own.

My first picture!

My First Link

CLICK HERE to go to the home page of my University.

Video Clip of Students

This video clip was amazing! I can not believe all the things these kids are learning. The group projects between students in different parts of the world is mind blowing! We never had a class remotely similar tot his one. I think this is a fabulous way for students to learn and also teach themselves new curriculum. During this clip, there were certain terms the teacher used that I was not even sure what they meant. What I great approach to encouraging self thinkers and proactive students.
These kids in this clip also seemed to really be enjoying what they were learning. The interactions they were able to have with other nationalities is an experience of a life time as well. Because of this teacher and the wonderful technology her school has, her students will be well rounded, motivated and ready to learn new things. I would love to have had this opportunity when I was in high school. If for nothing more than just to learn more basic computer knowledge.

Maybe my daughter is not "bad"....

Often we are so quick to label a child;whether it is LD,ADD or ADHD, I think we feel better if we can justify to ourselves why we find it hard to teach some children. This speaker was right on several points he made during his speech and at the same time was humerus and able to keep my attention throughout the entire speech. No child is the same;therefore,not every child learns the same or excels in the same areas. So why is it that we put more emphasis on certain subjects over others?
When I was in Elementary School I attended Old Shell Road Performing Arts School. This magnet program included dance,art, drama and music several days a week into the "typical" curriculum. I enjoyed some classes more than others, but it gave me options to find how I learned best and what areas I could excel in.
One of my favorite quotes he made was "If you are not afraid to be wrong,then you will never be original." He followed this up by saying kids are not afraid of being wrong,maybe this is why they are so original and creative. He focused on how important it is for teachers and the education system to not make all children learn in the same way.He believed that creativity=literacy. This is a very interesting way to approach the subject of teaching and child development. For example, everyone will not be a doctor but some will try because they feel as this is the "accepted" path. In some cases maybe the child feels the interest they have will not lead them to success and so in turn they never pursue those goals.
One story he told regarding Gillian Lynn was interesting. In short, she was having trouble in school and the teachers thought she was "bad" and so called a conference with her parents. In the end, the issue was not her behavior, but her interest. They found she was a dancer and they enrolled her in dance classes. She went on to be a famous dancer. This story was relevant to me because I struggle often with my child and some of her actions/behaviors. It is hard to find the ways that she learns best and understands best,especially when it may not be the same ways I learn. This I believe will also be a struggle once I start teaching.Hopefully, future speakers like this one, my struggles with my daughter and my classes will help me learn to recognize each child's individual creativity in the my classroom.

No I Did NOT Know...

The you tube video titled "Did You Know?" was very informative. It is sobering to realize not only how much technology is improving but also how rapidly. Knowing that information I am learning now may be obsolete by the time I graduation in mind blowing. Also, it is disheartening to see how Americans compare to others around the world. We often have a way of feeling so very superior and yet the facts show otherwise.
It surprised me to see that in the time it took me to watch the video that more babies were born in India than in China; I was under the impression it was the reverse. Watching this clip made me aware of how crucial it is to learn and improve as much as I can everyday,because if I do not, I WILL be behind. In addition, I need to learn more if I want to ever be able to help my daughter when she gets in school! At this pace of growth, she may be teaching me!

Get to Know Me!

I am 25 years old and was born and raised in Mobile,Alabama. I went to Murphy High School and then to Auburn. While I was in Auburn, I got engaged and decided to move home. The initial plan was for me to work a year while my husband finished and then it would be my turn to finish school. As it turns out, life does not always follow the path we set. My husband,Adam, and I found out we were pregnant about 4 months after we were married and so going back to school did not happen quit as promptly as I had planned. Never the less, three years later I was finally able to re-enroll. This is my second year at South Alabama and I am really enjoying school much more than I did the first time around (this may have something to so with the fact that I actually attend my classes and do my homework!)
Reading has become a new passion of mine and now I could sit and read for hours. I also enjoy taking my daughter to the beach,taking pictures and laughing really hard - usually at stupid things I have done. I am not a night person, in fact I am having trouble keeping my eyes open now. So, as I listen to my daughter snore, I think the bed is calling my name!

Hello!

Welcome to my blog for EDM 310! My name is Julie and I am an Elementary Education major at the University of South Alabama. I have been married for 4 years and we have a daughter who will be 3 in November. I am interested in teaching K-5. It is such a fabulous age! Children at this age are full of life and so eager to learn, they are like huge sponges -ready to take in anything and everything you have to offer! This is my first blog and I am looking forward to using it through the semester.
Peace Out.