Tool # 11 Self Assessment

I have been using many of the tools that in this program of the past two school years already. I was one of the first to embrace Google Apps and I have to say I love the idea and the way it works. My wife and I use Google Apps both for personal accounts and a family account. Edmodo is fun to read when I get my students started in my groups but I am not much of a social networker. My new favorite is Dropbox and maybe Diigo. I love these two programs and they are going to save me a lot of time. I will work Diigo into my  curriculum. Diigo will be used during our Scratch lessons and maybe iMovie to share links and videos. I will now use the Google Blogger to direct my Robotics Club with directions, ideas and communication. 

I would really like to see the other classes work with the technology teachers to find some projects or assignments which can be done together. The more I use and teach this technology the more ideas I have to combine efforts. I believe more than ever that technology will or can bring teachers in different subjects together. While a student is learning something in a technology class he/she will also be learning math or science. 

Technology is always changing and there is something new to learn every year. My classroom changes every year and this year I add new ideas every semester. Yes, I will keep changing to accommodate the 21st Century learner. 

Even a technology teacher can get stuck in a learning box. Even though I change my curriculum every year by adding some new things I still found some really cool ideas from this 11 Tools program. I wish I would have done it earlier and added to my curriculum in August but I will add three new programs in January of this year. I will add Diigo, Blogger and GoAnimate.

Tool # 10 Digital Citizenship

1. The three most important things I try to get across to my students during our internet safety lessons are:

• Cyber bulling is ramped on Facebook and other social networking sites. I try to get across the damage it can cause and to report if they are being bullied or if they know someone. 


• Safety for predators and people they do not know. Kids do not understand the dangers that are on social media sites. It is like anything else do not chat with strangers, watch out were you go and what you do.
• Be careful what you post it may come back a haunt you years from now. Things that are said, done and pictures never leave the internet and kids don’t seem to understand that. 

2. I took a look at iSafe and joined up. I did not see that SBISD had an account for us but I really liked it. I think it is a better system then me telling the kids not to do something or watch out. I will be getting with IT to see about membership.

3 . Right now we use Edmodo to do a class discussion sharing ideas and stories about internet safety. I would like to add to this by using iSafe and spending another day with it an involving the parents. 

4. I would like the parents to do some homework with the kids. Sort of a workshop, graded at home with at least one parent involvement. I will look into this using iSafe and Edmodo. 

Tool # 9 Incorporating Classroom Based Devices

1. Being a computer class technology is tied to almost every objective here but with that said I do try to teach the students about things that will support other classes use of technology. Examples include Google Apps (almost all), iMovies for presentations, file management, typing, and Edmodo just to name a few.
2. Here the end product is the accountable ending but I understand that each student needs to end up with a way that they did their share. Almost all of my assignments are in groups or pairs. I find this is a great way to learn and it helps move the class along faster. I make each student produce a product not a group product. 
3. I really did not see much I could use in my “Class” but the two I like the most is “Learning Games for Kids” and “Manipula Math”. I can not use these as part of my everyday class but I will be adding these two to my list of “Extra” class work for students. I have my GT students that when finished help me with my slower or Special Ed students. I don’t like to ask them every day to help. I let them work online, with MAC software or homework in another class to fill the time while my slower students catch up. “Manipula” will be great for them and “Learning Games for Kids” can fill some time with Special Ed kids.
4. We have 37 MacBooks and no iPads and 10 itouches that nobody uses. With such a powerful computer for the students I can’t see using them for anything other that some type of learning game in my class.
5. Perhaps in LA an iPad would be a good way to research. I use mine at home to read and research more than anything else. I can see it in math and maybe a way to practice or even use Odyssey online with an iPad to test a students skills. Even give an homework assignment. 

Tool # 8 Taking a Closer Look at the Tools

Please see the link to the blog page below. I posted my remarks there.

http://11toolssbisd.blogspot.com/2011/02/tool-8.html

Tool # 4 Google Apps (Drive)

I have a folder for Scratch Projects that I have shared with the other technology teachers in Google Drive. In addition we are building the lessons in other folders to be shared between us. We use the networked shared drives on one of the servers at the moment but I think moving them to Google Drive and sharing them will be more efficient in the long run.
Also, I have a student that come in my first period class to help with technology issues. I have shared one file with her in Google Apps that tracks the inventory of all the laptops. We track who is using the laptop and any problems new or old that may be happening. In addition we make sure the asset numbers all match and that they are still on them. We do this about every 2 to 3 weeks. She is able to make changes in real time and so do I. This has helped allot.

Tool # 7 Reaching Outside your Classroom

For a collaborative project with another class I would like to use iMovie. I would like to find a way to not only collaborate with one class but with the entire 6th grade LA department. 

Both Computer Lit. and LA use imovie. Computer Lit. teaches more of the technical aspects of the program while LA uses iMovie to create a presentation related to book or reading material.

I would like to combine the two as a group to teach iMovie while working with LA to complete one of their projects. 

The content objective is to teach the students the iMovie program while supporting the LA department. This will take some of the load off the LA teachers while using a project the students can get a grade for in both classes. 

I would like to try this next semester.

The tools we would use is Google Apps for emailing the assignments, Edmodo for discussion and ideas between the class and iMovie for the project. In addition, we can iPhoto to manage and manipulate photos. 

The project would begin by starting a group in Edmodo for this project. The LA teacher would place the students into groups of three making sure that at least one student was taking Computer Lit. This student would be in charge of most of the technical editing in iMovie. In turn the Computer Lit. student would pass what he/she learned to the other one or two students in the group. The assignment would be an LA assignment and that rubric would come from them. The project can be done during Computer Lit. class as part of the iMovie teaching. Also, as a group the students can use the iPads in LA, library and Computer Lit. laptops. By the end of the project the all the 6th grade students will know what is expected when creating a presentation using iMovie and knowledge of how to create it. This would also free up the other grade level science LA teachers for teaching the technical aspects of iMovie, not to mention the Librarian.

Tool #6 Using Web Tools

I use for two groups that I created. One is for my Computer Lit. class. We use this to discuss internet safety. The second group I created is for the student news paper, An Eagle's View. Here the newpaper members discuss topics, meeting times and ideas.

http://sbisd.edmodo.com/home#/join/5968f1765788972f4efca077821a3527

I created a group in Dingo to use while we are learning Scratch programming. I really Dingo and want to make sure my students use this tool. I will combine Dingo and Scratch together by having them join my Scratch group and post anything they have found. Instructional videos and sample codes will be found here.

http://groups.diigo.com/group/scratch-project-group