Thing # 21

Guatemala
I loved using animoto. I would use this site for my own personal use and I would use it in the classroom as well for educational purposes. It's super easy to use and it's FUN! I used pictures from my mission trip to Guatemala.

Thing # 20

After searching around YouTube, I did a search on autism and speech therapy. I chose this video because several individuals commented and left feedback. I think that the advice on teaching the nouns to the child the way that the therapist did were helpful because some people learn by hearing sounds and by seeing pictures of the object and they can match the two up. Videos like this can be helpful for me and I can also share my experiences and advice through YouTube. I like using YouTube because you can find ANYTHING and EVERYTHING. Sometimes negative footage appears like violence, so one would have to be careful when doing a search. Students can use videos in powerpoints or presentations, which I have done before. They can be great resources when used properly! Overrall, I love YouTube!

Thing # 19

I joined TeacherPop, and I left a comment on their page.

The other social networking sites are great because they can match up to your interests. I'm not a member of any of the sites listed, but I have used IMDB before to search for movies or actors. I liked project playlist because it's free and lists tons of different artists. You can even set up your own playlist to what you prefer. I have also used Yelp as well. It's a great site for finding any place you want to go! I used it when I was travling in the summer and was searching for a place to find breakfast. All you need is an idea of your destination and where you are located (city, state) and it lists tons of restaurants or coffee shops. I would probably use many of these sites posted, except for fuzzster.com. I don't have any pets right now so I find this to be more useful for the pet owners to share information and advice with one another.

Thing # 18

When facebook was becoming a big thing with everyone my age, I admit that I was still living in the myspace days, and I didn't want to join the facebook world. I decided to join to stay in touch with friends that had moved away and talk to family that was out of state. Facebook is a great way to share photos and videos, but it is more of a site for younger people. I wouldn't use it for any educational purposes. Twitter is a different story. I refused to make a twitter account because I thought that it was completely pointless. However, after being in this class and having to follow edcational twitters, I realized that it can be used as a great resource. I began to follow many SPED educators and speech-pathologists who would share their stories or advice. I still don't really "tweet" because I don't have any idea what I am doing, so I just read what everyone else has to say. It's important for educators to be familiar with how social networking works, especially twitter. They can stay informed and post on up to date information and ideas on certain issues, subjects, and advice. Teachers can also use these types of sites to inform students or other educators on assignments or things that they need to be aware of. Some may even have their students create accounts to share information. I personally wouldn't have my students do that, but I would use the site myself as a tool to gain information and ideas.

Thing # 17

The Delicious social bookmarking website can be used as a tool for the classroom. Teachers can tag certain sites and share them with other educators or even with their students. Students can also use this site as a helpful resource to gather information and keep it all in one location. It's great because information that you need can be accessed from any computer. You never have to worry about being frustrated with finding that one site that is hiding under your favorites! Teachers can use this site to search for topics under their own subject area or what interests them and they don't have to worry about going through sites that are going to be a waste of time. I would personally use this site for myself in my free time to do assignments or find information. I would also use it in the future as an educator.

Thing # 16

I chose to use iGoogle as my start page because I am familiar with Google. It's a good way to stay connected with news and information. You can customize it to your educational interests with iGoogle and take away or add things that you want to display. I would use it as my homepage because as soon as I logged into the internet I would be informed on current events in the educational field. Online calendars and to do lists are very useful to me! They help me stay on track with my goals and standards. I would definitely use them for the classroom. For example, you could print off a blank calendar sheet and have the students fill in their homework assignments or you could even scan them yourself and print off copies for the students. I love to use Remember the Milk. It is a great to do list, and even comes in app form, which I use regularly. They are great to use for personal reasons as well. I don't think they are too much work, but that is my opinion. It might vary for different people, but I try to stay organized as much as I can. It can be hard to sometimes when things get stressful, so these sites and calendars can be helpful. I would recommend them to others for sure! Google Docs is also a great site to use for your own personal use and in the classroom. I would say it best comes in handy when you don't have access to a reliable word document, excel, or PowerPoint. It is so similar to those documents that you can hardly tell the difference.

Thing # 15

By using, Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki, it can be useful for librarians and educators to collaborate with each other on different ideas and thoughts. They can manage, organize, share, and edit each other’s thoughts on different topics and issues. They can also post advice on book discussions and recommending books. Teachers can be involved with the site by collaborating with them and editing information when new updates are out or have been changed. I would use a Wiki for sharing my own personal experiences and information on certain topics. I would use them in the classroom to share my educational advice and get helpful tips from other educators. I thought that it was interesting that you can edit another person’s information. It can be helpful when others are collaborating on the same topic at the same time, so the information is current and up to date.

Thing # 14

I chose to use the Venn diagram from gliffy.com. Since I chose third grade reading to be my main area of focus for the class, I created a diagram that displayed the similarities and differences between the characters of Charlotte's Web. If I were to use this diagram in a classroom setting, I would print off blank Venn diagrams, and have the class fill in what they thought were differences between the three characters and what they thought were similar characteristics. The mind map from, bubbl.us, is a great site to use for mapping out ideas or outlines of a certain topic. It can be helpful if you are studying something to plan out the different characteristics and what categories go where. I would use this site for personal studies to study dates or methods.

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Each can be used in a classroom setting or for your own personal use!