C4K Summary #'s 7, 8, 9, and 10

C4K #7


Skyping w/ Mr. Webb

Filed Under (Main Page) by jkmcclung on 15-03-2011

DSC01057Jennifer from my 6th period class goes through a Q & A session with students from Mr. Webb’s class.

On Monday we were able to have an impromptu Skype conversation with a few of Mr. Webb’s students from New Zealand. All together the conversation lasted about 10 minutes, but we were able to learn quite a bit about each other in that time period…for instance, they picked up on the fact that we say the word “y’all” in Arkansas quite a bit. Who knew. The entire experience was very fun and exciting for the kids on my end and we are looking forward to having the opportunity to Skype again in the future.

Mr. McClung

My Reply

Tracy Hunt Says:
April 3rd, 2011 at 11:17 PM

Hello, I am a student at the University of South Alabama majoring in Elementary Education. This post was absolutely amazing and it’s great that such a wonderful program like “skype” can bring in so much excitement. Skype is a great way for students (and anyone) to interact with one another, and to learn about each other and anything for the matter.
Tracy Hunt
EDM310
http://hunttracyedm310.blogspot.com


C4K #8

Whats going on with the Earth???
Posted by connor19 in Uncategorized

Whats going on with the earth?

Have a count of how many recent natural disasters that have happened. The answer is 5 that has happened in the last three months! Now you cant tell me that isn’t a lot cause it is. Please comment and tell me how you feel about this or what you think is happening. It should be interesting what different people say.

Cheers Connor

My Reply

Tracy Hunt says:
April 8, 2011 at 2:48 pm

Hi Connor,
I am a student in Dr. Strange’s class at the University of South Alabama majoring in Elementary Education. First off, you have a very nice blog and I love the layout of it. Keep up the great work! I agree with you that there have been a lot of disasters happening lately around the world. It’s devastating at what happened in Japan with the tsunami and earthquake. I feel really bad for them right now. Perhaps you could talk to your teacher and do some type of fund raising and send a donation to the red-cross or something to go towards the Japan relief? Natural disasters are always devastating on communities, as they destroy everything in their path. Although it’s horrible what happened, it is also great to see the people and communities in Japan coming together and helping each other out. Great teamwork for such a horrible time. Disasters like this require teamwork and people working together to get things cleaned up, and support from one-another. You are more than welcome to visit and comment on my blog anytime you wish. http://hunttracyedm310.blogspot.com And again, keep up the great work with your blog!
Tracy Hunt
EDM310
http://hunttracyedm310.blogspot.com

C4K #9

Thursday, March 31, 2011
April is Family Blogging Month!

My Reply

Tracy said...

My name is Tracy Hunt, I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class majoring in Elementary Education. After viewing this blog, I must say that you've done a fantastic job! I love how the students are so involved. I love that the month of April is set aside for Family Blogging. I love this idea because it allows the parents, grandparents, etc. to get involved. You have done an absolute fantastic job creating this blog, and the fact that the students are so involved is just incredible.
Tracy Hunt
EDM310 student
http://hunttracyedm310.blogspot.com
April 17, 2011 8:57 PM

C4K #10

Seezdeh-Bedar
On Sunday, I participated in an Iranian celebration called Seezdah-Bedar!
Seezdah-Bedar is celebrated on the thirteenth day after Norouz, the Persian New Year. It marks the end of the New Year celebration. Seezdah means thirteen and bedar means to pass over. Seezdah-Bedar is therefore the passing over the thirteenth day of the new year, as many consider thirteen to be an unlucky number. On this day families leave their houses and head for parks, gardens, or country sides and enjoy their day together with a picnic. By having a joyous and laughter filled day outdoors, Iranians believe that they can keep bad luck away!

On Sunday morning, as with millions of other Iranians, every member of my family got up early to prepare for Seezdeh-Bedar at the park. We packed our car with all the necessary supplies, such as blankets, traditional foods, fruits, pastries, backgammon, and the Sabzeh (sprouted wheat or lentils) which had adorned the Haft Seen for thirteen days. The Sabzeh which by now had turned yellow symbolizes sickness and problems and is thrown into a flowing stream at the end of the picnic.

Once we got to the park I met up with my friends, we spent the day feeding ducks, playing on the playground, and riding our scooters. There were a lot of different booths selling different foods, such as ice-cream, Iranian food, and pastries. My friends and I stopped at a cotton-candy booth and we got some delicious blue cotton-candy! In the meantime, our parents and all other adults were enjoying themselves by socializing, playing backgammon or cards, eating, and dancing. The atmosphere was very festive!

My Reply

Blogger Tracy said...

Hello Hannah,
My name is Tracy Hunt, I am a student at the University of South Alabama in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class. I loved your blog post about Seezdah-Bedar, it was really interesting. I have actually never heard of it before, but upon learning about it from what you wrote on it, it sounds very fun and exciting. You looked as if you enjoyed yourself quite a bit from the pictures taken. You are welcome to visit my blog as well anytime you wish. Keep up the great work!
Tracy Hunt
EDM310
http://hunttracyedm310.blogspot.com

April 24, 2011 2:53 PM

Blog Post #13

1.) ALEX stands for "Alabama Learning Exchange." ALEX is a website where teachers can go to get information on lesson plans, and watch podcasts. As well, teachers can create and share their own lesson plans with other instructors.
As I was browsing around the ALEX website, I noticed it has many helpful tabs to click on. Such tabs include Courses of Study, Lesson Plans, Weblinks, Professional Learning, Personal Learning, Personal Workspace, Podcast Treasury, ALEXville, and Search.
I had never heard of the ALEX website before. After spending time browsing it and learning about the different things you can do on it, I personally believe it's very useful. It's a website I definitely plan on using for when I become a teacher in the future. Parents as well can browse ALEX and learn a great deal from it as well.

2.) ACCESS is a website that stands for "Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide." ACCESS was launched on November 1, 2004. ACCESS creates equity through additional educational offerings for all Alabama public high school students.

Special Assignment: Mr. McClung's World

1. What do you know (or have you found out) about Mr. McClung that is reflected in the way he has constructed his class blog?
The use of technology in Mr. McClung's classroom is fantastic. Mr. McClung is very active and patient with his 8th graders. His methods and ways of teaching go beyond that of what other teachers normally do. Mr. McClung is very active with his students parents as well, not to mention he is very organized too. He is the type of teacher who is willing to do almost anything for his students.

2.) Comment on what you would say about Mr. McClung as an educator.
Mr. McClung is a fantastic teacher. He seems to be the type of teacher who will do almost anything for his students. Mr. McClung reaches out to the parents as well, which is a great thing for any instructor to do!

3. I asked above that you read Mr. McClung's "rules" and think about them. What do they say about Mr. McClung, his teaching, and his connection with his students? What is your reaction to these rules (and guides) as a student and as an aspiring teacher?
Mr. McClung's rules are excellent! Rule 4 states: make smart choices. Mr. McClung seems to keep his class focused and that in return, brings back positive learning outcomes.

4. What was the first thing under Everyone needs? Why do you suppose that is the first requirement?
Day Planner. Mr. McClung is teaching his students how to plan and that they should become responsible for their assignments they turn in. Planning teaches students, as well as anyone for the matter, how to become "responsible" and to learn to time-manage.

5. Note the penalties for being late (under Homework). Compare them with my penalties for being late. Comment.
You will lose a letter grade for everyday that the assignment is late. You will be given the same amount of time to turn in your assignment if you had missed school. In EDM310, late work is unacceptable as you can get a "D" for work that is late.

6. Read carefully his paragraph about what he hopes to accomplish with his blog. Comment and apply to your own aspirations as a teacher.
He wants to make sure his students are actively involved in their schoolwork. As well, he wants to make sure the parents are actively involved as well by them visiting the blog to see what is going on in the students classroom.

8. Under Internet Safety I asked you to read carefully the rules Mr. McClung sets forth for safely using the internet. Comment on these rules. Are there any you would add or subtract?
Mr. McClung's internet safety rules are awesome. He wants all of his students to be safe whilst using the internet and to me, that is fantastic! I don't see anything I would change as to me, Mr. McClung covers it all.

10. Mr. McClung uses Edublog as his blog host. In some ways it may seem more "advanced." But Blogger has many abilities that we have not covered in EDM310. This leads to this question: Is there anything (or things) that Mr. McClung can do with his blog that you would like to do in Blogger?
I love using Blogger now that I have learned all about it. Blogging is an excellent way for people to communicate back and forth to each other. I wish I had a "chat" button in my blogger though, that would be great to have!

11. In what ways does Mr. McClung make his blog useful to parents, teachers, administrators, students like you, and others?
Mr. McClung posts his assignments, rules, policies, information about himself, and other useful tools to better prepare his students and their parents for what is expected in his classroom. Mr. McClung makes sure his students parents are always up to date on everything they do in the classroom and he seems to be the type of teacher who calls his students parents as well to keep in touch.

12. How does Mr. McClung's 8th grade blog differs from other blogs you have visited including other 8th grade blogs? Why the differences do you think?
Mr. McClung pushes his students to do better. He is always on top of them to learn as much as they can about technology and blogging, etc... He is actively involved in what they do and how they do it.

13. dd any additional comments you think would be useful in analyzing Mr. McClung's World in depth.
No additional comments. I can't think of anything else Mr. McClung can do to improve his blog, or anything else.

Blog Post #12

Blog Post #12 due 4/17

1.) Go to this website http://www.parenting-healthy-children.com/whyiseducationimportant.html and read "Why is Education Important."

2.) Write a paragraph or more explaining what you just read, and also if there is anything you agree or disagree on.

My Response

We all know education is important in order to successfully succeed in today's world. Without an education, one would not be able to make it far as in terms of getting a good paying job. Education is the key to success in life. After reading "Why Is Education Important" I have to agree with everything in the article. The only thing I do not agree with is the fact that in the beginning of the article, it says "Reportedly, college graduates make 100% higher pay than
high school graduates." I do not agree with this in that there are some professions that do not require a "college degree" and will start off with same pay-rates as to that of what an Associates degree will pay, and sometimes even a Bachelors degree will pay. Such professions are jobs like assistant managers in department stores, construction workers, plumbers, and things of the like. I agree with "Increased schooling develops verbal skills, which are important in general, and, especially, in managerial positions." One is required to read in school, thus requiring you to understand words you have never come across before. Even for me right now, I come across words I have never heard of after reading a book, or a selected reading in my literature class. Learning never stops. I enjoyed reading this article a lot.

Progress Report for Project #16

For Project #16 which is the final project my group has been formed. The group includes Lisianna Emmett, Michelle French, Jeniffer Silcox, and myself. We are in the process of deciding what we want to do for the project. A wiki has been created so we can discuss our ideas. The wiki says project #15 but it is really for project #16.

Project 15: USA First Gift

For my groups Project 15, we worked on the USA First Gift video contest. I am sorry to say that the video will not be available for viewing on Youtube until the contest is over. Until then, it is located on the EDM310 Family computer in the lab.

Project #14 Teach Someone Something

Blog Post #11

1.) First Graders in Ms. Cassidy's Class (4:56)

After watching this video, I must say that it is very AMAZING!!!!!! To see children creating blogs, and interacting with one another through the use of technology is just extraordinary. This teacher has done such an absolute amazing job with her classroom, and with her students! The technology for such young kids is amazing. Skype, blogging, creating Wikis, and overall just learning the many different programs and different uses of technology for such young students blew me away. The use of blogs in classrooms is very important. It allows the child to interact with his/her classmates and teacher, as well, it allows the parent(s) to view the blog of their child and see what is going on in their child's classroom as far as what they are doing throughout the day. Blogging also teaches about proper grammar skills, as well as social skills by allowing the student to interact with others online. I would definitely use blogging in my classroom.

2.) Skype Interview between Dr. Strange and Ms. Cassidy

Upon viewing the skype interview between Dr. Strange and Ms. Cassidy, I noticed that both instructors had similar views and attitudes towards technology. Through the interview, both teachers believe that technology will continue to advance. Technology is rapidly changing everyday. According to Ms. Cassidy, "the world is constantly changing." I agree with what she said. Technology is constantly changing. The way people think, schools, everything is advancing. It's vital for us as future teachers to keep up with the rapidly changing world. I never, as a child, really learned anything on a computer in school. It is astonishing at how kindergartners and so forth can create files, email, blog, create websites, etc... Technology will definitely be used in my classroom. A computer is a wonderful learning tool. I am a strong believer in learning as much about technology as possible, as technology is our future.

C4T #3

Post #1

Unable to locate post #1, but was done.

Post #2

Jeff Utecht "TheThinking Stick"

6 Trends for the next 20 Years

Kevin Kelly co-founder of Wired magazine took the stage recently at a Web 2.0 event in San Francisco. In his keynote he discussed the 6 Trends he believes will affect our connected word. He broke these 6 trends down into 6 verbs (actions).

What are your thoughts on these? What do these mean for schools and our students?

* Screening — Kelly notes that whereas there used to be just the television screen and then the computer screen, now screens are everywhere. And increasingly, everything will be a screen — all surface. There will be a “one screen for all,” Kelly says.

* Interacting — Right now, interaction is limited mainly to our fingertips, Kelly says. But the iPad is changing that — it’s about using more of your body now. And going forward, things like gestures, voice, cameras, and other things in our technology will transform the way we interact with everything. And yes, he brought up Minority Report.

* Sharing — While most people think of this right now as the top level social ideas, “we’ve just begun this process,” Kelly notes. The self-tracking of everything we do is now coming into play, he notes. This includes location, realtime pictures and videos, etc.

* Flowing — “We’re now into a new metaphor for the web,” Kelly says noting that we started with the desktop on computers, then pages for the web. Now the realtime stream connected to the web is the thing.

* Accessing — We’re moving to a world where it’s about accessing information and media and not owning it. We see this now with the rise of Netflix, but soon that will fully hit the music space too.

* Generating — “The Internet is the world’s largest copy machine,” Kelly says. Going forward, there will be an importance placed on things that cannot be easily copied. A key to this is an easy way to pay and content that is hard to copy. Immediacy is a key — if you want something right now versus when it can be copied. Personalization is another key, he says.

My Reply

I am a student at the University of South Alabama majoring in Elementary Education. I agree with this blog post. The internet and social media online are advancing at such a high rate of speed that in 20+ years from now, it might be that students can do all of their learning at home, rather than go to school. That or every classroom will have computers at the desks and chalk-boards will be replaced by smartboards and such. Technology is amazing and advancing at such high speeds that it is sometimes hard to keep up with it all.

Blog Post #10

1.) An Open Letter to Educators by Morgan Bayda:

Both Morgan Bayda's post and Mr. Browns video were very interesting. I enjoyed reading and watching both of them. Both offered excellent points i that todays education is expensive and often leads students forgetting what they "memorized" in class shortly after lectures. So many jobs today are hands-on learning, but because a "college degree" is required for such jobs, one must take classes and literally "pay" to get a good-paying job. Many of my classes are basically listening to a Professor lecture for an hour, taking notes off a power point, and leaving after. So many students around me fall asleep, or text on their phones. At least I'm learning good "memorization" skills in the end. I agree with Mr. Brown in that a lot of information we can obtain off the internet. Universities should do away with "pre-reqs" and just leave that for High School, and instead create simulation labs and lasses that you take that are solely designed for your major.

2.) Don't Let Them Take The Pencils Home:

I enjoyed this blog post, it was very interesting to read. The teachers were told not to allow their students to take their pencils home with them. According to research done, pencils that were taken home proved to lower test scores. Sounded quite ridiculous to me. I agreed to everything that was in this blog post.