Website Evaluation

   When I first started this assignment I did not really think that it would be useful, seeing as I have been using websites since I can remember. I really enjoyed looking around for the different parts of the website that I have never really thought about but as a teacher that is necessary. As a teacher I need to know what to look for that makes a website a good website. I really enjoyed getting to look around the website I evaluated, ABCYa.com, and exploring the games on this site. Also, as teachers, it is important that we are up to date with websites because more than likely our students will be very in-tune with technology and it will be very important in their future. The world is becoming more technologically driven and it is important that our students will understand how to use websites through their teachers. Thanks to this activity I no know what i should be looking for in a good website.

Changing my Mind about Blogs in the Classroom

     When I first started learning about using technology in the classroom, such as blogs and wikis, my main concern was hat I would learn all of this information for nothing because elementary students might have a hard time making a blog. This blog, "Ms. Cassidy's Classroom Blog", showed me that even six year olds can use a blog! I was certainly surprised at everything that I found on her blog from the students and from herself. This blog really opened my eyes to different ways of using this technology in an elementary school classroom.
     The best part about this blog, for me, was her use of children involvement in the blog. She has each student have their own blog page that she links to in the side bar. Every student seems to post frequently about what they are learning in the classroom. They take their own pictures of different things and even add videos in their blogs! Here is an example of one of the student's pages: 

      I also really liked the use of videos on her blog. She puts many videos up of her class or what they were learning about that day. Not only does she have to post the videos but she has to make them as well, which shows a lot of time put into her classroom. She even has her students make videos and put them on their section of the blog! I'm sure to have a six year old do that is no easy task. 

     Overall, I found this blog to be very eye-opening for me. I am really glad that I took the chance to review this blog and take the time to see that even the littlest of people can use technology for their advantage. This blog definitely gave me a new thinking into how I could use a blog in my future classroom. 

Course Expectations

      To be completely honest with you, I am not sure what I fully expected going into this class. I knew we would be learning about different uses of technology in the classroom, but I was not exactly sure what those would be or how they would be useful. In three short weeks I have already learned more about classroom technology than I thought possible.
     My expectations continuing in the class would be to expand my knowledge in technology in the classroom. I never really thought that technology in an elementary school classroom would be necessary but now I realize that it is important and that I need to be more open to technology in the classroom. I need to know these things because more than likely the children that I will be working with will be very good at using technology, seeing as this is the new world that they are growing up in. Another expectation of mine for this class is to learn more of the technological vocabulary. Not only do I need to know how to use these things, but it is important to know what you are taking about when referencing technology. This will be important if a future employer ask me to use a "wiki" because I will know exactly what they are referencing.
      Overall, this class has already helped me along in just three weeks so I am excited to see what the rest of the semester unfolds. Even though technology still makes me nervous I am excited to learn and grow and see what this class can teach me.