Thursday, December 11, 2008

Goodbye to you all....

Hello and goodbye to all of my blogging classes,

Well, the semester is coming to an end. It has been a pleasure to read each and every blog posting that you have written. I did not know how the blog would be received, but you have exceeded all of my expectations. Thank you.

Keep writing. Do not stop. The act of writing does not need to be painful; it should be a process that brings you to a better place. Writing can help you become a better reader, mathematician, and student. It can even help you become a better person. It really can.

Do not believe anyone who tells you that you cannot write. There will be some. It may be a professor or a friend or even a relative... Do not let them bring you down. You can write. I know it. You just not be writing in the way that person thinks is "good writing". However, what really is "good writing"?

I hope some of you continue this blog or start one of your own. Do not forget this when you are applying for jobs. This blog is a living document of your scholarly work and your interest in education.

Good luck in all you do!

Take care and have a wonderful holiday!

Friday, December 5, 2008

"Kids Know It" Website


Here is a site that one of my graduate students (John Lucas) examined for a class project. During the night he presented, the website would not load (OF COURSE) so he posted the site on his blog and I thought I would share it, too.


John explained: "It would be most useful for teachers that are working with younger students. I think that students could really benefit from the site. I think it's great that it's free and yet it isn't overwhelmed by a lot of advertising. The link can be found at the bottom of this post. I hope it works for you and enjoy.www.kidsknowit.com"

Thanks, John!

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Educational Organizations

In my Ee204 (LAL) class we are discussing activities and affiliations you should add to your resumes.

Here is a link you can examine that may help you find some to meet your needs and interests:

http://www.theteachersguide.com/Educationassociations.html


Good luck!

Friday, November 28, 2008

Advice for Student Teachers


Here is a list of hints from a current student teacher to those of you who will be student teaching soon:




Any thoughts?

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Another New Teacher Survivial Website



Since many of you seem to enjoy these sites, here is another one for new teachers:

http://discoveryeducation.com/survival/

And here is a blog for New Teachers called the New Teacher Network:

http://www.newteachernetwork.net/


Enjoy!

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Saturday, November 15, 2008

List of NJ School Districts


For all of you who are starting to look for teaching jobs, I thought I would share this site with you.


This site gives you the addresses of all NJ school districts:

http://www.state.nj.us/education/directory/districts.shtml


Good luck!

Open House Videos

Here are the links to the Open House videos:

Pay Attention

A Vision of K-12

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Portfolio Ideas

In response to Jaclyn's recent post about portfolios, here is a link with some ideas of how to manage and organize your portfolios:

http://pdonline.ascd.org/pd_online/portfolio/1997danielson/ch5.html

Any other ideas?

Monday, November 10, 2008

Writing Fun


Here is a link to an excellent writing site:




This site provides many ideas for students and teachers.


Take a look!

Friday, November 7, 2008

Curriki

Thank you to Katie for showing me this site:

Curriki is a community of educators, learners and committed education experts who are working together to create quality materials that will benefit teachers and students around the world.

Curriki is an online environment created to support the development and free distribution of world-class educational materials to anyone who needs them.

Take a look and find something you can use today!

Monday, November 3, 2008

Election Day Sites


Since most of the USA is focusing on Tuesday, November 4th, I figured this would be a great time to post some Election Day activities you can use with your students.




If you have any others that you use or have found, please feel free to post them on your blogs or as a comment to this one.


Thanks and happy voting!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

The Learning Page

Another excellent resource for beginning teachers!

LearningPage provides a huge collection of professionally produced instructional materials you can download and print. Lesson plans, books, worksheets, and much more can be found at this site.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Scholastic Computer Lab Favorites


Thank you to Catarina for showing me this wonderful site!


The Scholastic website provides so many interesting ideas and this is one.


This link will bring you to some quick, compelling one-session activities that use interactive learning and technology. Each activity requires no prep and can be completed in 15-30 minutes.


Have fun!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Math Songs

At the AMTNJ conference, a teacher in my session showed me this site.

http://www.songsforlearning.com/index.php

You may find some materials to include in your lesson plans for musical learners.

Each song is designed to help children of all ages learn and remember important mathematical concepts and enjoy themselves at the same time.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Another Powerpoint Helper

Here's another Powerpoint video that may help you as future teachers:



Enjoy!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Pumpkin Lesson Plans


Here is a link to an elementary My Pumpkin Story lesson plan.


Your students can use an online tool to create a unique pumpkin and write a story about its special characteristics.

Happy Halloween!


Wednesday, October 15, 2008

How NOT to Use Powerpoint

Now you all know how much of a technology advocate I am. However, there is a side of me who knows that not all technology is effective.

Take a look at this humorous video about how NOT to use technology. According to Don McMillan, this is a viewpoint on how people (teachers included) should NOT be using PowerPoint.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cagxPlVqrtM&feature=related

Any thoughts?

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

BrainPop Blog


At the NJAET conference, I met with a BrainPop representative who showed me this blog site.

http://www.brainpop.com/educators/blog/

There are a variety of lesson plans, graphic organizers, movies, and other cool teaching tools. Enjoy!

Monday, October 13, 2008

More schools fail to meet NCLB requirements in 2008

More schools fail to meet NCLB requirements in 2008

In a front-page story, the New York Times (10/13, A1, Dillon) reports that Prairie Elementary School in Sacramento, Calif., "had not missed a testing target since the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law took effect in 2002. Until now." This year, "California schools were required to" increase "the students proficient in every group by 11 percentage points." Prairie and "hundreds of other California schools fell short," resulting "in probation and, unless reversed, federal sanctions within a year." New data shows that nationwide, "far more schools failed to meet the federal law's testing targets than in any previous year." According to the Times, one reason for the trend is that in some states, "officials chose to require only minimal gains in the first years after the law passed and then very rapid annual gains later." In addition, states with stringent exams, such as Hawaii and South Carolina, have reported lower compliance rates than states with easy exams."

Take a look at the full article, and see what you think:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/13/education/13child.html?ref=todayspaper

Friday, October 10, 2008

Skype!

Thanks to Ms. Evans, the new Blackboard administrator at SPC for showing me this piece of technology!

Skype was founded in 2003 by Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis. Skype created a piece of software that makes communicating with people around the world easy and fun. With Skype you can say hello or share a laugh with anyone, anywhere. And if both of you are on Skype, it’s free.

Skype is available in 28 languages and is used in almost every country around the world. Skype generates revenue through its premium offerings such as making and receiving calls to and from landline and mobile phones, as well as voicemail and call forwarding.

Give it a try!!!

Monday, October 6, 2008

Guide to Grammar and Writing

Take a look at this site focusing on grammar and writing.

The Guide to Grammar and Writing is sponsored by the Capital Community College Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports scholarships, faculty development, and curriculum innovation.

Enjoy!

Friday, October 3, 2008

Educational Quote

It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.”

-Henry David Thoreau

Monday, September 29, 2008

Computer Lab Favorites


Computer Lab Favorites

http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/clf/

These online activities are designed for elementary through middle school. They address a variety of skills.

Click on “Language Arts” for activities like “Poetry Idea Engine,” “Character Scrapbook,” and “Pick the Perfect Word.”

Some activities are related to specific titles, but students can use them even if they are not reading that book.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Online Videos




You want to use a video... What if your school does not allow the use of YouTube?

Here are some alternatives:

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Rubistar site


After my graduate class last night, I found out that posting this site may help lots of educators.

http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php

In addition, here are some others you may like to use in your educational pursuits:

QuizStar Construct online quizzes that can include multimedia. http://quizstar.4teachers.org/

Arcademic Skill Builders Educational Games for students to polish math and language skills.
http://arcademic.altec.org/

PersuadeStar Provides tools for students to write persuasive essays.
http://persuadestar.4teachers.org/

Classroom Architect Design a floor plan for your classroom.
http://classroom.4teachers.org/

Equity Locate resources and tools to help you meet the needs of a diverse classroom.
http://equity.4teachers.org/

TrackStar View thousands of online lessons or quickly create your own.
http://trackstar.4teachers.org/

Assign-A-Day Post your own online class calendar with hyperlinks and projects.
http://assignaday.4teachers.org/

Casa Notes Assemble take-home notes in English and Spanish.
http://casanotes.4teachers.org/

PBL Checklists Make custom checklists for multiple projects.
http://pblchecklist.4teachers.org/

Teacher Tacklebox Locate top-rated Tracks, WebQuests, and ThinkQuests for your subject.
http://4teachers.org/intech/lessons/

Web Poster Wizard Make and post a simple Web page within minutes.
http://poster.4teachers.org/

NoteStar Assist students with collecting group notes and citations for papers.
http://notestar.4teachers.org/

Think Tank Helps student set up topics for reports. Use alone or with NoteStar.
http://thinktank.4teachers.org/

KidsVid Help teachers and students use video production in class support project-based learning.
http://kidsvid.altec.org/

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Firstbook Blog Site

I found this blog and thought I would share it with you. Feel free to link it to your blog.

http://blog.firstbook.org/

First Book is a nonprofit organization with a single mission: to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. Through hundreds of local Advisory Boards, the First Book National Book Bank, and the First Book Marketplace, the organization provides an ongoing supply of new books to children participating in community-based mentoring, tutoring, and family literacy programs.

First Book has provided more than 50 million new books to children in need in thousands of communities nationwide.

Friday, September 19, 2008

Midterm for Tests and Measurements Class


This is where you will post (using the comments):


  1. 1 multiple choice question (with answer)

  2. 1 essay question (with answer)

This is due: Tuesday, September 30, 2008


Once I have all the questions, I will post which essays MAY be on the exam.


If you need help, contact me!

**Only Ed301 (Tests and Measurements) students should respond to this blog. Thanks!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Monday, September 15, 2008

Acceptable Use Policy Wiki Site

In response to Mark's, Katie's, and Francine's interest in school's AUPs (see comments in my Chats in Elementary Schools? posting below), take a look at this link:

http://landmark-project.com/aup20/pmwiki.php

This website is a dynamic document designed to support teachers, school media specialists, and education leaders in developing, maintaining, and enforcing AUPs.

Enjoy!

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Beginning Teacher Website


Here is a neat website for beginning teachers. They have a section on student teaching and teaching tips.


http://www.inspiringteachers.com/index.html



This site claims to be a community of educators networking for mutual growth and support in the teaching profession. Their mission is to empower teachers and provide strategies to help them not just survive, but thrive in the classroom.


Enjoy and save this site for when you enter the classroom or become an administrator.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Chats in Elementary School?

After my first venture into the Virtual Classroom with my GE555 graduate class last night, I wanted to see what you thought about using chats with your students.

I found this article about using chats with younger students.

http://www.ifets.info/journals/4_3/grigsby.pdf

Do you have ideas on how this could be effective or not? Do you think using a chat room is appropriate or inappropriate at a certain age?

I am interested in what you think.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Definr.com Website

Take a look at this excellent Language Arts site (online dictionary):

Definr http://definr.com/ The site bills itself as an “incredibly fast dictionary,” and it is. It provides definitions and synonyms only.

If you’re looking for syllables, etymology, or antonyms, try www.m-w.com.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Comments to Each Other

I just wanted to let you know that I see many people commenting on each other's blog introductions. This is an excellent way to let each other know that you are "listening".

Keep up the excellent work!

Also, here is a link to the top 100 educational blogs. Maybe ours will be next!

And, keep blogging!

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Blackboard Info

Hello all!

I just received a note from the HelpDesk at SPC about the new version of Blackboard and the problems some of you have been encountering.

Here is the advice I received:

Recently, there has been some confusion regarding how students log into the new Blackboard system. When a student's account is first created in the new Blackboard system, they are given a default password of SPc + last four digits of their Social Security Number.

Please note that the new Blackboard works independently of the old Blackboard system. Therefore passwords could be different if students had previously changed it on the old Blackboard system.

If you encounter a student who is having difficulty logging into the new Blackboard, it's likely their using the wrong password. Inform the user to use the password convention described above. If they still cannot log into new Blackboard, have them call the helpdesk at extension 7800 and they will reset the password.

Finally, if a student or faculty would like to change their password, they can do so by clicking "Course Tools" within any course, then "Personal Information," and finally "Change Password." This will allow the student to change the password to something they are more comfortable with (e.g. their password for old Blackboard).

Hope this helps!

How to Start a Blog

Take a look at this site:

http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=163100418

Any thoughts?

Friday, August 29, 2008

Blog Help

Hello classes (yes, there are more than one blogging this term)!

Hopefully this week you can get started on creating your blogs and getting used to this format.

If you need any assistance, let me know.

To get you started and thinking, here is a link to an article on How to Start your Own Blog:http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=163100418

Furthermore, if you have any questions that you think other students may benefit from, you can post them here and I will publicly answer them.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to seeing you soon!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Welcome!

Welcome to the blog!

Some of you are returning bloggers and we have some newbies.

Enjoy this site.

And, above all, have fun blogging!

Friday, June 27, 2008

How Positive is Positive Reinforcement?

How Positive is Positive Reinforcement?

Teaching children is arguably one of the hardest vocations around, mostly because you have to be a Jack-of-all-Trades and a master of one at least in order to enjoy a reasonable amount of success. A classroom full of young, boisterous kids is not the most conducive atmosphere to learning, but that’s what a teacher’s job entails – to make sure the children become not just better students but also better human beings.

Very often, the behavioral patterns of children creep into and affect the way they gather, assess and use knowledge – a broken or abusive home may make dull the brightest mind and cause rebellion at school, a fight with a friend may induce disinterest and depression in a normally chirpy youngster, and stress about an upcoming exam may cause the most brilliant student to collapse and fail. It’s the teacher’s job to take all factors into consideration and do what’s best, both for the child as an individual and the class as a whole.

One theory which has received its share of both bouquets and brickbats is that of positive reinforcement, the strategy which attempts to build on existing positive aspects in children by offering them some form of incentive, physical or supportive. Offering small gifts and treats or showing appreciation by encouraging words for adhering to the rules or performing well in class has been proven to have an uplifting effect on children and their morale. When morale is high, it automatically follows that performance improves.

While positive reinforcement seems like a pretty easy theory, putting it into practice involves a whole lot more:

· It’s important to be positive without being patronizing. Children can tell the difference. Negative behavior should not be praised or rewarded at any cost.
· Teachers should take care not to motivate one at the cost of others; comparisons should be avoided.
· Similarly, the teacher should be impartial and follow the same principles in meting out reinforcement.
· Finding out what constitutes positive reinforcement in each set of students, according to age or culture, plays an important role in the process. What’s reward for one group may not be as enticing to another.
· It’s not wise to choose reinforcements that are costly or time-consuming.
· Being too generous with positive reinforcement can nullify its positive effects and diminish its value.
· Teachers should know how to monitor performance after and before reinforcement and act accordingly.
· Positive reinforcement works best when the teacher is familiar with the children as individuals and knows what makes them tick.
· Children must be able to connect the reinforcement to the behavior that elicited it, which means that the time between positive behavior and positive reinforcement must be as short as possible. In short, they should know what they are being rewarded for.
· Reinforcement must not have the opposite effect – if, for whatever reason, the teacher does not reward the child, it should not be a reason for the latter to stop the good behavior or performance altogether.

On the other side of the coin, much has been said about the negative effects of positive reinforcement. The incentives have been termed “bribes” and have been accused of fostering dependence and a sense of false well-being and satisfaction. But research has proved that positive support works wonders for children who have never heard words of praise or been rewarded for good behavior. Punishments, while effective in the short term, are not the solutions to control regular mischief mongers. Teachers who are against this practice must realize that they themselves are prone to work harder when the offer of a bonus is in sight.

Good or bad, the debate still rages on, as seen in this news story!



This article is contributed by Heather Johnson, a freelance writer as well as a regular commentator on fast online degrees. Heather invites your questions, comments and freelancing job inquiries at heatherjohnson2323 at gmail dot com.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Final Blog Reflection

Just a reminder that the final blog reflection is due this week.

On that note, I would like to thank each of you for participating in this assignment. Blogging is something that has caught my interest over the past several years, and I am pleased that I got to share it with you. Yes, it can be time-consuming and a bit unconventional. However, I think it can enhance any class. Students who feel a bit shy in class may use to the blog to reflect. They may also use it to discuss issues they would not be comfortable enough to verbalize in class.

Moreover (you all know I love this word), this entire class experience has been a positive one for me. Thank you for all you have done to make it a success.

Good luck in all your future endeavors. If you need anything, please feel free to contact me!

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Virtual Textbooks

Take a look at this article from Digital Directions about virtual textbooks.

How do you feel about this issue?

Thursday, June 19, 2008

High Achieving Students in the Era of No Child Left Behind

In response to Andrew's blog posting on NCLB and Rosalind's comment about gifted students, I found this piece at www.edweek.com.

Examine the article and see if you agree or disagree with the author:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/eduwonkette/2008/06/high_achieving_students_in_the_1.html

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

MY Access! Blog

After reading some of your blog reactions, I think MY Access! (MA!) has sparked some interest in the program.

MA! has its own blog at this site http://reach.vantagelearning.com/

Take a look. It gives some background on the program as well as some real-world applications and concerns.

Some examples include:
Enjoy!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Technology Training for Teachers

Take a look at this article about professional development and technology.

http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/?i=54091;_hbguid=f99984a6-9c03-4824-8e3a-1fcb0386c0ce&d=top-news

Any thoughts? Have you experienced any of these feelings?

Friday, June 13, 2008

Poetry

In response to Arleen's engaging poetry reading on Wednesday, I found this article about poetry. It claims that poems convey "a maximum amount of thought and feeling in the fewest and most carefully chosen words."

"When you immerse your students in rich, lively poetry, you introduce them to intense, concise, skillfully crafted language".

This article claims that poetry should be included as an integral part of the language and literacy curriculum.

http://www.readingonline.org/electronic/elec_index.asp?HREF=/electronic/webwatch/poetry/index.html

Take a look and see what you think.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Blogging Article and Feedback

Just a note to let the class GE570 how excited I am that we are all blogging. This week's blogs have been so interesting to read and enlightening. Keep up the great work.

Here is a link to a current article on blogging and its effectiveness in the classroom.

http://techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=196605250&page=1

Enjoy!

Monday, June 9, 2008

Free Rice!

Take a look at this vocabulary development website:


FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com.

FreeRice has two goals:
1. Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.
2. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Phonics Instruction for Older Students? Just Say No

In response to Anthony's question in class yesterday, I found this article in ASCD about using phonics instruction with older students.

Phonics Instruction for Older Students? Just Say No

Take a look and see what you think.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Preschool and Literacy

I just saw this article posted in a journal I read:

Hood, M. et al. (2008). Preschool home literacy practices and children's literacy development: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol 100(2), 252-271.

New results on preschool reading have been published from a longitudinal study out of Australia. They tracked parent literacy rates, parent-child reading frequency during preschool years and parent letter-sound instruction with preschoolers.

While there was no correlation between parent-child reading frequency and phonological awareness in kindergarten or grade 1, it did improve receptive language skills. Parent teaching of letter sounds did correlate with phonological awareness by grade 2.

Overall, while parent-child reading practices during preschool years somewhat affects early literacy, once a year or two of schooling is underway, most of these differences disappear.

Here is a link to the article (it is fee-based, but you can access the abstract).

Monday, June 2, 2008

Teacher Quote

If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 40 people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn't want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher's job.

~Donald D. Quinn

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Student and Teacher Blogs that Succeed

Student and Teacher Blogs that Succeed

A veteran blogger reveals why some blogs are popular and others are not.

Take note of the hints for success and use them on your own blog.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

The Book Whisperer

Here is a blog written by sixth grade teacher Donalyn Miller who discusses issues such as reading strategies, teaching methods, the federal Reading First program , and others.

Please enjoy reading about another educator's journey, and see how she blogs.

The Book Whisperer

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Incentives Improve Reading Scores

Education Week (5/27, Robelen) reported, "School-based reward programs that offer students such incentives as cash, free MP3 players, or other gifts appear to produce improved reading achievement across grade levels," according to preliminary findings from the Center for Research on Education Outcomes at Stanford University.
The finding "comes as a growing number of school districts and charter schools around the country are experimenting with such reward programs in the hope of improving student learning and behavior," and "suggests that incentive programs may well be a cost-effective measure to help raise achievement."
One of the researchers explained that incentives are "not a silver bullet, but for very little investment, you seem to get a pretty consistent bump." But another researcher "who recently published his own study on performance incentives in one school district" said that while the Stanford "research holds considerable potential to shed more light on the impact of incentive programs, its academic results to date should be interpreted with caution" until there is a greater amount of data to consider.

What do you think of the study's findings? Do you agree or disagree?

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

First Class Reaction

Today we....

watched this video...

This is what I thought...

Welcome to GE570!

This is an introductory post for the summer graduate course GE570!

Welcome and please post a comment to this blog posting so I know you got on the blog successfully!

Good luck creating your blogs!

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Math Stategies video podcasts

Take a look at some of these podcasts created to help math students learn common problem topics:

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=EB2196CE96D0D750

Enjoy!

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Fourth-Grade Teacher Visits Our Class Friday

As we all know, we will have a visitor tomorrow to speak with us. Here is the list of questions that my other class started and we discussed on Tuesday. Take a look, and see if you have any others to add. You can add them in the "Comments" section.

Thanks~

Questions for Mrs. Milite

1. How do you set up your classroom? Why?
2. How has teaching fourth grade changed over the years?
a. Students
b. Staff
c. Assessments/Tests
d. Curriculum
e. Motivation
f. Parents
3. How do you deal with parents?
4. Do you love being a teacher? Why or why not?
5. What is the hardest thing about your job?
6. What is the easiest thing about your job?
7. Has your job ever interfered with your personal life? Does it affect your “outside life”?
8. What is your view on principals and superintendents?
9. Who was your most challenging student? Why?
10. Did you always want to be a teacher?
11. Have you taught any other grades?
12. Have you ever thought about teaching older kids?
13. How difficult is it to find a job? Do you think it will get easier or harder?
14. Have you ever had a student teacher?
15. What do you do in the summer?
16. What was your first year of teaching like?
17. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Bloggers in Action!


Catarina looks on as Deirdre blogs at the Academic Symposium. This experience allowed us to see that blogging can be done practically anywhere (with an Internet connection) and at anytime.

Thanks to the students who visited the Symposium and to the rest of you who have put so much hard work and effort into this educational blog assignment.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Academic Symposium

Today, our blog will be presented at the annual Academic Symposium.

The Academic Symposium provides participating students from all departments with an opportunity to share their research, publications, and other educational projects with the College Community.

Come take a look at our blog as well as other fascinating projects and research!

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Final Blog Assignment

This is the end of the official blog assignment. The final date to officially post and respond is Friday, April 25.

At that point, you should have at least 15- 20 blog postings. With that said, I am not being "picky" on the amount of postings, but rather looking at the content and how active you were in posting and responding.

If you have any questions about your status, please let me know. However, if I was concerned with you, you would probably know it by now. ;)

So, on to the final assignment....

Please use your next posting (or two or three...) to reflect on your blog.
  • Write about your blog.
  • Discuss what you originally thought of the assignment
  • Explain what you learned by using it.
  • Do you think it was an effective assignment?
  • What could make it more effective next semester?
  • Would you use it in your future teaching?

Thanks. And again, your blog writing this term was nothing less than amazing.

Bye

"Thanks!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Free Rice!

FreeRice is a website that can help your students increase their vocabulary while helping others.

The website has two goals:

1. Improve your vocabulary

2. Improve your life and the lives of others

Take a look at this site and see what you think...

**FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Randy Pausch


Susan just imformed me that Randy Pausch will be on ABC (channel 7) tonight at 10:00PM.

Thanks, Susan!
Let's watch...

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Rapping Vocab

Today in my Tests and Measurements class, a student presented a lesson using this site:

Flocabulary: Hip-Hop in the Classroom
http://www.flocabulary.com/

Take a look and a listen and see what you think.

Friday, April 4, 2008

Vocabulary Website

After our interesting discussion on vocabulary development, I thought I would share this link:

http://www.vocabulary.com/

This site contains root lessons as well as online games and puzzles to increase vocabulary skills and knowledge.

Enjoy!

Monday, March 31, 2008

Welcome Back!!

Welcome back to the blog...and school, too.

Hope you all had a wonderful Spring break and are rested.

I know some of you were doing your field experiences during the week. Anything you would like to share with the class?

Monday, March 17, 2008

Blogging on Break... Yes or No?

To blog or not to blog...that is the question...

Here is my answer:

If you have followed the criteria (2 blogs a week and at least one response a week), please feel free to take the week "off" from blogging. If you have a couple to catch up on, make sure you add a couple blogs.

If you have any concerns, please ask me.

Have a nice break!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

New Jersey Association of Educational Technology

Take a look at this site and blog.
Visit the website to sign up for this organization. It is free to join!

The Blog includes monthly topic discussions with experts from all around New Jersey and places for NJAET members to share ideas and resources.



Friday, March 14, 2008

What Are You Doing In That Computer Lab?

After our day in the lab, I thought this would be a nice connective piece for you to read:

Read What Are You Doing In That Computer Lab?

How will you use a computer lab in your school?

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

NCLB thoughts

Here is an article about the infamous NCLB:

“No Child Left Behind” Should Be Left Behind

And, being fair...here is another side to the story:

NCLB: Fix it, Don't Nix it

Any thoughts?

Sunday, March 9, 2008

High School Proficiency Assessment

Here is the link to the NJ HSPA guidelines on the NJ Department of Education (DOE) website:

New Jersey HSPA

Any thoughts?

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Teacher's Job

If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 40 people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn't want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher's job.
~Donald D. Quinn

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Puzzled?

Puzzlemaker is a free, online puzzle generation tool for teachers, students and parents. Create and print customized word search, criss-cross, math puzzles, and more using your own word lists.

Take a look at this one (took me less than a minute to create):


C E N L M N L S Y N L K F A F
Q R B X Y L A R Q J E A Z K G
N D T Q I S E S Z F E C P P O
J R M W I H S Y U C A U N M S
A I I M T V X I A S F W J F U
C E W A R R H T R L E O L H C
K D E Q Q I A C G H I V X D B
I H K T E R E N C E C S B N N
E R I F I D M L E T O X H C J
W R M N Y Q W M H M D P G A I
Y R A G W R B P M C I S Q S E
Q B Y O R U O N T X L O A A J
D P A R L Y I W V D X A V C A
D A M M A H O M H T C I U Z B
R E W T T S J O E F X X P R K

ALISHA
CATARINA
CHLOE
CHRISSY
DEIRDRE
HEATHER
ISAAC
JACKIE
JOE
MIKE
MOHAMMAD
SUSAN
TERENCE
WILL

Can you think of some good uses for this tool?


Saturday, March 1, 2008

Last Lecture on Tuesday

Class,

I promise to show the Last Lecture video on Tuesday.

This is a living example of how there is always so much to teach and never enough time!

Like I have said in class, you will have lesson plans and time allotments. Will you always meet them? I hate to say it, but no. Realistically, side discussions and insights usually lead you off-track and this is acceptable. Side discussions are usually what make for great learning opportunities.

On that note, though, I promise to show that video on Tuesday!

**P. S. Thanks again to Susan for finding it and posting it on her blog.

Friday, February 29, 2008

Online Projects

Here is a link to some online projects.

http://www.mrshurleysesl.com/onlineprojects.html

Take a look. Although some may be on the elementary level, they are worth a glance.

Questions for the Interviewer

You will all be interviewing VERY soon for teaching jobs.

So, you get the interview... You answer all of the required questions. What comes next?

Most candidates will have an opportunity to ask questions. These questions should be prepared in advance.

You should have several questions in mind before you arrive for the interview.

Here are some examples:

•What are you looking for in a teacher?
•How does the teaching staff support new teachers?
•Are teachers encouraged to earn advanced degrees?
•What is the teacher/student ratio in your district?
•How supportive is the community?
•Do your schools use teacher aides or parent volunteers?
•What allowances are provided for supplies and materials?
•Does the administration encourage field trips for students?
•What textbooks does the district use in this subject area?
•How are teachers assigned to extra-curricular activities? Is compensation provided?
•What technology is available in the district?
•Do teachers participate in curriculum review and change?
•What are prospects for future growth in this community and its schools?
•What support staff members are available to help students and teachers?

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Teachable Moment

Today was just that-- a teachable moment.

Last Wednesday we all experienced something that we will never forget. The memory will most likely diminish with time. The text messages will be deleted. And, eventually, the heightened feelings you have right now will fade, but the day will remain in your memory forever.

Some may say "nothing happened".

"There was no violence."

"There was no gunman."

Yet, we all know something happened. Something very important. Something that needs to be discussed.

A teachable moment is a situation that opens the door for a person to talk to a child or any other person about subjects that are difficult but necessary to discuss. These difficult conversation topics may include sexuality, alcohol and drug use, smoking, violence, eating disorders and depression.

Today the discussion was school violence and terrorism.

Hopefully you will not experience school violence when you start to teach. However, if you do, you can initiate a discussion like the one we had today to guide and teach your students. They may resist, but you need to try. Everyone has something to say; they just may be scared to say it.

I know I did not *want* to have this discussion, but it was necessary.

I would like to thank each one of you for being brave, and sharing a piece of yourself today.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Vantage Learning Reach Blog

Take a look at this brand new blog. It is a blog for educators and students using MYAccess! (the K-12 writing software I told you we will preview next month):

http://reach.vantagelearning.com/

Also, take a look at the main site:

http://www.myaccess.com/myaccess/do/log

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Positive Parent Communication

Just a quickie...

For every phone call you make to the parents or guardians of a struggling student, attempt to make a positive call to the parents or guardians of a successful student.

Any thought on this? Did any of you receive positive calls from teachers? Ask your parents... If not, would you have liked to hear positive feedback from a teacher? Do you think your parents would have liked those calls?

Let's think outside the box and be positive!

Monday, February 11, 2008

Online Courses

Just saw this post in an online educational journal I receive:

The Washington Post reported on an Arlington, Va., continuing education program called Arlington Mill High School, "an initiative that offers not only classroom courses to help students get their degrees but also an online component that is becoming an increasingly important tool for educators to prevent students from dropping out."

The Post noted that the high dropout rate in low-income areas is "blame[d] in part on large, impersonal, rule-bound schools that don't adjust well to individual needs and peculiarities" by experts. Online courses allow students to work at their own pace, as well as provide them with a measure of independence. Even so, "[t]eachers involved with online courses for dropouts say that [some] kind of drive is essential."

However, there are limits to online learning. Some students' lack access to the necessary technology. Also, the courses are "dependent on students' reading abilities," and therefore students who do not speak English as their first language can find the courses difficult.

Sound familiar?

Any thoughts?

Saturday, February 9, 2008

Positive Reinforcement...Friend of Foe?


Friday's class got me thinking about the use of positive reinforcement in the high school and middle school. Can we be "too"positive? Can our positive nature turn students off? Jackie's comment about taking the positive comment as sarcastic got me to think about how we can be positive in a way that actually helps the students.

My search brought me to an educational blog D-Ed Reckoning, which claims, "The primary problem with K-12 education today is the problem of dead reckoning--an estimate based on little or no information. We don't know what a good K-12 education system is because we've never seen one operating. A good education system is one that is capable of educating almost every child" (Derosa, 2007).


Take a look at his blog and specifically this October 8, 2007 post. In it, he talks with a practicing urban teacher who explains, "Negative reinforcement almost never changes peoples' behavior. That's virtually an axiom. If you want to change behavior, you have to organize the environment so that you can reinforce (reward) the behavior you want. The behavior you notice, pay attention to and reward is what you will get more of; positive methods are far more powerful than negative ones" (Derosa, 2007).

Any thoughts?

Reference

Derosa, K. (2007). D-ed reckoning. Retrieved February 9, 2008 from http://d-edreckoning.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Math/Spanish/History Site

Here is a link to for those math/Spanish/history teachers in our midst.

This is a great example of how we can touch multiple subjects in one lesson or unit.

Also, what a great site for some lesson plans ideas (Hint, hint ;))

Take a look and see what you think....

http://www.exploratorium.edu/ancientobs/chichen/HTML/TG-math.html

Widgets update

I just realized the link below weas not working. That tricky SPC website! I apologize. Here is the proper link to the Widgets:

http://blog.wikispaces.com/2008/01/wikispaces-widgets.html

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Wikispaces Widgets


I received this today from Wikispaces.


Use them to enhance your blog!


Wikispaces Widgets: This month, we are bringing you a bunch of cool new Wikispaceswidgets to put on your wiki pages. You can now put your discussionforums, page history, table of contents, or list of top spacecontributors directly on any page. Click "Edit This Page" and clickthe embed widget icon (psst...the one that looks like a TV). There'snow a "Wikispaces" option where you will see the various widgets youcan easily put on your space.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Looking for a Teaching Job?

Here is a great site to start your search for a job.
AGENT K-12 is the new online and print recruiting solution from Education Week, the largest and most respected K-12 newsgathering organization in the world.

Start early. It cannot hurt to get an idea of what is out there and what school districts are looking for.

Another excellent, local site is http://www.nj.com/jobs/

This site allows you to view The Star Ledger ads in a digital format.

Good luck!

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Free Access to Edweek.org During Open House

Hey everyone,

I received this email today and thought I would pass it on:

This Open House, from January 15-30, is the perfect opportunity for you to experience unlimited, premium access to http://www.edweek.org/ for FREE. You have nine days left to find out why edweek.org is the one site top educators visit on a regular basis, and where you can now interact with your colleagues.

Take a look!

Friday, January 18, 2008

First Class Session

Today was our first class. It was very nice to meet all of you and discuss our upcoming semester. It was also nice to FINALLY find out who Young Jezzy/Jeezy (pronounced JEEZY/spelled?) is. Learning never ends...

Hopefully you can get started on creating your blogs and getting used to this format. If you need any assistance, let me know. I am also learning blogger.com.

To get you started and thinking, here is a link to an article on How to Start your Own Blog:

http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=163100418

Furthermore, if you have any questions that you think other students may benefit from, you can post them here and I will publicly answer them.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to seeing you Tuesday!