Silly Books

This site is a safe and nurturing environment that encourages children between the ages of 3-13 to read.

Take a look and see what you think...

http://www.sillybooks.net/

More Twitter...

Continuing with the Twitter thread, here is a link for future librarians. How to use Twitter in the Library.

I think this link can be useful for teachers, too.

http://www.collegeathome.com/blog/2008/05/27/twitter-for-librarians-the-ultimate-guide

Twitter in Education

In response to Jim's blog (GE555 class Smitty's Section), here is some more Twitter information. Go look at his video to get an idea of what Twiiter is "in plain English".

This video explains how Twitter is related to education, blogging, and Facebook.

Enjoy!

How do I Publish a Webquest?

To my GE555 classes,

Thanks to Eric (on his blog) for this hint on how to publish your WebQuest:

"...Just sign on to questgarden using your temporary ID and then proceed like you are going to edit your webquest. At the very bottom of the editing menu is a section called "Tools". If you click on the link for "Publish" under tools, your webquest will become part of the questgarden domain and always remain available to you and your students. There are a couple of boxes that you need to check that give permission for them to make it available to the public. Check those and hit the "Publish" button and your webquest will be saved. Good luck!"

Kidspiration Help!

Here is a website from a terrific eduator named Vicki Blackwell.

She claims, "The purpose of this website is to provide a resource for ... teachers all around the world, as they continue to incorporate the use of technology into the curriculum. You will find my favorite links in the "Blackwell's Best" section. "The Classroom" has links to staff development materials and technology integration activities as well as tutorials for some of my favorite software. The "Tech Tips" page includes hints to help you become a more efficient technology-using educator, and the "TangiTech" section is devoted to our professional development programs for integration of technology into the curriculum. I hope you find something that will help you and your children."

Take a look: http://www.vickiblackwell.com/kidspiration.html!

Vocabulary

In my SE370 class, we are discussing the importance of developing a strong vocabulary.

Take a look at this free site that allows students, teachers and life-long learners to acquire and retain vocabulary.

http://www.vocabulary.com/

Blog Mirrors "Real Life"

I have always claimed that this blog takes on a life of its own, but have not seen it happen as strongly as it has this semester. Since I am teaching several online courses, the blog is an integral part of those experiences. My graduate-level GE555 class experience has really shown me that the blog mirrors "real life".

As all students know, we feel frustration at times. This stress can be felt in class, at home, and at work. Often, we voice that concern to our professor or friends either in writing (email) or by speaking to them. What do you do in an online course? I guess you could email me (and some have) or your classmates or friends, but I have found many of my students using the blog to communicate their feelings.

For example, I think most of my GE555 students voiced concern during the WebQuest "era"/module. There were cries for help, screams of anger, and grumbles. These pleas were heard by other class member and professor and were eased with private or public discussions. I know, I know... I am exaggerating here, but my students know what I mean. ;) For those of you who are not familiar with this time period, please go back to any of the GE555 students posts from about two weeks ago. We shall call this the WebQuest Week or Two or Three...Currently, this class seems to be content again and the feelings are showing in the Blogging "era"/module.

Just thought I would share this insight with you.

Do any of you find the blog taking on a world of its own? I welcome your thoughts--or complaints!

Blog away!

Bilingual Education and Technology

In response to Taran's (GE555) engaging blog posting on bilingual education and technology, I found this article.

Take a look and see what you think.

Tech Trekers Webquests

My GE 555 class just finished a module on WebQuests.

I thought I would share some other WebQuests with you:

http://www.techtrekers.com/webquests/

Any thoughts?

Word Verification Problems?

Is anyone having trouble leaving comments on blogs?

I wanted to share my problem with you. There have been several blogs that I have been unable to comment on. I write my comment and get a "Loading" message while I wait for word verification.

I searched the Help section of bloggger and found more than one other user having the same problem.

Please be patient. It is a blogger issue, and hopefully they will resolve it soon. Do not get frustrated. :)

Thanks!

La La La La

According to Howard Gardner, musical intelligence involves skill in the performance, composition, and appreciation of musical patterns. It encompasses the capacity to recognize and compose musical pitches, tones, and rhythms.

Some of us (not all, but a lot) have this intelligence and may not even know it. Younger children embrace and use this intelligence. Sadly, as we get older (or teach older students), this intelligence gets lost in the shuffle.

Take a look at this site:
http://www.songsforteaching.com/

Here is Dr. Jean's site, too:

http://www.drjean.org/

Any thoughts? Do you know of any other sites for music to teachers?

Another Live Chat: Obama's Plan

I wanted to share another opportunity for you to take part in a live online chat.

Live Online Chat:
Obama's Education Plan
When: Thursday, February 19, 3 p.m. Eastern time
Where: http://www.edweek-chat.org/

With the new administration in Washington comes the prospect of new approaches to education policy and practice that would directly affect schools and districts at the local level. Get an advance look at how decisions on the No Child Left Behind law, Title I, and other key legislation by President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan may change the education landscape.

Log onto this website on Thursday, Feb. 19, at 3 p.m. Eastern time for a free live chat with federal policy experts.

This chat coincides with the release of the latest book from Education Week Press, The Obama Education Plan: An Education Week Guide.

About the Guests:

• Chester E. Finn Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation
• Thomas Toch, co-founder and co-director of Education Sector
• Gene Wilhoit, executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers

This chat will be moderated by Education Week Associate Editor Scott J. Cech.

Copyright © 2009 Editorial Projects in Education.

NJ School Report Card

Take a look at NJ School Report Card.

Each year, the NJ Department of Education posts this information for the public to see. The NJ DOE's website claims, "The New Jersey School Report Card has provided the public with information about every school in New Jersey since 1995 when the Legislature mandated the annual accountability report."

Poetry 180

Here is a poetry website that provides a poem a day:

http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/

This site claims, "Poetry can and should be an important part of our daily lives. Poems can inspire and make us think about what it means to be a member of the human race. By just spending a few minutes reading a poem each day, new worlds can be revealed."

Webquests to Web 2.0

Students in my GE555 classes are currently working on WebQuests.

I wanted to share some information and resources with them, but figured we could all benefit from them.

Take a look at this workshop link.

The web site claims, "When you combine quality Internet resources and effective technology tools with the power of Web 2.0 applications, learning comes alive for students. WebQuests are an inquiry-based approach to addressing standards that place emphasis on motivating assignments, authentic assessments, and developing independent readers and writers."

Hope this helps!

Education quote

Instruction begins when you, the teacher, learn from the learner; put yourself in his place so that you may understand… what he learns and the way he understands it.

-- Soren Kierkegaard

Online Chat: Technology and Literacy

I just got a reminder for a live online chat. Thought I would pass it along to you. If you are interested, it would be a great experience.

Here is the info I received:

Tech Literacy Confusion: What Knowledge and Skills Really Matter?

When: Thursday, Feb. 5th at 2pm Eastern time
Where: http://www.edweek-chat.org

Join us for an online discussion to tackle the question: What is technology literacy and how should it be taught and measured?

Teaching literacy—reading and writing—is a core mission for schools, but today’s young people increasingly "read" 3-D computer simulations and "write" via social networks such as Facebook. A growing chorus of experts say schools should add these forms of communication to their literacy mission as "technology literacy."

Many educators and digital learning experts argue, further, that technology literacy should include the processes and conventions of online communities in which young people may use the new forms of communication—for example, "fan fiction" Web sites and "massively multiplayer online games."

Others have much different ideas about what should define technology literacy. The science community and corporate world, for instance, say the need for young people to receive better preparation in STEM subjects—science, technology, engineering, and math—for 21st-century careers justifies adding the fundamentals of those areas to the definition of technology literacy.
Still other groups argue that technology literacy should cover Internet safety, cyberbullying, and the laws on the use of intellectual property.

All these different ideas about what should define technology literacy have created quite a bit of confusion. But the good news is that some new efforts may clarify the definition, including a high-profile push to add a technology-literacy test to the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

About the Guests:
Tess Jolls, President and CEO, The Center for Media Literacy.http://www.medialit.org
Chris Stephenson, President, Computer Science Teachers Association.http://www.csta.acm.org
This chat will be moderated by Kevin Bushweller, Executive Editor of Education Week's Digital Directions.

Super Bowl Fun

Here is a link to some Super Bowl fun for you and your students.

http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson096.shtml

As educators, we need to provide motivational activities to keep our students interested.


See what you can use!

Secretbuilders: New Site for Me!

I came across this site in one of my educational technology sites:

http://www.secretbuilders.com/

The site claims: "SecretBuilders is a site that can be used to supplement the teaching of various topics, including literature, arts, sciences and humanities. The site gives children an opportunity to interact with famous historical and fictional figures from world civilization, making learning more enjoyable and effective. We can provide teachers with examples of how to incorporate SecretBuilders into their school curriculum."

Take a look and see what you think.

Awards

This morning the Caldecott, Newbery, Printz, Coretta Scott King and Pura Belpre Awards were announced.

For a listing of the awards, please click here:
http://educationservicesnews.blogspot.com/2009/01/ala-youth-media-awards.html

Podcasting, Anyone?

As I think I mentioned in class, I have started podcasting. I added a podcast to my undergraduate online course Ed 301. Slowly.... Small steps...

What is a podcast? Why would I want one? Are they free? Do I need to create them?

I found this article on podcasting that may answer some of these questions. http://www.wtvi.com/TEKS/05_06_articles/classroom-audio-podcasting.html The article explains that "Thousands of podcasts are being published for both local and global audiences on a multitude of topics. Two excellent places to find classroom podcasts are the Education Podcast Network (http://epnweb.org) and the podcast directory within the iTunes Music Store. iTunes is free software available for both Windows and Macintosh computers (www.apple.com/itunes)."

Enjoy!

Also: Here's a link to a classroom that is podcasting http://bobsprankle.com/blog/C1697218367/E20050925120007/index.html

Project Gutenberg

Need resources for your classes or lessons?

Project Gutenberg offers free online materials. It is the first and largest single collection of free electronic books, or eBooks.

Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.

Take a look at the site and see what you think!

Blog Privacy

In response to my class discussion in GE-555 last night, I found this article.

Here is an interesting point, "Blogs are getting a lot of attention these days. You can no longer safely assume that people in your offline life won't find out about your blog, if you ever could. New RSS tools and services mean that it's even easier than ever search and aggregate blog entries. As long as you blog anonymously and in a work-safe way, what you say online is far less likely to come back to hurt you."

Take a look and see what you think.

Thanks!

Hello again!

This is another new blog for GE555-02.

Welcome to the Blog!

Hello to this class! I cannot wait to get started.

Blog Video

Semester Start

Today is our first class session (undergraduates). I am anxious to meet you and start this exciting semester.

Hopefully 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

Here is a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN2I1pWXjXI

Furthermore, if you have any questions that you think other students may benefit from, you can post them here and I will answer them. Hope you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to a great term!

Almost time....

...to start blogging again~!

Just a note to say hello and that I have not forgotten about the blog. Spring semester starts soon and i look forward to hearing from you all again!

Take care~

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!

"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!

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!

Do You YouTube?

Take this quiz:

http://www.techlearning.com/instantpoll/

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:

http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/pages/1812.shtml

Any thoughts?

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!

Not on the Test Music Video

Any thoughts?

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

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?

Writing Fun

Here is a link to an excellent writing site:

http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/jeather/writingfun/writingfun.html

This site provides many ideas for students and teachers.

Take a look!

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!

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.

http://www.educationworld.com/a_special/election.shtml

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!

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.

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!

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.

Another Powerpoint Helper

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



Enjoy!

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!

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?

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!

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

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!!!

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!

Educational Quote

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

-Henry David Thoreau

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.

Online Videos

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

Here are some alternatives:

• John Locker, subtitled the "Online Learning Network," has videos on a variety of subjects. They can be embedded into a web page. Use the search facility and categories. http://johnlocker.com/



• TeacherTube, the alternative to YouTube, has videos addressing various topics. http://www.teachertube.com/



• SchoolsTube, like TeacherTube, is intended to be an educational substitute for YouTube. It's relatively new, so there's not much there yet, but it is very promising indeed, and includes audio too. http://www.schoolstube.com/



• SchoolTube, which has lots of videos and pictures for use in the curriculum, as well as lesson plans and other resources. http://www.schooltube.com/

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/

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.

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!

Teachers' Virtual Lives Conflict With Classroom

Take a look at this ongoing case involving a teacher and MySpace:

Teachers' Virtual Lives Conflict With Classroom

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=4791295

Any thoughts?

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!

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.

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.

Education Today and Tomorrow video

Take a look at this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fnh9q_cQcUE&feature=related

Any thoughts?

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.

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!

Do IM and Video Games Have an Effect on Academic Success?

Take a look at this article to see:

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/08/27/01apa.h28.html

Any thoughts?

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?

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!

New Blog

This is a blog.

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!

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.

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!

Virtual Textbooks

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

How do you feel about this issue?

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

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:

• Using MY Tutor Feedback to Help Revise Narrative Writing
• A Customized MY Access!® Lesson on Daniel Keyes’ “Flowers for Algernon.”
• MY Access!® College Edition now available

Enjoy!

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?

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.

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!

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.

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.

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).

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

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.

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

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?

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!

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!

Math Blogs

In response to Chrissy's post (go look ;)), I have found a couple math blogs that you may enjoy reading:

http://polymathematics.typepad.com/polymath/advanced_high_school_math.html

http://math-blog.com/

http://homeschoolmath.blogspot.com/

http://mathgoodies.blogspot.com/

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?

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.

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!

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!

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.

Randy Pausch

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

Thanks, Susan!

Let's watch...

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.

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!