This site is awesome. The first thing that came into my thoughts was....Uh-huh, Microsoft on wheels. It can be very frustrating to have a document that you created on your home computer and get to where you need it and it didn't save properly to your thumb drive...what do you do then...besides panic! It was amazingly simple to set up the account and if you can navigate Microsoft Word, you can navigate this application with no problems. They are eerily similar in design, but only on Zoho can you access your documents anywhere you have a computer and internet access. I will be using this application in the future. You can even do mail merge using this application...great for starting midterm reports during a break at school and finishing them at home, making this application pretty useful for an educator.
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Monday, October 25, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Thing #12
I explored Google Alerts and Google Translate. I set up a Google Alert for news feeds for Toddler Development in the hopes of learning of the newest findings of what these amazing little people are capable of and how to expand and build on their previous knowledge to help them advance in development in the most efficient ways possible. Google Translate is awesome too. I tried to find a translation for "What's up Chicka," but apparently all languages say it the same except the Spanish, who would say it as "Que pasa Chicka," which was interesting to me. These Google Tools can be used efficiently in the classroom, for instance, Google Translate could be used to spark interest in the kids learning a new language and they could search for translations of their favorite sayings of that time, or Google Alerts could be used to further educators professional developments by alerting them to the newest technology and developments available that could improve the educational world.
Care to know what this means and what language it is in: Qual รจ il tuo nome?
Care to know what this means and what language it is in: Qual รจ il tuo nome?
Thing #11
Finding good feeds with the Google Blog Search and Technorati were definitely the easiest tools to use with the simpliest methods. On Technorati, the search block is located at the top, center page and gives you the option to use key words to search for blogs or posts, which I thought was really cool! However, Syndic8.com was my least favorite and most confusing for me...it had too much and too many random things on the homepage and it made it hard for me to focus on one thing with all the lists. I subscribed to the Flat Classroom Project and The School Law Blog, because I felt they would have good ideas for the classroom and what is currently going on in different classrooms across the world. I did a search for blogging about being a first time mom and the one and only site that came up on Technorati was Mysticmargarita, but when I got to the site it was giving translations of a different language....not at all what I was expecting. Be careful of what you search for and you actually find! Not all are what they appear to be!
Thing #10
RSS is super cool and makes blogging life a lot simpler! It operates just like the homepage on Facebook. You log on and you can see what is new with your subscribed websites (just as with your friends on Facebook) and you can read through them based on their importance to you. It sure beats having to open up 50 tabs as I was doing in the past! RSS can easily be integrated in the classroom and my personal life. I could have my students to create blogs to post to homework assignments to and subscribe to them on my Google reader and I would only have to check for assignments in one place which saves me time as far as checking each student's site constantly looking for the assignments. I subscribed to a couple of educator blogs, so now I will be recieving their updates as they are made for new technology available and feeds available from the pioneer woman which assist me in my professional development. It would also be cool to connect with my future peers in my school to share new, exciting ideas as they happen throughout the school year. RSS is definitely worth the time and effort it took to set it up!
Thing #7
Flickr. FLIcker. FLICKER! Not my friend at all. The photos on the site are awesome and there are a wide variety and creative photos to look at, but I had a hard time navigating the site and attaching photos to my blog, which is why I uploaded my own to share on my blog. I don't think I would use Flickr for the age of students I will have the privilege of teaching, simply because I don't think they will be able to enjoy the site for what it was built for. I am very uncomfortable having my personal pictures on the site for everyone to see and as soon as this learning experience is complete I will be removing them. I generally don't use these types of sites, but they could be a convenient source to quickly show your students pictures of different things that are being studied. I have heard awesome things about Flickr, but is NOT FOR ME!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Thing #9
Happy Face Generator
Of all the generators, this was my favorite to use. It was easy and simple. It lets you change the colors, fonts, sizes, and smiley faces to make each creation your own. I would personally place this banner over the entrance to the teacher's lounge and the entrance to the school on teacher/parent conference nights to remind everyone of what is most important and why we do what we do. This generator would also be useful to have the children create different banners for different seasons and decorate the classrooms and bulletin boards so the children will feel a sense of pride and importance to their learning environments.
Thing #8
I enjoyed using Flickr mash ups much better! This program has electronized finding letters in magazines to create collages. This experience took me back to those childhood activities. It was easy and I especially liked changing the letters simply by clicking on them to one that I liked better. I would use these programs to assist my students in making collages and meaningful art projects.
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