Technology in My Classroom

Throughout the semester we worked with numerous technological tools for education. Each tool was unique in it’s own way and provided many benefits for a classroom teacher. However, two of them really stood out to me, Glogster for Education, and Animoto for Education. Both of these are websites that are free to use. Although other tools such as Activinspire, Camtasia, Turning Point, etc. had very useful finishing products, I found them time consuming for me to make and there were some problems downloading the programs to my computer. The reason I really enjoyed Glogster and Animoto is because they were both easily accessible and simple to use websites that helped me create beneficial classroom tools in a reasonable amount of time. 

Glogster is an online poster maker. What makes this website so unique is that the posters are interactive. Whoever is creating the Glogster has the ability to use images, text, animation, and videos, to help deliver whatever lesson they are trying to teach. The other fantastic capability is that you can have links on your Glogster that will send you to another Glogster page, making the options of how many pages are stemming out from the main page endless! In fact, here is an example of a Glogster page that a educational technologist from Fort Rucker Primary school made on how to use Glogster! Click here... Because Glogster is such an interactive website, I would love to use it as a tool in my classroom. would have my students complete some sort of assignment while they are also following the directions on the page. To the left is an example of what a main page would like for a Glogster I would use in my classroom. I created this one as a way to teach students the four seasons. The student would click on the name of each of the four seasons at least once which will take them to another page which has information entirely on that season (weather/holidays/activities/etc.). Their task would be to gather information from each seasons page. When they are completed gathering information, the students would make a collage for each season demonstrating that they understand what each season entails. Another great idea for a Glogster would be to teach the life cycle of a butterfly or frog. The main page would be a a large representation of the life cycle with the name of each stage underneath the corresponding picture. Each picture on the life cycle would bring the student to a separate page with information on that particular stage. The students assignment throughout the interactive part of the task would be to draw the life cycle themselves and list underneath each stage what is occurring during that particular stage.

Animoto is an online movie maker. It is easy to access and an extremely beneficial tool for a classroom. I was immediately very impressed with Animoto. What impressed me the most was the easy access (ability to sign on at any computer if you have the internet) and simple to use directions (the program doing most of the work for you). Making a video with this website is as easy as selecting a theme, selecting pictures, selecting music, selecting a small amount of text, and uploading this information to the site, the final piecing together step is done for you! I know that Animoto is something I will be utilizing in my future classroom in more than one way. Because functioning the website is so simple, students could make videos of their own for different assignments. For example, an "about me" video at the start of the school year would be fun and beneficial for a new classroom. Other ideas for student use would be to have them make videos on a review of what they learned in a specific unit, reflect on a service learning project, make quick videos during class to share with their peers during a "jig-saw" type assignment, etc.  Not only would this be a great comprehension tool for students to use, but teachers as well. Below is an example of an Animoto video I made myself. I would use a video like this as an introduction to an art unit. Short and intriguing videos like these help the students to get motivated to learn and to get prepared for what is ahead. History would be another great subject to make introduction videos on. The teacher could easily create a short video to introduce a history topic with key facts and events, how they've affected the world today, and pictures. Another great idea would be to make a video as a review. The end of a math unit would be a great time for a review video. As a teacher I would construct a video with different measurements/formulas accompanied with real-life pictures to make connections that will help jog the students memory before moving on to another unit.  To read about why Lori Griffin, curriculum director of LIbrary Video Company, believes that using videos in a classroom is a great tool too, Click here. 

iPads in Education

With no surprise, the iPad has made its way into the education field. Not only does it have benefits for 21st century students, but provides huge help to the educators as well. It’s easy to believe that iPads would only be beneficial for upper elementary, junior high, and high school grades, but this is not true. The iPad has begun to show huge benefits in the lower elementary classrooms as well. 

Apple Inc. has made applications specifically designed for education. They have a wide selection so there are numerous options to choose from for all ages. One interesting thing they have done for the lower elementary grades is separate the applications into more specific categories such as learning to read, phonics, vocabulary, etc.  

An elementary school teacher, Laura Wright, has given a list of iPad applications she found especially helpful in the classroom.  One application that could be really effective in lower elementary classrooms would be “iWrite Words.” It is an easy to use application for young students that focuses on letter recognition and handwriting. To make it more appealing for young students, it is accompanied by fun sounds and images. 

Teachers have proven to benefit from using the iPad in their classroom for many reasons. It allows easy ways to stay organized, take attendance, etc. An article written by Samantha Miller gives a large list of 20 applications that could be useful for educators. Many of the applications in this article are geared for the teachers use. When teachers are more organized and prepared, they are able to give their students more attention in the right places. 

The application titled “Sundry Notes,” is one that would really help with organization. However, the application also serves a purpose other than simply organizing. The application has the capability to open pdf files, use search engines such as Google and Wikipedia, make recordings, download pictures, etc. Elementary math teachers especially find this application useful because it has virtual graph paper to work on. On top of all the other benefits, it’s free! Some other free applications that would help with organization are “Teacher Tools,” and “Teacher Pal.” There are even applications that cost as little as 99cents. For example, “Attendance,” a virtual way to keep track of attendance records and even match each student with a photo identification. 

Educators at High Point University have already began to use iPads to enhance their teaching experience. The university has even helped students in the local community at Montlieu Elementary by donating iPads for the school to use, learn, and grow. They even have staff that will be helping the school utilize the iPads for the rest of the year. High Point University is one of the many institutions in the nation that recognizes the importance of iPads in the classroom and there will surely be more following soon.