Thing 12

I chose the alert and the language translator. I always like getting new information. The alert is something that I could use for myself or in my classroom. I think it would be really interesting. If I was wanting to focus on something specific, I could do that and choose to get alerts on that. For this, though, I chose to get alerts on science and math. I didn't realize Google did so much. Everything's under Google! That's good, though. I then chose to go to the Merriam-Webster page. I thought this would be helpful in the classroom. We could do a vocabulary mashup and use different words or the word-of-the-day words and learn that way. I think that would be fun, and it would keep the vocabulary random. I don't know if this is something I would be able to do. I guess it just depends on where I teach. I thought this was a good idea anyway.

Thing 11

I chose to do edublogs since I'm a little more familiar with it. It looked a little different to me this time. When I opened up the page, a lot of awards came up and there were like a ton of links. I thought this was difficult to look at, and I really wasn't sure if they were all awards that I was seeing, so then I chose a different link. It is kind of the same concept. It can be very educational, but then people can also put their own opinions and ideas on it. The google blog search looked like normal. That kind of surprised me. I was expecting something different. I wasn't really sure what to type in the search bar. Then I read directions. There was a lot of information. I chose the first link from this site and it took me to a school library in California. I thought that was really neat. I think it is really great to get ideas from other places. They may have different views or opinions, so that was really neat to see. The page looked really good, too. I guess it would have to though. Something that I wasn't really expecting was the fact that it had the 23 things on it. I could definitely see using all of these resources in my class, and it was a lot of fun exploring.

Thing 10

This would help me gain knowledge about whatever I am teaching at the time. It is extremely resourceful. It seems pretty simple and efficient. The process of getting and sharing information is made really easy with this. There are two sections: one blog section and one news section. I think this would be good for me as a student or for other students if research needed to be done. This is a resource that can be used to get information and opinions. For my class, both will be very helpful. I need facts, but then I think opinions are always great. I will be able to expand my thinking and overall ideas that relate to my development as a teacher. I think this could be fun to. For students who want to know more about different topics, they could explore this and have fun.

Thing 5

Web 2.0 allows people to gain knowledge in a more efficient way. It can be used as entertainment, but it has an educational component. Depending on how it is used, it is capable of promoting individual growth and growth within a community. The web provides a centralized location for people to discuss different topics. They are able to give and receive ideas for his personal use and benefit or for the benefit of his/her entire class. Ideas can be shared, and there are so many things that people can learn from the web. It's not just informative though. It has evolved and is now more interactive. This helps everyone who has access to it.

Thing 1

My goals (from easiest to most difficult) are: setting goals, taking responsibility, and technology. All are important, but I think taking responsibility should be first. That's definitely something to continue working on. I love setting goals though. I feel like I do that on a daily basis, so that one is definitely the easiest thing for me to do. Technology is another story. I feel like it is extremely important and beneficial in a number of ways, but I feel like learning something new can be so time consuming and frustrating. I think that the time is well worth it though because eventually it will save time. If all of my resources are in one area, it will be that much easier to stay organized and productive. In addition, there are so many things that can be applied and used in the classroom, even if it doesn't have a direct impact.

Thing 9

I chose the smiley face generator because it looked simple. The other ones I guess intimidated me, but I'll go back and try them later. I like the smiley face generator because it can be adjusted, and it's so cute. I chose to say Happy Valentines Day, but it could be made to support anything. I think this would be more useful maybe when giving directions. If there was an interactive handout or something, I think students would read the signs. It would make the process a little more interesting and fun. Students would enjoy using these as well.

Thing 8

I had a ton of fun picking out images for my flickr mashup. It was under the splashr link. I went to flickr.com and searched different things. I clicked on the ones I liked and then under the share link, I copied and pasted the image. To post it, I clicked on the little picture right next to where it says "link." There are two places to paste the link, but I used the one that said upload from the web.
I think this would be great for students. It's fun and easy to do. I think this would be great for science lessons or anything that demands or requires some type of visual aid. I could see me using this for social studies, science, and fun activities. I think this would enhance any lesson. If students had their own blog accounts, I could make an assignment out of it. One idea would be to find 3 or 4 of the 7 wonders of the world, and upload onto their site. I think students would have fun doing this, and it would really help them learn the material. In addition, I think this would really support visual learners.

The puzzle above is of a picture I took a couple of summers ago. I really like the idea of using students' art and making it into a puzzle. I could probably print out different things on a certain material and it could be used as a classroom activity. I think that that would be really neat and fun for the students. I think this is great! I have like a million and two ideas in my mind right now for things to do for the class. It will be so much fun, and I'm so glad that I have learned about this site.

Okay, the picture that showed up is one that I found on Flickr. The other two didn't really upload, but this one did, so that's good.