Thing #4 - Podcasting

I really enjoyed watching and listening different voicethreads. At this moment, there are several ideas I have seen and would like to incorporate in my classroom. One is to have students recommend or review books they read as is done in the following sample http://voicethread.com/#q.b56011.i289587 . The students will be given some time to prepare for presentation: think about the recommendation/review, write it down, and finally record it with a teacher's help. This way students will be practicing their speaking skills, which is very important for second language learners. Another way is having students watch a presentation http://voicethread.com/#u364007.b478355.i2547479 to learn about multiple meaning words. This thread would be used at the beginning of the lesson as a short presentation before the students start exploring multiple meaning words on their own. In the same way I would use http://voicethread.com/#u364007.b756694.i4007457 to have students think about their choice of words when they are given a writing prompt. Or it could be used before students start editing their writing.

Thing #3

Photo sharing. Well, I created account on Flicr last year, but didn't really use it. Facebook is different story. I post my photos frequently to share them with friends and family all over the globe. That is how we stay in touch. For same reason, I post short family videos on Facebook. For my classroom, I opened Weebly account and set the page up at the beginning of the school year, but then the teaching job was gone and weebly is not really being used. I was able to post photos and blogs. I really liked the weebly. You can check it out: http://mrsdavidson.weebly.com Looking at shutterfly, it seems to me it has more options and is complex, thus requires more time for keeping it up to date. Must admit, I like layout for the classroom use. I might try to set it up (when I find some time).

Thing #2

I never heard of online bookmarking before, but I sure wished for something as handy as that. From now on, I do not have to email myself with bookmarks from one computer to the other. I can have an easy access to my bookmarks no matter where in the world I am. Plus, I can always look for bookmarks from the online community to find interactive games for my students. This will save me so much time (I think). All I have to do now is go through my home comp and choose the best sites and then tag them on delicious site, so I don't have to worry about forgetting site names. My delicious site is just starting to develop.

http://delicious.com/ndav05

Thing #1-Blogging in Education

Hi,
I work with ELL students in a middle school setting and would love to start using blogs with my students. All I need now is ideas on how to incorporate that in our classroom. I found out that students can write their opinions about read article or a book. Maybe, they can even start their own blog on some issue they would like to discuss with their classmates. One blog might be set up for help on specific problem in math or similar. I still have to work on more ideas.
Considering the way technology is developing, blogging would be perfect way to actively involve students in their learning.