Monday, September 28, 2015

Blog Post #3

The infographic I found can be seen below: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/48202658488549457/

This infographic gives teachers a break down of what is looked for during their observation. It is a helpful infographic for teachers because it can help them prepare for observations. The infographic is clean and easy to read. There is just the right amount of graphics and the information provided is short and sweet. I'd say this a very successful infographic because it gets across its message and is pleasing to look at.
Based on chapter nine I would like to use blogs within the classroom. I think blogs are great way for students to share their opinion and interact with one another. Firstly, I would need to address netiquette because the students will be interacting with each other through the blogs. I'll also have to teach students how to protect personal information about themselves because blogs are public. Since my students will be about 15-16 years old I feel blogs would be an appropriate way to keep them interacting inside and outside of class.
Working on the newsletter was a bit challenging for me but it did help me learn how to format word better. It took me some time to figure it out because word has a different layout on my mac than it does on the PCs in class. I was able to get it done and I am proud with the results. I found the newsletter assignment to be beneficial because it forced me to explore word more.

Monday, September 14, 2015

Blog Post #2

MS Word
Throughout my educational career I have used MS mainly for writing papers. Occasionally I have used MS to create a newspaper article or a graph, but for the most part, it was used to write essays. My teachers used MS word for writing out rubrics/instructions for assignments they were giving, but I've also had teachers use it during lectures to show notes on the projector screen. I think MS word is best used for textual projects but it could be used for other things as well. As a teacher I will explore MS word and try and use it for all the ways it can benefit me. For example, I could use MS word to create a visual representation of what the days lesson will be about through graphs, text, pictures, etc.
Copyright and Fair Use
Copyright happens constantly throughout the world. People who create things (like photos, songs, paintings, reviews, etc.) aren't getting proper recognition when others want to use their creations. In school we learn about copyright and how we can avoid it, but it is difficult to avoid it completely. In order to avoid copyright within my classroom, I will make sure to teach my students about fair use and the proper way to cite/give credit for something they may use in their projects that they did not create themselves and give proper consequences to those students who don't.
Twitter
Twitter is a great tool for teachers to use to connect with students and their parents. After using twitter for a couple of weeks, I feel as if it is a great way to keep in contact with different departments/programs that could be useful to me when I become a teacher. I plan to use twitter as a resource for my students, whether it be to post homework assignments or just share an article that relates to that days lesson. I could give assignments through twitter, make a last minute due date change, post updates on the next days class, let my students know if I'll be missing a day of class, etc. There are so many positive opportunities through the use of Twitter. Twitter will provide me with a way to keep in contact with my students inside and outside of the classroom.