Post #4

Chapter #7 was extremely interesting to me. I especially liked the idea maps and honestly think that it will be something that I use in my classroom as an educator. I want to teach young children and think that idea maps, although they can be used for older children, are also an excellent way for young children to sort out their ideas. It makes students think about the relationships between topics and also use their creative side. I think that it is easier to look at then simply words on a slide, and I'm really excited to give it a try! I will definitely get more familiar with Inspiration so that idea maps will be that much easier. It is important for teachers to realize that they need to keep the interest of the students and one way to do that is to educate yourself on programs that allow you to present material in a more fun and creative manner.

I hope to use many of the concepts other then idea maps in chapter #7 also. As a teacher, especially for older students, I think it is important that they know how to make an outline. It is important to separate and sort your ideas and can be an effective way to incorporate technology into the classroom. Idea maps were definitely my favorite, especially for younger children. I love that they can sort their thoughts by using technology! Not only are they learning how to use a computer, without even knowing it they are also learning how to connect one train of thought to another. It is something so simple but yet has so much content to it that I think that it will be an excellent thing to teach students in a classroom.

This past week I have learned a lot and gone over many different skills, all of which I believe will be helpful in my career as an educator. I especially liked microsoft word. We had a skill check on it this week and I think that it is so important to have a strong knowledge on the software. There are SO many different things that can be done with that one program and I think that teachers are doing students a large disservice if they do not educate themselves on all of the benefits of Microsoft Word. I also learned a lot about Inspiration, which will be a program that I think I will use a lot as a teacher. I want to teach young children like I've said before, and I think that Inspiration is a very good way to keep their attention. I can start talking about an idea and have the students chime in with ideas that I can start to link together. This way I am using technology and the students are also engaged in giving me ideas for the idea maps. It's a more interactive way to learn which I think is awesome!

Post #3

There are many lesson plans that can be created in order to use technology in some way or another in the classroom. One lesson that I might use sometime would be a powerpoint presentation. I want to work with Kindergarden aged children and I think that even children as young as they are can benefit from technology. I will take a computer and put pictures onto a powerpoint presentation. I can use it to show the children a presentation on things such as colors, numbers, the alphabet, and pictures. This will keep young children engaged and is also large because it will be shown over a projector. It is more visual then simply making them look out of a book. I hope to use the computer many times in my classroom as a way of instruction, even though I am teaching young children.

The website that I chose was facebook.com. I chose this site because I am very familiar with the way that it runs. The website used general design principles and it is very recognizable to many people. It also orients users and the text is justified properly. The type styles are limited and the colors are basic. The colors are a standard blue and white, with not much more colors and graphics. There is a little bit of word art which makes it an interesting page to look at. All of the objects on the main screen have meaning and there are no random pictures or textboxes. The information and text lines are short and simple and the website is single spaced. It is a simple website and even someone who is not good with computers can work facebook. There are simple commands such as LOG IN and REGISTER FOR AN ACCOUNT. The focus is limited and the emphasis is on communicating with your friends and family easily, something that many people are interested in. The website seems to know their audience and gears it towards more college aged students, but still leaves room for others to get involved! I think it's a great website that follows all of the rules in chapter #6!

I think that copyright is something that all teachers need to be extremely aware of in their students work and also in their own. They need to ensure that students are aware of exactly what copyrigting laws are and what is expected of them in their work. They need to be taught how to read a passage and take out information without copying someone elses work. They must also be taught how to site work properly. I think that this is more important in older children because they are required to write more papers, but teachers need to be aware so that they can help their students aviod any problems that they might have. Copyrighting is not only wrong, but also illegal. I think that the first time a student does it a teacher should give them a reduced grade and explain to them what they have done wrong and what a better way to write the paper would have been. The next time a student should be turned into the administration. There is no excuse if you have been educated on what copyrighting is to copy the work of someone else. Teachers must set an example and lay out just how important it is to write your own work at the beginning of the year so that there is no confusion.

Post #2

As a student I've used Microsoft Word quite a bit. If there is one computer program that I have been required to use over the years, this would certainly be it. Ever since around the eighth grade I've been using Microsoft Word for things such as papers, birthday party invitations, and making To-Do lists. When I got to high school I was required to use it even more because I wrote many more papers and reports that had to be typed. I never really used Microsoft Word for anything but writing papers or reports, so this class has already showed me so much more that I can do with the program. I always thought that you just use it for basic things, but Microsoft Word has so much more to it. In college I use it all of the time! I like how basic and user friendly it is, because I'm terrible at using computers and even I can successfully work it. Not only have I been using Microsoft Word, I've also seen a lot of my teachers use it. When they make worksheets or attach documents into an e-mail, they are usually in Microsoft Word.

Chapter #9 taught me a lot about different ways a computer can be used, especially in Word. Like I've said a few times before, I do not operate a computer very well so I have a lot to learn. I think that even the basics, which were discussed in great detail in this chapter, are important for teachers to go over. Not every student is going to have the same computer skills, so it is important to make sure that everyone is starting on an equal playing field. This chapter discussed many important skills such as bullets and numbering, making links to the Internet, using tables, and importing data from different locations. All of these skills, although not difficult and advanced, can be used for many important yet simple things such as enhancing organization skills. One great idea that I got from Chapter #9 was having text reading software. I liked that you can give students the option of either reading from a book or reading the same material from the computer. You don't have to expect everyone to want to use the computer, but you should always have the option open to the students. Another thing that I hope to use as a teacher that was in the chapter was a class newspaper. Students get to be creative and innovative, but they are using computer, grammer, and writing skills. I like activities that are fun but also educational, and this chapter had a lot of great ideas of how I can create these activities as an educator!

So far in this class I have learned so much. I am probably the worst person on this planet at operating a computer, so even learning the basics has taught me more than I knew before. I think that it is extremely important for a teacher to be able to use a computer in order to enhance lessons that are taught. Every student learns differently and I think that a computer offers so much more than a teacher can. With the growing use of computers, it's more important than ever to have computer skills as an educator. I think that this class will be an awesome class to have as a future teacher. In this class I will eventually learn how to make newsletters, worksheets, quizzes, and use PowerPoint. All of these skills and more will help me be a better teacher. So far I've learned a lot about Windows, Paint, and Microsoft Word, all of which can be used for many things in the classroom setting. Not only does the class teach how to use a computer; it also gives examples of techniques and ways that teachers can more efficiently teach using a computer.

Post #1

In an ever growing technical world, I think that it's extremely important that teachers are able to educate their students using computers. I believe that chapter #1 was very accurate in saying that computers are very important in a students learning process. Nowadays students are starting to know more and more about computers so it is very important that teachers learn at least basics of computer use so that they can be helpful with students questions. I agree with chapter #1 because I think that it touches base on many important issues and reasons about education using a computer. Chapter #1 brings up a good point when saying that computers can be used as a tool to support teaching models. It also was informational in giving advice on how to use your computer ethically and make sure that your students do also. Overall computers are an awesome way to help with learning. It prepares students for the real world when they get a job but most importantly allows them to deeply think about subject matter in a way that is different from plain old teaching techniques such as writing on a chalk board.

I think that I will put the computer/s in my classroom to great use. I hope to teach elementary school, so I think it would be beneficial to have a monthly newsletter to send home for the parents informing them of what we're learning about, what we're working on, and what's going on in the next month. I also think that I will use computers to make worksheets for the students to do. I plan to have a class website that i post homework assignments and announcements on in case the students forget or the parents want to double check. The book brought up some other good ideas such as tutorials, practice problems, and also computer games. The book brought up having simulations such as computer games and until I read the paragraph I thought that it was a terrible idea. Once I thought about it I realized that it is so true that games like Oregon Trail and Sims can be a very effective and fun learning tool. They make it exciting to learn about things such as money and rationing. In this class I simply hope to build a strong foundation of the basics. I want to be able to help students if they have any questions, and also incorporate the use of computers by students into my lesson plans.

I'm just going to tell a little about myself. My name is Morgan Rigney and I am a finance student here at Florida State. I have had a passion for children forever, but never considered making it my career until I worked at a lifechanging camp for underprivileged kids my freshman year. I'm going to follow through getting my finance degrere, but I feel that education classes can help me grow in an area that I really enjoy. I hope to one day be a financial coordinator at a nonprofit organization for underprivileged children. Eventually after I start a family and have children, I want to teach. I really want to give back and I truly believe that teaching is the best way to do so. I work in a preschool presently and love every minute of it! I hope that this class shows me how to use a computer because as of now I am absolutely terrible at it!!

Post #0

My prior experiences using technology are limmited. I can use simple computer functions such as Microsoft Word and the internet but that is about it. I never took a computer class in high school and was never really required to do much on a computer for anything else. Although I can work things such as facebook and myspace, I have no real computer training.

I hope that in this class I can learn things that will help me be able to better opperate a computer. I want to be able to use technology to teach lessons and would love to be a teacher who enhances learning by using fun and exciting computer programs. In this class I hope to get better knowledge of a computer and many of the programs it may have. I want to be able to be comfortable with the basic microsoft office programs so that I can be a better teacher later on!

Based on the results of the survey I am a sequential learner. This came as no surprise to me becuase when I read the description it fit me perfectly. It means that I like it when things build on eachother. I like the next step to follow logically from the previous step. I don't want to have to imagine and create a way in which one step links to another, I would rather there be some logical sequence between the steps. Basically I like things to make logical sense and I want to understand the reason why something is done in the particular way that it is.