Thing 23: Final Thoughts

Completing the 23 Things brought about a perspective change for me. In the past, I have shied away from new technologies because I feared they were too difficult or too time consuming. After completing 23 Things on a Stick, I realize that it is not difficult to try something once and it does not require a lot of time. I found that I had fun trying out the new technologies and hope that I can utilize them in my classroom. I really enjoyed Flickr, the research project calculator, and the online collaboration tools. I think that if more programs like this were offered, I would definitely take advantage of them. I feel that it is important for me to be aware of the newest technology and how to incorporate it into my classroom.

Thing 22: What Did I Learn Today?

I really enjoyed completing the tasks for 23 Things on a Stick. I feel that I've learned many valuable things that I can incorporate into my classroom. My goal is to try to incorporate at least one new technology each quarter (hopefully I will be able to do more than that). I plan to start by either having my students create blogs or efolios to showcase their work. I think this is especially important with the new Project Lead the Way curriculum. The community will want to know what is happening in these classes, and what better way to show them than by utilizing a blog or an efolio. Incorporating the blog or efolio will also force me to use tools such as flickr to upload photos of student projects. I hope that if I start with a small goal, such as incorporating one new technology each quarter, that I will eventually utilize all of the things I have learned through this class.

Thing 21: Other Social Networks

Visit 23 Things on a Stick



Find more photos like this on 23 Things on a Stick


I am not currently a member of a social network, but enjoyed searching some of the networks for Thing 21. I found Bakespace.com to be appealing. My husband and I plan out a menu each week and are always looking for recipe ideas. I think that I could find some great ideas at this site. I also like the Classroom 2.0 Ning network. I think that I will refer to that site for more ideas on how to incorporate Web 2.0 tools into my classroom.

Thing 20: Libraries and Social Networks

I looked at how libraries use MySpace and found that they use MySpace as a means of communication. They mainly use it to connect with their teen audience. Some of the things I found were reading lists for teens. One library encouraged teens to read ten books and vote for the best book in October. The libraries also create surveys for teens to take to find how they could better serve the teen population. Libraries also used MySpace to communicate upcoming events such as poetry month.

I love to read and found the book lists to be the most interesting. I think that I will probably check the libraries' MySpace pages for books lists before I visit the library next time.

Thing 19: Podcasts

I listened to a NASA podcast about student opportunities. It was an interesting podcast and something that will most likely apply to the flight and space portion of the class I will be teaching this school year. I may subscribe to this podcast so that I can provide students with current events at NASA. I could also encourage them to listen to specific NASA podcasts. Perhaps I could create a link to the feed on my Edline page if I find something that applies to our class.

I found that Podcast.com and Educational Podcast Directory were very easy to use. I like how they both create a list of topics. If a person is interested in the topic, she can click on the link to find podcasts related to that topic.

Thing 18: YouTube and Other Online Video

I was amazed at the number of videos available on YouTube. I searched for subjects that I didn't think would have videos available such as "training for a half marathon;" yet I was always able to find at least one video. I decided to find a video about Project Lead the Way, since I will be teaching that curriculum next year. I found a video that gave an overview of the program and included student opinions.

I think that YouTube can be used in the classroom. Teachers can find videos to supplement the curriculum or to make students more excited about a topic. I think that care needs to be used when searching YouTube; however, because anyone can post videos. Some of the videos may not be factual or appropriate.

Thing 17: ELM Productivity Tools

The "Electronic Library for Minnesota" (ELM) is a great resource for students, teachers, and any other adults who need to research a specific topic. I could definitely use this site to research topics for my Master's final research paper. I like how many search options are available and that users are able to specify what type of source they want (newspaper article, journal article, etc.). I also think that the folders are great. It is nice to have the ability to save an article to a folder and read it at a later time. In the past, I would have printed the article if I didn't have time to read it on the computer. I think this feature will save a lot of paper.

I think this website is a great resource to introduce to students. I often find that when students are conducting research, they rely on sites like Google or Wikipedia. These may be good starting points for research, but students need to take their research to the next level. This site enables them to get scholarly articles about specific topics.

I also think this a great site to share with teachers. Many teachers require their students to conduct research and an awareness of this great resource would help their students to perform higher quality research. Teachers can also use this site to search for education related articles to share with their colleagues or for curriculum based articles to share with their students.

Thing 16: Student 2.0 Tools

I think that both the Assignment Calculator and the Research Project Calculator are great tools. I like that they both provide dates by which certain aspects of the project should be completed. I also like that they both provide links with more detailed information.

I think that, as a middle school teacher, I would encourage students to use the Research Project Calculator. The Assignment Calculator is geared more towards college students (this is something I could use for my own projects). I like that the Research Calculator allows students to choose the format of their presentation (slide show, essay, or video), and then provides them with a time line that is specific to that project. I also like that the Research Calculator provides teachers with tools to teach different aspects of the research process. The graphic organizers provide students with a great visual for organizing and understanding their information.

The Research Project Calculator would really be beneficial to those students who struggle with long-term projects. It breaks the project down into steps, which is what so many students need. I think this would be a great link to include on my Edline page.

Thing 15: Online Games

I looked at Second Life and found that the possibilities in the game are endless. It is neat that players are able to interact with other online players. Players are able to create a character, buy a house, create products to sell, visit businesses and much more. The game changes each time players log in, because people are constantly adding to the game.

I think that playing this game could be a great learning experience for students. It teaches them about cause and effect. I taught a design unit last year and think that this game would have supplemented the curriculum nicely. Students are able to see how an area changes and how human design affects an area. The one drawback to this game is that it is time consuming. It would take a while to get it set up in school, and I'm not sure that the school computers could handle the downloads required for the game.

Thing 14: Library Thing

I found library thing very easy to use. I liked the fact that I was able to type in the author and get book titles. It made it convenient to add books to my library. I am looking forward to getting book recommendations, but I have not yet added enough books.

Thing 13: Online Productivity Tools

I was amazed at the number of online productivity tools that are available. I used the My Yahoo for my start page. I decided to use that page because my home email account is through Yahoo. It is nice to have direct access to my email account on my start page. I also liked that it displayed the weather for my area. I always want to know the weather conditions before I go somewhere.

I also liked the Backpack Page. It was nice to have so many features available in one place. I could definitely see myself using the calendar feature on the Backpack Page. I could use it at home (especially as my daughter gets older) to synchronize everyone's schedules. I could also use it at school to help students manage a long term project. I could post specific deadlines to the calendar and then create a link to the calendar on my Edline page.

I have mixed feelings about the to-do lists. I think a site such as Ta da list could be helpful for long term lists. I could see myself using it to organize my assignments after I receive a syllabus for a master's class or possibly creating a list of things to do each month during the school year. I don't see myself using it for daily or weekly lists, however, because I don't have constant access to a computer. I find it easier to jot down daily/weekly things to do in a planner.

Thing 12: Do You Digg?

Tools such as Digg, Mixx, and Newsvine can be very valuable. Teachers can use them to find current events of interest that relate to their subject matter. Students are more successful in a subject area if they are able to connect it with something that interests them. The sites above help teachers (or anyone else) to find articles about current events of interest. I like how Digg, Mixx, and Newsvine provide tabs with subject areas. If I wanted to find an article/story related to health or science, I simply click on that tab.

Thing 11: Tagging and Del.icio.us

I think that Del.icio.us is a valuable tool for research. In the past, I have found that I start research on one computer and complete my research on another computer. When I switch computers, I need to find all of my research sites again. With a Del.icio.us account, I would not have to find all of the sites again. I could simply log into my account and find the sites under the appropriate tags. This would save me a lot of time. Students often run into the same problem when they start research at school and try to finish it at home. I could help them to eliminate this problem by encouraging them to set up a Del.icio.us account. The two things they would need to remember are their password and tags.

Thing 10: Wikis

I edited the 23 Things on a Stick wiki. I've used wikis in the past and find them very easy to use. I think that they are a great communication tool. We use them at our school to communicate with parents and students. We let them know about upcoming tests, projects, and school events. We also use them as a staff to reflect on school events. This allows for both positive and negative feedback so that we can make improvements to the events. I've also used Wikis in college classes to reflect on questions related to reading. I think that I could easily incorporate this type of wiki into my classroom. It gives those students who don't feel comfortable speaking in front of the class a chance to share their ideas.

Thing 9: Online Collaboration Tools

I thought that Zoho Writer was an easier tool to use for editing the practice document (perhaps that is because I already have a Zoho account). I think that using online collaboration tools, such as Zoho Writer or Google Docs, is very beneficial. This is something that I could easily incorporate into my classroom. I could provide students with feedback to assignments using this tool. I like that I am able to highlight text and make my comments in a different color. This makes it easier for students to see my suggestions. I think that it is important to be careful with this tool. If too many people have access to edit a document, it becomes very cluttered and difficult to understand. I had a hard time following all the changes in the Google Docs practice document, because it was so cluttered.

Thing 8: Share your Creations

I used Zoho Show to upload an open house power point presentation. I found Zoho Show to be a useful tool. It is nice to save a presentation to a website, so there is no concern about bringing a flash drive to share the presentation. I also like that users are able to decide if other people can edit their presentations. This is something that will be very useful for group projects. Often students start working on a presentation together at school, but don't finish it. If one student forgot his/her flash drive, the other student ends up finishing the project at home. With Zoho Show both students are able to edit the presentation at home. Zoho Show could also be used to share power point presentations with parents (information about a class, grading, project, etc.).

Thing 7: Web 2.0 Communication Tools

Email is the communication tool I use most often. Email can be a time saver, but it can also be a time consumer. It is a time saver because I can send the same email to multiple recipients. I can type one message and press send, which takes between three and five minutes, instead of calling each person with the same message. I often use Edline to send email updates to parents. Email can also be a time consumer. I used to check and respond to emails every time I had a break during the day, but I found that I was wasting valuable time. I now limit myself to checking and responding to emails at certain times during the day. I find I am more productive that way.

I used IM during college, but don't really see the use for it in the classroom. I am not able to sit at my computer to respond to IMs because I am teaching for the majority of the day. I also don't text message very often. It takes me forever to type a message on my phone. I prefer to call someone instead of texting.

I think that web conferencing could be a valuable tool in the classroom. It allows classes to connect with classrooms in other cities, states, or countries. This could help students to see other perspectives on topics and also to learn about what is going on in other parts of the world firsthand.

Thing 6: Online Image Generators

I created the trading card and the photo with the caption using Big Huge Labs. I created the "Happy Holidays" photo using Image Chef. I found using these tools to be very fun and easy. I simply uploaded pictures of my daughter and used the templates provided on the site. I think that it is something that my students would enjoy as well.
I am teaching a new curriculum next year, but I think I could definitely find ways to incorporate these tools. One part of the curriculum involves flight and space. Perhaps I could have my students create trading cards with major events in space/flight history. They could also incorporate captions on photos (for example photos that show them building something in the lab) to explain what a person is doing. I like how easy it is to incorporate technology using these tools.

Thing 5: More Fun with Flickr

For Thing 5, I decided to try the Splashr feature. Below this posting you will find a link to the presentation (click on "My Presentation") I created using Splasher (it is just two pictures of my dogs, but using these pictures allowed me to get an idea of how Splashr works). I really enjoyed using Splashr. It was fun to arrange my photos in different formats. I think that my students could use Splashr for presentations. This would really allow them to be creative when presenting their photographs. I could use this feature to show my students steps to completing an experiment or the appropriate lab set up. I could take pictures of the set up or of each step in the experiment and then organize them using Splashr. This would be great for visual learners.

My Presentation

Thing 4: Flickr

This is a picture that I took while in the primate section at Como Zoo. I found creating a flickr account and uploading my photos to be very easy. I think that this is something that my students could do without any problems.

There are many ways that I could use this in the classroom. I could ask my students to find examples of something we are studying in class, take pictures of their findings, and upload their pictures to their flickr accounts. I could also post pictures of sample projects to my account and encourage students to look at those pictures before starting a project. I could also find pictures that are relevant to the topic I am teaching, upload them to my flickr account, and share them with my students. This is convenient because I don't have to save my photos to a flash drive. I upload them to my flickr account and can access them at school by logging into my flickr account.

Thing 3: RSS

I created an RSS account through Bloglines. I like that I am able to subscribe to multiple feeds through Bloglines and simply check my Blogline account for updates. I think that this will save me a lot of time in the future. Instead of checking each website or blog for updates, I check my Blogline account and am able to see if there have been updates for any of my feeds.

I think that using Bloglines will help me make the curriculum more relevant to my students' lives. I can use my Blogline account to search for current events that are relevant to the curriculum. Part of the class I am teaching next year deals with flight and space, so I subscribed to a feed through NASA to learn about any flight/space updates.

I also hope to have my students create blogs or efolios to compile their work. I can use my Blogline account to subscribe to my students' blogs or efolios. I will only have to check my Blogline account for updates to their blogs instead of checking each individual blog.

Thing 2: What is Web 2.0 and Why Should I Care?

Web 2.0 is an idea that involves interaction and collaboration. People learn by doing things, so the best way for people to learn about the Web is by interacting with the Web. Web 2.0 involves tools such as blogs and wikis that allow people to post information, read information, and make comments about other's information. By utilizing tools such as blogs and wikis, people learn from each other. Web 2.0 is also about keeping information relevant and useful. The tools in Web 2.0 allow people to express what they like, dislike, or what they want out of a particular class or corporation.

Web 2.0 is very important for educators. It will change the way educators are able to interact with students. Instead of passively taking in information, students are able to take an active role in their learning. They can comment on what they've learned or ask questions and get feedback from other students or from the teacher. Students learn more when they are able to engage in conversation about topics. The tools in Web 2.0 allow for this interaction to take place.

Thing 1: Welcome to my 23 Things on a Stick Blog!

Hi,

My name is Kristie Kriss. I am a teacher at Valley View Middle School. Next year I will be teaching the Flight and Electronics class for the Project Lead the Way program. I am hoping to find more ways to integrate technology into my teaching by completing the 23 Things on a Stick.