Web+2.0+Discussion

﻿ Web 2.0 Discussion Click the "Edit" tab to get started... ==Here you will hold a discussion concerning the web 2.0 tools your fellow classmates located. Give ideas on how you have seen these used or how you could implement the various tools in your own classroom or you future classroom. You do not need to discuss all of the posted tools, just choose two (at the minimum). You must reflect upon at least two of the posted tools. Your reflection must demonstrate thought, ask questions, provide additional information, and/or include links to the internet.==

Mike Shaw The first one that caught my eye was Create-A-Graph. Ever since I taught a semester of Algebra and Geometry, I've been appalled at how many high school kids that are still having trouble with reading graphs and charts. This site would definitely help them out because it can put them in charge of making their own graph. I think that would help them absorb it better! As an educator, obviously this would aid in helping get your lesson plans more organized. I know if I had Create-A-Graph at my disposal and the kids weren't getting the examples provided or needed additional time outside of class to absorb the material, creating graphs and charts from scratch would be tremendous in helping them understand.

The other site I liked was the Mind Mapping. I am a busy guy. I have a lot to do between working for the school district, running my own real estate business from home and going to grad school full time. Remedial tasks like walking the dog, cleaning the house, spending time with the wife, getting the oil changed...this assignment...would benefit from a Mind Map. The video was excellent at showing how simple it is to create. It's basically an online flowchart. NOW, if you're proactive enough to get this done for your own personal use, think how easy it would be to map out a unit or lesson plan! This could keep you more organized than you were before.

Nicole Anderson: I chose //StoryJumper// as one of the tools I explored. I thought this was so cute and neat to use, in any grade! I have never used StoryJumper but there are many different ideas I got after just looking at the tool. In 5th grade we require our students to write two writing pieces and two poems a quarter. They are required to go through the entire writing process. We are always finding different ways to publish writing. I have made class books before, but they were just ones I bounded together myself so I am sure they would love StoryJumper. I could have my students publish their poems or even their personal narratives in to a book. I would love to have a hardback book of their writing as would they! I also think the teach could use this tool to publish their own book to go along with any lesson or curriculum. Sometimes we need that "perfect" book to fit a lesson and with StoryJumper we could create it ourselves! One question I have is, would the teacher have to input all of the writing pieces to make the book? I didn't see anywhere where a student could just enter one page. It started at the cover of the book and you had to keep going through all 16 pages. This would be time consuming and difficult if only one student could do it at a time. Overall, I am planning to use this tool in my classroom very soon!

The second tool I explored was //Kidblog.org//...I REALLY liked this tool and I set up my classroom instantly! It only took me a couple seconds to get set up. You can create usernames and passwords for all of your students as well. I plan on introducing this to my class very soon. I never really got in to blogs but this one is very easy to use and user friendly. I can integrate this in to my classroom and outside of my classroom. If students have questions on homework they can blog about it on the site and other students can blog and comment and help the others. Also, if they have questions for me they can blog and I can communicate with them. I think this is a great tool for students to use outside of the classroom. I could also have students blog about a book discussion we had in class. It could also become a homework assignment just like we do on the discussion board. However, if a student is less fortunate and does not have access to the Internet they would not be able to take advantage of this wonderful tool. I would hope the students would use it, but I am afraid they may not utilize it all the time. Overall, I love this site and will definitely use it!

Jolleen Comnick: Nicole, I really enjoyed reading your book. I think this would be a great way to get students involved more in writing and the ones that love to write would love to be able to make a book that can be printed up and shared with others. Your question about the teacher having to input all the pieces is valid, but I think something like this could be a whole class project. Where they can all brainstorm and write out a rough draft then the teacher, with the help of the class, can make the book.

Dwight Kirksey:Stephanie I liked you classroom that you set up on teacherpage.com. The classroom was a great way of providing information to students. You had a calendar where you could place classroom events or assignments for the day. i like the homework tab where if a student is absent you could place the days homework on the website for students to access. This tool I would love to use as it gives students opportunities to be able to retrive all the neeeded information in the classroom to be successful. Parents could also log on to see what their child's particular class is doing. I utilized storyjumper myself as it was a good way of maybe breaking the ice in the classroom. A student can utilize their imagination and create a book or a story which is a great practice of english and writing skills. It is fun and it doesn't feel like a standard assignment. Also classroom tools.net has some great graphs that can be created and it can enhance the classroom by creating pop quizzes to tst students knowledge of previously reviewed material. I enjoyed the tools and especially the storyjumper.

Jolleen Comnick: Stephanie, I really like the site you found. This seems to be a great site for teachers that might not understand how to set up a web page and easy to use. I did go a check out your page and I liked how the newsletter was set up for only parents and students to view. Nice safety feature there. This site is one that I would most certainly use in my classroom. As I was looking around the site I loved the fact that they have templates ready for use so you don't have to go on a long search to find them. I also like the fact that they have links to random teacher web pages for you to go and look at.

Carleen Roberts: I really liked the kidblog.org site and the fact that it is easy to use and user friendly. The blogger that I chose for my Web 2.0 tool is not as easy to manuvure and change as the kidblog. I think this would be to young and controlled for my college age students, but I would like to find the layout and ability of this kidblog for college age students. This tool is a great asset to any classroom and I really like that it is geared toward younger elementary aged kids. All kids love technology and this is a great way to get them involved. I would be concerned about the kids that don't have access to the internet at home, even though there are not many there are still a few especially depending on the geographic location.

Carleen Roberts: Wow! I really loved the tikatok web 2.0 tool that Ashley chose to use. This is a great site for kids to create their own book. I can't believe its free to use. I did notice that there is a charge for getting the book printed, but just being able to create the books for free is wonderful. They can even add pictures. I would have really enjoyed something like this for my own children when they were young. I can see how this would be a really nice project for multiple age children. It could be useful in writing and creativity.

Judy Lee: Ashley, I teach high school but I can see using Tikatok for my students to make a momento for the end of the school year. I teach math so I can definetly put to use Create A Graph. My students need to more familar with what is available with technology, this will help them. My school uses yola for their teacher web pages, but teacher page looks like it is more user friendly and has more to offer.

Carleen Roberts: Judy I think that is a great idea to use Tikatok for creating a momento. I was trying to think of a way to add it as a fun project in one of the classes I teach at the college level. That would be an option for me. Thanks for the input.

Kimberly Mueller: Wow! I really enjoyed searching about Tikatok. I could see myself using this in my future classroom especially if I had the younger kids. They would love creating their own story and publishing it into a book. Great choice!

Stephanie Behrmann: I enjoyed learning about [|Mind Meister]. I think it is a wonderful tool for teachers and students! I really like that students can collaborate and build on each other's thoughts and ideas. I wish this type of tool were available when I was a younger student. The layout of the website is easy to understand and follow. I especially like that you can view map layouts according to a specific category, such as Education, Business, or Entertainment. It's very user-friendly. Kevin, I thought your overview of MindMeister was very thorough and informative. I also liked the mind map you created on the Civil War. I plan to use this tool, or possibly another tool such as [] to assist me in my future classroom. Both are great resourcs for group projects because they make brainstorming and organizing ideas easy. However, I do think that MindMeister is probably the best source for teachers and students.

Stephanie Behrmann: I really like Hot Potato because teachers can create their own unique exercises, including multiple choice and matching quizes, as well as fun crossword puzzles for students to complete. I also like that you can access other users' creations through the HotPot Sites link. I enjoyed taking the Dow Jones Grammar test, for example. The fact that these activities are interactive is a great bonus. Christina, I liked the matching set and crossword puzzle you created. I definitely plan to use this tool to create fun lessons for my future students. I can envision utilizing it during group activities, possibly making them competitive by using the timed feature. That will enhance collaboration and make learning fun.

Christina Parrish: I took a look at the tool used by Dwight Kirksey and Lisa Donald- Storyjumper. The stories created by these two were a riot! I love the carrots being "dashed with salt". I look forward to letting my student utilize this program to create stories for students in lower grades or even to create a story that shows why a budget is important, how the Civil War progressed, etc. The program is user friendly and the finished product is easy to navigate. This a great way for students to show their creativity and expanding knowlege. I look forward to integrating this fun took into my class!

The second Web 2.0 tool I accessed was IXLMath, which was studied by Judy Lee. This tool is absolutely amazing! Teachers can use this tool to help assess students needs, aid students in studying, all while being sure that they are meeting state standards! I enjoyed that the modules are broken down into easy to access subsets and allow students to focus on their abilities or needs. I really look forward to the Algebra and Geometry programs being added so my high school students will have access to a program that can really aid them in math success!

Lisa Donald I chose to review the TeacherPage.com site and I really like it. I have never made a website before and I was concerned that it would be time consuming and difficult to make/update. That is not the case with this site. It was simple to navigate and everything was clearly labeled. The site that Stephanie made was very easy to follow and included a lot of information. It was great! To get a better feel for the site, I have begun making my own website. TeacherPage.com has many options that I could utilize in my classroom. I could post current and upcoming homework assignments for students and their parents to view and keep everyone up to date with the announcements and calendar sections. I also really like the newsletter option. Additionally, I noticed that the site allows a teacher to create a "notes" section that can be viewed by the public, classroom, students and/or parents. Finally, I like the survey option and could use that as a fun way to learn more about my students. The site mentioned that there is a puzzle creator, but I have not been able to find that yet. As for classroom websites in general, I do have one question. Do schools usually want all teachers to create a web page utilizing the same site (maybe one provided by the district) or can a teacher choose whichever site she likes best?

Stephanie Behrmann: Lisa - I have been asking that question also - whether or not teachers can create their own web pages through whatever site they choose, or if they have to use a specific district-wide hosting site. I've asked a couple of teachers I know and most of them said they think they have to go through the site their district provides. However, none of them knew for certain whether or not this was mandatory. They said they just do it that way. I am curious to know more about these possible requirements within school districts.

Lisa Donald The second site I chose to review is Kidblog. The site is simple and makes writing and reading a blog easy. I think the simplicity of the site is wonderful for young students who don't need to be overwhelmed by a complicated blog site. I like how easy it is to set up a class and that student e-mail addresses are not needed. Instead, students just choose their own name from a drop-down menu. I also love the fact that the teacher remains in control of the blogs. That is a nice safety feature that allows the teacher to monitor the blog content and make sure everyone is keeping to the assigned task. One of the first things I noticed was the sample screenshots that walked me through what the different pages included. I found those to be very helpful. I believe this site could be an important tool for use in my classroom. Young students could practice their reading and writing (or in this case typing). Students could interact with one another in a safe online environment outside the classroom and it is a great way for students who might be a bit shy to express their opinions without having to speak in front of the entire class. I would have loved this tool when I was in school.

Mindy Dahl: I choose to review MindMeister. I really liked how easy it was to use the tools in this site. I like that students could print out their work or it could be viewed online. In my unit on geometry I have my students create a chart classifying polygons. I think that this would be a perfect tool for that unit. The maps could be created here instead of having them draw them on paper. I also really enjoyed the create a graph website. It takes students a very long time to create graphs by hand. During my unit on data analysis students are asked to create a variety of types of graphs and charts. I think they would love the oportunity to do this online considering how time consuming it can be to create a graph by hand that looks presentable. IXL math is another tool I will definitly use. I love that it is separated by not only grade level but each mathematical concept/skill. It also provides state standards to make sure you are working on skills that part of your curriculum. Students can time themselves and they get to review where they make mistakes. The explanations given for a wrong answer are very detailed and would really help a child that is struggling with a certain concept. Students could use this tool at school or at home for more practice.

Jolleen Comnick Christina I liked your matching game, it might even get the kids to remember authors and books. That site makes it easy to make them and since kids like games and computers what better way to get them to learn.

Teri Hussman I chose IXL Math as one of the tools I explored. I thought this sight was so cute and a great resource for math enrichment. Students can practice skills daily. The site provides feedback so students can correct their mistakes and master the concepts easily. This would be great to use as a center activity or as an enrichment activity for when students have some “extra” time. I love the fact that as a teacher you are able to create accounts for your students, track their progress, and view a rich assortment of reports showing you just how much they are improving. This site would be great for my special needs students because they can receive math questions at their level and it is easy to track their progress. This would also be a great site for those students that we have found to be “at risk” in math through the RTI process. This would be a great program to use with them to try and improve their math skills. Overall, I am planning on using this tool with my students. They will love it! The second tool I explored is animoto. This tool is a great way to incorporate technology into the classroom. Animoto provides an array of tools for creating videos in the classroom. All you have to do is upload pictures or videos and animoto puts them together to make a custom video. I love this tool! There are so many ways that I could use this with my special needs students. We could make animoto videos on bullying, our character education word of the month, alphabet, sight words, science projects, and on famous Missourians. This would be a great way to have the students complete projects instead of just “writing” about it, they can create a video. I have so many ideas…. I can’t wait to try it out!

Kala Bostrom:
==== Kurt- Polleverywhere.com is a great site. I think that it is great that you were able to use a tool like this in a class of your peers. I think that the best feature is that you are able to see the information come over live! You are right that would be huge advantage for presentations or class activities. I can't wait to try it. Great job! ==== ==== Stephanie- I love the space that you created on TeacherPage. I think that having a site like this for your students and their parents is a wonderful idea. If you have good communication between parents and teachers the students will only benefit. I will definately have a site like this for my students and parents. ==== ====

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Kevin Andert:====== The two Web 2.0 Tools I tried out were BBC Pinball and Poll Everywhere. BBC Pinball has an amazing tool called Dot Dash. This is a very quick brainstorming tool. If there is a project where you are trying to tie numerous big ideas together and show how they all tie into the same big picture then Dot Dash is a great resource. Another great feature is the website allows you to print or save your work. Dot Dash is also extremely user friendly. It is hard to go into a lot of detail on dot dash compared to other mind mapping tools, but for quick connection of concepts this is a great tool.

Poll Anywhere seems like a neat tool to use to gain quick feedback from students. It could be used to measure how well students are understanding concepts or even to track progress throughout out a course. However, I do not like that Poll Anywhere encourages students to text message in their responses. In the high school classroom it is hard enough to keep students from playing with their phones in class already. By adding an activity which encourages or even requires students to have their phone out during class makes me a little nervous. This tool could quickly turn into a serious disruption or distraction. Poll Anywhere seems like a tool I would try out with a small group or specific class before incorporating it into all of my courses.

Kimberly Mueller: The other web 2.0 tool I chose to review was Mind Meister. This tool would be great for students to work on projects at home. They can save it and also work on it at school individually or in groups. Kids can play around with the colors and make it appealing. I thought it was very easy to use but definitely geared for middle to upper elementary. This tool could possibly be used for KWL charts.

Kevin Pirrung… The first page that I viewed was Active Alowence. This site was easy to explore and use. I think that this tool would be helpful in many ways in the classroom. I liked the fact that each student would be assigned an individual and group chat of the jobs and evaluation of these. This tool I think is also crucial because it shows kids how money (points) relates to the real world and can give an economic spin into the classroom.

The other site I viewed was Poll Everywhere. This site is very unique tool. This could be used in multiple situations in a classroom; questions, feedback and assessment just to name a few. The neat thing-- students could use their cell phones and become engaged in the instruction and not get into trouble for doing so.

Jaclyn Bedell StoryJumper was a great site for many ages! I was very happy the conntent and the easy navigation. It gave great ideas for the classroom and this tool could also be used across many different subject areas not just English or reading! I enjoyed TickATok as well, it was a similar idea as story jumper. This site was also easy to navigate and another one I could easily see myself using in the classroom. These are each sites I am thinking about using this year with my early child hood students having them help use words to create their own stories.

Kurt Helmer Bubbl.us seems extremely easy to use and share your information with others. The collaboration section peeked my interest in the tool. You could have students work together on a project and be able to adapt/change/edit together from different locations. This is great for young students who do not drive as well as older students who have to work and are busy or live far away from their group members. Musictheory.net is quite interesting as well. I am someone who knows about music and I appreciate this site because it is a site I would of really liked to have had/known about when I was younger. I looked through the lessons and they were in depth and if you clicked on a sentence it would highlight the piano and notes to show what it is trying to explain. I could see a teacher using this site in a music class as a lab or an interactive class. The teacher could teach the lesson while the students follow along clicking the sentences and seeing everything highlight.

Anthony Kinder StoryJumper really caught my eye. I like this site because it can be used as creative writing tool for just about any subject. I know my students get tired of typing letters and reports and this would be something i could use to have my students create stories and present them to the class. This is a great tool to use for any class to have students explain what they have learn and i plan on using StoryJumper in a few of my classes next semester. Teacherpage.com was another tool that i explored and as teacher and coach i stay very busy during this time of the year. I found teacherpage very easy to use. Better than having to do your own website throught the school. This would be very beneficial for me to post assingments, homework, practice times, games and etc. Parents are already asking me about game information and if i use teacherpage.com i could keep them informed better. The newsletter is something else that i am planning on using. I just wish i would of know about this site earlier. Great for the classroom and athletics.