Post 2 – 23 Things
My initial thought after learning more about 2.0 was, “You can’t beat it, so you might as well join it!” Over the past ten years or so, I have become increasingly dependent on my computer. It is a fantastic tool for research, entertainment, and communications. My students interact with technology on a daily basis. In the past, I was a consumer of technology. Now with 2.0, I can not only be a “consumer” of the internet, but I can interact with it and contribute to it. I can post comments, get feedback, learn from others, and even create my own website. I can now blog and even post a picture of my family on our Spring break vacation.
Lately, I have been thinking how I might make better use of 2.0 for my third grade digital learners. How can I use it with my third graders? We are employing a new language program that is called Words Their Way. We are all excited about this approach to learning orthography with manipulatives instead of the old fashioned spelling lists or worksheets. I think we can integrate learning about words and learning about technology by designing these student “word sorts” on the computer. In addition to making actual word cards, we can also make text boxes with the words in them. Students can perform their word sorts on their own computers and when the word sort is completed, they can send them to the teacher for checking.
I will supprt my own learning by not only taking courses such as this, but also by actually playing around with the technology and using it. My blog is a good start. I also created a facebook page complete with lots of pictures and a couple of family videos. I am becoming more and more comfortable on my computer…I love it! Who knows maybe someday I might even start using a blackberry!