Thing #23 Summary about this program

It was fun doing the "23 things". Some the resources I learned I will use for sure, while some I will have to play more with before I start using them regularly. It was and eye opener to learn about all the technology resources available just a click away for free.

1. What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey? For sure the blog. I always meant to start one and never did. This might be the beginning of a professional blog as well as a personal one. I really had fun with the photostory, even my husband got hooked into it.
2. How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals? I have always been an online person. Most of what I read I do online so I now this is a good way for me to learn. The one thing I did while learning about "23 things" was play. It was cool to play with the technology presented and actually using it while learning at the same time. Great hands on that will encourage me to use this tools in the classroom.
3. Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you? How easy some of the technology tools are to use and how much impact they can have in the classroom.
4. What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept? I really liked the concept, it was easy to follow and do all the discovery exercises. Perhaps offering a sequel to 23 things.
5. If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate? Definitely. I learn by doing hands on and this was as hands on as it can get. I also liked the fact that I could do it from home. I guess I am online learner.
6. How would you describe your learning experience in ONE WORD or in ONE SENTENCE, so we could use your words to promote 23 Things learning activities? Great active learning experience.
7. Now go and comment on some of the other Players' blogs? I did as part of the discovery and will comment some more.

THE END !!! (August 5, 2010)

Thing #22: Nings

While looking around nings, I really liked ning for teachers (http://teacherlingo.com/). I liked how it is a place where teachers share tips, grant resources, and lessons among other things. I believe nings can be good for collaboration within teachers from different places and grade levels. We all learn from each other and this seems like a good resource to do it virtually.

Thing #21: Podcasts and Videocasts

I had so much fun creating the photostory. It was so easy to do I can't believe I had not done it before. This is a cool tool to use in the classroom. I had fun and can see my students "playing" with photostory to create different projects.

Here is my first photostory.

Thing #20: YouTube, TeacherTube and Zamzar

There is just a great amount of videos on youtube and teachertube that can be used as tools to enhance teaching. It provides us with an extra tool to deliver content to students and reach all learners. I searched on teachertube for math videos. I ran a search for two digit addition and got a lot of results. Here is one that I liked.

Thing #19: Web 2.0 Awards List

For this thing I decided to play with whiteboard (http://writeboard.com/).

What is special about the tool?

For me whiteboard offers the ability to create documents that are not stored in one computer but are "portable" as they can be accessed from the web. You can share it, collaborate, compare versions and even keep whiteboard documents organized in a "backpack"

What are its useful parts, especially with regards to Libraries and school?

I think the fact that you can share it and collaborate (reminded me of a wiki) is very useful. A neat feature that I liked was that you can check versions of the document so you don't have to be afraid of losing information while editing the document.

How might you use this tool in your own setting?

I think that I can use whiteboard in the classroom to have students work on group research projects.

Thing #18: Online Productivity Tools

I have used Google Docs in the past to create .pdf files that I otherwise could not do since I do not own the acrobat version that will allow me to create such files. The convenience of a free online tool is well, it is free. Sometimes there are software programs that you do not used too frequently and it might not make sense to purchase the software. The advantages of openOffice are that it is free and runs on multiple platforms. The disadvantages are that it does not have all the nice features that office has and it is another tool to learn how to use.

Thing #17: Rollyo

Wow. Rollyo was so easy to use. This is a tool that I will for sure be using in the classroom for research projects. I feel more in control of the sites that students should access while doing an independent project. Here is the link to the sample rollsearch I created http://rollyo.com/marcela/marcela_travel/

Thing #16: Wikis

I had actually heard from wikis but never seen one, much less participated in one. When I was reading about wikis and "editing" in the sandbox the first thing that came to my ming was "shared writing". To begin with, I think I will used wikis in the classroom as a shared writing tool for different topics. Sounds to me like I will be able to integrate technology, writing, and whatever subject my students are writing about.

Thing #15: Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and the Future of Libraries

After reading "Into a new world of librarianship I came to the realization that the way we interact with libraries and librarians is changing and will continue to change. How? It seems that librarians and in my case, teachers, have come to be more than ever collaborating to find technology and relevant content to reach our students. for me it means that I can use the librarian as a resource, a person that I can go to and say: we will be covering x topic can you help me find information. Together we can find the information for x content or technology uses to deliver that content more effectively and it does not necessarily mean me bringing my class to the library but perhaps bringing some laptops to the classroom to allow students to access the information.

While reading "Away from the icebergs" the thing that came to my mind was that we no longer really have to go to the library, the library can come to us. With the widespread use of the internet we have so much access to information and we no longer have to make a trip to the library. I always find myself going online and searching for what I am looking for. More over if there is a book I want, I try to find it online and buy it there and download it so I can read it. For me it means that I want to find more information online. For the librarian it means that they become a technology trainer in a way so that they can deliver more information to the library patrons.

Thing #14: Technorati and How Tags Work

I spend quite some time playing at Technorati. I ran several searches on topics of personal interest and came across some interesting articles and deviated from my "Thing" while I read those. But, after playing with Technorati I found myself pondering which "tag" tool I would use more and II think that delicious won. I find it very useful to tag my personal bookmarks for organizational matters and school related bookmarks to share with colleagues to create a wealth of extra resources.

The one thing about tags that comes to my mind is how reliable those tags are when searching through them? A lot of people can tag something as math for example. If I run the math search so many things can pop up and I wonder how relevant all those things are and how long will it take me to search through those.

Thing #13: Tagging and Discover Delicious

Bookmark Tagging is a totally new concept to me and one that I am glad to know now. I liked delicious and Digg and think that these are great resources to manage bookmarks and access them from different places, not just one place. It is also great that you can share bookmarks with colleagues, that way you build a good data bank of bookmark resources that can be used by all the people involved. There are so many times that I am given websites at staff development, and quite frankly with the information overload I tend to forget about them and do not use them; with the social bookmarking sites I can easily and quickly tag them and perhaps those sites will become a used resource.

Social bookmarking sites can be really useful for research, not only mine but, to have classroom research project. Students and I can choose a myriad of sites on research topics that later students can use to do a research project. Not only can the students in my classroom benefit but, students from the grade level can use them as well saving us teachers some precious time and giving students access to more "selective" information.

From being able to access bookmarks from different places, tagging bookmarks so that you can actually use them more easily, sharing bookmarks, to research projects, the advantages of social bookmarking are enormous.