Inspiration Inspires

Using inspiration to create a diagram was both fun and efficient. The quick and easy to use graphics, templates, and editing tools made creating this diagram less stressful than previous diagrams I have created before. I enjoyed browsing through the many graphics supplied, and that's actually how I got my idea for this matter web. Setting up the design and layout was fairly easy, however, I did have some difficulty getting the linking arrows to curve correctly. I also enjoyed how you can add a link to the words as seen on the main topic in this example. I have linked an education site that supplies more detailed information on the topic. Overall, this is a great tool that I will most definitely use in my future teachings.

Animoto

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

This video is made from the popular Animoto Web2.0 tool. The whole video creation and editing was free, however, it is only 30 seconds. For longer, more advanced videos, a membership is required. I chose a few pictures from my trip to Myrtle Beach this summer. The Ripley's Aquarium was a great place to visit, and I got a ton of great pictures; so, I decided to share some of them here!

Scavenger Hunt

The scavenger hunt was awesome! Although I think we had one of the hardest topics, the hunt was a lot of fun. Our group got to search for opposites throughout campus and take 10 different photos. Some other topics were: colors, shapes, and alphabet. The activity was a group and individual project. The group took the pictures together and uploaded them. The individual part was a presentation of the pictures found. Below is a slideshow of the presentation I made. I will definitely try and use this in my classroom if I have all the right tools. I think that this is a fun and unique learning project.

Digital Images + The Classroom

I really enjoyed the digital image assignment. I liked using the five different picture collecting techniques: digital camera, scanning, free online image, screenshot, and clip art. Picture taking is a hobby of mine, and so, this assignment was really fun to me. I think that the digital camera, clip art, and free online images will be the most useful to my special education classroom. I think that the screenshot and scanning may be more useful for another type of classroom. Images will be a helpful tool to incorporate into lessons for special needs children. Many students with special needs get a great benefit from visual learning; so I can definitely see myself using this in my classroom.

Lesson Plan

I really enjoyed make the lesson plan, however, it was much more difficult than I expected. Describing all of the standards and steps were a little time consuming, but the biggest challenge was modifying the lesson plan for special needs children. I chose to work with Mariannina and alter her English lesson plan to meet the needs of children with learning disabilities. The task was a lot harder than I thought it would be, but when all was said and done I really enjoyed the assignment.

Google Docs

Google does it all, and this makes it very easy to keep different works in one centralized location. Google Docs is great because you can save your work in a place that does not take up space on your hard drive. It also allows you to access your documents from any computer that has internet which is handy. I see myself using this for backing up important docs and maybe to share with colleagues. However, I found myself becoming irritated with the limited formatting; so, I don't think I will use it very often.

WebQuests

I have probably used WebQuests before in some shape or form, but I have never been on the creation side of things. The process of creating is different and exciting. I will definitely use WebQuests in my classroom. I will be working with children with various special needs, and this Web 2.0 tool will allow each student to work at their own pace while also expanding their learning potentials. I also like that you can make lessons with different difficulty levels. This is especially appealing to special educators because we will see many different age groups throughout a day. I am very impressed and anxious to use in my classroom.