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.

Wikis

     I am so glad we learned about this tool in class because I now love Wikis. I think the concept is great, and I have already started a Wiki in another class to collaboratively complete a study guide. I see how Wikis will be useful in my future teaching career. I think that students will enjoy using a Wiki to complete research and presentations. Also, I think that this tool will make it easier to communicate with other teachers and colleagues.

Web 2.0

     The Web 2.0 assignment was both informative and fun. Through the assignment I learned about a lot of programs that I had never heard of before. I also learned about some new and creative ways to use programs I was already familiar with in the classroom. For example, I never thought that Google Maps or Twitter could be used in class, but through the presentations I figured out that these tools can be very educational. My personal favorite Web 2.0 tool is Glogster. The presentation given in class displayed all of Glogster's awesome tools and design. I see myself using Glogster to create lessons and newsletters, and I also think that it would be a great resource for student projects. I also like Wordle and I will probably use it for unique titles. I feel as if I will utilize Glogster in my classroom more than any of the other tools. However, I do think that the other programs are very helpful and I see myself using those as well.

Website Evaluation Reflection

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/


     The website that I evaluated was a teacher utility site published by Pearson Education. This assignment helped me to pay attention to the small details I often overlooked. A reliable reference is one large detail I will now pay closer attention to on educational utility sites. I found myself questioning more of the information presented in front of me, and with this site all of the references checked out positively. I definitely recommend checking out the link above for any of your future teaching needs. This site is awesome.

Website Evaluation Tool

http://library.duke.edu/services/instruction/libraryguide/evalwebpages.html

     I found this website by Google searching .edu domains only. I checked the more prestigious schools' websites and found that Duke's library site has a good website evaluation guide. I liked that there where detailed tips and ideas on how to scrutinize a web page. I feel like this site is definitely very helpful and easy to use.