Blog 4 Podcasts

The educational podcast that I listened to first was a WillowWeb podcast about ants. I thought that it was a great way for the students to get involved with more advanced technology and also a great way for family members to hear their younger student's progress. I thought that it was so creative to make the podcast into a radio station atmosphere and to include a number of students in each podcast made. The jokes about ants made the podcast so kid friendly and fun to listen to. I would like to do a project like that with my students if given the ability and materials to do so. This is a great way for students to show their parents their hard work in a more technology driven and upgraded way.

The second podcast was ColeyCast by Mr. Coley's classroom. I loved the podcast #26 that was a spotlight on poetry. The music in the background made the podcast seem like it was a poetic atmosphere like at a poetry slam. The "Fortunately/Unfortunately Poems" were so funny and the students read with great expression. It was clear that these students are older than the students in the WillowWeb podcasts because of the poetry element. I loved this idea too and would love to incorporate this idea into my classroom. These were both such creative ideas.

Blog 3 Digital Story Response

The first digital video that I watched in class was the Rainforest video that was made by a classroom of young students. In this video the teacher had the students draw illustrations for the video and narrate the video with various facts that they had learned about the rainforest. I think that this is a great idea to include various different forms of media along with technology to showcase what my students are capable of and what they are learning. I also think that it is a great idea to make this into a video for the parents and families of my students to have access to. The second video that I watched was a video called "Home" about soldiers in the War on Terrorism. This was a more personal video made about someone's personal opinions and appreciation for what they consider to be home. This is something that I feel can be beneficial to a person or a group of people who want to portray an opinion, however, I don't feel that this would be an appropriate or beneficial way to use technology in an early elementary class.

Blog 2 Martin Scorsese Interview

A lot of new and interesting points were made by Martin Scorsese in his interview. I found it interesting that as a small child he noticed differences that could be made by what type of lens a director shot in or the angle that was used that impacted the movie so much. I agree with him that these tools (i.e. angles, lenses, movement, distortion, etc.) are important to a movie or film in the same way that vocabulary is important to literature. The more tools/words you have the more meaningful your work will be. This discussion reminded me of how I could approach my classroom in the near future. Scorsese believes that a student should be "trained" to look at a video or story told in visual terms and interpret what they see as something else. I agree with him because in my opinion students should learn that there is hidden meaning and symbolism all around us in our world and by teaching them to pay attention to how many different ways something such as a scene in a video can be portrayed or viewed they can learn how to appreciate symbolism around them. I can teach this in my classroom through forms of literature or also videos in all kinds of subjects.
I did not agree with Scorsese that it is ok to portray violence in a "reap what you sow" sort of way because I believe that in a classroom that can be harmful to younger children. But I think that he had a lot of good ideas to offer.

Day One Technology Perceptions

1. Who are you and what are you going to teach/do as a result of the degree you're currently seeking?
My name is Nikki Garmany. I am going to be a early childhood educator with my degree from the University of West Georgia. I would love to continue my education and earn my master's degree in either gifted or hearing impaired education.

2. Why are you taking this class and how do you feel about that?
I am currently taking this class because it is required. However, I hope to learn a lot of new ways to incorporate various forms of technology into my classroom to better serve my students.

3. What do teachers/others need to know about supporting learning with technology and why do they need to know it?
It is important for teachers to understand and be familiar with new forms of technology in the classroom that can help their students learn better. Today students are growing up learning technology from an early age and it is important that you as a teacher stay up to date on what your students are familiar with as far as technology.

4. What do you hope to get out of this class?
From this class I hope to learn new and interesting ways to teach my students using technology in my classroom efficiently. I would also like to make an A.

5. What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to using
technology?
I like to use the internet and technology to keep in touch with my family and friends that live far away. I feel like my strengths are mostly in how to use things such as my digital camera and my iPod. My weaknesses are mostly in areas of software that I am unfamiliar with because I do not know how to incorporate new software beyond using it for school purposes only.


6. Anything else you'd like to add?
This is my first time taking a summer class. I am excited about getting this semester over with so that I can have a smooth semester and graduate in December! I am also currently debating on whether or not I want to stay in and earn my Master's Degree.