Thing # 4

Wow! The blogs I read were interesting. I read them way out of order as the mood struck me. Here is what I thought. The first blog I read was about the ripe environment/. The author, Ben, persented 10 concepts that a learner must have. Several of the items on the list were powerful and eye opening. I looked at myself and other teachers around me and realized that we are rather linear in our approach. We have so many things that we must do and expectations to push our students to meet, we tend to lose our focus on expanding a child's learning into a more global world. The child in Patrick's update tore at my heart. I see him in so many children that Iwork with and it seems that I have so little time to provide a world rich in technology that could motivate a child like Patrick.

As I read Second graders Write About Our Missing Duck, "Duck Diaries" by a second grade class, I began to dream of my ideal classroom... a computer for every child where creativity, as well as required skills, could take off..... .

Spies Like Us details the flip side of the issue, there is always a negative side to every good thing that comes along. Students who use their technologic devices to cheat, blackmail their educators, etc.. give the world of technology a bad name. What a shame!

I read almost all the posted blogs. In their varied writing styles, variety of subjects and theories, I came to a conclusion. As an educator, I must continue to develop my knowledge to help my students be prepared for what comes next....whatever that may be!

Thing # 2

The article by David Warlick really opened my eyes to the technological advances that are available today in the modern world of education. I can see how motivating these activities would be, especially for older students and educators in upper grade classrooms. As I think about the use of technology in my classroom, I can see many ways, especially the podcasts, that would be beneficial for my students. Being able to hear good language roll models would be of great benefit to the second language learner. It would also help build their comprehension and listening skills without the student struggling through more difficult text. Content area reading material is always difficult for my students. I can't wait to learn more about all of the topics in this course that I know nothing about.

Thing # 1

I have always thought of myself as a life long learner. However, after watching the video, I have decided that I need to make a few changes in order to "really" be in this category. From now on, I am going to be more persistent in setting goals. As I begin this course, I am setting a goal that I WILL complete these activities and be more computer savy for the 21st century. The 7 1/2 habits were very empowering. Seeing each habit listed, I could see areas that I need to work on and this new technologic challenge will be just the thing to get me started as a new and improved life long learner not the semmingly lazy one I was before.