Thing #21-Goggle Tools

I searched throughout the extra google tools and began a calendar. I also created a family web page so that my children away at college will know what is going on at home. I plan to update it often so that they will know where we are and what we are doing if they can't reach us. Goggle has so much to offer. I really didn't realize the extent of material that I would be able to use under the "goggle" umbrella. My husband was watching me work this evening and he got interested in some of the google tools. I can't wait to finally teach him something on the computer! I plan to continue using these tools, especially the calendar, at school and at home. I may even start a class web page at a later date.

Thing #20-Google Docs

Goggle Docs is now one of my favorite sites that we have explored. I went in and made a . I also looked at the spreadsheet and started thinking of unique ways to use it within my program. Though I am not expected to give grades to my students, I do like to keep the classroom teacher informed of a student's progress in my class. The spreadsheet would be an easy way for teachers to have access to information such as a student's language level, progress on skills tests, etc. I get very tired of sending e-mails to approximately 30 teachers. Teachers could access a spreadsheet document to check this information without me having to search for common information. Another use for the spreadsheet would be if other teachers would post their assignments where I could access them and help gear all of my teaching toward their classroom activities. This would save time and paper! Teachers usually give me a printed copy of the the weeks lessons-lots of paper that is not necesary. This would be my technologic dream!

Thing #19 - Voicethreads

I found voicethreads to be interesting. Unfortunately, I do not have a microphone on my computer at home, but i do at school. I plan to set up an educator's account at school, so that I can use this technology with my class. It would be beneficial for my students to here themselves and their use of English in projects. Most of my older students know how to do powerpoint. Adding their voices would be fun for them and make their projects more personal. I look forward to experimenting with this technology.

Thing #18

I am absolutely amazed at the content that I found on Youtube and Teachertube. I found my favorites on Teachertube. The Fifty States Song song is one of my favorites and I got to sing along. To be honest, I can't remember all of the words but I know that my students learn this and it will be fun to have as review. On Youtube, I found a cute cartoon character that teaches basic skills. His name is Crawford the Cat. I sometimes get students who are "newcomers" to our country. This video clip would be beneficial in practicing basic language structures that are used in English.

Thing #17-Podcasts

First of all, let me start by saying that I do not own an mp3 player but i can't wait to get one. I have watched my children play around with IPODs etc. for years, but I had not interest in one. Now I do! I found this exercise to be really beneficial. My Spanish speaking skills are lousy and because I teach ESL everyone thinks I should speak Spanish. Well, I found a great podcast called Coffeebreak Spanish. It's basic and easy to follow. The lessons are about 3 minutes long and presented in a simple format that's easy to remember. Maybe there is hope for my Spanish speaking abilities yet! Another site I think I can use for quick mini-lessons in the classroom is Grammar Grater. This gives short little lessons on topics we all should know about English grammar but sometimes forget.

Thing #16- Library Thing

What a wonderful site! I am an avid reader and have wanted to be a librarian for quite some time. I can use this site to search for books to suggest to my students and for my teenage son. I do not like to recommend a book to a student that I am not familiar with. I also like to know a little about a book by an author I've never read before I read it.

The organization of this site makes it easy to use and can become a resource for both individuals and educators alike. Being able to locate and find books in many ways is wonderful. I sometimes only can remember and author or part of a title. With this site, I can create my own unique library list.

Thing # 15

I think that this site was one of the most interesting that I have looked at. Tagging sites and having a space that is only mine has really helped me keep up with the organization of my family's computer. So far, I have tagged things to make my life easier. Next, when I have time, I would like to look for and tag sites that interest me. The only complaint that I get from home is from my son. He doesn't like the extra bar for delicious at the top of our computer. Click here for my delicious site.

Thing #7B- Reader revisited

ESL Students Writing Problems Are Mainly at Sentence Level is an article that truly relate to what I do everyday in my classroom. It is hard to take a child, any child, and teach them to be strong effective writers. It seems that the last skill that my student's learn and the hardest is writing. I like this article found In my RSS reader because I truly feel that my students miss some basics while learning English. Taking them back to the sentence level in writing and then going forward makes good sense to me.

Thing #14 part 2

I just had to do a wordle for fun. I hope you enjoy it!

Thing #14

I looked at all the sites listed and liked several of them. The one that I thought I could use was Quizlet. I am always looking for interesting ways to help my students learn vocabulary. This site gives you the ability to create flashcards. We are very concerned about teaching second language learners content vocabulary so I thought that this would be easy for me and my students.

I also like the 30 boxes site. I always need a calendar to keep me organized!

Thing #13

http://www.imagechef.com/



http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/deck.php

I had a great time with the image generators. The first image was made in Image Chef. I am a soccer mom and found this cute jersey to reflect my son's team name and his number. The second image was made in Trading Card Maker. He was a ghost for Halloween last year.
I thought this made a cute card to send to relatives.

I found most of the sites I tried quite easy to manage. I did have a little problem uploading the Halloween image to my blog, but it worked out in the end.

I could see using these image generators to create student interest when using computer applications for projects. Many are simple to use and would be motivating to students. We all like to add some fun to our work andthis would be one way to do so.

Thing #12

Here is my slide show made in RockYou.com. This process was really easy. I enjoyed the experience. The pictures are from Flickr by Larry King.

Thing #11-Flickr

Monarch by Shona Leah

I found Flickr to be an interesting site. After losing a ton of family pictures on a crashed hard drive that were never burned to CD, I like the concept of being able to back up pictures and that other people can view them. In creative commons, I searched for pictures that depict the stages of development of the Monarch butterfly. I have been raising these beautiful creatures in my classroom for many years and liked the idea of locating new images to share with my students.