Recent Changes

Typehttp://hoodamathblog.com/
I followed Hooda Math blog. On this blog the author posted math games, and some of the games were directly related to the standards. Other games were simply brainteaser type activities. All of the games were very engrossing, and I found myself playing the games for longer than I originally planned. This past week he posted a shopping game. This would be very motivational for middle school and high school students. The site also provides math problems, strategies, and downloadable worksheets. He provides links to classroom and projector tools and online activities. There are math lessons plans posted under the categories.
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
Free Technology for Teachers blog provided unlimited technology tools for teachers. Every posting was loaded with links that tied into my curriculum. The blog has numerous online resources. While following this blog, I was able to incorporate the WW2 Google Earth activity and to share the tools with other teachers at West Lyon. One Sunday the author posted ten educational science games and videos. The games range from Earth Day games to NASA games from kindergarten through seniors. He also includes a week in review to sum up the contentfavorite posts of your page here.the week. This is the site I will continue to follow and utilize weekly. Every posting provided a wealth of tools and with all of the searching I did on the blog, there is still more to find! It was one of the most useful tools I have found using the Internet.

The Boolify Project
The teacher tool called Boolify would be very useful in my classroom. As my fifth graders are learning to use the Internet for more than just games, it is now important for them to use the Internet to effectively search topics. The website Boolify offered three different lesson plans that would be easy to integrate into my curriculum. The lesson plans’ topics were evaluating websites and other information sources, using basic boolean search operators (and, or, not,) and refining search results. By using the web page http://www.boolify.org, the students can do their searches using the jigsaw pieces and then use the operator words “and, or, not”. The sites that match their key word search are displayed at the bottom of the page. Students have more options to remove, save the search, view the search, start over, and go back. This site would be a very effective search engine for students who are beginning to use the Internet to conduct research.
*Since posting this, I have been able to incorporate this site into my research projects. I have shared it with the fourth grade teachers who have also used this site when researching.
Googlepedia
Another useful tool to use in my fifth grade classroom would be Googlepedia. My students are beginning learners when it comes to conducting effective Internet searches. They don’t take time to research thoroughly and often select the first link that appears. They often use Wikipedia. The Googlepedia would allow students to see Google search results side by side with Wikipedia entries. This would allow matching entries to appear in the browser window. The Googlepedia is a simple Firefox add-on.

TypeApril Chat Answers:
I followed Hooda Math blog. The author of this site focused on games. Some of the games were educational and directly tied to standards. Others were brainteasers that can keep a person busy for long time. I also followed Free Technology for Teachers blog. This site provided a variety of lessons, videos and links that teachers can incorporate into their curriculum. I was able to share many links with the teachers at West Lyon. I found WW2 links that I was able to use in my curriculum immediately.
A. I have incorporated more collaboration time among students. I have done this in the contentpast but this year I have done more. Our principal is very flexible and willing to let us do what works for us and with out students. So we have the freedom to try new things without being questioned. I am doing less lecturing in the classroom and allowing students to learn by reading and talking with each other. I have certainly begun to rethink my teaching style and strategy and have the confidence to try new things. In West Lyon, more and more teachers are teaching this way.
Yes, not enough teachers have the training to implement technology in a way that would reach the Net Geners needs. Teachers are not given the time to explore and plan lessons to incorporate the technology.
My students collaborate in all subject areas. When new math concepts are introduced, the students work together to find ways to solve their math problems. In social studies, my students research historic events and teach the class. In reading class, the students work in Literature Circles to read and discuss novels. Collaboration is so important for our students today because they are Net Geners and learn in that fashion.
I need to work on less lecturing in the classroom. I have integrated more technology into my curriculum this year than ever before, but there are some lessons that I feel I need to teach them the skills directly and sequentially. Perhaps as I continue to work on this specialty, I will do improve on this too.
A. I was surprised to read that the Net Geners will not buy into the “Old System” of your page here.government. They will change this system to fit their expectations. I was surprised to read that 72% of Net Geners disapproved of George W. Bush. I was very excited to read that the Net Geners fought to disprove the smears brought against Obama during his campaign. This showed they truly would support a politician if he/she meets their criteria.
B. No, I haven’t ever taken part in political collaboration online.

Type in the content of your page here.

TypeUnderstanding Digital Children
By Ian Jukes and Anita Dosaj
pp.1-11
This article describes how the Digital Natives (DNs) are fundamentally different from previous generations. They have grown up in a new digital landscape always having technology at their fingertips. Their brains have been wired differently because of the contentinstantaneous nature of the Internet. Because of the digital bombardment of information, DNs are able to multi task better than any other generation. They access, absorb, interpret, and process information differently. Digital Natives interact and communicate differently as well. Their interactions with others are online and not face-to-face.
Digital Immigrants grew up in a very different time. Most families lived with two parents of which only one parent, usually the father, worked outside of the home. Lives were simpler, very scheduled, and moved more slowly. Technology consisted of radios and one television in the home. Listening to or viewing these was done as a family unit gathering around the TV or radio listening and talking about a broadcast. Information was limited and slow. People had patience and waited to hear about events.
Digital Natives have internalized digital media. They expect to see and hear about world events as they occur. They witness history in the making. They don’t have the patience to wait. They feel they should have instantaneous access to information! They are comfortable with the bombardment of simultaneous images, text, and sound thus leading to the ability to take in all that information at once and process it. Because of your page here.this, multi-tasking is second nature. This is a global generation where borders, culture, race, and even socio-economic situations don’t create a barrier. Digital is their first language.

TypeChapter 5
The Net Generation as Learners
This chapter provided the information most pertinent to me as an educator. Tapscott reviews the Net Geners’ norms and relates to those in the contentclassroom. As educators we need to meet the needs of all learners in our classrooms including the needs of the Net Geners.
Teachers need to change their teaching styles to fit the Net Geners. No longer can teachers stand in front and lecture to their class. Net Geners find this boring and will tune out. Teachers need to encourage students to discover for themselves rather than memorize information. Teachers should offer opportunities for students to collaborate, and finally teachers need to tailor the styles of teaching to fit into the Net Geners’ learning styles.
Net Geners do not spend hours in front of the TV. They are using the Internet to create. This is one example that shows teachers should not lecture to them. They need to be given the opportunity to discover the information on their own. Allowing them to collaborate with one another, allows the students to internalize the information on their own. They immediately begin to discuss and apply the new information. This is one of the highest levels of thinking on Bloom’s Taxonomy.
We have individualized learning plans for students with learning disabilities. Why not have them for all students? Students are all individuals who have very different learning styles. By creating the one-size-fits-one classroom, teachers can create a classroom and lessons designed to fit each student. More schools are providing each student with a laptop computer. Schools who have done this have seen a drop in behavior problems, writing competency improved, and absenteeism decreased. But computers for each student would cost districts a great amount of money.
These new changes to our educational system will cost money. “American public schools do not get enough funding to do their job. It is as simple and as embarrassing as that.” Teachers will always need time to collaborate with one another to create a classroom designed for the Net Geners. Teachers will need extra time planning and creating the lessons. Will the funding be there? One of the places government officials cut funding when there is a shortage is the education system. Teachers will need some monetary motivation to create these classrooms, and to attract the best upcoming teachers; money will be an important factor.
In order to make all of the changes necessary to create a type of school the Net Geners can thrive in, all teachers will need to make the effort to change. That includes the new college graduates to the teachers who have taught two generations of students. That will be the biggest challenge for each school district.
Chapter 9
The Net Generation and Democracy
This chapter discussed the impact the Net Generation has on politics. They were able to propel Obama to be the lead Democratic runner and eventually the President of the United States. Obama’s approach to use online campaigning attracted the Net Geners. They were involved with his campaign and his issues more than the “Old System” of campaigning that left Hillary Clinton behind.
Throughout the book, Tapscott discusses the norms of the Net Generation. The norms that politics address are integrity, entertainment, speed, and collaboration with politicians. Obama provided the Net Geners with speed and entertainment by posting updates on twitter. The Net Geners hold the politicians accountable for their words and actions. They expect to be involved with the decisions the politicians make while they are holding office. They will change the system of our government.
In the past, they have had low voting rates when it comes to the polls because they have an aversion to traditional politics. They do not trust the political institution. Their lack of participation has been due to the “legitimate reservations they have had about endorsing a person or program they could not really believe in, and a process they strongly believe to be antiquated.”
Obama rose to the top because he was able to reach the Net Geners. He customized his campaign to their wants. His campaign was collaborative with online blogs and videos. He encouraged them to take action, to tell friends, and to hold rallies. Obama’s approach was a bottom up approach versus the traditional top down politics. The majority of his donated money came in sums of $200 or less. Every time there was an accusation made about Obama, the Net Geners posted videos or birth certificates online to prove the accusation false. They also respected Obama’s decision to not cut his connection with Reverend Wright immediately following the first comment made by Wright. After the next inappropriate comment from Wright, Obama did denounce him. The Net Geners respected this decision because Obama was up front about the situation.
The Net Geners want a say in government. I believe they can make that happen. Their expectations will to be involved in every single aspect of our democracy. Net Geners will be involved in the decision making. Perhaps it will be an online town hall meeting, but the goal will be to have a conversation with the government officials. They will reinvent our system of your page here.government and it’s going to be very exciting to watch this revolution.

TypeThe Boolify Project
The teacher tool called Boolify would be very useful in my classroom. As my fifth graders are learning to use the content of yourInternet for more than just games, it is now important for them to use the Internet to effectively search topics. The website Boolify offered three different lesson plans that would be easy to integrate into my curriculum. The lesson plans’ topics were evaluating websites and other information sources, using basic boolean search operators (and, or, not,) and refining search results. By using the web page here.http://www.boolify.org, the students can do their searches using the jigsaw pieces and then use the operator words “and, or, not”. The sites that match their key word search are displayed at the bottom of the page. Students have more options to remove, save the search, view the search, start over, and go back. This site would be a very effective search engine for students who are beginning to use the Internet to conduct research.
Googlepedia
Another useful tool to use in my fifth grade classroom would be Googlepedia. My students are beginning learners when it comes to conducting effective Internet searches. They don’t take time to research thoroughly and often select the first link that appears. They often use Wikipedia. The Googlepedia would allow students to see Google search results side by side with Wikipedia entries. This would allow matching entries to appear in the browser window. The Googlepedia is a simple Firefox add-on.

Typehttp://beckercopyright.com/
I viewed a PowerPoint presentation discussing copyrighted material being used from the Internet. Every year my students produce an iMovie discussing an American History topic of their choice. One of the requirements of the project is to download photos from the internet. The students click and drag these photos to their desktop and then import the photos into iMovie. Since the students are creating this project in the contentclassroom for a non-profit use, it is okay to download copyrighted photos without written permission. The iMovies are created for an educational purpose and few copies will be made of your page here.their movies. The creation of my students’ iMovies would not replace the sale of the copyrighted work so it would be considered fair use. I was going to post their final products on a wiki, but that would not be considered fair use. Once the final product is posted on the web, it is not considered fair use of the material. My questions regarding copyrighted photos were answered after viewing this power point presentation.

TypeMarzano Keynote
Marzano uses a researched based approach to describe the effects of technology on student achievement. In this keynote speech he focused on three areas: the use of interactive white boards, formative assessment and record keeping, and teacher feedback and interaction.
The data gathered from the use of interactive white boards on student achievement showed a seventeen point percentile gain. The percentile gain continued to increase on other variables such as the length of time the teacher has taught in the classroom, the length of time (in months) the use of technology has been in that classroom, if technology is used 75% of the class time, and the teacher’s level of confidence in using the technology. When all of these variables are provided, the percentile gain in student achievement rose 30 points. In order for students to achieve higher, the teacher must also focus on the content and not the bells and whistles of your page here.the technology. The teacher must use all of the other research based studies proven to improve student achievement such as wait time and checking for understanding along with the interactive white board.
The use of technology will not improve student achievement if a teacher is not trained on the technology. I believe this is where many school systems can fall short. Teachers also need time to “play” with their technology in order to gain the confidence that Marzano discussed in his speech.
Marzano also discussed formative assessment and record keeping. Assessment must be used as an instructional tool. Teachers must study much data over time to be able to assess the student’s true score. Data analysis is most effective if one analyzes the whole class or school rather than individual students. This was a surprising statement. Teachers must learn to use technology to help assess students. By creating more specific categories in our JMC grading program and using all of the grading program’s capabilities, we could graph and track students more effectively. Training on the grading system and time to “play” with it would increase teacher confidence with the program. Allowing time for this would increase the amount of assessment options provided by the JMC grading program to better allow students to track their own learning.
I find Marzano’s research interesting. I enjoy discussing the numbers he provides, and I trust in the data points. I have taken other classes focused on Marzano’s teaching strategies. I knew that technology wouldn’t increase achievement without proper training, but I found that the evidence that the longer the teacher has taught, the more months the technology has been used in the classroom, and teacher confidence increased student achievement 30 percentile points was amazing and encouraging.

TypeAdolescent Social Networking Activities:
What Adults Don’t Know
Elizabeth Langran
This study explores the area of parental involvement in their children’s Internet activities. The purpose of this study is to answer three questions: “to what extent are an adolescent’s social networking activities different from his or her parent’s perceptions of the contentchild’s activities, what characterizes parent-child pairs who have the highest and lowest agreement on the responses regarding the child’s social networking activities and communications on internet-usage rules, and are schools playing any role in advocating responsible online behavior?” They collected the data by using two online surveys, one for parents and one for adolescents. The number of your page here.participants in this study was very small. The results indicate that there are parents who are very award of their children’s online activities. This was dependent on how active the children were online. As adolescents became more active online, parents may become less aware of their child’s activity. The study also indicates that 23.4% of surveyed adolescents would not tell their parent if they were in trouble and jumped to 46.7% of the “low-correlation” pairs. Low-correlation is defined as parent-child pairs who had a low level of agreement in survey responses. Therefore rules are not enough to keep adolescent safe online because the adolescents are not following the rules as much as the parents think they are. Schools are also an important part of online safety by providing Internet safety instruction. Of the adolescents surveyed 82.9% had discussions with teachers about social networking. The study indicated that a larger study should be conducted with more probing questions.