GPS Assignment

The first picture was from Lisa and my first cashe we were suppose to find. We looked everywhere. Then Nate and Megan showed up looking for the same cashe. Again we were unsuccessful in finding the cashe so we took a picture together showing that we did not find it. The second picture is of Lisa and I with the second cashe we were suppose to find. It was in a tree!

So the difficulty I found with the GPS and geocashing was that the coordinates given to us were not the exact ones where the cash was hidden. I know that it can be impossible to get the exact coordinates, but Lisa and I would end up about twenty feet away from where the cashe was. So we were placed in a general area, just not very close to the actually position of the cashe. I would love to incoorperate GPS's into my classroom when I teach a unit about degrees, angles, and coordinates. It would provide a great activity for my students to get involved and really get to understanding the material I teach.

It was a great day to do that activity and I really enjoyed it!

Delicious!

Delicious is a great way to keep my bookmarks all together in one place where I can get at them from any computer. I could use Delicious for a class research project where I would choose the website that my students would use. This would be a way to monitor what they are looking at online.

Here is the link to My Delicious account

My Prezi

I found Prezi to be a fun new way to give power point presentations. I like how I have access to it through the internet and I don't have to upload it on a USB drive to share. The one downfall I can across with Prezi is how with the public version there are only a hand full of layouts to choose from.

To View my 39sec Prezi, click on the link blow:

Geometer's Sketchpad Prezi

Zotero Examples

Book found on Amazon.com on WWII
My notes on the WWII website with Zotero

Zotero is a great way to keep the websites I research all in one place. Right away I knew I could use Zotero for my project on Green Architecture because all of my resources are online. Also provides a way to organize my online information I want to save. The best part about it is that I can add my own notes and highlight things without printing off information. A great way for going green and saving a tree!

Google SketchUp Study Area

I finally got the hang of Google SketchUp to do the assignment. I am very proud of my study area! :D

My Webcam Experience

Hello All!

I just had to share my experience with my webcam and video calling on MSN.

My dad called me on Thursday night and told me he finally got his webcam. So I told him to get an MSN Live Messenger account so we could talk and see each other. When we got everything to work it was so amazing! I got to see my parents and brother who live 1800 miles away from me. I chatted with my parents for a bit and my mom and I got to show each other our new hair do's.

Now with my dad and I both hooked up with webcams I can tutor my brother through MSN more effectivly now! This will really come in handy when my brother starts taking Calculus next year. Not to mention my parents keep bugging me about finding time to get online and chat some more.

Technology: Connecting families one webcam at a time!

Tweeteorology

Tweeter-what?! That's right, I said Tweeteorology! It is an application for Twitter in which Twitter users can get the forecast to their desktop for their area code. Follow the Tweeteorology link to the application website and enter in your zip code for an up to date weather forecast and tweets from people in that area commenting on the weather.

I was thinking what a great application to be used in a Math or Science classroom with the teacher monitoring the students. Tweeteorology can be used for in the classroom where the students can predict the weather for future dates by recording the weather over a period of time. Also with the weather records from the previous years; students from year to year can predict the weather on say any particular date such as December 25 of every year!

In my Math classroom I could have a different student each day go onto the Tweeteorology website and look up and record the weather for that day. Then after a few weeks of recording I could incorporate that information into my lesson plans with graphs and growth and decay rates.

I like Tweeteorlogy for my own personal use. When I start my day I can look up what the weather is like before I even head outside. This allows me to dress properly. Also if I don't like the weather, I can vent my frustration on the Tweeteorlogy message board! Add it this application on your Twitter account today!

My Bestie Voicethread!

Ideal Classroom Reflection

-Describe the topic of your Ideal Classroom project.

Megan, Lisa and my project topic was a 10Th grade Geometry class with Units on Triangles and 3D figures. We were wanting to incorporate the two Units in a final project of Architectural Design.

-Why did you select that topic and what did you hope to create?

We selected the topic based on our area of study at UNI. We wanted to create a classroom that was fully functional for our students to learn best. We wanted the best resources and technologies to help advance the students learning in Geometry. The three of us knew how 10Th graders can be and we figured including lots of technology would help capture their attention.

-Describe the thinking and creation process that you used to create your final project.

As a group we answered most of the questions. At the same time I would be getting the opinions for Lisa and Megan about the types of technologies, the furniture, the software, and the resources we wanted in our classroom. I would look up the prices and together as a group we decided on how many to buy. I then on my own time wrote up the spread sheet. From the two questions we did not get done as a group Lisa and Megan each took one to do. Megan was also in charge of the layout of our classroom. If she added something to it that she thought we needed, she would let me know and I would add in on our spreadsheet and she added it to our set of questions.

-How did you use technology to collaborate with your team partners?

Like I said above we divided the work up that we could not get done together physically. So I used Google Docs to get information from the other two girls. This helped us talk(type) out what types of software we wanted. Also Lisa send a Google Doc to let Megan and I see the progress she made on her designated questions. Megan used Google Layout for out classroom layout.

-Explain at least one barrier that you confronted while completing the project.

Like I said in class, at first it was a little over-whelming; the work that we had to do. There were so many different parts that needed to be completed, we did not really know where to start. However we just stuck to it and worked together as much as possible to get it done. In the end we were very pleased with our finished product and we ended up having fun do it.

-Explain what you learned from this project? This could include topic material, group work, etc.

I learned a lot about my wants and needs in my classroom as a teacher. I discovered that it takes so much to make the perfect classroom and it is not always the case where teachers get their ideal classrooms filled with the best up-to-date technology and resources.

-Any final words that you might have about the project or the process.

I enjoyed this project and it was funny to see our final result and our ideas put into play.

Spotlight in Education Technology Day Reflection

I volunteered at the Spotlight on Educational Technology Day in the ITTC building. It was February 27th and I was facilitating from 1:30 to 3. Along with I took notes on the things I found the most interesting.

I sat in on Cecelia Zangara's presentation called "Anyone Can Pass Science Class." She was from the Western Dubuque Schools Along with Ms. Zangara was a few of her science students. They helped present the different sorts of technologies used in the classroom. One website she uses is Discovery Education where students log into their own accounts and look at information that the teacher wants them to see. There is also an application on there where the site will read the information to the student. Ms. Zangara explains that it is also helpful in the classroom when the class reads aloud to the others. The students are more confident about reading aloud with this resource.

One other form of technology Ms. Zangara uses is Boardmaker software. It is where she can print of materials for visuals aids since she recognizes that most of her students are visual learners. She creates a definition sheet with pictures to go with them. She gives every student a copy and they class makes there own flash cards to help with memorizing of the terms. Then when it comes time to quiz the students over the definitions she gives them the pictures in random order and a list of the definitions. The student is required to match the definitions with the correct picture. She reported that she saw a huge improvement to the quiz scores when using the visuals aids from the software.

I was absolutely amazed at the Boardmaker software. Ever since I saw what she had down with the resource I have been coming up with ways that I could incorporate that software into my classroom. Math is very visual so it would only make sense to use Boardmaker to further my students' learning through visual aids.

Online Tutoring Artifact

Background:

As it says on my profile, I am a Sec. Math Ed. major. Just the same my brother is also very good at Math. My parents are just besides themselves because they can not figure out how my brother and I have come across our talent and liking of Mathematics. (They are history buffs).

My parents moved to California before a graduated high school. My brother would occasionally call me for some homework help whenever either of our parents uttered our favorite lines, "I don't know anything about Math Alex. Go ask your sister." (They are our favorite lines because this is when my parents actually admit that we know more about something than them).

What:

Ever since was brother was placed in an Advanced Algebra class he is always calling me for help on how to do problems or help understanding the theoretical ideas behind the material. If it came to problem solving help, we would agree to get online,, on Messenger and he would type out the problem for me. From there I would work it out and then coach him on how to work out the problem without just simply giving him the answer. (He gets mad at me for doing that, but he later realizes that it helps him to do it on his own). For the theoretical ideas of Math we just usually discuss that on the phone. He might not understand why something is the way it is. This is when I ask him what the material is covering and to tell me exactly what he doesn't understand. Sometimes he will read his textbook out loud to me. I'll stop him every once in a while to go over what he just said, putting it into words that he would better understand. Some textbooks are just way too wordy and vague for a junior in high school.


From http://recycledproducts.org/detail.aspx?ID=5343

Alex just acquired a graphing calculator not too long ago and at first he was very over whelmed by it. (I remember feeling the same way). Although he has read the manual (part of it anyways), he sometimes still calls me up asking me to remind him how to do something on it. I'm afraid if he were to ask our parents about it they would get sick from looking at all the buttons, haha! Just kidding! Every once in a while I will have to go online and type out the buttons he would have to hit to get a specific function to work on his calculator. I believe this is because he is a visual learner and it is hard for him to be told what button to hit. He usually needs to be shown what the button looks like to register that if he hits it, "this" will happen. I am the same way and have very similar learning styles as my brother. Therefore I know that going online and working Math problems out there is the best way for him to get it without me being physically there. Our online Messenger is a great way for me to tutor my brother and I have been doing it for quite a while. This was why I choose to do Online Tutoring as my Artifact.

So What:

This process of online tutoring seems to work quite well for my brother. Our Messenger conversations are a form of visual for him because he is a visual learner. However it would be more benefical to him sometimes if I was actually there with him showing how to do things. Some materical is too hard to try to explain without being there to point to out a step by step process. Another then that one thing, our tutoring system works.

Now What:

My brother will be a senior in high school next year and he will only have four or five classes. One in which is Calculus. We are very sure that Alex will be needing my help next year and we will obviously be continuing our online tutoring sessions.

Oldies from my Educational Media Blog!

These three blog entries were ones that I posted last year. I did them for my Ed Media class and I thought that they were too important not to share.

1. Online Lesson Plans -
http://kkwilson1.blogspot.com/2008/04/online-lesson-plans.html

2. ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) -
http://kkwilson1.blogspot.com/2008/04/iste.html

3. Tele-Teaching -
http://kkwilson1.blogspot.com/2008/04/tele-teaching.html

Using Excel as a Worksheet!

I was reading up on one of the blogs that I follow Maths Teaching. She had published a post last month called Excel and Maths. This post has a link to a website, MathsFiles, where there are 37 different Excel files that you can download and use in the classroom to help students on a specific math areas. I was really amazed by this website. You are able to preview the what the Excel layouts look like before you download them. For Educational Media I did an Excel worksheet dealing with area formulas. I found it difficult to come up with Excel worksheet so when I discovered this website I was again amazed!

These Excel files are such a great idea and are useful to the student. I will definitely be using these MathsFiles in my classroom to help my students better understand the material we cover in class. I also thought that these Excel files are something that the parents can download at home. This way the students have access to these resources whenever they need them; instead of just during school hours. These files are a great way to get the students involved in the material and it is a way for them to learn but also have fun at the same time.

My Theme and More

Introduction to my themed blog:

The theme I created for my blog is about finding ways to teach Math with technology. When it comes to Math, it is hard to not just result in using the traditional ways of using a white board or an overhead projector. Those resources are helpful, but I'm interested in the new up to date classroom technology resources. Through my theme blog I will share my ideas and knowledge (and others' knowledge as well) with my readers on every source of classroom technology I can find.

Blogs I Discovered:

1). Math Education And Teaching - The writer of this blog talks all about teaching Math and how to make it fun for the students. I decided on this blog because along with learning new ways to teach math with technology, I was also looking for just a pure Math blog. This blog holds to that so I can learn to make learning easier for my students. Although only had a few entries and has not been updated in a while, I still found entries worth while to keep handy since it contains material that I need to keep in mind while teaching. The writer of Math Education And Teaching is writing to express their opinions only. There are no links to any other blogs or websites.

2). Maths Teaching - This blog is also purely Math, but with allot of resources and links. The writer's main purpose, I believe, is it share her teaching styles and materials with others. She has posted a number of worksheet and presentation links created by her to use in the classroom. Along with web links to check out for teacher and student use. The writer posts only about three times a month, but she posts of much information in just one post, it's enough for multiple lesson plans. Great resources at my disposal.

3). Teach Science and Math - A great blog relating to using technology to teach Math and Science! The writer mainly links to websites for teacher and student use. He also gives ideas to lesson plans and activities for both Science and Math. Offers lots of links and updates everyday. Teach Science and Math blog grabbed my attention and the writer keeps me interested with a variety of topics relating to his theme.

Check these blogs out! :D

Feb 3rd. 2009

My first blog entry. More to come!