Adios, TPTE 486!

Today is the final day of TPTE 486. When I first started this class, I honestly thought I'm a tech-savvy person, and I won't really benefit from a class on technology. Boy was I wrong! I learned about so many tools and resources that I can use in my classroom to enhance learning. I will say that technology has a way of creating frustration instantly. It's not always predictable, and it doesn't always do what you want it to do. However, so many of the resources we learned about in this class will help me present information in a variety of ways that will help all learners as well as help students demonstrate their knowledge to me in a variety of ways. In one of my other classes last week, I was talking with my teacher about using a Wiki to help general education and special education teachers work together when co-teaching a class. I had a classmate say "what's a Wiki?" I was so glad that I knew the answer to that because before this class I would have had a very similar response.

Designing a Classroom Website

I didn't think designing a website could be so easy. Google sites made the process fairly easy to figure out. The hardest part was figuring out exactly what was important enough to put on my page. I did have some trouble with certain images. The size of the screen can greatly change the appearance of the content, so that is important to consider when designing a site. 

I think that having a classroom website is a very good idea, and it is definitely something that I plan to have in my classroom. The only problem I see with using websites is that it may not be the most effective way to reach certain students or parents, especially in high poverty areas. Teachers should consider the demographic of the school at which they are teaching. In such situations, the teacher could still have a website but should also remember that notes home and keeping the parents informed through other means will be necessary.

iMovie Project

Working with iMovie was a lot of fun but very frustrating at first because I didn't understand the program. Once I got the hang of it though, I became a lot less frustrated. The hardest part for me was working with several different audio files and trying to perfectly match and transition them between ideas. I'm glad that I now know how to use this program because I find it to be a very good tool for making book trailers, which is something I plan to do a lot in my classroom. I think the program would be a little too much for students to create their own for a book they are reading with this program, especially if they are not familiar with Macs. However, I do find it a useful for my purposes.

Spreadsheet Project

I created this practice grammar quiz for my students using Excel spreadsheets. I never thought of using Excel in my classroom, so I'm glad I got the chance to play with this tool and see what it has to offer for an English classroom. It's a great tool because it allows me to create my own interactive grammar activities instead of passing out a worksheet. At first, the process was a little tedious, but the more I practiced with it, the more comfortable I got with the tool.

Hunger Games Inspiration Project

Today was my first time using Inspiration software, and I have to say that I would definitely see about purchasing this for my classroom or using a cheap alternative. The various diagrams and maps that students could create using a novel as their basis are unlimited. I did a web diagram on characterization for the main character of the novel Hunger Games. The process involved quite a bit of critical thinking and working with the material. I had to first know what the elements of characterization were and then search the text to find appropriate examples. It sounds easy until you have to start figuring out the difference between what Katniss is saying and what she is thinking and then see how those are different from what she may be doing. A lot of factors are involved when authors are creating characters, so it was cool to go through that process since I plan to have my students do similar activities. Also the process of connecting images to text requires some critical thinking as well. Overall, this activity would be useful for my students, and it was certainly useful for me.

Scavenger Hunt Presentation

Scavenger Hunt

Playing with Picassa for TPTE 486

I could use Picassa in my classroom to create slideshows that keep parents informed of our classroom activities or as a tool for students to create timelines or presentations on select authors or characters. One idea I have for this tool is for students to create a series of images that fit a particular character we are reading about such as items this person might have or want or images that are metaphorical representations for the character. It would be a quick way to assess their understanding of a particular character and also to see what type of inferences they are able to make on their own.

My Intro to WebQuests

Believe it or not, I had never heard of WebQuests until this class activity, but I'm glad I  am now aware of such a useful, instructional resource. One thing that I learned very quickly is that not all WebQuests are created equal. Of the many websites I looked at, some just made my head hurt, and I wouldn't want to give my students a WebQuest that looks so cumbersome. However, there are some very nicely done WebQuests that don't overload the student with too much information or instructions. I also appreciate WebQuests that require students to do some critical thinking because that is a skill that students should practice especially in an English classroom. These are qualities I am going to be looking for when I am evaluating WebQuests to use with my students in the future.

Evaluating Websites

While access to technology in the classroom can be extremely beneficial, teachers must caution their students about websites that are unreliable sources of information. Teachers must also be careful to choose websites with reliable authors and information. Tuesday in class, I had to evaluate a website for reliability and usability. I chose to evaluate http://www.webenglishteacher.com/ authored by Carla Beard. This website is an excellent resource for both new and experienced teachers. Carla Beard has been teaching English since 1975 and is a noted speaker for NCTE (National Council for Teachers of English) and is currently partnering with Harvard University speaking at a conference on technology in the English classroom. While the site does have some features and links that students can find useful, this site will mainly serve as a resource for me as I begin my first year teaching, and I highly recommend it. The experience of evaluating a website is one that I would like my students to have, especially when considering potential internet sources for a paper. This activity could help them to become more aware that just because something is on the internet doesn't make it true.

A Little About Me

Greetings! Welcome to my journey as a first year teacher! I will begin my internship this August at Bearden High School teaching 9th and 12th grade English. I’ve known since I was a little girl that I wanted to be a teacher, and I honestly feel that some things in life choose you. English has always been a subject in which I have excelled and enjoyed. In middle school, I learned every preposition in alphabetical order, and I could tell you what part of speech any given word was in a sentence. I loved reading and writing, unlike many of my peers, and have always had the desire to share my knowledge of the subject. I also feel that because of this desire I could present the subject of English in a way that would interest students who might not normally be interested. A career in teaching appeals to me primarily because of its capacity to change lives and influence young people in a positive way. I think every person in life has had that one teacher that really made a difference in his or her life, and for me that was every single English teacher I ever had. I hope to be that inspiration and guiding force for my students not only for their sake but also for my own, as teaching brings a great deal of joy and fulfillment to my life.

While earning my bachelor’s degree in English, I had the opportunity to work at the University of West Florida’s Writing Lab and work with college students on their papers and grammar on a daily basis. Many of these students were fresh out of high school with very little knowledge of how to construct a proper paper with good grammar. I taught lessons daily to groups of 15 students, tutored students individually, and interactively worked with students on their papers. Additionally, I assisted in a 12th grade English class for eight months even though this was not required for my particular degree. I taught many lessons and worked with students on developing their senior theses. Aside from my experiences with youth in an academic setting, my husband and I have also been youth/student pastors for over two years, so interacting with and helping young people is a big part of our lives aside from our careers.

Although lately I have not had a lot of free time for hobbies and personal interests, I very much enjoy hiking in the mountains, ballroom dancing, and figure skating. Traveling to foreign countries has also been a big part of my life. So far, I’ve been to six countries: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Argentina, Germany, and Canada. I’m currently learning Russian through a private tutor in hopes of spending a summer in Moscow after I graduate. Other than that, I love spending time with friends and family and visiting my hometown of Pensacola, FL because it has the most beautiful beaches in the world.