I’m Back!!!!

Wow!!! It’s been an incredibly long time since I’ve blogged, but I am officially back. My goal is to blog at least once a week about something that I’m either learning in grad school or doing at the school that I teach at.

Currently in grad school, I am learning all about webquests. Honestly, I haven’t been a webquest kind of girl, but I think the reason is simply because I’ve never really been exposed to them and how amazing they can be. The big assignment in this particular class this semester will be to design my own webquest, and I couldn’t be more excited about it.

Have any of you used webquests in your classrooms? I’ve been given two websites that I can use as resources as I create my own: http://www.webquest.org/ & http://questgarden.com/

If you have any other great resources on webquests, please share!!! 🙂

Web 2.0 Tools

It’s amazing to me how many Web 2.0 tools there are out there for teachers. I’m halfway through the semester, and I’ve learned SO much! Check out my newest blog post done for one of my classes that discusses in depth various Web 2.0 tools – specifically Animoto and Google Docs. I also list various websites that list tons of tools that are out there for educators!

http://ryoder.weebly.com/blog/evaluating-web-20-tools-for-classroom-use

Wikis

I’ve recently learned about wikis and the amazing things that can be done with them in the classroom. Currently, I have a class wiki going that involves social studies. In my students’ reading centers, one of their activities is to go on the wiki and answer questions about various people they study during the Revolutionary War (e.g. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin). Students seem to really enjoy the collaborative aspect of wikis, and once they have all worked together to completely answer these questions, it’ll make for a great review area. Click here to sign up for your own wikispace.

Check out my full blog post about wikis below:

The Wonder of Wikis

The Journey Begins

I’m doing it!! I’m going to get my master’s!! This month, I started a master’s program in Instructional Technology  with Kennesaw State University. Currently, I’m a 4th grade teacher who has found her passion in technology. And more specifically – integrating technology with education to transform the educational experience for our students.

How did this happen? Well, last year, I was part of a team from my school that received some in depth training in the new eclass system that was being launched for teachers and students in the county. For those of you who aren’t Gwinnett County and/or have never heard of eClass, it is a Digital Content, Learning, Assessment, and Support System. It allows students to access homework/assignments/projects online, and I absolutely LOVE it!! Anyway, ever since that training, the love of technology that I never fully knew I had was brought to life. I started using way more technology in my classroom, and I left my fear of trying new things behind. 

The purpose of this blog is to share with you my journey of using technology. I’m inviting you to take this journey with me. I’m not sure if there’s an end destination because there will always be more to learn and that’s what excites me! Through reading this blog, you’ll hear about my technology experiences – both good and bad – as well as new programs I hear about and really anything about technology that would be beneficial to other educators like me. Please feel free to share feedback, ideas, stories, etc.  Let’s transform instruction with technology together!