Comments4Kids #3

I commented on Jack G.'s blog post. Jack's blog post was for football fans and players. In his post he discussed different aspects of football. He explains how football is fun, but it is very challenging. Jack talks about how you have to work hard and do your best in the game. He explains what a play is. For those of you who are not familiar with football a play is where the running back goes and if he gets the ball or not. Jack finishes his blog by describing the different positions of football.

I thought Jack G. did a great job on his blog post. He went into great detail to describe the game of football. His respect for the sport shined through in his post. I commented to Jack that I loved his positive attitude. I also expressed at how great I thought it was that he talked about the challenges of the game and that you had to do your best. I told him that I admired that quality and to continue the great job he is doing! If you would like to read some of the student's blog posts you can find it at the following link Comments4Kids.

BLOGGING

I loved the video. I thought that it was very creative. I loved how the children got into the song. It looked like they were having a great time! This was a great example of using a blog to share students talents. I hope other students are encouraged by this video. This leads me to my assignment for this week. Why is it important for students to post their work on blogs? I have several reasons that I have learned about this semester to why it is important to post students work on blogs.

This semester was my first attempt at blogging. As the time has gone by and I have learned more about how it works, it has become very beneficial to me. The first reason that I think students should post their work on blogs is that it connects them with people like themselves. Since I am renewing my teaching certification by posting my work on my blog I am able to stay current/knowledgeable in my field of education. Through sharing my work with other educators I have gained some new information regarding teaching. Through my blog I have received great websites that can be used as teaching resources. An example of this would be my blog post on ALEX . After sharing what I learned about ALEX it is out there for all to see and use as a resource. By posting on my blogs I have learned to share my work, ask questions, locate instructions, and get resources. Through blogging I am able to stay current with events in the area of teaching. In my blog post I have also shared podcast on education topics. Again this is another example of using blog post to gain valuable information or resources.

Also by posting my work on my blog I am able to share what I think is important. I can share information, thoughts, or my achievements with others. I can express myself to others. A good example of this is with my Personal Learning Network. After I developed my PLN I shared it on my blog in hopes that anyone needing some information regarding teaching would find it helpful. Blogging is a wonderful way to share and receive information.

A third reason to post your work on blogs is to influence others. Another post I made was regarding Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture. I commented on his book in hopes to encourage others to live life to the fullest and to have fun while you are doing it. Life is so hectic now a days and I feel that any words on encouragement are inspiring. I felt that the purpose of Randy's book was for everyone to stop and relieve how precious life is. No matter your age, it is OK to dream. Dream and dream big! Live life to the fullest and make the most out of it. If sharing your thoughts on a blog post influences one person then it is well worth the effort. Another example of using my blog post to influence others would be my assignment for Comments 4kids. This is a great way to bring children's work to life. To encourage others to read their stories and respond. By sharing my work, hopefully I am able to encourage others to see the magic in our student's work. You can find some creative post at the following link http://woodtech.edublogs.org/. I hope you find them inspiring and are able to give them words of encouragement!

Comments4Kids #2

The blog post that I responded to was from a boy named Shawntae. In his blog he shared different things about himself. He likes to listen to hip hop and rap. His favorite color is green because it is the color of money and MSU. Shawntae wants to go to Michigan State University. There he wants to pursue a career in sports. One day he would like to be part of the NFL or NBA. Basketball is his favorite sport. On his blog he posted several pictures of the New Orleans Hornets basketball team.

Shawntea's favorite football team is the New Orleans Saints. Chris Paul from the New Orleans Hornets is his favorite basketball player. Shawntae's blog post was very colorful. He did a great job introducing himself. I told him that I was glad to see that he was interested in going to MSU and that I am sure he had a lot to offer that school. I shared with him to never give up on his dreams and to continue to work towards them. I also expressed my love for basketball and that I even coach my daughter's 3rd grade team. In closing I told Shawntae to keep up the good work he is doing! If you would like to read some of the children's blog post you can find it at the following link http://woodtech.edublogs.org/.

ACCESS

ACCESS is the acronym for Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, & Students Statewide. This program was designed to allow students to access advance diploma courses that they may not otherwise have access to. ACCESS allows students to take advanced placement (AP) classes. The goal as stated in the ACCESS website " is to create equity through additional educational offerings for all Alabama public high school students." There are several advantages to ACCESS. Some advantages are the instant expansion of course course offerings. Advanced diploma and advance level courses in areas such as foreign languages, electives, and high mathematics.

Every high school in the state of Alabama has an ACCESS lab. The program uses current technology to provide courses to students via the Internet and video conferencing. Students are offered supportive resources, such as interactive on-line chemistry labs. ACCESS opens up so many doors to students who would otherwise miss out. I am impressed with the website and all that Alabama has to offer to its students. I am glad to see that they care out the future of our students. ACCESS offers great learning opportunities for all!

ALEX

ALEX stands for Alabama Learning Exchange. It is a project of the Alabama Department of Education. It is an online tool for teachers, parents, and students. It has a variety of free resources. You can find many different educational material such as lesson plans, web links, and interactive activities. All the material is connected to the Alabama Course of Study. The website is well organized and is easy to navigate through.

ALEX has a personal workspace for teachers. This allows teachers to store and submit lesson plans. There are also tons of web links categorized for teachers, administrators, and students. ALEX offers professional learning tools for educators, along with the latest news in education. I am glad to find out about ALEX. I think this is a valuable website that will help many new teachers. As a returning teacher, I am glad to have ALEX available to go to for guidance. Anyone interesting in ALEX can find more information about it at the following web link.http://alex.state.al.us/

DEAR KAIA

This weeks blog assignment is to read, listen, and watch several blog post regarding a little girl named Kaia. The first blog is tittled Dear Kaia: Voicethread and Video. In this blog post Mr. Chamberlain is doing is weekly blog on commentskids when something usual happened. Kaia's father contacted Mr. Chamberlain class about using a video/audio in their post since Kaia cannot read yet. Mr.Chamberlain's class Incorporated voice thread to their videos. Voice thread is new technology that lets you have a conversation around media. It allows you to upload PowerPoint files, picture file, movie files, and much more to voice thread programs. This is what Mr. C's class did. They used their thoughts and comments incorporated with pictures to share with Kaia. She is now able to see and hear Mr. C's class post. It is amazing how this tool can connect children of all ages. It is great to see where the future is headed. With tools like this the opportunities are endless.

Dear Kaia is the next blog I viewed. In this blog post Kaia and her father grab a camera to go exploring. He wants her to explore the world around her, to use her senses to see what she can find. She is given her own camera to capture what she sees. In the post there are a variety of pictures of Kaia exploring. Kaia's father down loads her pictures and incorporates voice thread into them. Kaia shares in her own words about the pictures she took. I thought this was a wonderful blog post. As a parent I felt it was very inspiring. I loved how her father let her express herself and then shared it for the world to see. She was very creative and I loved how she looks for the beauty in everything!

Singing Hearts was the last blog I viewed. In this blog twitter was used to connect a group of 8th graders in Missouri with a 3 year old girl in Qatar. In this blog Kaia's father was reading the book, The Last Child in the Woods. While reading this book her father started to ponder the time he and Kaia spent outside discovering nature. She wanted to explore her world even though it was a dry desert. The father discusses how beauty is in everything. Later they produced a photo essay of what she discovered. Kaia's father wanted everyone to know that learning extends outside the classroom walls. Kaia's blog became a documentation of her life and with the use of blogs she is now connecting with people around the world. All three blogs were very inspiring. I am glad to see that young children can share the use of technology. I believe that it is important to start children off early with the use of computers. I like the use of voice threading. I think it is new, fun, and exciting way to do reports. As an educator I agree with Kaia's father that learning does extend outside of the classroom walls and technology makes this possible. Kaia' story can be found at the following link http://is.gd/3WSsn. I hope you find it as inspiring as I did!

Comments4Kids Project 8

Comments4Kids

For this project I must participate in Comments4Kids by posting five comments on blog sites of kids throughout the world. My class was assigned to Mr. Goerend's classroom. I choose five different children, read their post blogs and then commented on their post. I really enjoyed this assignment. I t was exciting to see children using blogs in their classroom. I was amazed at how creative the children's blogs were. They really used their imagination in their writings.

The blog post that I read came from a boy named David. In his blog he shared information on holiday devoted only to playing football. This holiday was called International Football Day. It is celebrated on September 27. Five children started the 1st celebration just because of their love for the sport. School is out on this day and football games are played all over the country. The two teams left in the competition compete for the championship. Whoever wins the game receives money which is later donated to their own charity. I told David that I loved this post and that I was a football fan also, Roll Tide! I shared with him that I thought it was wonderful that they could have fun doing something, but at the same time help out a charity. He did a great job on this post.

Opps was the title of the next post I read. It was written by Zach. In this post Zach is at a party and accidentally spills his drink on another kid. The kid has pop all over him. That was when Zach and his friends got the idea for a new holiday. This holiday would be called International Act Like You have a Muscle Spasm! I thought this was a very interesting and fun post. Zach seemed to be having a great time when he wrote it. I shared with him how I loved his imagination. I told him to keep up the good work and to continue to have fun!

Alyssa is the author the post titled The Most Fishy Holiday of the Year. In her post she shares her experience visiting an aquarium. When she walked in she was overwhelmed by the odor. She actually could taste the smell of fish food. Fish, fish tanks, sea life, and people in blue outfits were everywhere. This is how Alyssa created her new holiday, The Most Fishy Holiday of the Year. Now it is celebrated with costumes and parades. I thought this was a great blog post. I expressed my love for the ocean and beach to Alyssa. I told her how I loved how she used her five senses to describe the experience. I encouraged her to continue the great work she is doing.

My First Plane Ride is the title of a post done by Grace. In this post Grace shares her story of her very first plane ride. She was going to San Diego, California. Grace was going with her family to visit her brother who was training to be a marine. She was looking forward to the trip, but she was a little nervous. She did not know what to expect. Her ears popped and her stomach got sick when the plane took off. The trip was long, but the ride was great. She is looking forward to her next plane ride. I told Grace of my first plane ride when I was 22 years old. I went from Alabama to Hawaii. I was scared and did not know what to expect. It ended up being a great experience also. I thanked Grace for sharing her story and encouraged her to continue the great job!

Olivia's blog post was the last that I read. In her blog she described the day she got her dog. It was December 19 when Olivia and her family were traveling to her Grandmother's house. When they arrived the puppy was waiting in a cardboard box. The puppy's name was Lucy and she was seven weeks old. This was a great beginning to the Christmas holiday for Olivia. I commented to Olivia that I just got a puppy a few months ago. His name is Marley and he is a Yellow Lab. I told her I enjoyed her blog post and that I thought it was very sweet.

I read more blog post then just these five children. I thought they were all great. I think it is wonderful that these children have this tool to help them be creative. They are did an excellent job using their imagination. I would encourage everyone to take the time to read and comment on some of these students work. They really do deserve the encouragement. The link to this website is http://www.mrgoerend.com/search/label/student%20writing.