Thing #4-Podcasting

Wow! It was fun to explore all of the different podcasts that are out there. I searched under 2nd grade and found 33 different ones. There were several that I thought were cute. One that I thought I could use with the class was on cause/effect. Each student wrote and illustrated a cause and then what the effect would be. We are always talking about this in language arts and science. It would be a neat way to see if the students really understood what it was. A second one I found was Fraction fun. We are working on fractions right now. The students wrote/illustrated fraction stories for others to solve. After others tried to solve their stories, they came back and gave the ansers. I would love to do this with my own kids and post it on our classroom webpage. We are working on writing the stories right now. It would take a while to get everyone's written and illustrated and then attach a voicethread to read their story. I need to find a microphone and figure out how to use these podcasts and add voice threads. This will keep me busy the next couple of days, but I think I'll give it a go!

http://voicethread.com/share/421874
http://voicethread.com/share/838050/

Okay, I couldn't stand it and had to try a podcast. Thanks to my husband for his help with the story line. I made a retelling of Frosty the Snowman with photos from our snowman building contest at school. I was also able to get it imported into my classroom webpage so that parents can view our podcast. Check it out. http://voicethread.com/share/987936/

Thing #3-Photo Sharing

This is an area that I have had a lot of fun with. I started last year using wikki spaces as my classroom website. It didn't have the photo/video components that I was looking for. Early this year I found Shutterfly. I love it! I have set up our classroom web page using it. I love the ability to download classroom activities so that parents and children can log on and see what we have been working on. It allows me to download pictures, videos, pdf files, and more. My parents were then invited to join the website. I set it up as a private site. The parent comments have been very positive. Even some of the students in my class talk about going on to check out the photos and videos. I post lunch menus, calendars and monthly newsletters as well. The best part is, that if a parent sees a picture that they like, they can order a copy of the print themselves.

Another great photo sharing website is smilebox.com. It allows you to put your pictures into photoalbums and slide shows with annimation. I will sometimes use this website and import it into my classroom webpage. The kids love it.
smilebox.com

Thing #2: Bookmarking:

I'm liking the idea of using Delicious.com for my bookmarking. Every summer the district wipes out my computer and all of my bookmarks. This will make it so much easier and save me all the time of having to re-bookmark all of my favorites. The idea of being able to access my favorites from any computer is also appealing. I think being able to see what others have bookmarked will be great. It should save me some valuable time.

http://delicious.com/pbird329

Thing #1-Blogging

Yeah! I did it! I have never really used a "blog" until now. I have set up my classroom website to share information with parents, but this is my first blog. I like to read what others are doing in their schools/classrooms. I think blogging will allow me to connect with others who have similar interests/needs. I look forward to learning more about how they work and how to find blogs that will be helpful to me.