Video Conferencing Tools

Video Conferencing Tools	Features
Skype	This is a popular and easy video chat for people to use, particularly for students. You can host meetings, both through video and voice calls. There is also an instant messaging and file sharing option available to use if you want to.
Adobe Connect Now	This is a good site to use for file sharing among the different people involved. Through Adobe Acrobat there also the ability to share peoples editing on a single combined PDF file. Finally there is also a place where you can store any personal files in order to access them from anywhere.
Tiny Chat	This is a chat room based video conferencing tool. There is an option of developing an instant chat room or a personalized chat room. There is also an app that you can download in order to access this both through the computer and other devices.
Meeting Burner	There is an option for hosting a meeting of up to 10 people. This is an application that can be hosted on a variety of devices including iPhones, iPads, and Android phones. One of the nice features is that you can share your own screen with anyone in the meeting.
Go To Meeting	This includes an instant messaging feature. There is also a video conferencing and voice calls feature. Finally there is also a feature that allows for file sharing and an option to sharing your screen.
Yugma	This is available on a number of different devices and has features that include both audio and video conferencing. With this there is also a chance to share their desktop with other participants.
Webex	With this site you can host a meeting in HD, if high quality is important to you. It also provides a mobile app that is available.

In the past I have used Go To Meeting for an online training to use a specific program on the computer. I really enjoyed the easy of this program. We used the voice calls and the ability to share files and our screens. In addition we used the instant messaging. All of these aspects were very easy to use and allowed for me to gain a good understanding of the program I was learning how to use. This could be a very easy way in which teachers could host a class with students who may be unable to attend class in the traditional method. 

Web 2.0: A New Wave of Innovation for Teaching and Learning

I never really heard anything about Web 2.0 prior to beginning this semester. I had no idea what it was nor what it involved. However, after reading this article by Bryan Alexander I realize that I have been using a variety of aspects that would fall under the Web 2.0 category. There are not many people who are not somehow active on social networking sites these days. All of these social networking are part of the Web 2.0 world that is made up of social software that allows for an inter-connectivity with people that have not been possible in the past. With the growing of these social software such as blogs, wikis, podcasts, videoblogs, and social networking sites, there is an increase in the ability to work collaboratively with people from near and far. This quality can be applied both in and out of classrooms.

 Alexander lays out a number of different ways that Web 2.0 has developed and can be incorporated into the classroom. There are some great applications for the use of the different develops that have come to being under the Web 2.0 classification. There are a number of different way that social media like Facebook or blogs can be used to help create an interactive platform that can be used both in an out of the classroom for students and teachers to share ideas and resources. With the inter-connectivity that Web 2.0 has created it is also cool how we can share ideas with students and classrooms around the world that would otherwise be completely out of our reach. These tools have created yet another way that we can learn and grow from each other! 

Voice Thread, Animoto, & Wordle

Here is a link to my Voice Thread I created:
http://voicethread.com/?#u4068723


Here is a link to my Animoto video I created:
http://animoto.com/play/vmXk3E0LFoEjoHzCxa29VQ

Animoto is an extremely easy program to use that could help create videos in the classroom. This could be used in a number of different ways in the classroom. Students could put together an informational video about a topic that they have pictures and descriptions for. Another way that I would use it would be for like an open house and put together a video of student's work or pictures of them doing different activities in the classroom. It could be a fun little video that the students can show their parents.


Here is a link to the Wordle I created:
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/7198512/Red_Ribbon_Week 

 The only problem I had with Wordle is that my Java Script would not run unless I turned off my firewall. So it is a pretty cool designing program but I'm not sure how often I will use it on my computer.

Microsoft Access

I have never heard of this application before. When I began this assignment the application reminded me of Microsoft Excel. Although I have never used Access before the overall concept is one I am familiar with. I have created some databases similar to the one for this assignment for previous classes I have taken. Once I went through the tutorials and started to play around with the program I thought it was relatively easy to use. I think the thing that helped the most was that this program is set up a lot like the other Microsoft programs I am familiar with, so it was easy to find and use the necessary tools. I had fun completing all he different queries and manipulating the data to answer the questions. I think this could be an application the the students could use when performing data analysis. I am not entirely sure all of the applications or tasks that can be done using Access because I am still exploring it, but from what I have done this could be a fun way for students to use a program to find patterns in their data they may have otherwise missed. I will definitely be using this program in the future!

Web Based Tools for the Classroom

I enjoyed how this website was organized allowing for the varied tools to be compiled in an organized format under specific topics that you may want your students to do. I also liked having the brief description about what each tool does and then the rating that has been left by others. 

In a way it surprised me as to how many different ways that Google applications can be used in the classroom to promote the students learning. I have used a number of Google applications myself but the way that this website describes the implementation of these applications. I am a fan of Google Maps but never thought about incorporating them into the classroom, I only think  about them as being good for finding directions if you become lost. I have also never heard of or used Google Voice. It sounds as though it could be useful, although I am unsure on how exactly it works. 

Two of my favorite tools I played around with from this website was Audacity and Mindomo. Mindomo is a relatively easy way for anyone to create concept maps and graphic organizers. This could become a very useful tool in the classroom, particularly for visual learners. I think I like the program inspiration better but Mindomo is a nice online generator for organizers and concept maps. While Mindomo is useful to help the visual learning, Audacity is a fun way to alter and create audio. I was able to play around with some aspects of the program and once you became familiar with the controls and settings it was relatively easy to alter. This could be used as a way to record student dialogues and add it to the back of a slide show or just to create a audio recording for a project.

Overall there were quite a few different tools that I could see myself incorporating into the classroom setting. In addition to the tools that would help promote student learning, there were also tools that I could use to help myself create fun games for the students study while also allowing an easy tool to create the simple quizzes and tests I could use throughout my instruction. Finally I liked how there were a number of different tools that could be used to create rubrics because I am a fan of using rubrics for students to know exactly what is expected of the every step of the way.

Web Based Tools

I have only used a select few of these tools before. So I had a lot to choose from to comment on. Overall I think many if not all of these tools could be incorporated in the classroom for various purposes that could help benefit the classroom as a whole. Some of the ones I focused on were:

 ~Poll Everywhere- This is an app that allows you to create a survey or poll and have your audience answer in real time. You can create your own poll about anything. Therefore, this could be used in the classroom as a way to survey everyone quickly to analyze the data. Often there is a unit on graphing or analyzing data and rather then going through the long and slow process of surveying everyone in person this could be a new interactive way to poll the class and use the data throughout the lesson. It is fun and a great way to incorporate technology in a different way than has been used before. Unfortunately, only people with an electronic device that has access to this app can participate in this activity, so access may prove difficult in some instances.

~Triptico- This app allows teachers to create interactive lessons. This would be a great tool to be used on a Smartboard that allows the students to come up and become part of the lesson instead of just sitting by and watching. This app appears to be relatively easy to use with many different options and resources for teachers to use throughout their lessons. A draw back could be accessibility depending on your districts policy for downloading different apps.

~Class Dojo- A behavior management tool the allows teachers to record each students behavior and to keep record of it. This allows for teachers to look at the behaviors they recorded and to analyze them in hopes of finding alternatives to help alleviate any problem behaviors. It also appears as though students, parents, and other teachers can have access to these records (of course limited depending on who they are) in order to gain a better understanding of what is happening in the classroom. Once again one of the negatives would be accessibility and the access to the technology in order to use this app. Also to keep in mind would be to make sure student privacy is kept in check.

~Typing Adventure- This is a somewhat fun game that can be used to help kids learn where all the letters on the keyboard are located. This would be ideal for younger children although lacks the challenges for more advanced users. There are some other games that can be found online for more advanced typing as a quick and fun challenge. 

~Teaching Channel- This website is full of resources for teachers. They range from videos to full lesson plans. I even found some things that focused on the stuff found in the common core. There is a lot available on this site and it could take awhile to sift through until you find what you need, but overall I could see myself using some of the different materials available, although I would likely add my own twist on anything I use.

Excel

I have used Excel very little throughout the years. Last year was the first time in which I really used Excel, and even then I feel like I didn't use it to the full potential. I was placed in charge of a athletic program that was begun in the before and after school program where I work. The program is called "Let's Get Movin'" and involved a number of different exercises and activities that worked to get the students up and moving. However, because this was a program that accompanied a grant there was a need to keep track of all the different student's activities and the amount of time spent being active within the program. This task was tedious and at first I started with a table created in Word. Eventually the Word document became too cumbersome and as a result I decided to begin to use Excel. The Excel document became much easier to manage and input data into. However, I still feel as though I just skimmed the surface for all the ways in which Excel can be used and the easiest and most effective ways to use it. 

I never thought that Excel could be used to make either a timeline or a crossword puzzle. At first I was at a complete loss as to what to do but as started to read more about the tools in Excel and play around with them it became clear. But as I worked to create the crossword puzzle the tools made sense and made the process much easier and faster as I figured out what I was doing. Excel can be a useful tool when used correctly, otherwise it may just seem frustrating and annoying.

Microsoft Word

I am pretty proficient in Word in general. I am more familiar with the older versions, like the 2003, since that is what I have been using for years; however, I have begun to use the 2013 version this semester and it is great! It is user friendly and there are so many more options available! 

I am taking an intro to tech class and we were given choices as to what we wanted to produce depending on how familiar we are in Word. I choose to create a "scrapbook page" and I enjoyed getting to play with all the different features in Word. I particularly like all the different options that altered the design and visual aspects of the text and images. I am a very visual person and care how the final product looks and I am impressed by the shear number of different options offered in the updated versions compared to the slim options I have been using for years. 

Looking through the tutorial and just from simply playing around with all the different options, there are some new features that I believe will make using Word both easier and faster, especially depending on what product you are creating. 

I have used the editing options and tracking changes feature in Word, and I loved it. I used to while working on a group paper, something I don't like doing in general, but the Word feature allowed for use to each write and comment on the paper without having to necessarily be together. This feature could also be very beneficial to use in the classroom for editing student work. Using this feature allows for the teacher to leave comments and help with the editing process but the students do not have to keep printing out different copies of their work for the editing, thus saving paper and ink! 

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