My Website

Please check out the beginnings of my class website!

http://sites.google.com/site/mrskprice/

Final: INTASC-TaskStream2009.doc

Please follow this link to view the document.


http://docs.google.co/Doc?docid=0ARNXr5_HqcgeZGZyNmduZDRfNTVjNW10ODhjMw&hl=en

Strategies for accomplishing the Oregon Technology Standards and Requirements

Here are a few strategies that I could implement in my 4th grade practicum site in order to accomplish the OETS:
1. Communication and Collaboration Standard:
Interact and collaborate with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and
media.
Students can work in groups and create podcasts. They can take photos with a digital cameras and add audio describing their given topic using Yodio.
2. Reasearch and Information Strategy:
Locate, organize and use information ethically from a variety of sources and media.
Students will implement Google Web to search for and to find information for their research topic. They can then organize their findings using a class Delicious login. They will be able to tag and label each website they find and keep it all organized in one place. The teacher can then review and validate their sources.
3. Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues:
Here, I can use Stellarium.org to teach students about the solar system. They can then login with their own computers and explore the site. Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. By exploring this website, students will be able to construct a deeper understanding of the sky and all it's components. This will teach the students about the wide range of websites out there, how to use them and how they can be used to enhance their life-long learning.

Analyzing Student Data in a Spreadsheet

The trends on this graph show that overall, the below average student's test scores are increasing. It is good that most the students are improving. Few students show a decrease in scores, those are the students I would like to talk with if they were in my class.

I am used to using Excel therefore, Google spreadsheets was rather new to me. I found the format to be very similar to that of excel. I can't tell yet whether google spreadsheet is less user friendly than excel spreadsheet, or if I am simply more familiar with one over another. I should soon find out after I practice more with google.

Podcasts 4 Life

It was quite fun working on a podcast. All you do is call Yodio, take some photos, upload, and create a new yodio combining all your inofrmation, and you have a podcast. It is a great way to present a student's hardwork in the classroom. For my practicum unit- Lands of Oregon I can assign each region to a group then the students can research and pretend that they are tour guides and make a commercial adverstising people to come visit. This can all be done using Podcasts!

Using Skype

Signing up for and using Skype was actually more user friendly than I thought it would be. However, it will take some more practice before I feel comfortable enough to use it instead of my acutal telephone.

This tool could be useful in the classroom for example; if I have a substitute and I need to be in contact with them or the class.

Personally, this would be a great resource to use to be in contact with my family that lives in the Czech Republic. Phone calls are very expensive and this would be a great, inexpensive way to contact them if they have their own Skype account.

Web2.0 Tool Demo: PRESENTATION

Follow the link to learn about Delicious- a social bookmarking service:



I chose to complete this project utilizing google presentations to present this social bookmarking web tool called Delicious. I feel that this site can be extremely useful in the classroom. Most importantly we can use this tool right now. As future teachers we are all looking for useful resource tools we find online. With Delicious, as Strand 1 we can create one login and no matter where we are, we can all save our favorite websites in one organized location. We will be able to tag and make folders for each of our classes even. For example: we can find websites that focus on Equity, Classroom Management, Educational Psychology and development, Assessment, Planning, and any other course we have and share them all with our peers. This same example can apply in my 4th grade practicum site when we are doing a research project, we can use Delicious to save all of our research websites.

OTEN Conference

Last weekend I attended the OTEN coference. It focued on integrating technology into my teaching. Different seminars where held to assist us in putting together the total package of technology and teaching into our classrooms. I attended 2 workshops: Stellarium, and Personal Learning Environments; exploring possibilities for teaching and learning. I tell more about them in my yodio presentation. To hear more, please follow the link:
The YODIO did not publish correctly, now I can not log in to YODIO as I forgot my password and the ones the keep emailing to me do not work. I will keep working on this and get the link working.

My Favorite Web2.0 Tools

Web 2.0 are internet based applications and services. You can have full access to all your software and files anywhere, and anytime as long as you have access to the internet. Nothing is dependent on the local computer. This technology can impact my effectiveness as a teacher because this is a social outlet. You can create, edit and share this information. With this technology I can teach through the world of my students. As an effective teacher, I will be able to have constant access to my word documents, spread sheets or presentations. If I forget to print something off my computer at home, no big deal! Because I can access my lesson plans from any computer with internet.

Here are 2 web-based tools that are currently my favorite:
Google Docs- This is an application of google. Here you are able to write all your documents and keep them saved to this application. You can also upload all your important documents that you don't want to get lost. I can ask my students to submit their writings on google docs. Then I can just sign in on any computer and see what my students have posted from their homes or at school.

Wikispace: Wikis are simple web pages that groups, friends, and families can edit together. Wikis are great tools for engaging children in learning, involving parents in their child's education, and sharing resources with other teachers and schools.

Education and Blogs

Applying blog activities to classroom instruction:
I would like to implement blog journals as a weekly assignment in my classroom. At the end of each day I could have students spend a few minutes reflecting on their day. They could write about what they learned that day, something exciting that happened to them, or something that was challenging for them. I would then ask them to login with a family member once a week and have their family member make a comment on their posts. Then, as a teacher will login and comment on the student’s blog and on the family member's comment. This would be a great way to implement communication between the student, the parent and the teacher. Of course I must take into consideration the fact of having a diverse class and using technology is sometimes difficult in diverse classrooms since some homes do not have internet access, or would not feel comfortable with their literacy level to write. The use of technology may have to be used only for in school activities. However, if all students have access to internet outside of school this would be a great way to enable parent-student-teacher communication.
I also like the idea of having students post blogs that focus on who they are. They can post photos, list special things about them, and post their favorite pieces of work they did in class. I would then have students read each others and comment. This would be a good way for the class to get to know each other on a deeper level and support each others’ work and successes.

Planning Curriculum That Is Multicultural

Reflection 6.3 Textbook Tally
The book I used to research multicultural representation in children's textbooks is titled Reading- New Beginnings by Scott Foresman. This text was recently used for a 2nd grade classroom. After looking through all the pictures I found that the representation of males and females was about equal. The final count according to race/ehnicity was: White Americans-22, African Americans-10, Latino Americans-7, Asian Americans-5, Arab Americans-3, Disabled Americans-2, and American Indian-1. Based on this representation, it is clear to me that this reading curriculum is based on the points of view of White Americans. The knowledge that we share with our students is based on a limited point of view that may be biased due to the narrow viewpoints of the group of people who are putting the curriculum together. This is unfair that some groups have to feel left out and that they feel they aren't important enough to be included. I can include the students in my class who do not have much representation in the textbooks by providing supplemental books that include people that they can associate themselves with. I can also supplement the under representation by hanging posters that display other groups, sharing stories about great achievements made by others that they can relate to, and playing music that is popular in different groups around the world.

In the rearview mirror

I graduated from Western Oregon University in 2007 with a B.A. in Social Science and a minor in Spanish. During my 4 years as an undergrad, I took the opportunity to study for 1 semester in Prague, Czech Republic and then the following year in Quito, Ecuador. Both these experiences have enriched my understanding of myself and the world we live in.

Currently I am a candidate of the Masters of Arts in Teaching Program at Willamette University. I can tell already that this program will push me to an all new level and challenge me in great ways.

I have been around children for most of my life in various volunteer settings throughout my community and in classrooms. I have also spent quite some time teaching young people through dance and the performing arts.

I care about people and the future of society. By making the choice to dedicate my life to working with young people is one that I won't regret. Educating students to one day become responsible adults with a love for life would be a very important achievement that can affect us all.