Digital Portfolio

Wow! I am very impressed about what I have researched about digital portfolio. Digital portfolio is a computer-based collection of student performance in the classroom over time. Students can share their learning with the world. During my research about digital portfolio, it reminded me of something SIMILAR to what the College of Education Program at JSU requires of the teacher candidates at the end of each semester.  We have a portfolio through LiveText. At the end of the semester, we are required to answer a few questions that are given to us that demonstrate progress over time and build a complete record of our learning (student reflections).

 I have found so many interesting things about digital portfolio. I know I will use it in my future classroom! My 21^st century teacher, Mrs. Weathers, have provided resources to help my teacher candidate friends and I better understand what digital portfolio is and how we can incorporate it into our own classroom. My favorite resource is http://web.seesaw.me/. Seesaw empowers students of any age to independently document what they are learning at school. I have created an account with Seesaw for the futureJ.

There are four interesting facts that stood out to me about digital portfolio using Seesaw:

• Digital portfolio is way to store student’s efforts. For example, students use online tools to store images, videos, class work, links, and PDFs that can show both their physical and electronic work.
•   Digital portfolio is accessible to parents. The parents can ONLY see their child’s work in the classroom.
•   Digital portfolio is organized and available to teachers from any device, such as iPad, iPhone, Android, Mac, and PC. I believe teachers love it just as much as students because it allows them to transition away from transitional paper.  
• Student work must be approved by the teacher.

Below I have provided four links to resources about digital portfolio (don't forget http://web.seesaw.me/  is a resource, too):

• http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2014/03/5-good-options-for-creating-digital.html#.Vs-uIfkrLIU
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlw-tUKvnNc
• http://www.edutopia.org/blog/digital-portfolios-art-of-reflection-beth-holland
• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-vander-ark/every-student-should-have_b_7649914.html

Whole Brain Teaching and Nearpod in the Classroom

This is my second semester in the College of Education at Jacksonville State University. So far this semester is going great. Of course, I am busy, busy, and more busy because this semester, which is Literacy Block, requires a lot more work than ECE Block. However, that is apart of becoming a successful teacher...right? All teachers have to put in that extra work to make sure that their students are receiving the best education possible; therefore, I consider it as something worth it. Although I have all new teachers in Literacy Block, I still have Mrs. Weathers on Thursday nights for EED 409. I am so excited to have her again and I will tell you why.

 At the beginning of the semester, she gave my teacher candidates friends and I a list of topics to research information about instruction in the classroom.  Once we did our research, we had to create a presentation and present that information to the class. Tonight, two of the teacher candidates did their presentation and they both did an awesome job. They shared a lot of information with us about  Whole Brain Teaching and Nearpod. After receiving interesting information about the two, I can assure you that I will be using both in my lessons and in my future classroom.

 Randolph James presented Whole Brain Teaching (WBT). Whole Brain Teaching is a consistent and predictable way to both manage and instruct students in the classroom. It relies on high motivation and engagement among teacher and students. According to Randolph, Whole Brain Teaching is a powerful tool for classroom management that can be used for Grade School to higher education. My teacher from last semester, Dr. Thornburg, explained to us that classroom management starts the very first day that the students enter  the classroom. A teacher cannot start classroom management in the middle of the school year and expect for the students to behave. IT SHOULD ALWAYS START THE VERY FIRST DAY! Below I have shared a video with you about what Whole Brain Teaching looks like in a classroom.

I believe that the goal of Whole Brain Teaching is to create a peaceful and engaging classroom.

JaQuetta Thomas (JT) presented Nearpod. Nearpod is a interactive presentation tool for teachers to engage students with interactive lessons and assessments in the classroom. The interested part about Nearpod is that the students can have access to their own device, and only the teacher has controlled of what the students do next, meaning that it is up to the teacher to move the class through the presentation and let them interact with the media as they go (which is a good  because it can prevent students from moving ahead and not paying attention to what the teacher is saying in class).  According to JT, it is accessible to different devices and it's such a powerful application because it does many different things, such as question/ answer polling, surveys, videos, and drawings. Nearpod is very effective in the classroom. Make sure you do more research about it. I hope that you find it beneficial to use in the classroom like I did. :) Below I have shared a video with you about what Nearpod looks like in a classroom.

iPads for Teaching and Learning

May this day and forever be filled with love, peace, joy, and happiness for you and your family!

I am so behind on updating my blog due to school. BUSY, BUSY, BUSY and more BUSY! However,  I know that it will be all worth it in the end because I have the best instructors in the world. I am a firm believer that they are preparing my classmates and I for our future students in the classroom. I have a little free time today while my family is preparing Thanksgiving dinner. I should be preparing, too, but for some reason no one likes my cooking. Please, don't ask me why because I think my cooking is the absolute best! BUT anyway :-), I have decided to update and give my readers information about some of the things that has been going on in my classes. This semester is almost over! Wow, I can't believe it! I think this has been the most challenging semesters thus far. A lot has happened, but I would't change it for nothing in the world because it has made me stronger! I will always remember that God gives His toughest battles to His strongest soldiers.

There is ALWAYS something to be thankful for....ALWAYS!!! Find the time to stop and think of the people who makes a difference in your life and thank them! I wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your family, relax, smile, and eat until your stuffed like a turkey (I know that I am)!!!! :-)

Osmo for the iPads

Osmo is the new innovative interactive game system for the iPads. I have never heard of Osmo until my 21st teacher, Mrs. Weathers, introduce it to my classmates and I. If I say so myself, "Osmo is fantastic!" I fell in love with it. Osmo is not only a great educational tool to use at home, but it is also great to use in the classrooms. The students would absolutely love it!!! Osmo comes with a reflective mirror for the iPad camera;white board stand; two sets of game pieces (2 complete alphabet tile sets and 7 wood tangram shapes) and instructions for downloading 4 free apps from the Apple Store. Also there are so many games and activities that you can download from your iPad for FREE. Yes, I mentioned FREE (something that we all love.....RIGHT?

 It is fun and interesting to see how the Osmo interacts with the world!

My favorite part of Osmo is the drawing. I'll be honest with you, drawing is not one of my talents like it is my sisters. She is an expert at drawing! I always need a little help. So, for the people who's not an expert at drawing (like myself), Osmo can help you with drawing the "perfect picture." Once you are finished with your picture, it allows you to share it with others.

We all had the privilege to play with Osmo. My friend, Katelyn Sparks, was very shocked about her picture. I was so tickled!