Looking Back

While I may not be a technology guru, I think I have at least opened my mind to try some of the new resources available, compared to the start of this class.  Ive dabbled in quite a few undertakings, even if I didnt totally follow through with their use.  If nothing else, this class provided the opportunities to ease the uneasiness I had when it came to trying new technology.  I am actually looking forward to implementing some of these "new" ideas into my classroom.  Thank you everyone for your input and feedback along the way.
Signing Off

Revised Wiki

While I feel as though I could tinker with this forever, here is what I have come up with so far: Wiki.  Im sure that on one of the computers I regularly use I have many more resources to add, this is a pretty good start for the topics I teach.  While the topics arent entirely "Physical Science", they are all covered in our state standardized tests, so I teach them, and have to find ways to make them interesting.  Included are resources I have used in the past to demonstrate these topics, and to find real world examples.  There will be many more to add!  The biggest change in the wiki is the addition of "Special Assignments", where students will be required to find resources online relating to the current topic.  Students will then post their findings under the appropriate "Discussion" tab, using the provided guidelines.  The requirements will allow students of all abilities to find valuable online resources, and review other students' findings as well.  Some of these resources may be valuable enough for me to add to the "official" Science Wiki, a collection resources intended for both teacher and students.  This is intended to encourage students to learn to find information on the internet that explains the current classroom topics in a way that may not be covered in the classroom.  Critiques, reviews, criticisms, etc, are encouraged, please let me know what you think.  Thanks.
Signing Off

Toying Around

I started toying around with embedding videos and downloading youtube clips.  I think this will work out really well for my wiki, instead of providing a thousand links, just download the video, or embed the video directly into the wiki.  How many times have you tried to use someone's link for a video or website that was broken or no longer functioning?  If I directly embed the videos I want, or download them, then upload to the wiki, it should save a lot of headache in the long run.  Plus with the educator version of the wiki you get a lot more online storage space.  Looking forward to revising my wiki so it is up and running by the new school year.

Project Ideas and Puzzle Pieces

Time to start putting them together.  Here are my current ideas, feel free to leave feedback, the good, the bad, and the ugly. 

I have already started setting up my wiki with classroom resources.  Once I get a microphone, Id like to make some brief tutorial videos of how to log-in, navigate, and use some of the resources that are and will be available.  In order to continue to find resources, I would like to have students find their own online resource during each major topic/unit for the year.  These could be simulations, video clips, web pages, etc.  Each student could then post what they have found in the discussions portion of the wiki.  These resources could then be viewed and commented on by other students along the way.  This could potentially clear up lots of confusion along the way without eating a ton of class time.  Not sure on specifics, but Im thinking I could have certain requirements of the students, such as having them grade the resource, explain their rationale, and have them view/comment on a minimum number of others resources.  If the resources are really good, I would add them to the "official" resources portion of the wiki.
Signing off

Quite Possibly the Most Useful Tool So Far

Teaching 8th graders is sort of like training lions.  Just when you think they are friendly, listening to you, and controllable, it all goes out the window and the trainer is attacked.  Ok, so it might not be that bad, but like animals, my 8th graders have a huge range of abilities and mind sets.  One day they are brilliant, exceeding every expectation, and the next, helpless.... My students have had such huge ranges in ability the past few years (thats another topic, for another day) that making a graph using a computer can be like rocket science to them, even if given lessons, tutorials, step by step instructions etc.  After tinkering with Create A Graph, I really think this tool can find a home in my classroom, can be used by the students at the lower ability levels, and can produce similar results to MS Excel.  While I still think Excel is a better program, the Create A Graph tool can match the students abilities until they feel comfortable entering data and interpreting graphs.

Nothing like a good argument

Please excuse me if there is anything here that doesnt quite make sense.  Im quite ill at the moment and the fever isnt helping my concentration.  Open for suggestions!

Generating an Argument - Using Online Data Sets to Determine Length of Daylight

A typical class size for my current teaching position consists of 20-35 students, which could easily be divided into 4-5 groups.  Each group would be given a table consisting of the length of daylight for every day of the year, for different locations around the planet.  Each location would vary greatly, ranging from the students’ hometowns (mid-latitude) to the tropic/polar regions including the southern hemisphere.  Online data sets would be provided by the U.S. Naval Oceanography Portal (see Table 1).  Students would use Microsoft Excel (by importing table) or Create A Graph tools to make a visual for their poster.  Students would be able to ask and answer questions such as:

1. Why do different places have different amounts of daylight?

2. Why does the length of daylight change throughout the year?

3. How does the length of daylight correlate with the seasons?

Each group would examine others posters in order to come to a conclusion and respond to a brief argumentative writing prompt.

Online Data Set Source: U.S. Naval Oceanography Portal 

Whirlwind of Trouble

Today, I learned something very important.  Just when I think I know what I'm doing, I realize I have no clue at all.  While working on the Mid Course Reflection, I went back to review some comments, some made just a few minutes ago, and to my surprise, they were not there!  Reviewed all of your blogs/entries, and 0 comments from this guy.  I guess I had to take something as simple as making a comment and make it difficult.  Have any of you seen any comments at all from me on your blogs?  I need to figure out what I'm doing wrong.  Please help!

Screencasting Difficulties

I know Im a little behind schedule, but I have been working double time trying to experience many of these different websites and programs.  I thought I would start off with something easy.  In the past, I often find the parents of my students do not understand how to use our online grade posting service.  They dont understand what everything means, and where to find the information.  Of course, to me it seems easy, but I've become quite familiar with the service.  I recorded a screencast of how to use the service, highlighting various important features, only to realize the microphone built into my laptop no longer works.  I was still satisfied with the video, so I needed to find another way to record the audio.  I ended up recording the audio on my phone as I replayed the vido, transferred it to my laptop, and figured I could find a way to mesh the two.  Not so easy.  The audio file was not supported by my pre-existing video editing software.  So, I downloaded an application to convert the file.  Once the file was converted, I tried to to mesh the two using my software, only to find that it was a piece of junk and I couldnt get the program to do what I needed.  Since, Ive downloaded Camtasia and will try again.  Here goes nothing....
Signing off.

Wiki-wiki what?

Well my wiki is almost finished.  I had a few setbacks and eventually trashed the first one I was working on in Sandbox.  Switched over to wikispaces and started fresh.  The wiki will be simple, easy to use and is mostly intended for myself and colleagues I directly worth.  The reason... it is setup around our current curriculum.  Anyone will be able to view the site, but only myself and a handful of others will be able to modify it.  At this point, it is only a list of supplemental videos, websites, and interactives that work well with the topics in our curriculum, but it may change to become more instructional for student use in the future.  If you all dont mind, please take a quick look and make a suggestion for improvement.  I must warn you, it is simple, there are no bells and whistles, but it took an incredible amount of time for me to gather all of these resources into one place.  There will certainly be many more to come, this was just what I gathered after looking at hundreds of old emails.  Signing off.

Blogging Blues...

I'm still up in the air this week about this whole blogging thing.  I can see the purpose and the advantages, but it seems very unfriendly to use.  It seems to that if these blogs could be connected in similar ways as other social networking sites like myface or spacebook, it would be easier to navigate from page to page.  I'm trying to hang in there and give this thing a chance though.

Throughout the week, I dabbled in a little of this and a little of that, but really was struggling with purpose of some of these things.  Over the past few years, I've got my "stuff" down to a system that works great for me.  Then I started the exploring the wikis.  In the past, nearly every wiki I have seen was horrible.  The person that made it thought it was fantastic, but everyone who had to use it hated it.  Then I had the idea of creating a simple, organized wiki containing many of the links, video clips, etc of resources I've used in my classroom.  This would be a convenient, easy to access, easy to use resource I could open to other science teachers, even if only teachers within my content area, district, etc.  Everything could be in one place and I wouldn't have to dig through hundreds of saved emails to find that one thing I was looking for.  Others could add new, worthwhile resources, any I could even find a way to sort out those things based on their qualities.  I'm still brainstorming what I would like this to look like, and have only tinkered with the wiki itself, but I will be sure to share what I come up with when I feel I have something respectable.  Signing off.

Current Use of Technology

Whether for the benefit of others, or simply myself, I thought it would be useful to spell out the ways in which I currently use technology in my classroom.  When I started teaching in my current position 4 years ago, we did not have enough textbooks for all of our students.  At first I thought it would be a nightmare, but  I struggled through for the first year, and eventually redesigned the entire course curriculum to include topics and activities that were relevant to the standards and addressed the information found on the dreaded standardized tests.

Since that awful first year, I have designed 95% of everything used in our 8th grade science program, created PowerPoint notes for students to complete, found video clips (who knew youtube would actually serve a purpose), and have had students use portable lap top carts to bring the computers to the classroom.  The cart mostly allows all students to make digital graphs and to participate in interactive web sites.  With the use of technology, I have used the internet to help answer student questions right before their very eyes (presto, like magic), find videos and other interactives that help students visualize abstract concepts and to demonstrate things we could never do in a classroom.

What has been the most useful???  In my opinion, 8th grade students are generally awkward, in most every way imaginable, but especially mentally.  Very few of them are able bridge all of the gaps, or make all of the connections between topics, ideas, and materials.  I have two goals, and no matter how I look at it, they lead the way to science success.  Goal #1: Students need to understand the purpose and benefits of science.  I know they wont all become scientists, thats unrealistic.  However, you dont have to be a scientist or even like science to understand the purpose and benefits.  Goal #2:  I want students to be interested in science.  The way I see it, students learn what they want to learn.  If I can use technology to take a previously boring thing, and make it cool and fun, students will naturally want to learn and see and do more.  That, in my opinion, is what science should be about.  Once forced into technology, I can appreciate the beauty of using "it" but am still not 100% confident in my abilities in "it".  And that folks, is why I am here

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Alright Technology, here's how it is... I dont like you... and you dont like me.

I have fought the fight against relying on technology, because I have always assumed that at some point, even if only locally or regionally, technology would fail.  I want to remember how to live without technology.  Don't get me wrong, I use it, but have avoided many of the things that I didnt see a purpose for.  I am now willing to give it a chance.  After completing a few readings, I've found that I have been using technology in my classroom in a beneficial way, but not to its full capacity.  Understanding that students already rely on technology and use it almost constantly, to teach without using this technology would be the wrong approach.

Still not so sure about this Twitter thing.  I could see me using more of this if my mobile device was capable, and refuse to upgrade to the newest gadget every three months just because I can.  However, the blogging seems much more practical both in my everyday life and in the classroom.  I would doubt claims that these resources were intended for education, but I would not deny their use if they proved to be worthy.  I suppose this is where the adventure in web 2.0 begins.

A little about myself

Wrapping up my 4th year of teaching has presented quite a few difficult and unique challenges to deal with, and I foresee many more in the near future.  Learning new techniques and approaches can never hurt when trying to deal with current and future challenges.  Teaching 8th grade science can be quite challenging at times, which makes me want to figure out how to become a better teacher and learner.  Ive come to realize two things that I didnt see coming within the past few years.  Number one: If you are careful and pay attention, the students will teach you how to teach them.  And number two:  high stakes testing arent much to worry about (at least with the current processes).  My philosophy is, learn how to use methods, techniques, and mindsets that are successful, and the scores will follow.  I dont see a need to spend weeks or even months preparing for these tests as I have seen some colleagues do.  I'm generally good at convincing the students to learn or at least try to learn the "stuff" we do in class, and when the students trust that I will show them something interesting, unique, weird, or cool, they will often want to be asked for more responsibilities (gasp!, you mean even on high stakes tests?).