Response to Reading - Day 1 (Chapters 1-7 and 11)
I like how the book breaks down the technology tools and gave us a decision-making matrix so we can take into consideration everything that might effect the outcome of an assignment.
My guess is that over 90% of my students' families have access to the internet and would be able to use most of the tools listed. This past year I had a student film his book presentation and post to youtube! Another girl posted hers to Vimeo. While I know the parents had a huge part in making this happen, the students had the idea and took the initiative to look into what they'd need. I was reminded of this as I read chapter 2. Figure 2.2 drove me crazy and was pretty confusing! It made me wonder if some of the things I put in front of my students drive them crazy too!
When I got to chapter 7, about blogs, I was wishing I'd read it before creating my blog for class. Coming at it from the novice angle, it was really helpful to read about how I might be able to use blogs in my classroom. I'm not sure if I'll go there this year, but I'm definitely going to check out the TweenTribune blog referenced in the chapter.
There are so many tools out there and I realize I just need to find the courage and time to work them into my practices!
There really are a lot of tools out there. I encourage you to pick 1-2 and really have fun implementing them this year. Add another one if you feel ambitious and have the first two figured out. =-) Then next year you can add another 1-2 . . . and soon the tools in your toolbox will grow! (And yes, it would have been nice to have you read chapter 7 and a couple other things before the first day of class, but since you get your book on the first day of class, well, we'll just have to make it work. =-] )
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