Thing #23

I really enjoyed this course, even though I am technology-challenged.  I'm proud of myself for problem-solving and being creative.  Some of my favorite things included making a Google doc page, using delicious.com, and learning about the Library thing.  All of these things will allow me to help my students become more technology-savvy.  They are also a lot more fun than just using textbooks and paper.  After this course, I will continue to read articles from my RSS feed and work on my blog.

Thing #22

I didn't know that Classroom 2.0 existed before I took this course.  It really is wonderful to have an easy way to connect with other professionals.  I searched the word, "pragmatics", and I was able to find  ways to work on greetings.  I would like to interact with other Speech-Language Pathologists to think "outside the box" regarding speech therapy activities and tips.

Thing #7b

I found a good article through NPR Books in my Google Reader.  Here is the link: http://www.npr.org/2012/06/17/155042231/want-a-winner-these-books-made-the-critics-cut?ft=1&f=1032.  I like this article because I love to read all kinds of books.  I also have an account with Goodreads.com, and I can add these books to my list.  I look at the "popular picks" list on different bookstores websites to find good ones.

Thing #21

I have had a twitter account for a while, but I haven't been very faithful to use it.  I am a fan of Vicki Davis as evidenced by my other blog posts.  I like that she tweets about all kinds of issues and topics regarding education.  I have enjoyed learning more about technology through her tweets.  I would like to start following other Speech-Language Pathologists, so I can trade activity and strategy ideas with them.

Thing #20

I like using Google Docs, but I had trouble figuring how to save my work.   I didn't realized that Google Docs saves automatically.  I think students can use Google Docs to share test taking strategies and tips. They can use Google Docs to work on joint research papers.  Another thought would be to use Google Docs as a way to record student's progress.  I know there are many more ways to incorporate Google Docs into the schools.

Thing #19

I like Voicethread for several reasons.  I think putting your students' work in book form is a great way to show what they have done.  Also, it can make the students excited about what they are learning.  I also like that you can provide instruction to your kids online.  If they cannot come to tutoring, they can review using formulas provided on Voicethread.  Lastly, it is nice to have different people share their thoughts on a picture or idea.

Thing #18

I searched the words "speech therapy" in YouTube and in TeacherTube.  I found a great video of a 22-month-old boy working on the sound, /m/, in Speech.  I liked the way that the Speech Pathologist used both visual and tactile cues to help the child produce the sound.  I try to use these cues as often as I can with my own students.  The video of the boy is shown below.  On TeacherTube, I found some videos regarding the benefits of online speech therapy; I am skeptical about effectiveness of it.

Thing #17

I subscribed to the podcasts from "NPR Books". I like this podcast because I love to read and learn about new books.  I listened to a podcast about the first African-American boxer; it was interesting.  I also looked at some other podcasts including "Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips" as well as "The Bob and Rob Show: English lessons".  I picked these podcasts because vocabulary and reading comprehension are a big part of my job.  I could use "NPR Books" during a book discussion with my students.  Podcastdirectory.com makes finding podcasts easy because you can search by topic.

Thing #16

This activity is another one my favorite's.  I really like Library Thing, partly because I love to read.  I looked up some of my favorite authors and books to see what people rated them.  I like the Talk section of the site because I love discussing books.  Personally, I would use this to keep track of the books that I want to read and have read.  I'd also like to get good recommendations for my middle school and high school students.

Thing #15

I like Delicious.com because it makes my favorite sites more accessible.  This is a link to my delicious account, http://www.delicious.com/kramey.  I didn't know if all of my favorite sites would be already on Delicious.com, but they were.  I liked seeing all of the tags that other people used.  I can use this professionally by finding/planning new activities and exploring the web with my students.

Thing #7a

I just found this post, https://www.learnboost.com/blog/how-to-start-an-amazing-class-blog/, through the Cool Cat Teacher blog.  I like this post because it gives me some basics about blogging, but also how to use this in the classroom.  Honestly, blogging is intimidating to me, but I want to use it well.  I can use blogging to give my students communication strategies, activities, and links to other speech/language websites.

Thing #14

I played with the jigsaw puzzle website, http://www.jigzone.com/.  So far, it is my favorite thing that I've done in this course.  Jigsaw puzzles are one of my favorite things to do when I unwind/relax.  I uploaded one of the Seattle pictures, and put it together as a jigsaw puzzle.  I could use this in the classroom to work on vocabulary and spatial concepts.  Also, regarding the social aspect, I saw that you can send jigsaw postcards to people.  You can also share your uploaded pictures with others.  All in all, I think it's a super cool website, and it could be highly addictive.

Thing #13

I like being able to use the custom image generators, but I've had a difficult time downloading the images that I've customized.  The image that I'm including is a mosaic image of Seattle pictures.  I like the idea of creating collages with my students using things that they love.  This could be a great first week of school activity for my kiddos.

The website that I used is http://bighugelabs.com/mosaic.php.

Thing #12

This slideshow has been one of the most difficult things for me to figure out.  I put together a slideshow of Seattle because I just took a vacation there in March.  It is amazing city with many fun things including the Pike Place Market and the Space Needle.

The following is attributions for the photos:

Seattle skyline

*clairity*

http://www.flickr.com/photos/clairity/352797778/

pike place market

bfishadow

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bfishadow/4407867637/

seafood

dherrera_96

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dph1110/2672407268/

space needle

EvinDC

http://www.flickr.com/photos/evmaroon/3361430428

Thing #11

I selected this picture of the Seattle Skyline because I recently visited Seattle in March.  I had wanted to go for several years, and I finally went with my mom.  I really like Flickr; I like how you can search any given topic.  I have friends who have used it in the past, but I have never really used it.  In the classroom, I think I will have my children describe different pictures.  This task will help them increase their vocabulary as well as allow them to see pictures of fun places.

Attribution to Photographer

*clairity*

http://www.flickr.com/photos/clairity/352797778/

Thing #10

I have seen the CC logo on different websites and wondered what it meant.  I absolutely think that Creative Commons will impact the way that our students learn and create projects.  They will be able to broaden the scope of their learning and creativity because they can have access to so many more texts, images, and videos.  I look up many things on the internet to help my students understand more of what I'm talking about.  I google pictures to help my students understand things rather than to just use words. The website, http://www.oercommons.org/courses/issues-weve-all-got-them-language-arts-visual-arts-integration/view, offers a great lesson plan on social issues.  I think that we can share ideas for lessons rather than to have to "reinvent the wheel" every day.

Thing #9

http://misd23sandbox.wikispaces.com/Speechie

Thing #8 - Stretch

I recently read the book, "Poisonwood Bible", and I wanted to find information about the Congo's first Prime Minister.  I found a lot of interesting information about Patrice Lumumba, the Prime Minister.  The story of his rise to power and his assassination is both impressive and sad.  I don't know whether or not this is completely factual, but I would hope that the majority of it is true.

Thing #8

I don't know that Vicky Davis can do wrong; I liked this blog post.  I do think that there may be a wiki in my future.  I found several wikis that are really cool and interesting.
The wiki, http://primarymath.wetpaint.com/, includes several blogs from different classes to learn math facts.  I loved the fun and personal information provided in the wiki, http://schoolsthen.wikispaces.com/home.  What a great way to learn about the past!  This wiki, http://codeblue.wikispaces.com/, has amazing and fun information about the human body.  As a Speech Pathologist, I could use a wiki to gather strategies and activities.  I would like for my students to have access to do their activities at home.  It would be fun and beneficial for them.

Thing #7

I think that commenting on posts is really great because we can connect shared experiences.  We can also provide additional information and other blogs/websites that are helpful and/or entertaining.  The thing that was difficult for me is not knowing whether my comments were actually posted.  One time, a box popped up that said the comment needed to wait for permission to post or something like that.  Other times, it was easy to comment on things.

Thing #6

I have been really impressed by the Cool Cat Teacher Blog.  The woman who writes the blog has great insight and information.  I recently read her blog about bullying.  Here's the link http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2012/06/31-things-i-learned-from-being-bullied.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CoolCatTeacherBlog+%28Cool+Cat+Teacher+Blog%29&utm_content=Google+Reader.
I loved that she drew from her own experiences of being bullied as a child.  I believe that we have all felt left out or bullied at some point in life.  It is important for us to teach our children how to encourage one another and how to love and respect ourselves.

Thing #5

I found the following link in my Google Reader: http://library.thinkquest.org/19037/heredity.html?tqskip1=1&tqtime=0617.
I think that this is interesting for a couple of reasons.  I was able to have a quick Biology review of genetic traits.  It has been a long time since I sat in a Biology classroom, and I had forgotten the specifics of how we inherit traits.  Also, many of my students do not understand the physical and emotional similarities and differences between their parents and themselves.  I would like to include some of the things in this article when teaching my students about genetic traits.

Thing #4

I found these blogs very illuminating.  I like reading about people's personal opinions (the "I" statements). I was grateful to hear about issues that we all face including the importance of teaching ethics to our students.  I thought that the blog about cell phones and spying were particularly relevant.  Also, I loved the sweet blog from the 5th Grader; it gave me more motivation to help our students learn through technology.

Thing #2

I really enjoyed reading the article for Thing #2.  I was very impressed about the podcasts of presentations and class discussions.  So often, students may forget valuable information that is provided through both the presentations and discussions.  It is important to have many different sources of information (textbooks, other student's input, and teachers' information) to fully understand new topics.  Also, I liked how several teachers used the topic of genetics in different ways.  I would use other teachers' blogs to provide my students with many different viewpoints of a topic.

Thing #1

The 7 1/2 Habits were very thought-provoking for me.  One of the most challenging for me is "Viewing problems as challenges".  This is difficult for me because problems frustrate me, and I really don't want to work through them.  The easiest habit for me is to "Begin with the end in mind".  This is the best way to do something because we need to have goals to succeed.  The most important habit for me is "Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner".  I want to believe that I am capable of learning new things; I don't want to give myself a hard time if I fail.