Week 6

http://www.moturoa.blogspot.com/

This blog is from a class of year four and five students from Nelson, New Zealand. They are using their blog to communicate with other people from around the would. They even include a map. When people come to their site, this map shows the class where they are from in the world. Students can click on this map and learn more about where the reader was from.

www.kahurangi-school.blogspot.com

Kahurangi has a class blog in New Zealand as well. This class actually attends the same school as the one above. They include a map which shows where onlookers come from as well as Moturoa's blog. This blog is also used to inform readers about what the class is doing. It explains their activities and has many pictures of the kids performing their activities.

Week 5

http:///


Mrs. Putnam’s classroom blog is just one of many blogs being used by teachers across America. Mrs. Putnam teaches 5th grade as Salem Elementary School. Her blog gives a summary of what was learned in the class, and she also puts up homework assignments and the dates that the assignments are due. She also includes a section with all fifty states and their capitals. She gives positive feedback to children who did a great job on an activity on any particular day. Lastly, it is easy to contact her through this blog whether to give feedback or to ask a question.

http://web2.burke.k12.nc.us/blogs/jparker/

Mr. Parker’s classroom blog gives a summary of everything that was learned in class. He teaches every subject in his classroom and wants his children to really learn. He offers resources on his blog to students for gaining further knowledge on topics discussed in class. Homework assignments are stated for each day that he actually gives an assignment. There are also pictures of the projects that he and his students have done together as a class. Lastly, there are links so you can leave comments. These comments can be from either students or parents. Of course, you don’t have to leave a comment you can ask a question and Mr. Parker can easily comment back with an answer.

Week 4

When I first turned this video on, I had no idea what to expect because the instructions gave no explanation about it. It was a science video that rapped about gravity, a Higgs model, and about the LHC. To be honest, I am not a science fan. However, the further this video got along the more my head was bouncing around. I ended up enjoying the video, and I even remembered a little about it as I stated above. Had the video not been interesting, I would have had to watch it again.
It is true that most students have a subject that they hate. That subject may be hard for a student to grasp, and may be even more difficult for them to retain the information they must learn. However, by implementing fresh and fun ideas to the subject, it is possible to change that. To me, it is much easier to remember something when it is depicted in an interesting lesson.

Week 3

Alabama Connecting Classroom, Educators, and Students Statewide (ACCESS) is a program created to provide opportunities and options for Alabama public high school students to engage in Advanced Placement, elective, and other courses to which they may not other wise have access. ACCESS has many different options available including “Advance Diploma” courses, multimedia/technology tools to enhance instruction, and leverage existing resources and distance learning offerings. The goal is to utilize the 21st century equipment and incorporate it into everyday classrooms.
There are many resources available such as videoconferencing courses, teacher brochures, and parent and student brochures. Another important resource, which benefits students, is an Alabama High School Graduation Exam. Many low-income schools have limited course offerings for students and some cannot offer an Advanced Diploma. Therefore, the goal is to provide an equal access to high quality instruction to improve student achievement through distance learning opportunities.
ACCESS has many options for students and teachers. When trained properly with this program I intend to use it. I feel that it will be beneficial to all of my students. I especially think it will be helpful to those students who get bored in class because the workload, in their eyes, is too easy.