Thing #23

I think that 23 things was a experience. I thought honestly it was a bit much with the livetext and all. But overall you learned a lot of new things that you did not know. I would try to input this with the livetext project so that it is a fun way to relate it to the lesson plans and compare it to being a teacher as a whole. Overall, it was pretty neat.

Thing #20

I chose the Temptations singing " My Girl" because my boyfriend sings it all the time!

Thing #19

I think that teacherpop was a really cool site for teachers. It gives you a chance to talk to many other people within the teacher world. I noticed it also has information on Livetext and lesson planning which teachers can never get enough of that.

Thing # 18

I used to have a facebook and I discontinued the account. I did this because I never used it. When I first got into college, I used College club. It was a cool way to meet new people. After I had some wierdos, I said I would never do it again and I won't. The internet is a very dangerous and crazy place and I try to be very cautious and careful so I don't use these type of sites. But before this all happened, it was a pretty cool and new way to meet people on campus.

Thing #17

I explored this site and still and most likely always will prefer Google Bookmarks over all other. I love Google and I used to love Yahoo. I have bookmarked plenty of things such as articles for school, important sites that I may use everyday. I think that bookmarking is a good tool for students and teachers that are very busy. It is like a crumb trail where if you get lost you can find your way back. 

Thing #16

I chose Stickit. Even though I really do not use an organizer, if I did I would chose this. Many people have developed online electronic organizers that aide them through everyday things. I don't use one so I really do not have a need or use for it. I think that is I was a women on the run and I needed an organizer where if I had access to a computer at all times, I would especially with a PDA phone and with all the new technology in cell phones alone coming out, keeping the internet on you at all times is so easy now. I think that this would be a great tool for a teacher. Not a student unless you are in college but teachers yes.

Thing #15

I think that wiki is a great tool for students on a higher level. I think that is can be a negative and positive thing though. You can go and correct information online as a public posts, but what if the information is wrong? In college I have learned that professors never want you to use wikipedia because of this fact. Information is basically just thrown into the system and who knows what it right and wrong information. Just like with any other technology and sites with information, we nee to be careful and teach ethics when it comes to our students and using information systems that are open. I think it is great for scholars and professors in that particular field but can have a down side as well.

Thing #14

For mind mapping, I chose mindmeister.com. I think this is a great tool to use for language art classrooms and any class but especially this one. I was taught to use mind mapping to set up and organize ideas for writing papers and projects. It lets you put on paper everything you want to talk about then o back and discuss it. It might look like a mess at first, but then  it start to make sense. For the flow chart, I chose Flowchart.com. I think this is great for businesses and presentations within a corporate setting. Many presentations include power points that include flowcharts to show numbers and statistics. This would be great for an Economic classroom. These sites can also be transferred into a college setting just as well as a primary school setting. I think we tend to look at these sites as only being for college settings but these are wonderful ways to prep high school students for college with many of these programs. 

Thing #13

This is a great tool for anyone, especially college students about to graduate and need to find a job! It has resume templates and builders and cover letter templates. It even has templates for teachers. Progress reports, letters home... it is a teacher's dream. It even has a speech template for students and lecturers. I think this is one of the best sites in 23 things. I have even used it to help me with typing up a cover letter for myself. It is a great tool for any college course and with High school, you can use it as a college prep course aide for students about to go to college. It has over 50 templates within the site. You can even make a student ID. I think that if the school systems put this within their budget, a lot of money can be saved as a whole. I think that using this in a high school class would also prepare students going to college better. When I was in high school, there were really no good college prep courses. I learned as I went through college. Trail and Error.

Thing #12

I actually use Google everyday. I use this search engine for everyday things. I think that Google is a great source of information and easy to use. I used to use Yahoo, but then I switched to Google. Using Google is a great resource for school. I use it to find articles, research and valid research. Since there is a tremendous amount of research and Google gives you so much, being able to narrow it down to what you want is difficult. You can type in one word and it gives you over 1 million hits. I have learned using Google to steer clear of Wikipedia especially when doing research in college. I learned this the hard way but thank God for very generous Professors who showed my the right way. Just like with any other search engine, you need to be aware of what to use and what not to use. But Google is the most helpful search engine I have found and it keeps growing.

Thing #11

The thing I found easiest was the well known sites and blogs like Google and Yahoo. These are sites that I know I use everyday. I use these tools in all my school assignments and research. Google is always easiest for me. It is not complicated or complex and it gives you tons of information for one subject. I like to have options and Google does that. What was confusing was trying to find it all and go through the list.It was more time consuming and annoying. I think that if you have time and patient to go through all the information, it is useful especially for upper levels of students such as high school. You would really need to search to find things on an Elementary students level though. 

Thing #10

I chose the five following blogs that I would check on a daily bases;

1. CNN

2. You Tube

3. Google Search engine

4. AOL 

5. USA Today

I like this because it gives you a world of information. Computers are an amazing thing and just to be able to go to a click of a button and you have millions of information at your finger tips. This technology can be used in everyday life including school. There are hundreds of search engines for students of all ages and levels. Teachers can use this to show students different types of resources, media, technology and ways to learn in different ways.

Thing #9

The online image generator would be a great tool if you where in a business or owned a business. You can make so many different signs and can generate so many different ideas. For a classroom, this would be a great tool to let students be more creative and let their imagination go. For Elementary school, this would be a great tool to start off the day and get them excited about work. For Middle school this would be a good starting point for them starting to find what they can do. By the time they get to high school, they could generate their own ideas and use this in some many different ways.

Thing #8

For thing #8, you were required to pick from the program flicker and create something. I decided to create a motivator. I am a Christian so I believe that God does all things and He is why I am where I am today in life. God has been the biggest and most important motivator in my life and I know that as people we tend to forget who created us and why we are where we are in life today. I consider myself blessed and I know that many others do as well so this is more of an encouragement and a message for those who do feel the way that I do. I do not mean to offend anyone in doing this. I know that not everyone has the same believes as me. In creating this, it was fun because I could really put my feelings and a little bit of me into it. I feel it is important to have some individualism in this. This would be a great idea if you wanted to send a message positive and even negative to some one. It could be used in a positive way within the classroom. 

Thing #7 Cont.

I chose this picture because it is so simple yet perfect and beautiful! It was fairly easy going through the images with no trouble and the content is so vast and huge that you could look at pictures for days and days. You have so many different categories and options that it is endless. I think that this is a wonderful site for students who want more diverse choices within doing certain projects and such. This gives them a way of exploring new ways of actually getting different images and things. This is a great source for a classroom such as an art class and other classes can incorporate these into their lessons and studies.

Thing #7

Thing #6

The finding that I found was Mango Language. Within this site, you can learn languages from German to Chinese! This site is amazing and I loved working with it. What makes it so great is that you pick a language of your choice and you go through a tutorial for it. The computer then talks to you as if you where in a classroom talking with a teacher. It is a wonderful tool if you are a language teacher and you wanted your students to have more of an in depth understanding of the language. You can learn interactively and you could even do group work within the classroom. It is a wonderful tool that all language speaking classroom should incorporate within their lessons.

Thing #5

My opinion on Web 2.0 is that it is a wonderful asset to the world. Some of the technology that has emerge in toady's' world are things that I could have never imagined. Computers are in a class all by themselves. We have so many different types of tools and resources that it is unbelievable and I am only 25 years old and I remember the very first Mac I ever saw. And now, you have touch screen computers and computers that run by the sound of your voice and the Internet s a wonderful but also dangerous place. With technology including the Web 2.0 there comes a responsibility. I just hope that all this technology that our students are being exposed to is a way to embrace their creativity and intrigue their minds in a positive way.

Thing #4

I believe that commenting in the blogging process is so very important because it let's you see into others' thoughts, feelings, and creative side. We tend to have such a vague and misunderstood view of others and we really do not get to see what they are all about. I think that blogging is so wonderful because it can be just you in the process and people can see how you are with virtual reality. It is also a wonderful interactive tool as well for students. You can be anonymous in your post and just say how you feel. Students today have such a hard time expressing their feelings without being ridiculed and with blogging they have a way to be free in their thoughts and opinions.

Thing #3

I believe that blogs can be very useful especially within a classroom setting. Blogs can be accessible form a home setting making it very easy to get information to parents and not doing it the old fashion  way, and that would be by sending a note home. Sending a note home does not always mean that the parent gets it. The only barrier that I could think of would be i the family did not have a computer and in that case, the teacher would have to make accommodations to make sure that all the children in the class get the same information home. I believe that a blog is a great way for student to also get involved with the class as well and the teacher could make groups and have each group create their very own blogs and make it an interactive activity for the class as a whole. With the direction that technology is now going in, anything is possible and it makes possibilities so much more easy to obtain now. I believe that a blog is a great way to have some many interactive opportunities within a classroom

Thing #2

Setting up my blog was fairly easy. I was surprised by how easy is was really! i found that developing this blog gave me a way to be creative and creating my avatar was pretty cool because you can make her someone that you want to be or could be. I really enjoyed setting it up. When I see my work after it is done, I feel like some type of technology genius! My blog is now set and ready to roll!!! I now wait for all your comments and let me know what you think!!!

Thing #1

I believe that the tutorial on Life Long Learning was a lesson that we go through and learn every single day. We tend to forget that everyday life experiences give us that ability to better ourselves not only as individuals but as human beings as well. To speak for myself, everyday I learn something new and I don't care how big or small it is, it is something new. I feel that we tend to forget that we did not always know all of this information (or lack there of) that is within our heads. Many individuals believe that they are too old to learn and this is wrong as well. You are never too old to learn something new. And I believe that the older generation is the very best generation to learn from because they are so wise and you can gain so much knowledge from them. This is what makes life long learning a great source of information because it comes from everywhere and not just on place. 

Ebony Freemon

Hello! My name is Ebony Freemon and this is my blog! I hope that you enjoy all that I have within my blog. Comments are greatly apprieciated and have fun!!!!!