Interactive White Board project/ActivInspire

I officially started my Interactive White Board project and so far I like what I have done! I decided to do 2nd grade Social Studies and my title is "Our World." Second graders learn about the continents and oceans and how these look on a globe and world map. I thought this would be a great topic for my first ActivInspire experience. I spent some time filling out my Storyboard and that helped tremendously! Dr. Obannon was SO right when she said the Storyboard helps us. As I was working on my project, I would look at my Storyboard to see what would go on the next page and which activity I would do. This kept me very organized and I ended up saving myself a lot of time. It helps seeing the project on paper before you begin to actually do it because it can be overwhelming with so many options to choose from.

So far, I have used the Erase to Reveal, Change color to Reveal, and Identify and Label, and the Magic Revealer. The step-by-step instructions in the packet are very clear and I wouldn't have been able to get as far as I have without them. I think I may include one more interactivity to my project, but that will have to wait because I have to pack for the beach! My flight leaves tonight, but I will finish the project as soon as I get back.

I think Interactive White Board activities are a GREAT addition to the classroom. Kids love coming to the board during class and the activities are tailored towards kids' interests. The Magic Revealer is so much fun to use! As well as the Erase to Reveal and Change color to Reveal. It is a fun way for students to learn. Since you can reset the pages, students can quiz themselves as many times as they need to when they are studying. Interactive White Boards can be created for any age group--they are so versatile! I think this project has been my favorite so far and I can't wait to use them in my classroom one day.\

ActivInspire--My Experience So Far

We have started to work with ActivInspire and at first I felt very overwhelmed. After having two classes to practice with it, I feel like I am starting to get the hang of it. Dr. Obannon said that it is something that you have to mess around with and play with and once you do this, you will feel like you understand how it works.

I feel like since this there are so many different options you can choose from, I will have a hard time deciding on which interactive activity I want to do. I can choose from pull tabs, fill in the background, erasers, ordering, matching, making patterns, etc. This will be the hardest part for me because I am the most indecisive person known to man.

I still need to decide on a topic and lesson area that I want to focus on. I have already used Science in this class, so I will probably choose something Social Studies, Math, or Reading based. I am not sure which grade level I would like to do, but since 4th grade was my focus for my Inquiry Based Activity, I will probably do 1st or 2nd.

I am glad the midterm is over with. I scored a 94% and I am very happy with this grade. This is evidence that I am understanding what we are learning and that I am finally starting to get the hang of how to use technology.

Digital Images

 

I didn't know much about digital images on the web and what is considered legal and what is prohibited in terms of using people's photos. I think this is something that everyone needs to know before they use pictures off of the web. I'm glad we were introduced to websites such as www.pics4learning.com because I only knew to use Google images when I needed pictures. Pics4learning contains tons of free photos for educational purposes, and this is exactly what I will need in my classroom one day.

It's important to know how to resize pictures: go to Tools and click Adjust Size. Simply dragging the arrows does not officially change the size of the picture. You can only make pictures smaller--if you make them bigger, they will be blurry. It's also important to name the images you save so when you go to upload them, they are easy to find.

I chose to make a slideshow of sunsets from around the world. The pictures are absolutely beautiful. I found them on Pics4learning, and they are pictures from places such as Santorini, Laguna Beach, Peurto Rico, etc. It was nice to look at these pictures on such a gloomy day outside. I put a caption for each photo and included atleast 3 tags for each one. Putting the slideshow in my website was not as difficult as I expected--you just go to Insert and click Picasa Slideshow and voila!

I will use photos in my classroom a lot. I think it's important for children to have a lot of visual images to look at when they are learning. If we are talking about another country, they need to see the geography and the way the people live there. If they see it, they will be able to remember it better and will feel more connected.

Resource Wiki

I thoroughly enjoyed making the Resource Wiki. I can honestly say I was very lucky because all of the team members in the Elementary Resource Wiki worked hard and diligently to help create it and it looks amazing! I will now be able to have a place I can go to if I want to find online resources for certain subjects, or if I need to find a good teacher website. If I want my students to play a game that will help them learn, I can go to the Games page on the wiki to find some great websites. I really like WebQuests and so having many to choose from and look at will be helpful in my classroom.

I think it's interesting to see what the girls in my Resource Wiki thought about websites without having to meet up with them. Even though I have only met a few of them, I feel like I know everyone just through the wiki. I hope the sources I posted can help the other students in TPTE with their learning. I enjoyed this group project because everyone worked hard and wanted to help each other.

I can see myself using a Resource Wiki in my classroom one day, especially for a group research project. Students can post websites and sources on the wiki for others to look at outside of school without having to take time from the class period to do the research. Students won't have to meet as a group as often because they can discuss through the wiki. I can keep track of their progress by looking at their wiki, as well as be able to tell who has done a lot of work and who needs to bring more to the table.

I am glad we got to learn about Resource Wikis because I know I will use them in my classroom one day.