I am really, really excited about using Slideshare!! I enjoyed searching for presentations that were already created. I use powerpoint presentations a lot in my class, and sometimes I just want a little something extra. This website is a great place to start looking. Again comes the time factor though- I started playing around with the site last night and suddenly 2 hours had gone by! You always have to be mindful of the time you are spending.
Another good aspect to the site is that you can access the presentation from anywhere. Now, I can go to the computer lab at my school and still have access to a presentation. I won't have to worry about forgetting my jump drive or anything like that.
I am also excited about having my students place their presentations on this site. I occasionally have them create presentations and it is a pain to walk around and make sure that all of them are saved correctly. Then, if I want to look at them on another computer, I have to jump through some more hoops. With this program, I could have the students save to this site and I could pull it up from anywhere. I wouldn't have to worry about memory space on our computers and I wouldn't have to call my tech person to figure out where a kid's project went to!!! This is definately something I am going to investigate further!!!
Monday, February 15, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
La Casa De Bart
Check it out!!! In order to actually be able to read the writing, you should watch in full screen mode. Muy creativo, no?
La Casa De Bart
View more presentations from Catalina Bohorquez.
Numero dieciseis y diecisiete
Tonight I learned about Google Docs. I can't believe I hadn't heard of this before. I think the idea of it is great!! I wasn't able to work find the 23 things document in my folder, but I uploaded some other things and played for a while. My colleagues and I are creating new curriculum this year. Uploading to Google docs would allow us to collaborate even though we are not physically at the same building!! I am definately suggesting this to my teammates.
I can't really imaging the students in my classes using it as much as the teachers talked about on the video. I don't have that many assignments that would require this type of collaboration, but never say never.
I also looked into other productivity tools. I thought the flashcard site would be perfect for my students, but I didn't really like it once I got there. I finally settled with the website bubbl.us. I decided to create a bubble chart that outlined the major concepts of my current unit. I left blank bubble for the students to fill in. I thought this would be a good graphic organizer for them to study with. I found it was not really user friendly and very time consuming. I think you can essentially do the same thing with inspiration, but without the "sharing" component. I will have to re-think how I could use one of the these sites. For now, they are not my favorite things that I have learned about. Maybe the bar was just set high with Google Docs.... :)
I can't really imaging the students in my classes using it as much as the teachers talked about on the video. I don't have that many assignments that would require this type of collaboration, but never say never.
I also looked into other productivity tools. I thought the flashcard site would be perfect for my students, but I didn't really like it once I got there. I finally settled with the website bubbl.us. I decided to create a bubble chart that outlined the major concepts of my current unit. I left blank bubble for the students to fill in. I thought this would be a good graphic organizer for them to study with. I found it was not really user friendly and very time consuming. I think you can essentially do the same thing with inspiration, but without the "sharing" component. I will have to re-think how I could use one of the these sites. For now, they are not my favorite things that I have learned about. Maybe the bar was just set high with Google Docs.... :)
Numeros catorce y quince
I have been investigating Delicious and I am liking it (my delicious site= senoritad). I continue to find new, useful sites. It can take time to find the tag words that work, but once you hit on something good it feels like a waterfall. Not only can you get the origial list of tagged items, but you can look at the personal lists of the people who liked that item. I have found quite a few new things in these personal lists!! I can see how this can be more effecient than just googling something. The numbers of people who like the site is also helpful in weeding out the good/ not so good sites.
Going back to my bloglines account was a different experience. For some reason, my bloglines account isn't as "easy" for me. I don't know what it is about it, but it isn't as user friendly for me. However, I do have to admit that it was much easier this time than the last time I checked my accounts. I remember the last time being overwhelmed by how many new posts I had. This time, I organized my links into different folders and it made that first page seem much easier to read. I could also be selective on which ones I wanted to look at- once clicked on the folder, I found that I really could scroll through the updates pretty quickly. I think the key is just keeping up on it. (Honestly though, I am still unsure if I can work into my routine.)
I did subscribe a delicious account to my bloglines. The tag I tried was "spanish resources". I am hoping that it updates with some good links. I think if I find success in my updates it will make me want to check back more often. Time is limited though and while I can see this being more effecient than other searches, it still takes time. Time will tell if I take to this or not. Keep your fingers crossed.
Going back to my bloglines account was a different experience. For some reason, my bloglines account isn't as "easy" for me. I don't know what it is about it, but it isn't as user friendly for me. However, I do have to admit that it was much easier this time than the last time I checked my accounts. I remember the last time being overwhelmed by how many new posts I had. This time, I organized my links into different folders and it made that first page seem much easier to read. I could also be selective on which ones I wanted to look at- once clicked on the folder, I found that I really could scroll through the updates pretty quickly. I think the key is just keeping up on it. (Honestly though, I am still unsure if I can work into my routine.)
I did subscribe a delicious account to my bloglines. The tag I tried was "spanish resources". I am hoping that it updates with some good links. I think if I find success in my updates it will make me want to check back more often. Time is limited though and while I can see this being more effecient than other searches, it still takes time. Time will tell if I take to this or not. Keep your fingers crossed.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Blabberize
I love the new technology I am finding!!! I came across the Blabberize program while using Delicious. (I am definately a big fan of using that site for searching new things!! Check it out if you haven't yet!!)
I am merging two different things here- a cute picture of my friends baby and a speaking project from my Spanish class!! One of my students is introducing himself. (This was a speaking test in our first unit). I think it gives it a funny twist!! What do you think?
I am merging two different things here- a cute picture of my friends baby and a speaking project from my Spanish class!! One of my students is introducing himself. (This was a speaking test in our first unit). I think it gives it a funny twist!! What do you think?
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Numero trece
Wow!! I love this idea. I feel like I have so many different places to put things on my computer that I do get a little "lost" when I am trying to find things. I have a really long favorites list and different folders for things, but storing your links on a main list with tags makes so much more sense. I especially like how you can access this from any computer. Sometimes I am at a different school when we are have CAT meetings. If something comes up, I could always log onto whatever computer is available and bring up my links.
I am really excited to see how the "social" part works. The video talked about being able to see what links other people have found to be helpful. I can see how this would also be helpful when looking for lesson specific ideas. Hopefully this endeavour turns out to be easy to use!!! Stay tuned!!
I am really excited to see how the "social" part works. The video talked about being able to see what links other people have found to be helpful. I can see how this would also be helpful when looking for lesson specific ideas. Hopefully this endeavour turns out to be easy to use!!! Stay tuned!!
Numeros once y doce
I can really see the benefit of looking at other blogs. You get new ideas and read inspiring comments. Leaving comments is fun. I have to admit, I get really excited when I see I have a new comment on my own blog. I always smile when I see it! This has helped changed my perspective on leaving comments. I used to just read them and think different things, but not actually post a comment. I thought nobody would really care what I thought. I am changing my mind. It doesn't really take that much time (they really make it easy for you) and I don't have to write a novel or anything.
I am still undecided on previewing the posts before they are published. I can see the benefit or it, but is it time consuming? Any thoughts?
I have also loved playing with the widgits. There are SOOO many out there, but it sure has been fun to load them onto my blog. I think these make a blog site interesting and unique. I can see how this would intrigue students if I were using a blogspot with them. It is a great place to post resources that they may need (like my currency converter or the weather map of a Spanish speaking location) or just fun things like the poll. As I have said in the past, it can just get time consuming if you don't know what you are looking for and just start sifting through the endless supply of random items. I think that is where visiting other blogs also comes in handy. You can get really great ideas for others!!!!
BTW- I figured out how to change the time stamp on my posts. Not that it matters to anyone else, but my time was always wrong. Turns out I was set up in a different time zone. I have fixed that and am all set now!! Yippe!!
I am still undecided on previewing the posts before they are published. I can see the benefit or it, but is it time consuming? Any thoughts?
I have also loved playing with the widgits. There are SOOO many out there, but it sure has been fun to load them onto my blog. I think these make a blog site interesting and unique. I can see how this would intrigue students if I were using a blogspot with them. It is a great place to post resources that they may need (like my currency converter or the weather map of a Spanish speaking location) or just fun things like the poll. As I have said in the past, it can just get time consuming if you don't know what you are looking for and just start sifting through the endless supply of random items. I think that is where visiting other blogs also comes in handy. You can get really great ideas for others!!!!
BTW- I figured out how to change the time stamp on my posts. Not that it matters to anyone else, but my time was always wrong. Turns out I was set up in a different time zone. I have fixed that and am all set now!! Yippe!!
Numeros nueve y diez
Wow- searching through YouTube was fun. I had looked through it for fun stuff before (the evolution of dance), but I hadn't really looked at it as a resource for educational material. I realized that I could actually find a descent video to use in my classroom fairly quickly. There are still a lot of low quality things you need search through, but the good stuff is really there. I found a true correlation between the number of views and the quality of the video. I know that won't always be the case, but it is something to keep in mind.
I had a little difficulty with the details- actually downloading it and embedding it into my blog, but I figured it out. Now that I have the procedure down, I will be able to do it quicker in the future. Since YouTube is a blocked site at school, it is important to download it to my own computer in order to use it in my classroom. There are TONS of sites out there to help with downloading, but I found the KeepVid site the easiest to use. The site is: keepvid.com.
I will definately keep this on the short list of research tools when lesson planning in the future.
I had a little difficulty with the details- actually downloading it and embedding it into my blog, but I figured it out. Now that I have the procedure down, I will be able to do it quicker in the future. Since YouTube is a blocked site at school, it is important to download it to my own computer in order to use it in my classroom. There are TONS of sites out there to help with downloading, but I found the KeepVid site the easiest to use. The site is: keepvid.com.
I will definately keep this on the short list of research tools when lesson planning in the future.
Evolution of Dance
This is one of my favorite YouTube videos!! I love the compilation of songs. You definately need to watch it if you haven't seen it. I bet you will be smiling and tapping your toes by the end!!
Want to Conjugate Verbs??
Check out this fun video!! You will definately be singing along by the end!!!!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Happy Snow Day
I did it!!! I couldn't figure out how to upload my cool jigsaw puzzle that I made with an image I uploaded to Flickr, but I just got it!!! What a great feeling!!! (These ice caves in Wisconsin is in honor of the snow day today!!)
Numeros seis, siete y ocho
I have heard about Flickr for a while now, but this was my first time actually investigating the site. There are tons of things you can do on it. Not only can you upload your own pictures, but you can search other images with different tags. As a teacher, I could download these images and use them in my lessons at school. Flickr provides a current selection of pictures and a WIDE variety of pictures to choose from. As a Spanish teacher, I searched for pictures of different countries and I loved what I saw. I will definately use this sources as I am planning upcoming lessons. Depending on the filters, I could also see the students using this to search for images. I think they would find this interesting.
I also liked how you could automatically print photos from Flickr and even create photo books. This site povides access to all the things I love to do with pictures. It is like one stop shopping. Taking it a step further, I played with the different image generators and had a lot of fun. I created a jigsaw puzzle of some ice caves in Wisconsin. I could see that being a lot of fun for us too!! Uploading the pictures was easy, but learning to navigate all the links from Flickr will take a while to get used to. I tried to post my jigsaw puzzle and it didn't work. I did get my memory game to come up though, so I guess I just need time to learn how to make it work.
I also liked how you could automatically print photos from Flickr and even create photo books. This site povides access to all the things I love to do with pictures. It is like one stop shopping. Taking it a step further, I played with the different image generators and had a lot of fun. I created a jigsaw puzzle of some ice caves in Wisconsin. I could see that being a lot of fun for us too!! Uploading the pictures was easy, but learning to navigate all the links from Flickr will take a while to get used to. I tried to post my jigsaw puzzle and it didn't work. I did get my memory game to come up though, so I guess I just need time to learn how to make it work.
Memory Game
Click on this link to play a game in honor of our snow day today!!!! Type SNOW into the search box and savor the fine memory of our fabulous snow day!
:: PIM PAM PUM :: memry
:: PIM PAM PUM :: memry
Overlooking machu picchu
I will soon be standing in the same place as the llama in this picture!!!!! I am so excited!!!!
Numeros cuatro y cinco
Setting up my bloglines took more time than I anticipated because of technical difficulty, but I got it now. I set up feeds for four different Spanish news sources. I loved looking for the RSS link on these different sites. It was exciting to know that they would be sending me updates.
However, checking back after just a few days, I already have over 200 links (is that the right word?). I can see how having a bloglines account it makes things easier to stay on top of things- the updates are all delivered to one place- but to say it saves you time is still misleading. You can still get sucked into spending a lot of time going through the updates. I also found the bloglines pages boring (no fun colors, graphics, etc.). This was the only other downfall that I had when reading my updates on bloglines. Aside from that, I am excited to use this new technology!!
However, checking back after just a few days, I already have over 200 links (is that the right word?). I can see how having a bloglines account it makes things easier to stay on top of things- the updates are all delivered to one place- but to say it saves you time is still misleading. You can still get sucked into spending a lot of time going through the updates. I also found the bloglines pages boring (no fun colors, graphics, etc.). This was the only other downfall that I had when reading my updates on bloglines. Aside from that, I am excited to use this new technology!!
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