The Big Box of Smiles



Digital collage customized with Smilebox

Smilebox is yet another addicting tool that I can find a million uses for, in and outside the classroom. There are so many cool features that allow you to do things like make a scrapbook, invitations and slide-shows. Smilebox is a short cut for people who have always wanted to find the time to make a scrapbook for a certain occasion and just did not have the time or money to put into it. Smilebox also allows you to make your own invitations to any event, who ever said you had to go out and spend a ton a money on invitations that will, lets be honest, end up in the trash. It is so quick and easy and it allows anyone to use it as long as you have internet access and pictures on your computer. I did find however, that there is one drawback to using Smilebox; you are limited to the number of pictures you can use in some of the formats. I got a little frustrated with this because I would find a background that I loved but I was not able to put all of the pictures I wanted to use in that specific background. Overall, Smilebox is a really fun way to present information to the class, whether it be an invitation to open house or a scrapbook of a field trip taken, there are many ways it can be incorporated in the class.

Digital Scavenger Hunt

A few weeks ago we were told that we were going to go on a digital scavenger hunt with our group members. I was a little nervous about this at first because I did not know if we would have enough time in class to find all the items we needed as well as re-size all of our images. I had some trouble resizing images the week before when we had to make our web collections, so I was a bit skeptical. The scavenger hunt turned out to be a very fun activity and when it came time to re-size the pictures, I had some great group members who helped me figure out the right size.

I think that everything went very smoothly during this project and I would recommend doing it in a classroom setting for children. The only drawback to the project, if working with young children, is that you will have to have an adult with them to help them take pictures as well as walk around with them. Also, if you are wanting the children to put the pictures in a presentation they will need someone to help them re-size their pictures and place them in a PowerPoint. From this experience, I learned how to re-size images using many different tools, not just Photo Shop. There are many different websites, like Picnik that will allow you to crop the pictures and make them the exact way you need them to be. I do not think that I would do anything different next time I have to do a project like this. Everything went very smoothly and I think we had a lot of fun completing the project. Digital scavenger hunts can be used in many different ways in the classroom including: documentation of a field trip, to reinforce what is being taught in the classroom, and they allow the children to work in groups and learn how to work with one another.

Digital Collection

The Teacher's Life Line.....A Lesson Plan

When I first found out that I was going to have to write a lesson plan I was extremely excited. I thought to myself "how hard could it be". Boy was I surprised when I found out how much really goes into making a lesson plan. However, I really enjoyed planning a class period and what would go on in a lesson, but it did take a lot of thought and planning. I am so thankful that we were able to ask questions and get feedback because it helped me learn how an actual lesson plan should look when finished. The feedback from Dr. B worked really well and I think that it not only helped myself, but others in the class as well. One thing that did not work well for me was trying to complete the lesson plan, at the beginning,  without using an actual textbook. It was so much easier after I checked out a third grade textbook and found out what is really being taught about a subject. Everyone thinks they know how much is being taught about certain subjects or they know what is taught at a specific grade level, but we actually do not know exactly how much is taught. We know that the planets are taught in third grade but we do not know exactly how much is taught until we get an actual textbook regarding this age and subject.

Lesson plans will be used in my every day life, once I become a teacher. They are necessary for planning a classroom lesson. They allow you to stay on topic and it hows exactly what needs to be done and how you will get from one point to another. Lesson plans allow you to see the grade level standards that are expected and it allows the teacher to see what needs to be done, in order to get the students where they need to be.

Glogging and Blogging?

Glogster is a fun a creative way for teachers and students to make interactive posters. It allows the usage of text, pictures, videos and graphics. Students have the ability to collaborate with other students to complete a project that the teacher has given them. Glogs also make learning fun for students and might get them interested in a topic that they previously felt partial to. Teachers can also use glogs to present new information to the students. Presentations no longer need to be in plain PowerPoint form or on written notes, but they can be presented in a fun and exciting way. Hopefully by making the information a little more exciting the students will pay attention more and be excited about learning.

Here is an example of an all about me glog.