Sunday, April 03, 2005
March 31 - class
March 31, 2005
All right, I am stoked. We started class looking at some of the applications that we had downloaded last week. There were some awesome programs that can be used for many activities in the classroom. I like the fact that our class is so creative that they can look at a program and come up with activities that were not necessarily intended by the author.
Tony then introduced concept mapping opportunities on our handhelds. I was familiar with Inspiration having used it myself. PicoMap was new to me as was IdeaPad. I love the idea of students being able to work on these programs on their handhelds but I was frustrated because I could not see the entire concept map at one time. I also found that some were difficult to maneuver, making it frustrating. I really liked the ability to change the concept map into an outline. It is very important that students see the relationship between the concept map and the outline.
Making eBooks, awesome. I can see so many opportunities for teachers and students. It was amazing how easy it was to make one. As I sat there watching Tony make a book with information from his website, my mind began to race with the possibilities.
The next day I went back to school and asked a future fourth grade teacher if he was willing to become involved in using handhelds in his classroom next year. His answer was, “In a heartbeat.” When I told him about the possibilities with eBooks, he was amazed. With his help I hope to find the funds for a classroom set for the school.
All right, I am stoked. We started class looking at some of the applications that we had downloaded last week. There were some awesome programs that can be used for many activities in the classroom. I like the fact that our class is so creative that they can look at a program and come up with activities that were not necessarily intended by the author.
Tony then introduced concept mapping opportunities on our handhelds. I was familiar with Inspiration having used it myself. PicoMap was new to me as was IdeaPad. I love the idea of students being able to work on these programs on their handhelds but I was frustrated because I could not see the entire concept map at one time. I also found that some were difficult to maneuver, making it frustrating. I really liked the ability to change the concept map into an outline. It is very important that students see the relationship between the concept map and the outline.
Making eBooks, awesome. I can see so many opportunities for teachers and students. It was amazing how easy it was to make one. As I sat there watching Tony make a book with information from his website, my mind began to race with the possibilities.
The next day I went back to school and asked a future fourth grade teacher if he was willing to become involved in using handhelds in his classroom next year. His answer was, “In a heartbeat.” When I told him about the possibilities with eBooks, he was amazed. With his help I hope to find the funds for a classroom set for the school.
# posted by Ann @ 5:51 PM 
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There are many possiblities just with eBooks--not to mention the hundreds of other educational programs available for handhelds! I really hope you can get handhelds for your school. That's one lucky fourth grade teacher!
Ann-
I must say that I have really enjoyed your company in class. I just love your enthusiasm about the handhelds and you excitement about trying something new. Your school is lucky to have you as their technology specialist. I was, however, a little taken back that your blog was mostly about mapping and not eBooks! I though for sure you would have had 10 already made for teachers to use :-) I thought maybe you'd go home and do them right after class on Thursday night! It's so fun to suck some of that fantastic energy from you! You're truly an inspiration!
I must say that I have really enjoyed your company in class. I just love your enthusiasm about the handhelds and you excitement about trying something new. Your school is lucky to have you as their technology specialist. I was, however, a little taken back that your blog was mostly about mapping and not eBooks! I though for sure you would have had 10 already made for teachers to use :-) I thought maybe you'd go home and do them right after class on Thursday night! It's so fun to suck some of that fantastic energy from you! You're truly an inspiration!
I like your honest evalution in your comments about using Pico Map and Idea Pad. I'm practicing with them to see how practical they really are on a small screen. I'm still using paper & pencil Concept webs, but do like your comment that if they can see the web in outline form, perhaps they can have a better feel for how ideas are really connected and see the flow of their own thinking. Thanks for that comment. I'll want to explore that in my own thinking a bit more. I have Inspiration in my class, but have yet to introduce it. This is our classes first year with handhelds, and it feels like their is so much to do and learn. It's probably more my own learning curve that is getting in the way.
I've given my students eReader and some things to read, but haven't really had the chance to create eBooks which has some awesome potential. I was thinking how cool it would be for students to do bio's on famous people or themselves into books, or in science, when we're studying the life cycle of the Pacific salmon, create a book with pics of the cycle.
Hey! Stay stoked and keep sharing that excitement with others. We all need to pass on the flame to others. Perhaps then we can get more $$$$ to flow for handheld technology!
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I've given my students eReader and some things to read, but haven't really had the chance to create eBooks which has some awesome potential. I was thinking how cool it would be for students to do bio's on famous people or themselves into books, or in science, when we're studying the life cycle of the Pacific salmon, create a book with pics of the cycle.
Hey! Stay stoked and keep sharing that excitement with others. We all need to pass on the flame to others. Perhaps then we can get more $$$$ to flow for handheld technology!
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