Friday, October 16, 2009
Weebly
Just finished an Instructional Design class and learned about www.weebly.com. Weebly allows you to create your own webpage free of charge. (There is a possible upgrade that you have to pay for.) For our final project, we had the option of creating an interactive powerpoint, a webquest, or an interactive website. Of the three, the one I had never made was an interactive website. I was a little nervous about it at first, but it turned out to be pretty easy. Weebly has pretty much everything I needed to create a fairly basic site. I could insert text, pictures, and videos and link pages together or link to the internet. It took a little getting used to, but I eventually was able to do everything I needed. This is a resource that I would share with the teachers I work with if they are interested in creating a website. Once you create it, it can be used for years to come. I imagine that is tempting for a lot of teachers. No need to worry about storing papers or overheads; it's all online!
Check out the website I made: www.kpsadaptations.weebly.com
Friday, October 16, 2009 11:14:54 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00) 
|
|
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Time flies when you're having fun!
It's hard to believe school has started again already! And with the start of school comes the start of Fall Semester at CMU. Class starts Friday and this class meets twice with the rest of the work available online. Not too bad considering I now have a part-time job and a 4 month old baby! It is probably going to be quite hectic, but, again, I am thankful for the hybrid format. I get to share my ideas and listen to others' thoughts in class, but the rest of the work is available online for me to complete when I have free time (IF I have free time!) I am excited to get back to class and see the friends I have made in my cohort. We started off with about 8 people and the classes have grown and grown. With the economy the way it is, I feel fortunate to be getting my degree in a constantly changing field- Educational Technology. In fact, I will be working as an Educational Technologist, helping out teachers with the new and changing technology being adopted by the district. It has worked out perfectly!
Wednesday, September 09, 2009 2:49:30 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Break!
Well, I've officially finished my 6th class and now I have a little break until the beginning of September! Usually we have about a month between classes, but the summer sessions were back-to-back, so this time off will be nice. I have already signed up for 2 classes for the fall. It is a good thing the staff at Central in Grand Rapids send me reminders. They let me know when I can register and what sessions to register for in order to follow along with the plan for my cohort. I really appreciate that I have one less detail to worry about! They also inform me if a textbook is needed for the course and give me a link to where I can buy books. Through Blackboard, professors can send emails or post messages to introduce themselves and the course. They can also post any pre-class assignments that we may have. All of the information is given with plenty of time to complete before class starts. It is surprisingly easy to stay in contact with everyone. And having finished my 4th class with this cohort, I'm getting to know the people in my courses and have made great friendships!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009 4:33:39 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Friday, June 19, 2009
summer sessions
It was funny looking at my last entry, because our son was born the very next day! Having a newborn and taking classes was a bit daunting and I definitely stayed busy. But I was able to complete all of the classwork while he was sleeping. The class ended last week and the next class starts tonight. Summer sessions are closer together, which is fine with me because I am not teaching over the summer. If I thought it was nice having hybrid classes before, I definitely am appreciating it now that I am a mom. And I know that CMU also offers classes completely online which would also allow for a really flexible schedule. For the summer, I can imagine this would be tempting for anyone needing to take classes, but not wanting them to get in the way of summer plans.
Friday, June 19, 2009 3:16:32 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Still trucking along!
Just started class #3 through the CMU Grand Rapids center. It's nice that we have a cohort and I've gotten to know some of the people in my classes. It creates a different kind of atmosphere and comraderie when you see familiar faces and you've been through the same previous experiences.
I wasn't so sure I was going to take this class because I'm 39 weeks pregnant and was unsure if I'd be able to attend class. The nice thing about it being a hybrid class is that we don't meet every weekend and a lot of the work can be done at home according to my own schedule. I emailed the professor before class started and told him about my situation and asked for his input. He was very understanding and said that if I did have to miss a class (we only meet 3 times on Friday nights) that we would work something out and I should still be able to take the class. Luckily, with getting to know some of the other students ahead of time, I feel I have resources I can go to if I do have to miss a class that can help to catch me up.
This class is called Read/Write Web and has us using a lot of technology that I wouldn't think to use with my 3rd graders for multiple reasons. But experimenting with these technologies is showing me how easy it would be for my 3rd graders to use (and everything we're doing is FREE!). And they would love it! In this class we are creating blogs, podcasts, and social bookmarking sites. We will also be trying out Digital Storytelling. These are all things that I actually see as being useful to my students or to my colleagues. It always helps when your classes actually pertain to your life!
Sunday, May 17, 2009 10:55:42 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Thursday, April 09, 2009
spring break!
I didn't realize it has been so long since I last wrote. The time is flying by and I'm already halfway through another class: EDU 614- Advanced Educational Psychology. I remember taking an Educational Psychology course in my undergrad classes and this is a nice refresher. After having my own classroom for a few years, I look at the information from my classes so differently from before. I am actually able to apply the things I am learning with my students. With this Educational Psychology course, the ideas of the psychologists we are studying gives me new insight into my students and why they act the way that they do. It's always nice to step back and look at the students through different eyes, and my grad classes are definitely helping me to do so.
Sometimes when I'm sitting in class, listening to all of the assignments we have, I think to myself: "How in the world am I going to get all this done with what I need to do at work?" Luckily, with spring break being this week, I have been able to complete a lot of my classwork during this time. With some of the classmates I've talked to, you just make it happen, and it works out!
Thursday, April 09, 2009 5:56:39 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
creating a webpage
I was so worried about creating my own webpage. During my first class in this course, the professor was throwing out names like KompoZer and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and I got really nervous because I did not know any of those words, how to use them, or how they would help me create a webpage. Nevertheless, I took the assignment head-on and downloaded KompoZer and SimpleCSS. The professor said there was information on how to link these two programs together to create a webpage, but I could not find anything on their sites. That was when I got even more worried. So, I stored up my questions and was all ready to ask the professor at our second (and last) face-to-face meeting. Before class started, I was looking around on Blackboard and realized that the professor had posted KompoZer and SimpleCSS tutorials on our Blackboard Course Documents. I did not know the professor meant that he had created the tutorials for us to use. I thought they were provided by the program. Now, in creating my own page, it is really easy to follow my professor's tutorial and I am having no problem. It is great because the professors of online courses are more experienced at this than I am and they anticipate the questions that the students have because they have taught these courses before. Another thing that I thought was important was that my professor of this class told us the best way to get ahold of him. He specifically told us which way would get the quicker answer and which way would take him a while to answer. It is nice to know that the professor cares enough to be concerned about the students being able to get ahold of him. With online/hybrid courses, being able to contact the professor is essential. I have had really good experiences with the CMU professors of online classes. They really know what the students need.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009 6:02:30 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
online vs. face-to-face
There are definite pros and cons to both types of classes. The class I have right now is a hybrid class- we meet twice face-to-face, but most of the coursework is completed on your own and submitted online. It gets difficult when there are questions. Of course, some professors are easier to get ahold of than others. I like the relationships that are formed between students and professors and the students of the class with the face-to-face format of class. It's more interactive and you get to play ideas off one another. On the other hand, online classes are very good for people who need a flexible class schedule. You receive your assignments and are given due dates. You just need to make sure to complete them by that time. They are not as personal, but that may be the preference for some people. Currently, I'm having a hard time understanding one of my assignments and am waiting for a response from my professor. However, having the entire assignment schedule, I am able to work on other assignments without having completed this one. The good thing about this hybrid class is I have the ability to ask the professor questions the next time we meet. And the assignments aren't due for a few weeks after that. A bigger bonus is that this class assignment can tie directly into my teaching. We are creating a unit plan involving technology, researching online and creating a webquest. I am able to create a plan that teaches my GLCEs and use this plan in my classroom, which really makes it seem even more worthwhile!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 7:23:28 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
|
|