Blog Assignment 5 Part 2

For this assignment we are to summarize our Personal Learning Network. My PLN has changed drastically from my first post. Now I have teachers I communicate with and discuss questions and answers. I discuss topics with the teachers I am helping at O'Rourke Elementary School. I have students that are in the same place and classes I am at South Alabama. This is probably my most important part of my PLN to me. We can discuss things and problems that we may be going through together in class or in teaching experience. PLN is something I could see myself teaching in my classroom. Students need to learn how to work together. You very rarely get a job where you work alone. Everyone need to have people to talk to and ask questions. If children get comfortable now, this will help in their future.  Edublogs Teachers Challenges tells different ways to build you personal learning network.

C4T #4

For C4T #4, post 1, I commented on Mr. Fix's blog post Melting Rates. He shows an experiment of putting a cube of ice on blocks of different material. He shows their melting rate and then explains why one melts faster than the other. He also tell examples of other experiments that could be done to show melting rates.

Below is the comment I left for Mr. Fix:
Mr. Fix. I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class. This is a great video to get students interested! I really like how you didn't tell much about the project, and just let it happen. By this, you let students make their own predictions. Great post! I could definitely see myself using this in my classroom in the future.

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

For my other C4T post, I chose to comment on Lana Gerin blog post I'm Still Here.She explains how her students are presenting on an animal to the class. She also tells about how she wrote a not to her student and the student writes a note back.

Below is the comment I left for Lana:
 Hello, Lana. I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I love how your class is presenting! I wish I would have presented more when I was in grade school. Maybe I wouldn't be so nervous to get up in front of a class or group of people now. I also love the fact that you wrote your student a note and that she wrote you one to tell how much she appreciates you! That is a great student/teacher relationship!

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

Blog Assignment #14

In Joel Klien's Teaching our children can be a profession: Column he lists many problems and solution that are in the world of teaching. The first thing that was mentioned that anyone can become a teacher that has a college degree. He states that everyone should recruit from the top one-third of graduates. The way teachers are rewarded also needs to change. Teachers are thought to be interchangeable based on seniority. We must understand no teacher is the same and all teachers vary. Teaching also needs to be professionalized. The more professional teaching is, the more students and teachers will benefit. Teachers will be more successful and will command greater public trust. Teaching can also be more professional by teacher examinations. These examinations will include a mastery of pedagogy and content knowledge. Teachers should also have to complete a supervised internship for three years. The most radical changes to help keep teaching a good profession are: teachers should have their own board to police the profession, standards need to be established, there need to be mechanisms to remove incompetent teachers, promotions should be based on a ladder and to move up on the ladder you must take an exam, fewer teachers need to be aided by teaching assistants, and there should be no mandatory assignments.

I completely agree that it seems way to easy to become a teacher. There needs to be a cut off point, just like in medical school. As teachers, we will be teaching these students who will eventually become our doctors and scientists. I love how he talks about every teachers is different. No teacher teaches the same and no student learns the same. I agree with Mr. Klien completely on this also. I also agree on teacher testing. I think that that is what they are trying to do with the Praxis, but I think we need to have tests after classes on that class to make sure we learned what we need to know. This would make test taking less stressful, than trying to take the test all at one time. I don't agree with the three year internship. This is practically what we will be doing during school. I also agree that teaching should have: a board to police the profession, standards, mechanisms to remove bad teachers, exams to move up on the ladder, and fewer teaching assistants. I don't agree with no mandatory assignments. I think students should have assignments, just maybe not grade every assignment. Let the students do a self-evaluation.

I could see myself using some of these ideas in my classroom, and bringing some of these ideas to the school I work at. Reading this makes you realize teaching needs to have more guidelines and cutoffs. It is a profession that needs to be taken more seriously.

C4K Summary for November

For C4K #8, I was assigned Ravneek in Mr. Wigmore's class. He goes to school at Brampton. In Ravneek's post he is describing what he thinks an object may be. He also states what he thinks it may be and why he thinks that. The picture he was assigned for this post is to the left.

Below is the comment I left for Ravneek:
Hi Ravneek! I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class. First, I would to say that this is a great post. I like how you told of all the options the object could be, and then you told what you thought it was and why. Keep up the good work!

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

Click here to read Ravneek's blog!


For C4K #9, I was assigned Natania A. in Mrs. Mena's fifth grade class in Chula Vista, California. Natania's post is a narrative of a story. In this narrative she uses many adjectives to describe objects, which makes you visualize them and make them seem real. She tells how she looks into a dogs eyes and it causes her to recall a vision she has with her mother. This vision is a conversation she has with her mom and tells how a family heirloom is passed on. She has a very wide imagination.

Below is the comment I left for Natania:
Hi Natania! I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM310 class. First, I would like to say that this is an awesome post! You use so many adjectives and tell the story great! This made me feel like I knew the people in the story and could see them with my own eyes. I love the mystery of the story also. Great job! Keep up the good work!

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

Click here to read Natania's blog!

For C4K #11, I was assigned Adam G. in Mrs. Mena's fifth grade class in Chula Vista, California. In Adam G.'s post he talks about how his team will be competing in two weeks. He then proceeds to list the line up for his teammates.

Below is the comment i left for Adam G.:
Hi, Adam G.! I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am Dr. Strange's EDM310 class. This is a great post about your team! It was very cool how you listed your line up for the game. I hope your team does great in your competition! Good luck!

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

Click here to read Adam G.'s blog!

Blog Assignment #13

Special education is very important in the school system. Without this program schools would be completely different. Special education programs and children use technology in many different ways. Watch the following videos and tell what you have learned about technology in special education.

Introducing iPods into Special Education

Technology in Special Education

Assistive Technology


Special education teachers are one of a kind. You really have to love what you are doing. That is not a job you could just go and do every day. It is a challenge for you and your students. You have to come up with many different ways to teach your special education students. Maybe because they can't communicate, or many other reasons.

There are many different ways that special needs children use technology.
In Introducing iPods into Special Education, teachers use the iPods for many things. They use the iPods for communication between teachers and students, parents, or siblings. They do this by leaving voice memos. The family members can listen to the voice memos and leave one in return to give back to the teacher. They also use the iPods to help students at home. They record sign language used to teach the lesson. This lets the students work at home and even review. They also read book and put the sign language on the iPods. These are just a couple of the ways they use an iPod in Special Education.

In Technology in Special Education, they show actual reactions of student when they are asked about technology. Most of these students use technology to help them communicate with their peers, their parents, and their teachers. The students feel that technology has made their life so much easier. One specific instance, a student has a vision disability. There is an app that makes all the words appear larger. You can really tell that technology has helped them for the better.

In Assistive Technology, many different assistive technologies are used. One is a Seven Level Communicator. They use this to make different choices, retell stories, and also tell what they want. A Partner Four is similar to a Seven Level Communicator, but it has four buttons instead of seven. The example she showed has yes, no, potty, and all done on the Partner Four. She shows videos called "We Sign", even though she only has one child who is deaf. All children need to know this so they can communicate with the deaf child. Higher Function was another tool used. This tool is for children who can't communicate at all. It uses tech speak and pictures for the student to choose what they want ot communicate. She uses two forms of buttons, a Step-by-Step and a Big Mack Switch. The Step-by-Step is used to answer question, along with the Big Mack Switch. One difference is the Big Mack Switch actually has a visual with it.

All of these tools used in special education are used to help to allow the students to make their own choices.

Project 12B

Project 10- Interview Movie

Blog Assignment #12

C4T #3, Posts 1 & 2

For my C4T #3 post one, I was assigned Frank Buck's blog Get Organized. I commented on Happy 10th Birthday, Blog! He explains why blogging is better than other sources of communication. He also tell the Top 10 Reasons to Blog. He explains how you can take many small notes and organized them into one blog post.

Below is the comment I left for Mr. Buck:
Hi, Mr. Buck. I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. First, I would like to say congratulations on 10 years! I know that is an accomplishment. I agree that blogs are one of the easiest ways of communication, that is on the computer. Bosses can post and workers can comment. I could see where this would help in a larger business, where the boss does not know every worker personally, but wants their input on a subject. I also see where it would be easier than a website. You could just change it directly, instead of calling and going through the maze of press 1 and 4 to get to who you need to talk to. I thoroughly enjoyed this post! Good luck in your future endeavors!

Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/

For my C4T #3 post two, I was assigned Frank Buck's blog Get Organized. I commented on Better Choices, And It’s Easy. In this post, he compares life's to-do lists with restaurant menus. We must be able to see our choices in order to make better choices. He list some ways to help our life's "menu" to be the best it can be: make it digital, keep it simple, make it have search abilities, and make it have repeated tasks.

Below is the comment I left for Mr. Buck:
Hello, Mr. Buck. I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I am in Dr. Strange's EDM 310 class. I really needed to read this post! It makes perfect sense at this point in my life. I have a paper planner, but I take my electronics everywhere with me. I need to convert! This post is great! I love how you give specific tips. This will help tremendously, especially the ways to search! Great blog!


Twitter: @sydneybreeves
Email: sydneybreeves@gmail.com
URL for class blog: http://edm310.blogspot.com/
URL for my blog: http://reevessydneyedm310.blogspot.com/