The End...

The end of the semester in many ways marks a new beginning professionally. It is not often when a semester begin by asking yourself questions and ending the semester trying to figure out what is the meaning of those questions. More importantly, what do the answers mean to those questions. I guess in many ways this semester has been different from last two semester here at West Georgia because it has been more demanding and challenging that has allowed me reflect on my career and begin to focus on where will my education take me as a learner and as an educator. This is not a bad thing because it has finally made me focus on the things that are really important and not focus or become distracted by the clutter that often blocks my view of where I need to go.

As a result of this clearer focus it has allowed me to focus and reflect topics that in had the past avoid. These topics included what does leadership really means in terms working with others, developing a strong foundation and understanding of how collaboration prepares an individual to take their learning to the next level( in the past I would have never even considered working or collaborating with other to do a project or a proposal) and it is like chocolate the more try it the more you want it, determining what are the essential elements or characteristics that are within an individual and how those elements or characteristics effects my interacts with my students and colleagues.

In other words, I feel like I have grown in many ways that I was not prepared for or expected this semester. As I have said before learning does not always come from a textbook,instead it comes from within the individual. This was very important lesson to for me to learn as I progress through my program here at West Georgia.

Project Based Learning ....

The whole project based learning assignment has been an unique and extremely valuable learning experience for me. I have always been the person that does it all. I am learning how to work with others to share ideas, lesson plans and to collaborate with others. I know that several of teammates have experience technical issues related to being able to access google docs. But they have been persistence in their effort to be part of the collaboration process. I am grateful that no one has throw their hands and said "I give up".

As I go through this process with my teammates, I am learning what it means to be a group leader and to encourage others when it appears they want to give.

Being an effective leader does not mean that you are out of touch with those who you work and collaborate with during the group process. Instead it is about allowing everyone to play their part and assume their role within the group process that supportive and encouraging to everyone.
I am not saying this is an easy process but it is a valuable learning experience to have and learn from that will allow me to make the personal and professional connections that support my own learning experiences.

I hope and pray that I am given an opportunity to further develop my skills and expand my knowledge base beyond what I have learned from this class. This has been one the best experiences that I have had in a very long time.

What I learned from Movie Maker

When I first learned that we would be completing a digital storytelling assignment, I was excited because I thought that using imovie would be just like Microsoft Movie Maker. How wrong I could I be about using the two software applications. I have used Movie Maker countless times before without any problems. Many of the elements included in our assignment were simple compare to imovie.
This assignment was the first time that I used imovie and I was excited about using this new software because I convert from a PC user to a Mac user. I have enjoyed using my mac and I have to admit it has been a learning curve for me. I have need never been the one to shy away from learning something new. It has been an interesting experience learning how to incorporate itune and PowerPoint into an imovie. I hope that the final product is OK!
As I use imovie more and more I hope to become more proficient in the different elements goes into creating a great imovie but for now I am happy to have the opportunity to experiment with it and to receive feedback on what I created with imovie.

Lost track of time: Long period without a post

I know that it has been along time since I post a comment on my Blog but I have been extremely busy with work, my other class trying not fall behind and trying make sure that I keep with the assignments in this class. While I have not been blogging, I have learned alot from this class especially, in the area of digital storytelling and project base learning. I will share what I have learned in two post that follow this one. Stay tuned!

IMovie Experience

The movie project was an interesting twist for me this time around. Normally, I using Movie Maker is no problem for me but this summer I brought my first mac. It has been a learning curve for me. As a result this project was a challenge for me because I had to learn how to use IMovie and that is involved with using it. When you have been used to creating videos with Movie Maker then switch you get a different perspective on Mac vs PC.
My IMovie project focused on Respecting Students with Disability. I have always admired those extra special teachers who work with students have physical disabilities. These teachers are the true heroes of education. There two MOID classrooms at my school and fifteen students in grades Kindergarten to fifth. I see both classes when they come to Media Center for story time and everyday during their lunch time when I am on cafeteria duty. Students in general education class do not know how to relate to MOID students instead they often stare or laugh at them.
I hope this video which still needs work in my opinion will serve as a stepping stone to begin a discussion with general education students about the importance of treating their fellow classmates with respect and understanding regardless of their disability. This is not limited to just students but also to teachers. As we also have misconceptions, uneasiness and questions about students with disabilities but are often to afraid to ask because we might be seen as less compassion.
It has been my experience that MOID teachers and other teachers who with students with physical disabilities welcome the questions and welcome questions to address misconceptions and misinformation about students with disabilities. When it comes to students with disabilities there is such thing as a dumb question.

Google Docs

My initial experience with Googledocs was somewhat challenging because it took me over a week and half communicating with Dr. B about not being able to access Googledocs. It took alot of time but I finally figure out on what was the problem. When my account was set up the registration process was incomplete. The result was a lot of frustration and time wasted. I hope going forward that it will be a much smoother process because I think that Googledocs offers teachers and others a great opportunity to share information, work together and learn from each other.

Lesson Learned from Voice Thread

I enjoyed working with first grade students on completing this Voice Thread learning activity relating to weather. The Voice Thread learning activity provided me with a different experience and perspective of using technology with first grade students. For me this project presented a challenge for me because I wanted to have the experience of actually creating a technology integration learning activity to work with primary elementary students. This learning activity provided me with a real-life opportunity to experience my program focus, which is developing online resources and training for early childhood educators, students and their caregivers.

I thought that I had created a learning activity that would provide first grade students with the right amount of rigor to challenge them to seek additional knowledge about weather. I quickly realized that I had forgotten an important instructional strategy when developing any type of learning activity for young children it has to be developmental appropriate for their age range and their cognitive ability. The critical thinking aspect of the question I presented to first grade students was answered based on their prior knowledge, interaction with their environment and experience of how weather impacts their lives. This is a very important lesson to remember when developing learning activities that support technology integration for primary elementary students.