Entry 29: The Blog Question

Now I have many people that do blogs and even incorporate it into their classroom. I even did a wedding blog so all of our distant relatives could keep track of what was going on. Whenever I do a presentation though, the one question that I keep getting asked is whether or not kids actually do blogs. My response to them is asking them whether or not the students in their class have a Facebook or MySpace account. If they do have one of these than yes they are blogging because each of those accounts has a blogging feature to use.

Now many of the students we work with have a tough time expressing their feelings. In my mind a blog is the perfect way for them to do this. It basically gives them a chance to write out what they are thinking and at the same time they can come back at a later time and reflect. What a great idea for ED kids huh. Do you have any other ways you are using or can see using blogs in your class. Let me know.

Entry 28: One Note

How many of you have used one note before? How many of you have papers just laying all over your desk and you can't find anything when you need it? Well this year I have begun using one note and it is making my life much easier. One note is a program put out by Microsoft that allows you to make separate folders for each student and allows you to take notes over them. The best example I can give is that each student on my caseload has a separate folder for them. In each folder I have a copy of their schedules, a copy of their classroom accommodations, a copy of their testing accommodations, a copy of the parent contact sheet, a copy of their IEP, and a copy of parent/student concerns. Now instead of going back to a folder to get the information, I can just get on my computer and pull up everything and jot my notes down on it. Great program that I will be talking more about.

Entry 27: The Team Blog

I am extremely lucky to teach in a district that embraces technology as much as mine does. Everyone in our building has a blackboard website and they are expected to maintain it. Our teachers are very good at this and actually go above expectations. The only problem we ran into is that you could never access the sites from just one place and also the websites were just so long to remember. This year I decided to change all that by starting a blog that will keep parents informed of what is going on with our team. Just another way to communicate with parents. You can see the link below.

Team Blog

Entry 26: My New Project

The last 4 years have been very hectic for me when it comes to my job. I am all about the teaming concept, but I was never fully on a team. I always worked with 8th and 9th graders, but this year is different because I am just working with 8th graders. This is nice because I am finally able to keep better track of the student's on my caseload and also apply some of the technology things that I have always wanted to do.

The one thing I have always wanted to do is take my blackboard website to a new level. This year only being on one team I am able to do this. My blackboard link is below and if you go to it you will see a few things.
- An assignments link. This link is updated everyday with what assignments or projects students have coming up in all of my teams core classes (math, science, social studies, and language arts). Believe it or not this only takes 5 minutes a day to do and it is so beneficial for the parents of my students.
- A review games link. I use this link for study games that students can play at home to get ready for upcoming tests. This should be a great way for students to get more prepared for tests coming up. Right now I have a link for students to go to a game to help them study for their states quiz.
- I will also have a tests link. This link will be the audio version of any tests that the students will be taking. So instead of myself or a para reading the test out loud, it can be done on my blackboard site.

I know I will be using this even more over the year, so keep checking back to it. The link is below.

My Blackboard Site

Entry 25: Google Teacher Academy

Have you ever wanted to be a Google certified teacher and learn how to use their products more effectively? Well now is your chance because on September 24th Google will be holding a conference in Chicago for 50 educators to become Google certified and learn how to use their product more effectively in the classrooms. The application deadline is August 25th and to apply or learn more click on the link below.

Google Teacher Academy Information

Entry 24: Start Of The School Year

Tomorrow I begin my 15th year of teaching and this one will by far be the most interesting. For starters this summer I got married, so I guess this means no more long nights at school. I also gave up a broadcasting class that I have been teaching for the last 2 years (this should clear up a lot of my time because there was just so much to do to keep that program running). This coming year we also hired 3 new teachers which means my department now has 9 teachers and 10 paraprofessionals and this is not counting the students teacher I have. This year like every other year I have set some goals for my classroom.

- Updating this blog once a week with something new and great I have either learned, am currently using, or a share a great resource I found.

- Keep using the mp3 players in my classroom to have tests read out loud to make my life easier by not reading tests.

- Working smarter, not harder.

- Writing a grant for the adaptive PE class to get a Nintendo Wii to use in helping develop their fine and gross motor skills. Might as well put this technology to use huh.

- Last but not least, worrying more about being a good teacher than the paperwork that we all have to do.

These are my goals for the year, if you want I would love to hear about yours. I hope everyone has a great year.

Entry 23: Read The Words

I have recently come across a free program that allows any text you type to be read out loud (even in Spanish and French). The coolest thing is that you can even import any word or PDF document and have it read out loud. Check out the link below.

Read The Words