Summary

After many obstacles, I think I am finally finished with 23 Things. I worried that I wouldn't be able to complete it all due to a late start (my "things" were sent to the wrong email) and a sick daughter - in Arkansas. But I was determined to finish what I had started. Some weeks I felt like I spent every waking moment on the computer. It was, however, very much worth it. Would I do it again? Yes, but I would take it in the summer when I had more time and fewer things to get in the way. Did I mention that I had my first grandchild born during this time too? Oh yes, Christmas shopping has been put on hold as well.

Some evenings I got so much info that I felt like my head was spinning. I have big plans for using most of it. My first goal is to start that blog with my parents and students. I am really looking forward to seeing what they do with it. Library Thing will keep me organized and speed things up when looking for a particular book. My Google Alerts have already started keeping me informed in many areas. I can check my calendar on line any time as well. Google Reader has given me lots of new ideas for my classroom. Photo sharing, Tagging, Wikis, WOW! There is just so much out there. I expected to learn a few new things but now I want to do it all. I'm not afraid to try the unknown and I've learned to ask for help when I need it.

Technology is too important for us NOT to try to keep up with it. Notice I did say try. Things change so frequently these days it is hard to stay on top of things. I have a lot of new tools to play with and I plan to use them. Thanks for everything!

Thing #23

I made my Ning badge (although after trying numerous times I still can't get it to work)and discovered Ning had some good ways to do social networking with other professionals in my own field. I found some great activities on a site for Kindergarten. I was glad to get to Ning after checking out the others. They did not capture my attention. I found one network I might join because I would love to be able to collaborate with these teachers. They seem to have some ideas that mesh with my way of teaching.

Thing #22

I visited Myspace and Facebook. I decided that Myspace seemed to be for a younger generation so I created a Facebook page. People have been asking me for a while why I'm not on Facebook. To tell you the truth, I haven't been interested or had the time. I was very reluctant to create it because I've heard so many bad things (Myspace more than Facebook). I decided it would be a great way to keep up with friends and family, especially those that are far away. I have already begun enjoying the pictures posted. Kids grow up so fast that it will be wonderful to "see" the stages when I can't be there. I don't think I will be giving "intimate" details of my life, as I have seen some do. As for educational uses, I think many kids have good keyboarding skills and computer knowledge because of social networking, but I have my doubts as to the uses in the classroom. For me, I think the bad part outweighs the good. My biggest problem with this social networking thing is that I will have to show restraint. I can see now that it can be addictive and take time from other areas that may need my attention.

Thing #7b

I have to admit the thing that caught my eye with this article was the opening line. It reads "Today is Veterans Day and schools across the US are closed." I don't know where this person is from, but I know it's not around here. I do think this holiday deserves a little more recognition so I thought I would take a look at this site. More Veterans Day Lesson Resources is filled with ideas for many grade levels. It even includes a video from CNN. It has a student packet of resources as well. Check it out. You might find something you can use. Thank you veterans and God bless our troops!

Thing #21

I had a great time playing with all the different tools. I found the Google Calendar to be the most helpful. It would be a wonderful way to keep track of school events, social events, church events, etc. I love not having to dig through my purse to find my pocket calendar. I think it would be useful, on a personal level, for families who try to coordinate their schedules for special occasions. We all have computers so it would be so easy. As a classroom tool, I think parents would enjoy being able to check on events and not have to email the teacher or write a note. Google Alerts is great for me because I really don't have time to sit down and read the daily newspaper. With these alerts I can read only what I am interested in. iGoogle is another way to find things that interest you. I like having the current temperature and other important things available at my fingertips.

Thing #20

I came up with several uses for Google Docs. First, I think it would be wonderful to use for my next parent conferences. I could just place my list of available times on my document, have parents check the list and sign up for a time that suits their needs best. It would eliminate the notes back and forth about "sorry, that slot is taken could you meet at...", etc. I like the idea of taking surveys and polls. I mentioned in Thing # 8 that I would like to do a survey on how each family celebrates holidays. Google Docs would be an easy way to do just that. As I was drying my hair I thought of another idea. My kids sometimes have trouble keeping up with homework and other important papers - and yes, the wicked witch gives homework in Kindergarten. I could post a document on Google Docs that lists all homework assignments and who has turned them in. Parents could then check this document instead of trying to contact me. I would give numbers or code names to each child to secure privacy. No excuses now.

Thing #19

Voicethread was really interesting. I've never even heard of it. Most of the ones I explored were too advanced for my teaching area, but I always get ideas from them. I did like the one about Measuring Volume of Weird Objects. That was a good lesson. I also got some ideas from Library From A to Z. My kids would really enjoy using this to show what they have learned. I teach map skills (just for fun) and I might try letting them share their knowledge about this with others. I could also post pictures and let them tell about them just to encourage the use of details for daily writing. The uses for this are endless. Thanks for sharing!

Thing #18

I have seen many YouTube videos but never really explored the site myself. I now know why. I spent way too much time on this. I found an endless amount of "how to's" and funny commercials. I will revisit the commercials any time I am feeling a little sad. As for the "how to's", who could imagine the crazy things you can learn or that there would be so many on how to tie a tie??? In my content area I found a large number of teaching songs. One of my favorites is Big Pig. It's a great one for word families and rhyming. I think the kids will enjoy it and wind up singing along. Teacher Tube did not impress me as much, although I can see it's value. I did find a Coin Song on it that I liked.

Thing #17

I have found that I am not a big podcast fan, especially when there are no visuals. The video podcasts are alright but still not my favorites. I went to the PBS Podcast directory and found one that interested me. The Super Why! Podcast was at my teaching level but too long to use in class. At the Education Podcast Network I found a cute podcast called Radio Popcorn. It had music, jokes, etc. and was all done by kids. Still nothing I could use in class. I found nothing at the kindergarten level from Learn Out Loud. I am an itunes user, but for music only. I get bored listening to something that has no beat. If I used a podcast in my classroom it would have to be a video podcast. It might be fun to create one with my class.

Thing #16 & stretch

What a great invention. I love Library Thing! I keep a list at school of books I have but I struggle to keep it updated. This site makes that so much easier. With a few clicks it does it all. I think it is an excellent tool for classroom organization. I did join, so using my tags I can find the books needed for particular units much quicker. I like that I can get opinions and recommendations as well. I did hit a glitch. Each time I click a link to add a book it takes me back to the beginning of my search. Am I doing something wrong or is there a way to go back to where I left off? That part is a pain to me. I enjoyed going to the "groups" area. The children's fiction site could really benefit me.

Thing #15

I had a lot of fun exploring Delicious. The tagging part really interested me and I found that if I wanted to "jog" my memory about a specific site I could put a crazy tag on it to distinguish it from others. My favorite part of all of this is being able to access my bookmarks from ANY computer. There have been times I thought I marked a site on my school computer, only to find that it was on my home computer and it would have to wait. No problem with that anymore. I find that I am short on time these days but doing these "things" has made me find new sites that are beneficial to my teaching. Here is a link to my delicious account.

Thnig #7a

I found it very interesting that in Mrs. Smith's Kindergarten Class, Room 118, they were doing much the same thing we were. They had several firefighters come to visit them and talk to them about fire safety. We only had one (but I have a small class) and it was my son-in-law. He gave a wonderful demonstration and we took pictures of each student with his helmet and coat on. The post told that Mrs. Smith's class got to feel how heavy the coat was. My class thought the same thing. Her class got to look at the trucks and engines. We have plans to do that on another day. I think I'll leave her a comment about the amazing "Smoke House" our city provides for kids to learn about fire safety.

Thing #14

While I checked out several tools listed, I thought 30 boxes would be a great tool for use with my parents. I would love to post things that we are doing, as well as, upcoming events for my class. I have emails for most of my parents and I could also post it on my blog. I thought the Ta-da list would be good for me personally because I live by lists. I also thought this would be a good way to teach responsibility for students of any age. As a teacher, you could list daily (or weekly) activities to be completed. Grades could be based on how much was done along with how well it was done. Field trip needs or party needs could be listed as well. Parents could use this at home for kids too. It's a good tracking device. I think Blabberize could be a fun way to introduce new units or maybe teach things about particular animals. It did take a "while" to get everything adjusted just like I wanted.

Thing #13

What fun!!!! I had a great time just playing around with these generators. I'm not sure these could be real beneficial in a Kindergarten class but maybe I could download a few for my kids to be creative with. They could, at the very least, practice their names by placing them in a Trading Card Maker. Ideas are always welcomed. I pretty much just clicked and followed directions on each one I tried. I created the name Colton on Spell with flickr, because I have a grandson due ANY day now. I used the Custom Sign Generator to make a Hollywood Star and my chalkboard. My happy face sign came from the Happy Face Generator. There were even more to try on the Generator Blog that I would love to work on later - like AFTER I finish this class. It was good to have a fun and easy "thing" this time. It was a good stress reliever.

Thing #12

Make a Smilebox slideshow Okay, I have to admit it. I had no trouble making the slide show, but when it came to posting it, that was another story. I finally got it! Here it is along with credits. Fallen Leaves of Autumn by capn madd matt, Falling Leaves

by northstander, Fall Colors in Robbinsdale by jpellgen,A single leaf fallen on Earth by ionushi, fall dancing in red by jmtimages,Fallen Leaves by KM&G-Morris, fall project: the lovebirds by brina head, The fall by satosphere, and Day 149/365: Fallen Leaf by wenzday01.

Thing #11

I was blown away by Flickr. I spent more than a "few minutes" exploring. I found some great FALL pictures to use in my classroom. Although I did enjoy the exploration, I found myself weeding through a lot and wishing for better and more precise tags. I realize that we all have different opinions of what goes under a particular label but WOW. Some pictures are a real stretch. I did like one in particular called Fallen Leaves of Autumn by capn madd matt. It contains such beautiful colors all in one picture.

All of my kids could really benefit from slide shows using these pictures. I can see were it would help my ESL children as well. It could be used as a teaching tool or a review tool. I would love to download several for later use with writing prompts. There is such a variety to choose from. I have always taken my own pics for class projects but if there are so many out there to be used......why not??

Thing #10

Creative Commons is a great tool for many uses. Even though I have seen the logo before, I had no idea what it meant. I appreciate those that share their ideas so that I can "feed" off of them and make things fit my classroom needs. I have never shared my ideas but by making comments on the blogs I subscribe to I might add to what they have created.

I can see that Creative Commons could be a crutch for some students who don't take the initiative to be creative themselves. I do think that even then it might give a good "spark" to them. Sometimes we need that spark to develop our own ideas. Students could look over science experiments that have already been done and think about what they could do differently. Papers could be read to gain insight on what others thought about a book. Listening to a song might lead to the creation of a new one. There's no end to the benefits Creative Commons gives.

Thing #9

Wow! That was really a lot of fun. I did not know how to import a picture, but I did it. The steps were pretty easy to follow, although I did have to go back and reread several times. I sure am glad we were able to edit so easily. My sandbox page is very simple, but that's how I am too. I hope to add more as I go along. I created a voki last night but I haven't seen her since. Maybe she'll show back up as I learn more. It was fun just playing in the sandbox.

Thing #8

I am new to wikis so I decided to take a look at all of the ones suggested. I was impressed by most but decided to concentrate of the ones I might benefit from. I looked at the Kindergarten Counting Book and thought it was a good project but I noticed there were lots of missing numbers along the way. Primary Math didn't really catch my eye. Room 15 Wiki was my favorite. I loved the set-up and it was easy to navigate because of it's organization. Salute to Seuss was a great idea. Many other authors could be used in the same manner. I think Jan Brett would even be willing to comment herself. She's been a favorite of mine for a while. Schools in the Past was another good read for me. I'm thinking I could use this idea and get my students and parents involved on a wiki about how they celebrate a particular holiday. It's not that far away from Christmas. It would be interesting to hear from people from other countries as well. Kindergarten technology ideas are not always the easiest things to come up with, so I'd love to hear from anyone who has ideas!

Thing #7

My mom always told me, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all". I don't feel like that works with commenting. I do think you can leave some tips or constructive criticism without being harsh or negative. Commenting is important because it tells someone you value their thoughts. I hope that by leaving comments I can encourage people to keep blogging AND keep leaving me good information.

Thing #6

OMG! (I did learn to text last weekend.) Now I am feeling overwhelmed with my feeds. I know I can skim through but I want to read them all. I'm not getting much done once I come home in the evening because I am spending all of my time on the computer. I do have good news though. I finally found areas that relate to my teaching field! I have really enjoyed reading A Kindergarten Teacher's Education Journey. It has games, videos, etc. that relate to specific areas I teach. I love seeing the pictures they post as well. It gives me ideas for future posts on my own blog. I plan to use some of the activities I read about in my class next week. I have also found many other sites that interest me. Way too many. This could be the end of any free time I did have.

Thing #5

In response to the blog The Future of Student Bloggers, I plan to help have successors to carry on this method of learning. It's my plan, as a Kindergarten teacher, to get it started early. If I can get parents to latch on to this idea with their childen, they can blog together for the first half of the year or so, then let the students themselves take over when they are ready. Sound like a plan???? I am ready to give it a try. Maybe others will join in as well.

Thing #4

I found that blogs are generally very relaxed and informal in writing. It's not an edited piece for others to judge, it's just opinions and communication, for the most part. They can be written by anyone of any age. You choose what you read or write about for that matter. It allows you to express yourself and even vent if you need to. I believe you can gain insight from others as you read what they have to say. In return, you can leave words of encouragement or your own experiences that might help someone else. As we blog, we read more and more about topics that interest us. Young learners develop a love for reading the more they do it. What better way to show them that reading can be fun than to let them blog to friends and read what their friend write back. They can share ideas as well as concerns and passions. I was very impressed with the second grade class that wrote about The Duck. They were not concerned with grammar or spelling. It was just a great activity and it got them to blog.

Thing #2

I think just being able to search the web for any and everything has changed my professional practice. I believe blogging may boost it even more. I already use the promethean board, computers, and digital cameras to enhance learning in my classroom. Collaboration with other teachers is always a plus too. I had never even heard of such things when I was in school (oops, I might be telling my age a bit). I have an excitement about getting my parents involved once I start blogging. I would like to post items that they can consider or discuss with their child and then blog back to me. I have a lot of ideas in this area.

I do have a complaint about this article, as well as many other videos, etc. Whenever I attend a workshop (that is technology based) or view a video, it is always geared to older - 3rd grade and up - students. I teach kindergarten!!!! Would somebody out there find something for me, in the real world, that shows this type of thing being done at my level? I always have to "water" things down to make it fit the Kindergarten classroom. Remember that we don't always have the tools needed for many activities. We have laptops (when we schedule them), a computer lab - twice a week, a promethean board, and my favorite, digital cameras. I use these to the best of my ability but I am ready to do more.

Thing #1

The habit I view as most challenging would be number 4. I am a very confident person in most cases, but when it comes to technology I am pretty weak (I am going to learn to text this weekend - how sad is that?). I haven't worried about it too much thus far because I teach Kindergarten and I definitely know more than they do.

The easiest habit would be 7 1/2. I do love to just play. Aside from that I am able to view problems as a challenge - this being a huge one for me. I once read that Zig Zigler referred to an alarm clock as an "opportunity clock". I thought that was something I needed to keep in mind daily. I like a good challenge but I am out of my comfort zone here and feel a bit overwhelmed. I will do this and learn from it!

The most important habit for me would be to accept responsibility for my own learning. I have tons of workshop hours because I feel the need to stay on top of things. I have been teaching for 29 years and you can get pretty "set" in your ways after a while. I like change and welcome it with open arms. The hard part here for me is not being taught in a classroom setting. I'm on my own, so to speak. Well, not really. I'll be calling for help along the way. I'm not shy about that.
It's an adventure that I'm nervous about and excited about all at once.