Time to Stand Up

I have come to really enjoy my blog reader feed (I think that is what it is called...) and I find myself checking it out daily if not twice or three times a day. I have found that not all blogs are for me but there are lots out there I have yet to explore (any suggestions would be appreciated). Anyways, while I was doing my daily check this morning I came across a very awesome article titled Learning by Making is More Humane through Ann S. Michaelsen's blog.

In this article Phil Shapiro discusses this whole concept of how all students learn differently, and by changing teaching techniques to encompass this idea students will be more interested in school. He starts off by expressing how important it is to teach "humanely". Phil uses this term a lot and I think what he means by it is that teachers should realize that students need to have high interest levels to be engaged in learning. So, a way of raising that level is giving the students purpose and reason for what they do. This is a more humane way of educating students compared to making them read text after text and listen to lecture after lecture. That is something I am familiar with, as I'm sure many of you are, and I can see where he is coming from using the term "humane".

Phil later uses the terms "standing up and sitting down" to refer to the different teaching techniques. I totally get this! I have seen it in my own learning and I have seen it in my student teaching placements. Students need opportunity to get out of their chairs and make, instead of always sitting and having their heads crammed full of stuff. I find the more independence you give students in their learning the more they take from it.

When I went to elementary school, which wasn't too long ago, we had our assigned seating in rows. The day would start with the teacher coming in and telling us to find our seats and sit down. We were not to move from that spot all day because all of our learning was done from the same seated position. Sure there were special times when we would get to leave our seat and do something that involved more than a pencil and paper, and those are the days that I remember best. The lasting impressions I have include putting together projects by crowding around a computer screen with classmates, or grouping out in the hallway as we prepare for some kind of readers theatre.

At the start of the education program I was hesitant and worried about what and how I would teacher my future students. I really don't have that feeling anymore because there is no way I can truly plan for them. Every student is different and will want to learn differently about different things. All I can do is have a good base of resources that I can utilize in engaging my students learning.

Links:

Ann S. Michaelsen at Teaching using web tools

Phil Shapiro at http://makezine.com/2014/01/22/learning-by-making-is-more-humane/

Another Website of My Very Own

This week in class and next week Mike has us working on creating our own class websites. This is a daunting task and not because of the technical part but because of the creative aspect. I am a fussy person and I like things a certain way. Designing a website poses creative challenges for me (just like this blog did)! The whole issue of having to find pictures is tough especially since I don’t have a keen eye for photography. Although Mike showed us this place, Creative Commons, where people can just go online and help themselves to creative and neat looking pictures. So, basically it is a place where creativity and knowledge are shared through a legal and free way. I haven’t really explored it yet but I will definitely be checking it out once I figure out what pictures I want on my site.

I remember when I was younger (probably 10 or 11) and I made my own website. I can't remember what site I used (I think it was pic-something-or another) but it was fun and easy to do. Since I was young I really didn't have a lot of information to include on it and it was really only for my own fun. The front page was an all about me section and then the tabs broke off into my interests (mainly books that I had read and wanted to read). Since remembering about this website earlier this week I have been trying to find it online but have had no such luck.

Since remembering about my past website I am trying to have fun with this task but I find myself getting more frustrated than anything. There are two reasons to this frustration, or so I think. First one is that my laptop is ancient and needs to be replaced (I have lost my power button somewhere in my house!) The second is that maybe it might be easier if I had an actual class to build this for; I would feel like I had more purpose for doing this task. But, oh well, for now I will continue to play around and figure out all the neat features that come with building a website and try to get past my frustrations. One very positive aspect about doing this now and working through this frustration out is that when I do have my own classroom I should be an expert at building websites :)

Update on my ePortfolio; I think I have an outline made of what I want to include in this and the website I will use to build it. Some of this information will include personal information, professional development sessions, artifacts from student teaching and my teaching philosophy. Now it is only a matter of collecting all the information and sitting down to put it all together cohesively in an eye-catching way.

 

The Start of New Things

This week in class we have been having discussions on what goes into an ePortfolio and how to go about making one. This is all brand new to me. I have little to no experience building my own website let alone one so important that will help determine the rest of my life. So far I have a notebook with a few pages of notes and this next week will be about putting it all into action. Wish me luck!

The last class of this week we went over a bit of Google Docs specifically Forms. I didn't realize something like that existed. I will definitely be playing around with that before student teaching so that it is something else I can put into action! Maybe wish me luck with this too!

Keep checking back for updates on my progress.

Back At It!

Wow it took me a while to figure out how to navigate this site again! I did try and give it a go while student teaching but of course life gets in the way and this blog was pushed aside. Just to recap quickly I had a great student teaching experience in the spring with a grade 5/6 class. I also had a really great experience student teaching in the fall with a grade 3/4 class. Next I am looking forward to my final student teaching placement which will be back in a grade 5/6 class. My two years at Brandon University is certainly flying by quickly!

 
To be honest the main reason I am starting this blog up again is because of the ICT course I am taking at BU (course name is actually Using Information Communication Technology in the Classroom). I am hoping in this course to further my understanding of ICT in the classroom and gain some tools that will help me in my future career. I am also very excited that this course is going to be more tailored to fellow students and my interests and needs.
 
So not only am I back blogging but back at Twitter (forced to leave twitter because of technical problems in the fall time). Follow me @AlauraArmstrong  and I'll try to follow you in return J