Kiwi Classroom: Technology Can't Be More Advanced Than That!

This classroom is by far one of the most technological classrooms I have ever seen. All of the students use technology in almost everything they do from writing on the smartboard to showing YouTube videos. This is living proof of the advantages of a widespread amount of technology in the classroom and just how focused students are learning from something electronically created than just from reading a book and talking about it. This is the future of education and everyone needs to step on board!

I remember back when I was in elementary school and all we had were dusty overhead projectors that would burn out every couple of hours if left on too long. We rarely had access to the computer, and if we did it was just for a short time and was only for hearing sounds and seeing pictures with no instructional activity involved. So personally, I wish I was a kid in this era and was able to have the opportunity to get my hands on all of these technological wonders.


So much can be taken away from this video and used for the classroom in so many ways I cannot even list. Having certain websites like Tutpup are great tools to increase learning and basic web skills. I have said this time and time again but teachers NEED this kind of education in their classroom. It is paramount to the children's education and with better technology and understanding of technology, these students will no doubt pay attention to anything that you put in front of them.

Nafiza and Technology

We watched a video in class about a girl named Nafiza who uses technology every way that she can. She is part of the technology club at school and her and her classmates create avatars of themselves and made a short video. This video was about how a child was having problems with attaining higher learning experiences. The video shows just how important it is for students to know technology and learn it to the best of their ability. Nafiza also introduced websites that were helpful to different problems in the world such as Darfur and believes this game could help people understand just how difficult it is in that kind of environment.

One thing that I can take away from this video is how much you can do with technology in the classroom and out of the classroom. There is limitless knowledge across the internet and every tool can be useful to broadening your education of the technological world. By exposing children at a young age, these kinds of technological advances will become second nature to them and they will be set for new technologies in the future.

Teacher should be aware of these uses of technology and use it in the classroom. I personally would use any kind of game or video of any kind to encourage my students in the usage of technology. It is very important to me that, as a future teacher, technology can improve the children's knowledge of the world around them and create any kind of imaginative and technical skills possible.

Student Blogs

I wanted to follow Mrs. Yollis' classroom and be a blogging buddy for her students.
I decided to comment on Ben's All Around blog which was about hockey and was titled Bruins Beat the Panthers 2-1. He had many pictures and lots of information behind the pictures and it was a very good blog. http://bensallaroundblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/bruins-beat-panthers-2-1-i-wanted.html

T4T class comments:

I commented on this blog about Cameron from the week before:

http://nayshomeworkthoughts.blogspot.com/2010/01/when-students-become-teacher.html

And this blog as well about the class in general:

http://amackt4t.blogspot.com/2010/01/t4t-blogging-buddies.html

Hopefully we can all benefit from this class from all of these challenges!

The Useful Tool of Blogging in Schools

Blogging can be a useful tool in young education. In this video, We Like Our Blogging Buddies: The Write Stuff with Blogging Mentors, students from a college in Regina, SK mentor a first grade class on writing through blogging. By showing the children's blogs, comments, and statistics of this program, it is obvious that this kind of technology is helpful in developing writing and grammar. A simple computer program where you rewrite a sentence does not shape and prepare a child for real online and handwritten writing. I used these kinds of programs while in middle school and all we ever focused on was how fast we could type and not how well. The children move at their own pace, writing words by sounding them out and gaining positive feedback from an outside source on what they can do to improve. Watching this video can give any person an idea of how to improve a child's writing and how to provide that kind of support and feedback they need to strive in learning. I personally believe if there was such a thing when I was younger, my writing skills and words would be at a phenomenal level and would be advanced beyond my years. This kind of technology should and will be used in classrooms in the future, including my own, and will make creative writing much more enjoyable. These children will take this experience to heart for the rest of their lives and use it in their learning processes.

Cameron: A Reflective Look on the Youthful Mind

As I was watching this video, Digital Generation Project Youth Portrait: Cameron , I realized how smart children are in the day and age. Technology has come so far as to give inspiration to a child and provide a possible career in his future. It is incredible how one camera and one computer can have a child's mind in sync with technology and it is astonishing how this certain child uses his resources to create special effects and creative videos. One thing that I have learned from this video is that you must not take children for granted and not belittle them for they may know more than you do. I say that you should give a child a form of technology and have them come up with a creative way to utilize that technology, the child will surprise you with the knowledge and information that you have. When I was about six years old, I knew how to work a computer before my parents did and even though they condemned me to ever touch the computer, I regularly used it without their consent. Now to this day I still have the memories of how I used the technology to my learning advantage and I am still better at using it than my parents and even most of my family. When I become a teacher I will utilize every kid of techology as I can in my classroom so I can relate and get involved in my students learning. Providing videos that the students make themselves can help this process and can show you all of their weaknesses and their strong aspects of how they learn and interact. So in conclusion, never underestimate a child's mind, for they may have to school you in their ways.

THE Jordan Le`Shae Hunter

My name is Jordan to the Le`Shae to the Hunter :). I am originally from Armore, Oklahoma born and raised. I am currently at this second in my T4T class writing a blog..yay. I create daily vlogs on YouTube and if anyone is intertested at all my Youtube is www.youtube.com/jleshae77
My vlogs arent very interesting and the last 4 or 5 havent been interesting at all but it passes time. I am an Elementary Education major and if that does not work out I might get a job as a maseaus (spell check), it just depends on where I live. I have a boyfriend of over a year named Paden and he is my best friend and the closest companion that I have. We are completely alike in almost every way from the music we listen to to the personality that we portray. Music is my passion and I have been singing since i was little, even though i am not that great of a singer I still try my best to be the best that I can be. I am one of those people that are good at every but not necessarily great. I have played every sports imaginable to man such as soccer, basketball, softball, golf, gymnastics you name it, but the only ones that completely stuck was dance and tennis. Tennis has been my crutch and my way to improve my hand-eye coordination and have the joys of defeating an opponent just on pure skill. Dance on the other hand was how i expressed myself and is my favorite thing to ever do. This is a small glimpse of myself but it is info that is imperative to understand who I am and what I am passionate about.
Peace,
Jordan