RSS Feeds

RSS feeds are new to me. I've never heard of them before this week. Now that I have a basic understanding of the convenience, I have shared the importance of this great tool with the fellow teachers on my team. At times, I find the amount of information entering my reader overwhelming. I do feel that I am doing the best I can as an educator with being informed about laws, technology, and the experiences of other teachers by following the blogs I've discovered. I found a great link to the "Top 50 Education Blogs." I've added a few to my reader. This week has definitely opened my eyes to the amount of technology other teachers are integrating daily in their classes. I need to catch up, in small comfortable steps.

Uses of blogs in the future

I currently teach 3rd and 4th grade students. At that age they are truly learning the basics of the keyboard and computers. I don't foresee myself assigning a blog post as an assignment or a means of reflection for most students I work with. However, with the 3rd and 4th grade students who need enrichment, I think blogging could be beneficial. Blogging would be a wonderful tool to use as an extension or a reflection to establish understanding from a young student and prepare them for skills necessary for the 21st Century. It could benefit the student in a variety of ways. Blogging would help improve their technology skills. Free writing is a form of communication that involves creativity. The student would have to think critically about what they understand and the knowledge they gained from a particular activity.

My school is on the cusp of proposing a referendum in the next few years in some shape or form. Our 7th and 8th grade students have been active participants in the master planning of the school. They have worked with the architects to place a bike path through the township. Last fall the students hosted a bike safety fair to raise awareness both of the endeavor and the need for bike safety in the community. The fair followed a string of bike injuries and deaths three summers ago. I could see blogging as a tool for the 7th and 8th grade students to comment on the progress of future projects involving master planning for the school and community. If "rational" blogging was taught by the instructor, the student's words would be viewed as powerful. Blogging in this sense would be viewed as powerful because students are problem solving and applying knowledge they have gained through the years of implementing and hearing about the master planning process.

Introduction

Hi there! My name is Misty. I'm a UWW alum. I currently live near Palmyra with my husband Eric, son Sean, and a variety of pets including my second son, a puggle named Wally. I currently teach 3rd and 4th grade special ed. at Raymond School in western Racine county. I teach in a multi-age setting with a team of 4 other regular ed. teachers. I currently team teach with one other teacher and we share a homeroom of 33 students. It has been an awesome experience. My students benefit from the support of myself or one of the assistants that work in the building. They are included in the regular ed. setting, 100%.

Useful blogs

http://www.ed.gov

The above blog is useful to learn more about the changing laws and standards that develop daily.

http://www.rti4success.org

The above blog will be useful to stay knowledgeable and aware of tools and strategies that are deemed successful in the RtI initiative.

What value do you see in using a blog?

Networking and information finding is important in our changing society. It is important for me as an educator to immerse myself in information about changes and ideas surrounding technology in order to better serve my students and help them be successful members of society in the future. Blog posting is a great writing tool for students. Blogs allow students to have freedom of expression using a route that is engaging and motivating for them.

What do you want to get out of this course?

I hope to become more technologically savvy through the exploration of the Web 2.0 tools for this course. I'm impressed with the knowledge and ideas shared by all my classmates in regard to using some of the tools in the class room.