Module 6

Loved the visuals and the music on this video I found on Picasaweb so thought I might use it as an introduction to a science lesson on plants we are doing this term.

Module 5

I have used bubbl.us in the classroom before and find it a really useful strategy for teaching children to organize their thinking. I also loved the glogs and found them visually exciting, allowing for originality and creativity.I have some very artistic children this year who would love to make their own. I think these would also help engage reluctant writers. I’ve registered on Gloster and am currently experimenting with it. Here’s a summary of what I have learnt so far during our course.

Module 4

I found this module really interesting and again got lost in time exploring these areas on the net.
I already use YouTube in the classroom as you can always find something to add to your lessons to engage the children. We were recently writing persuasive texts on whether animals
should be kept in captivity or not and used YouTube clips of people experiencing encounters with dolphins in the wild and in captivity. The clips sparked off great discussion and terrific debating
amongst  the children. YouTube, podcasts and videos give us the opportunity to bring the world into our classrooms and make learning real.
I found the Animoto site very easy to use but a fairly slow process however it was great to see the finished product.
I found some very useful clips and sites on School Tube and Teacher Tube and will definitely be using Storynory during our C.A.F.E. reading. I also loved the art lessons on Schools World TV.

Module 3

I watched the videos on using Google docs and found them very useful and easy to follow. I can see a great advantage in using the docs in our planning as there are 6 members in our 3/4 team and communication is really important as we work very closely in an open plan school. Being in a job share this is going to be a great asset as my partner and I will be able to work on the same documents even though we're in different places at different times. I've up loaded all our term 2 planners so know I can assess them at home without having to email them to myself or save them on a USB stick
Also no more printing, wasting paper and wasting time.

Module 2

I really enjoyed this module and spent hours reading other peoples blogs before I made mine. I found Anna Gripton's blog interesting and totally agreed with her article about creativity being neglected in the classroom as we no longer have time for it in our busy schedules.
I found making the blog really easy as the format I used was simple and easy to follow. I think this is adequate for recording my own thoughts for this course however I will use Global 2 when I set up a class blog which I can't wait to do now that I have seen how useful they can be in allowing students to express themselves and interact with the school community.
My challenge will be to find out more about the Global.2 blogger and create a resourceful blog that I know my children will thoroughly enjoy and love working on.