I spent a tremendous amount of time this week checking out other network applications to add to my PLN. I am now a member of 3 Nings along with the edWeb communities for LMS, and Web2.0. I found a great site by checking out a pin on Pinterest. http://tiny.cc/w2bfcw I think when you are planning lessons, you should always think in terms of diversity. This site has good information about creating technology plans for students with autism. Students with special needs are a part of nearly every classroom and it can be very challenging for teachers to fulfil their needs. This site offers the best ipad apps for dyslexia.
I added http://www.teachervision.fen.com/diversity/teacher-resources/33631.html to my delicious account as a source for really good diversity lessons to use in the classroom and also became a follower on Pinterest.
From edWeb, I received a link to this really neat site that offers some really good resources for teachers. http://www.wordsmyth.net/ The gadget that I liked the best though was the dictionary widget you can add to your bookmarks bar and have access to a dictionary at all times. This is such a good idea for our computers at school. So many times during research, students run across words they don't know or understand. This dictionary is readily available for students as they approach those words. Wordsmythnow will even give students real audio pronunciations for the words. I see this as very helpful for ESL students.
I am learning through my PLN that I really have to watch the amount of time that I spend staring at the computer. There is so much information and the way one link just sends you to another and another and another........ It's important to set time limits and stick to them. I'm still looking for that one application that will help manage all the things I want to save in one place. I have onenote on my computer and that's helped but I'm still in search.
I agree with the need for setting time limits. I also have found myself spending large blocks of time in front of the computer! I think you nailed one of my current problems when you mention trying to find one thing to help manage all the things you want to save. With all the new information I am finding, I am still in the overwhelmed phase.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the article you shared about Michael and his progress in meeting his IEP goals using technology. While the focus of the story is on how technolgy helped Micheal, Torry Trust is a wonderful example of how an aide can assist a student in the classroom. They are often unsung heroes. Thank you for sharing!
The resource that I have been using to keep links straight is Symbaloo. It took some time to get things organized but now it saves me a lot of time navigating around to all my favorite sites.
ReplyDeleteTime limits are a must! I was so wrapped up in Pinterest I just couldn't stop myself, I was always saying "just one more click, oh well maybe one more" before I knew it an hour had gone by. I love all the resources available on the web, but they can become time consuming and quite distracting!
ReplyDeleteI use Delicious.com to keep track of all my resources. At the beginning of this course I highly recommended you create a Delicious or Diigo account. You may have to look into those sites if you aren't using one of them.
DeleteYou can spend quite a bit of time online with these resources. I don't use them all the time on a weekly basis, but it is nice to know the resources are there when I need them.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete