6/30/12

Technology Tutorial #4 - Dropbox!

I'm so THRILLED to be sharing this technology tutorial with you today! It's definitely one I love to use on almost a daily basis. Today's video tutorial is on...

Dropbox is a tool you can use to save your files through the internet! It allows you to share your files with your colleagues as well. Here are some ways you can use this as a teacher:

  • Send your new files you compiled digitally instead of walking over with a flash drive to share them.
  • Have parents send you photos of family in different places (like a Flat Stanley project, maybe!)
  • You could even send parents information/files through it as long as they have an account!
  • Backup all your teacher files (and freebies!) so that if your computer dies, they will still be accessible
The sky is the limit!

There are so many ways to use Dropbox, so I'm going to go ahead and introduce it to you through this YouTube video I recorded last night. I think I'm coming down with a head cold, so please don't judge me too harshly! :) I wanted to get this video out because I feel that it is so useful for you as a teacher!

Here it is!





I hope that you take the time to fill out this quick form to help me out! You don't have to put in your email address. You can just click this link here --> Get Your Dropbox Account!

How would you use Dropbox?




6/29/12

Excited to Announce...

I reached 100 blog followers!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog, post wonderful comments, and just support me in all my efforts to bring you high quality content! I am extremely glad by the fact that you choose to read my blog when I post. I especially feel the love when I get even the shortest comments. I hope that I can continue to grow and build my blog to offer you even more helpful tips and tutorials (and maybe even some giveaways in the future!!) as time goes on!

In other news:

The 100 followers comes just in time to announce that I'm going to be a guest blogger on Maria's blog at Kinder-Craze! She was so sweet to let me write a guest post on her page, so let her know in her comments that I sent you over!

It's all about web 2.0 tools, as usual. I hope that you hop on over to her blog TODAY at 3:00 EST/2:00 CST to read it and get a good little freebie :)


One more thing!

I'm one of the coaches over at Technology Tailgate, and we're starting a new giveaway! It's a $25 gift card to STARBUCKS! Who doesn't love Starbucks?? It's to welcome you to the new "Technology Central!" I hope you stop by, enter the giveaway, and follow the page. You'll be up to date on all the newest techie ideas for the classroom! 



 Thank you for following my blog!!



6/28/12

Layout, Blog Button, and Special News!


Hey wonderful friends!

In case you haven't noticed, I tweaked the layout and blog button for this blog! If you have me linked up with the old button, you can grab the new one on the side! I tried to do it automatically, but photobucket hates me. It was a fight to the death, and I think I lost. Can you say frustrating?

Here's how my button looks:


What do you think?

I will be posting tomorrow with SPECIAL NEWS, so come back by around 1:00 CST to find out what the surprise is. :D I think you're going to love it! It's something that scares me the most about blogging, so I'll need all the support I can get from all of you!

Give me some feedback!

What do you think I should add/change on my blog?

6/27/12

Feeling Appreciated!

WOW! Today, after babysitting and a kindergarten meeting at Chili's, I came home to some surprises.

Ashley from The Resource Room Teacher and Mrs. Mc from Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! gave me the One Lovely Blog award! (My first one ever!) I wasn't sure I'd get this award because my blog is so new, but I'm so honored that they thought my blog was worth this award!




 
 
My other news was that I received the Versatile Blogger award from Heidi at My (Not So) Elementary Life!
 

My (Not So) Elementary Life



While I could give the award to 30 different bloggers,  I feel that it would mean more if I give BOTH awards to the same 15 bloggers. So here's the deal. I'll follow the rules of the awards, but I don't want to overwhelm you with a crazy amount of award winners. Here are the rules for each award.
 
One Lovely Blog Award:
1. Follow the person that gave you the award
2. Link back to the person that gave you the award
3. Pass the award on to 15 new bloggers 

The Versatile Blogger Award:
1. Thank the blogger who nominated you.
2. Include a link to their site.
3. Include the award image in your post.
4. Give 7 random facts about yourself.
5. Nominate 15 other bloggers for the award.
6. When nominating, include a link to their site.
7. Let other bloggers know they've been nominated.

Well, if you must know, here are 7 random facts about myself:
  1. I graduated with a second major in Spanish! It was hard work, but it's so worth it to be able to speak to Spanish speaking parents and have them understand what is going on in their students' education.
  2. I am a procrastinator. And not a huge planner...So teaching can be hard for me at times because I wait till the last minute to plan lessons. I need to work on that.
  3. I'm a Christian! I love my Lord, and I hope to show God's love through teaching sweet children and working with their parents.
  4. My favorite color is...what do you think? If you are the first to guess it right, I'll feature you in one of my status updates on my Facebook page!
  5. My summer destination of choice is on an island called Dominica. It's the Nature Isle of the Caribbean, and it's home to many of the people I love. (Mainly one man!)

      6. I drive a truck! Yes. And I love it. :) It's so beautiful.
      7. I keep a 5 year journal. It's the easiest way to journal ever and it's going to be so worth it in 5 years!

 Now for the FUN PART! The award winners!
I know some of you may already have the award, but I wanted to honor you and let you know that I appreciate all the work that you do on your blog. You inspire me!






Mrs. Dwyer's A+ Firsties






Ms. Mentzer's Kindergarten Class
A Turn To Learn
KinderKarlaConversations in Literacy
The Daily AlphabetWolfelicious



 



 
Thank you so much for your hard work! Remember, you received BOTH awards! The One Lovely Blog award AND the Versatile Blogger award! If you want to accept them, make sure you follow the rules of the award to put the button on your page. Spread the love around. :)

One more thing. I wish I could keep up with the Daily 5 book study posts! I may put up chapters 2 and 3 soon, but I may just read them and post about chapter 4 when it comes up. I've been so busy, and doing that has been a struggle. Hope you understand! Love you all!


6/23/12

Web 2.0 Tutorials for Teachers #3!


It's Saturday! This is my third week of web 2.0 tutorial videos, and today is special because I'm featuring...

Wait for it...

Storybird!


I'm really excited about this one. I apologize for apologizing so much in the video. I was tired (it was 11pm when I recorded), and I kept losing track of my words. I hope that the video still helps you even though my brain felt a little out of sorts.

Storybird is a tool that can be used to create beautiful illustrated books without having to hire an illustrator! The artists that contribute have done an amazing job with their artwork so that we can write to our little hearts content! I think this would be such a fun way to have a shared writing lesson instead of just using a boring anchor chart. Below is the book that I created for you to look at. I tried to use all the different picture positions that Storybird offers so you can see all the ways you can do it.





The Monsters In My Closet! by sadams22 on Storybird  Okay well here you go! Below is the embed for the VIDEO TUTORIAL! I love making these and I hope that you enjoy watching them. Feel free to pin, share, comment, like, whatever you feel like doing! I'd love to help as many teachers as possible with these tutorials. I know that technology may seem like a scary monster to you at times, but just remember that the monster may turn out to be your friend like the ones in the book did. :)
If you would like to start your Storybird account and receive a FREE PDF download on sign-up, just put your email address in the form below. YOUR EMAIL IS NOT REQUIRED FOR THE FORM, but if you do include it, the PDF that would normally cost you $2 would be free instead, and I would receive one free PDF download as well! If that's not a win-win, I don't know what is! :)
UPDATE!
Here are the QR codes for the Mystery Blog Hop! Scan one of them to jump to a new page. Leave a comment first before you go! :)

6/20/12

Updates and Joy!

I know it's been a while since I've written a blog post. Here are my reasons!

1. I have a big post coming up soon! So my brain has been obsessing over that.

2. Today was Guided Reading and 6 Traits Writing training at my school. I can't wait to start those! I especially know that guided reading will be fun. I love small group work with kinders. They always have the funniest comments ever.

3. My new video tutorial will be up on Saturday morning, so get your vote in before 7pm on Friday so that you can have a say in which one I record on Friday evening.

4. Life has been normal (which means BUSY!)

I left off a fifth reason just to bother some of you more perfectionist blog followers. :) I hope you don't unfollow me for that! Honestly, I couldn't come up with a good fifth reason other than the fact that not much is new. It's summer time, so my teaching brain is just waiting for next year. I can't get into my classroom to decorate yet because the lady who taught in that classroom still hasn't moved out yet....and I'm SO ready to move in!



Here's the few updates I do have for you:

1. Joyful Update - My DIPLOMA came in the mail yesterday. I pranced around the house and couldn't put it down. It's amazing to me that I now have my Bachelor of Arts Magna cum Laude! :D


2. Vote! - My poll is up on my Facebook page and on the sidebar on the blog! Make sure you vote for either Storybird, Xtranormal, Glogster, or Erly. Also, comment below if you have a request for a technology tutorial of any kind! I'd love your feedback so I know your needs!


3. Go participate in my sweet friend Maria's giveaway and follow her page! She has such amazing ideas. If you like my blog, you'll love hers too! She reached 300 followers and is giving away a 25$ gift card to the best store on Earth....Target!


4. I was contacted by two people recently! One person was one of the FOUNDERS of BEECLIP! He messaged me on Google Plus and commented on my video tutorial saying that he enjoyed it! I was blown away by the fact that he watched it. The blogging world is too cool. Also, I was contacted by Technology Tailgate and asked to be a contributor to the new blog effort! It's going to be technology central for all blog posts relating to tech. I can't wait to be a part of it. Go check it out at:




 
 
You all are amazing. I'm blown away daily by the fact that you all decided to follow my blog! You truly have blessed my life, and I hope that my posts can bless yours as well. 
 
Leave a comment letting me know what you think about 6 Traits Writing and Guided Reading!

6/16/12

Prezi Tutorial for Teachers!


It's here!

My web 2.0 tool tutorial that you all voted on! I had a fun time preparing the Prezi show for the tutorial. I hope that you get a lot out of it! I wish I could have gone even longer, but I know people don't like watching long videos. 

It's a tad shorter than my Beeclip video, so that's a good thing. :) I tried to edit down my video length by taking out mistakes I made, but I'm not sure how to do that without losing video quality. Any suggestions?

Should I put the next poll in the sidebar of my blog or on my Facebook page wall? Or both and say that people may only vote once on each one? I don't want people voting over and over again. Let me know in the comments! I'll put up the sidebar poll now so you can get to clicking!

Enjoy the video and scroll down for freebies! 
I've never done this before, so I hope it works. 
If not, please don't be upset!






Make sure you fill out this simple form so that you can get your freebies...
2 simple/editable Prezis made by me!
Even if you don't want the freebies, I'd still love your feedback in the form below!

Go download Dropbox if you don't already have it!


6/15/12

VOTE!


Storybird and Prezi are tied and there are only 3 hours remaining! Cast your vote so I can make a brand new video tutorial for you to watch! :)

Storybird

Prezi


I'm excited to see which one wins!


6/13/12

The Daily Five - Chapter One!

I read chapter one! YAY!

It took me a while because I'm taking a grad course in Educational Tech (which requires way too much homework time). Nevertheless, I'm going to give you my short and sweet response to the chapter. I want to come at this book from a different angle sort of. My experiences have been very different from the amazing veteran teachers who are linking up to this books study, and here's why: 

I haven't taught a kindergarten class yet!

I know! I am so excited that I get to teach this next school year!! This book is really helping me see what I need to start doing from the beginning instead of hanging on by a thread, hoping that I'm teaching my sweet littles how to read.


 
1. How do I teach new behaviors?
That is the question, isn't it? I've heard it's best to model and model and model some more. The book actually says that it's the best way to go about it. Kindergarteners need consistency, so I plan on spending a great deal of time from the beginning working on how to behave in school. I hope that I can achieve that third column on the behavior instruction area.
 
2. How do I teach expectations?
 The beginning of the year should be dedicated to setting up expectations, and the authors claim that starting the Daily 5 right from the beginning is helpful. I feel that kindergarten can be flexible in that area because they're just starting school. I feel that the teacher really needs to make sure that the students KNOW what the expectations are, and the teacher needs to make sure that the expectations are HIGH!
 
3. How do I monitor student behavior? whole group? small groups? individual?
When I did my student teaching in kindergarten, I noticed that I was doing the "daily frantic dance" that the authors mentioned. I had to give pencils, check each student's centers work, and make sure that nobody was crying throughout centers time. What I really wanted to do was work with my small group intensely. I feel that all three of those are required for an effective classroom, though. There's a time and a place for all!
4. What do I do when a student is not exhibiting desired behavior?
Wow. When I read this part I was really struck by it. In most of my elementary classes I've observed, I saw the card-pull system. I thought it was helpful and effective, but really it's a negative system. I want to implement the clip chart system in my first classroom. It's great for positive reinforcement. I like how the authors use recess time as a time for them to practice the behavior over and over instead of just standing against a wall perfectly still! (Which is what was done at my student teaching placement.)

5. Whose classroom is it?
I would like to think it will be my students' classroom. In my first year, that may be difficult to set up, but I feel that I can do so with the help of veteran teachers. :) I thought that classroom jobs were the norm and the best way, but the authors once again challenged my belief on that subject! It may still be helpful for kindergarten to have assigned roles for the students to give them a sense of responsibility. What do you think about this??
6. Locus of control?
In my experience, candy and treasure boxes are the way to motivate. It's hard to break that mentality of using those tools. I hope that I can try to get my littles to become intrinsically motivated. My only question about that is: How can I do that? I know that it's the best way to have students hold each other accountable, so I want to make sure I do that! 

7. Where are supplies stored?
Should kinders be allowed to actually use staplers? When I was in kindergarten years ago, one little boy decided to staple his thumb. It was a nightmare! I think that some supplies should definitely be available in a common area, but others may be too dangerous for 5-6 year olds. It's all about understanding the level of maturity of your students, I think.



You can join the fun and read along with us! Just read chapters one and two to get caught up! You will be blown away. It's looking like such a great book from what I've already read.

QOTD: How you do try to get your students to be intrinsically motivated?



6/8/12

Here, There, and Everywhere

This blog post may be a little bit random, but I thought I'd join up with April at Wolfelicious and post a couple of my favorite e-card memes. I know, I know, I do linky parties so often that you're probably sick of them.

I'm putting a poll in the sidebar for the next internet tool that I will feature, so VOTE ON THAT while you're here so that you learn some new tips for integrating technology into your classroom!

Here goes:



SO true. I love those two. Especially as a teacher, I feel like those fit the best.



I want to give away some freebies soon, but I'm not sure what people need or want! Especially since I'm not even sure what I personally need for my classroom.

What types of freebies do you find that you download the most?

In case you missed it, I made a fun Web 2.0 tool tutorial for Beeclip (which is absolutely F-R-E-E to use!) Please watch my video and let me know what you think! I'm going to start doing free web tool review every week if possible, so I'd love suggestions for that endeavor.







I want to mention is that I am only TWO Facebook page likes from THIRTY! Oh my goodness! It's blowing my mind that I'll have 30 Facebook fans and 20 followers on here.

 Thank you SO SO much for taking the time to read my posts! You are amazing, and your constant comments and likes give me warm fuzzies inside. I hope that soon I'll be able to put something together to give back to you in return.

My Question of the Day (QOTD):: Should I pursue a Master's degree? I'm thinking of going for Curriculum & Instruction with a focus in Technology. Thoughts?





6/7/12

My First Video Tutorial!

I'd like to point out a few things about me before we make the jump into the video. When I was in high school, my DREAM was to be a radio DJ. I wanted to talk on a morning show. So in college, I decided to go into Broadcast Journalism. The only thing was, I didn't feel like I was actually helping people, which was one of my ambitions as well. I switched to education, but never lost my zeal for all things techie.



Fast forward to now. I spend my free time on Skype, blog stalking, and working on Web 2.0 tools and the like just for fun. The computer is part of my world, really, because Prensky would like to say that I am a "digital native." I grew up with technology! I'm hooked to my iPhone and my laptop and my digital camera and video games. It's what I know best.

I hope that, in this blog, you'll be able to learn about technology and apply it to your own practice. Your students need you to be literate in tech as well as books. Don't be afraid! I'll help you along! This is my thing, remember. :)

Without further explanation, I give you...my FIRST EVER VIDEO TUTORIAL! My software for recording my screen may have caused some static or something, but I think it turned out okay. The framerate isn't too great either (but you probably won't even notice it!). Oh, and please bear with me! I will try to keep the videos a bit shorter in the future.






How would you use Beeclip in your own classroom?

What Web 2.0 tool would you like me to give a tutorial on next?