An easy tutorial on Google docs – a great resource to use to for an introduction to google Docs for students and parents.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRqUE6IHTEA

While designing my Instructional Design Plan, I ran into a bit of a challenge. To begin their project my students needed research information on the Palace of Versailles during the time of the French Revolution- not your typical elementary fare.This proved quite challenging for a number of reasons. The Internet presents an ideal opportunity to conduct in-depth investigations on a variety of topics that extend learning beyond the traditional classroom and provide authentic learning experiences. The Internet is an ideal venue to promote understanding. However,  the challenge I face is when the learning activity requires students to research, using the Internet can be difficult to navigate.  Often because of time constraints, the primary objective is one other than navigating the Internet. Although it is  literacy skills that students need to acquire, often other goals, such as encouraging the role of Web2.0 as a problem-solving, collaborative tool, take precedence.  Therefore, when I present a project  I will often provide a designated list of links. This task is time consuming, but necessary when working with young students. Educators need to evaluate Web sites for quality, content, accuracy, appropriateness, and purpose.  Fortunately, I have just discovered there are some excellent resources available to help educators evaluate Web sites. I feel like I hit the jackpot finding Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators. http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/eval.html Also,the link from Cornell  University looks useful.

http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/webeval.html

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Students do need to learn navigational skills to develop informational –literacy. Even when I provide a list of relevant links, and tell my students not to wander beyond the designated list, more often than not, they find it irresistible to jump on the Internet. Sometimes it is the freedom and control that they crave, but all too often students fail to give a designated Web site a chance. Rather than put forth the effort that is required to understand, they like to browse. But, they can lose track of time.  A student search can result in superficial learning, rather than an in-depth investigation.   So  students need to be able to evaluate sites and know how to navigate in an efficient manner. An evaluation form is an invaluable tool, encouraging analysis and decision –making.  I find that acronyms help students to remember: Four Nets to Better Searching from Bernie Dodge is kid friendly – perfect for elementary students. More search tips are available at one of my favorite sites Filamentality.

Blogs, or weblogs just like the Internet in general, can be informative if you know where to go. I tell my students trying to navigate through the Internet randomly is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Trying to locate a worthwhile blog without a plan seems to me to be akin to visiting a large city without bothering to get restaurant recommendations. Good luck! So I was delighted to discover the fourth annual edublogawards 2007. In addition to recognizing the different categories of special interests blogs, the edublogsawards highlight the various ways that educators are capitalizing on possibilities of Web 2.0. A review of the nominations and winners, offers a window into the innovative practices of educators who are embracing social media to enhance instruction in the classroom. For instance, the best educational wiki award goes to Welker’s Wikinomics. Using Wetpaint, the class collaborated to create a multimedia collection of online resources, revising and enhancing the class syllabus as the course progressed, and improving the curriculum for the next generation of users. If you’ve every wondered how the virtual world Second Life, can be utilized in class, here is your chance to find out. . Using ning, Steve Hargadon’s Classroom 2.0, an educational social network, was created to promote the role of Web 2.0 in education.  Enjoy a plethora of innovation.

I will be attempting Voice Thread with my third grade class .Previously the class worked on a project designed to promote the development of critical thinking skills when reading. The students were each assigned a fable to read. They were required to look up any unfamiliar vocabulary words the interfered with meaning. After reading, they were asked to interpret the meaning of the moral. If they didn’t understand, they were encouraged to discuss their thoughts with their parents. After writing a summary of the fable  and their interpretation of its meaning, they had to make a connection (text to self, text to text, or text to world) by relating how the message of the moral might be applicable to their own experiences. Finally, the students read the fable summary to the class, and asked their classmates to guess the moral, or interpret the author’s meaning. Therefore, the students were exposed to multiple points of view. Initially, children tend to think there must be just one correct response, or point of view. . Over time they come to realize more than one interpretation can apply, but often this misconception prevails. Additionally, this strategy of making connections is always difficult for children to do. Therefore, I thought Voice Thread would enhance the education goals of developing higher –ordered thinking skills, by providing more opportunities for interaction: more opportunities to process many points of view and make many connections. Voice Thread would also promote fluency. The biggest challenge for me understands how to set up student accounts without email addresses. Wish me luck!

What’s the future role of technology in education? Recently the MacArthur Foundation announced its Digital Media and Learning Grants winners. After receiving over a 1000 proposals, 17 projects were funded.  Andy Carvin, self -described Internet activist and host of learning.com  shares some of his favorite winning projects that just may

 foreshadow the direction of the future of technology. . Using 2.0 hypermedia, Hyper Cities produce interactive digital models of real cities that span not only space but time. Providing the necessary infrastructure, HyperCities interactive “city platforms” provide the foundation of “geo- temporal human web” enabling the preservation of a city’s time and   memory.

After reading Nerdy Girl’s recommendations, I checked out  http://www.polldaddy.com  My second grade math students are in the process of creating surveys so I thought they might enjoy this activity. After discussing, “What do second grade students really want to know?”, the students were wondering about … Click on to the third link below to see the poll. I’m just experimenting. Thanks Amy!

<script type=”text/javascript” language=”javascript” src=”http://s3.polldaddy.com/p/419876.js”></script><noscript> <a href =”http://www.polldaddy.com” >polls</a> – <a href =”http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/419876/” >Take Our Poll</a> </noscript>