July 15th, 2011 Class - EDUC 504

Twitter Accounts

     Well... that was an adventure.  Today we had to create Twitter accounts.  That is one of the strangest classroom assignments I have ever had.  I was shocked to see that there were many people in the classroom that were not that familiar with Twitter (me included of course).  It seems like a different life style.  It will take some time getting used to it I think.  Having VisitorA in class today was super helpful.  I had no idea that people were creating professional networks with Twitter.  It seems like such a great way for people who love to share to get their ideas out there for people to access.  Even if I spent five minutes a day on Twitter, it would still be a life style change for me.  Something that I would find useful about Twitter is the ability to use it as a place to take notes.  When I am out side or on the go reading, I email myself or text message myself notes.  But then you get it twice, as a sent message and a received message.  I could use Twitter to take notes and it would be archived in my sent stream.

Product Reviews

     I was fortunate to look at the post on cTools and see that it was suggested to bring an iPad to class today.  I figured it would help out classmates to have another iPad to be able to do a product review on.  Instead, I ended up with an application downloaded on my household iPad that was incredible.  StudentK and I went through the product review right after class, and it was intriguing!  It was called Doceri Software Suite.  Go to www.doceri.com if you are interested in checking it out.  You download a program on your iPad and on your computer.  From the iPad you can use your computer, or the image that is projected from your computer, as you are mobile.  You can work on your computer as you walk around the classroom and check out how the students are doing.  You can use a big pointer on your iPad to show on the projector what you are talking about on the screen.  You can draw on the ipad with your finger like a white board and project it for the class to see... all while being mobile around the room.  The possibilities are endless!  I would encourage you to check it out!  It would be an incredible way to interact with your class enhanced with technology.  I don't know about all of you, but I want to be walking around the class, constantly mobile if I can manage it while keeping the kids engaged in the lesson plan.

Edubloggers

     One of our assignments that was introduced in class was about Edubloggers.  There are super savvy people who blog useful information for us to learn about.  I am going to look for some Edubloggers that focus on mathematics.  Since there are not very many people in the program who have a focus in mathematics, it could be a good resource for me.  I can see how finding Edubloggers will be very helpful to network with people in the world.  I have no idea where to start yet!  What a crazy assignment for someone like me who usually makes connections with people face to face.  Feel free if you already blog to make a suggestion to me on an Edublogger to read, mathematics focused or not.