Entry #12 - k12 online conference

Wow! I approached this assignment like many others as one more thing on my "to do" list. Just a few minutes into it and I was scribbling down notes and trying to soak up all the information possible. I watched 2 different presentations from the conference. The first one was titled "if all my classes did this." Click here for the link. This presenter gave several tools that can be used in the classroom. One was called Toon Doo. This is a way for students to publish cartoons that they create in any academic subject. The teacher gave an example of her students creating cartoons about a unit they had just finished in government and they were to show one of the main points in their cartoon. Another tool was Gliffy. This is similar to inspiration in that it helps students create flow charts, but it went a step beyond and allows for creation of floor plans and design of anything with geometric shapes. Zoho was another technology discussed and the presenter demonstrated how to use this in the classroom to create presentations and link it to blogs and wikis. Gcast was the last technology that she demonstrated for us. This one was fascinating because you could create a podcast from your phone and share it on a blog or wiki as well. So many ideas - I want to use them all for my technology project!
The other presentation I viewed was called "Design Matters." I am constantly reminded that my paradigms need to shift and this was another one of those moments. I am not creative at all, but this man inspired me to push my students to explore their creativity. He gave great pointers when assigning a video project or powerpoint presentation to students and discussing the importance of design and planning in these projects. I will need to revise my wiki for my tech project because I need to incorporate some of these planning ideas. I highly recommend these presentations to anyone who will be teaching in middle of high school level classrooms!