Web 2.0 Tool: NoRedInk

Hi Everyone!

The tool that I have selected to use in my classroom is called NoRedInk. This was appealing to me because I love the idea of kids being able to take practice quizzes in order to see what they are doing well with and some of the things that they struggle with. Basically, when you sign up to use this site, you are able to set up assignments for your kids to do. There is also a number that students have to enter on their end to access the classroom assignments. Most of the assignments that you can create are grammar/reading based. Another great feature of this tool is that the questions are already generated based on the curriculum in your selected country. As a teacher, this is helpful because you know that your students are having access to the content that is required, and also it saves you time from having to come up with your own questions to ask them! If you click here, you can watch a 5 minute video explaining how to use this tool.

In the screenshot above, one of the helpful features about this tool is the ability to create an assignment, quiz, or pretest and customize it without having to create all of your own questions. What this means is that if I were to create an assignment as the picture is showing, I can give it a name, choose how many questions are on it, decide the total amount of points it will be worth, assign a due date, and tell when the students can start it. Another awesome feature that this screenshot is showing is located in the drop down bar where it says the word "noun" I am able to select any part of speech that I want my kids to have extra practice with. Then, I could select all of the different types of noun activities that go with it, or focus on a specific one. Also, if you upgrade your membership, you can have access to more of the activities. This feature is amazing because it allows the teacher to choose what material is right for their class without having to take more time out of their life to create it themselves.

By using this tool, teachers can save a lot of time and energy when they want to quiz their students. If there is a way to have common core curriculum questions already in the questions, this would prevent teachers from having to research it and then add it themselves. This website also features an extremely user-friendly way to create quizzes, assignments, and pretests. I had no trouble at all trying to create my practice quiz. Students are also able to log on at any time and access their teacher's classroom. From there, they can complete any of the materials their teacher has assigned. This can be done at home or at school which is very beneficial for everyone! If you are looking for an easy way to test your students either for a grade or just for extra practice, NoRedInk is the way to go!

Podcasting in Education

In this post, I want to talk about the importance of podcasting in the classroom. Before I watched the tutorials about podcasting, I had no idea that it could be so beneficial. I believe this is important for educators and students equally. The podcast that I watched was from Ted Talks. Just watching Mrs. Rita Pierson talk about how students deserve a champion, an adult that will never give up on them, was inspiring to me. I think it is important for teachers to watch some of these talks from time to time to stay motivated and make sure they are delivering their best to their students. It can also be great for students to watch because there are kid-friendly videos that students can watch and learn from. Some kids are visual and auditory learners so they would understand more from a podcast than from a textbook lecture.

Some tools that I used to complete this podcasting assignment were AudioBoom and an app on my iPad, that is through iTunes, called Podcasts.

• Podcasts (iTunes): This is a great tool because all you have to do is search a topic and it brings up anything with the key words in it. I searched for Education and it brought up all kinds of things that I could listen to. This is also great for iPhones or iPads because you can download it straight to your device and watch it like a video. It also organizes all of your downloads into one spot called "Downloads". You can also share the podcasts that you find or project your iPad onto the screen and let the kids watch it. In the podcasts app, it also gives you a little description about the podcast before you watch it so that you will know if it is of interest to you.
• AudioBoom: This tool allows you to record anything you want to say. This is different than recording a video or using a tape recorder for a couple of reasons. This is a great tool because it simply records your voice; you do not have to show your face. AudioBoom is different than a tape recorder because you can trim your recording. What I mean by this is that you can take bits and pieces of your audio out. If you make a mistake and record something wrong you can delete a certain part of the audio. This differs from a tape recorder because if you mess up on that, you have to delete the entire thing and start over. What makes AudioBoom unique is the ability to re-do parts of the recording but not have to completely start over if you mess up. Also, another great feature is that the audio is super clear. It is not fuzzy at all!

 I used these two tools together to create my podcast by first using iTunes to search for an applicable podcast to watch. While watching this, I made sure to take notes about key things that Mrs. Pierson was talking about. Then, I went to AudioBoom and started to record the summary, and two examples of important things she talked about. It was crucial that I took notes because I was able to have a more organized train of thought when I went to record myself. After I used AudioBoom to record myself, I then uploaded my recording to my profile on the website.

In my podcast, you will hear a review of the Ted Talks video that I watched; "Every Child Deserves a Champion" by Rita Pierson. I first summarized the talk in its entirety. I then talked about two examples she spoke about that I found to be important and that were crucial to her talk. I finished the podcast by talking about how she tied the title into the end of her talk. I concluded with the exact words that she said.

listen to ‘iTunes Summary ’ on audioBoom

Introduction to Blogging

My name is Hailey Pulliam and I am an Elementary Education major! I go to Northern

Kentucky University and am currently a junior. I graduated high school from Walton Verona High School in Walton, KY. I was ranked #11 when I graduated. I was a cheerleader for the first couple of years in high school then I played tennis. Also, I was the president of our Senior Beta Chapter! I live with my mom, step-dad, brother, sister, and three dogs. I really enjoy going thrift shopping and looking at yard sales for things I can make over. I go to church at Crossroads in Florence and I volunteer in kids club with the one year old children every Sunday. I chose to be a teacher when I was a little kid. I have never thought about doing anything else with my life, I have always known I would be an educator!

 I believe that having a blog is helpful because it allows parents to stay up to date with the information and things happening. It is definitely not Eco-friendly to print copies of everything happening for parents to just throw away. Also, it is not possible to include pictures from the events at school in a newsletter. By giving parents access to the information via the Internet, they can see it in color, transport it anywhere they go, and share with other family and friends. Another reason why having a blog as a teacher is to collaborate with other professionals around the world and get information to better improve my classroom. If other teachers read my blog and leave valuable commentary, I can implement some new strategies and have everyone be successful! If students write a blog, they are learning about technology. When I was in elementary school, we had to keep a journal about the things we did and my teachers would always write letters to send home with us. Nowadays, anyone can write with a pencil and paper, and it is a basic skill that students are expected to have. However, when educators introduce technology and the proper ways to use it when students are young and in their peak learning phase, valuable skills are taught. Having a blog also teaches students about diligence and responsibility. If they are required to post on their blog every day at a certain time, then they make sure that they do it. They are responsible for making sure that information is uploaded. If they miss this, their parents are not informed as to what they did that day. Finally, having a blog teaches students about collaboration. They have to work with their teacher and their peers to make sure they're information is accurate and they are using the technology appropriately. 

Photo "Opencaching Blog Logo" by Openclipart user ftfshop.eu

The name of the site a great website for kids to use to help build math, reading, writing, and brain skills is Gamequarium. This site is designed for students in grades 3-6 to use when they are not at school. There are many different subjects to choose from such as: Brain Games, Character Education, Math, Safety, Music, Spanish, and so many more! The website itself if simplistic so that children can navigate through it. There are not many links other than what takes the student to the activity. This is also a great website because of the variety of topics that it covers. There are many subjects for children to learn about and practice when they are not in school. There is no better way for a child to learn than them thinking they are playing a game. This website can help in the classroom because students can see how to navigate the website and then can do it at home by themselves. Also, it is beneficial to have an extra activity for kids to do when you need something to do in class. Having online resources allows the teacher to keep the interest of the children.