More Christmas cheer via JibJab :)

One of the teachers at school was creating these super funny video clips using the kids from her class. i thought they were so funny I decided to create some of my own using my family :) This first one is my husband and I with three of our kids :) Such FUN!

Feliz Navidad

And this one is the Arredondo Christmas elves (all of our five kids) they make a mother proud!

Arredondo elves

MERRY CHRISTMAS Everyone!!!

I LOVE animoto! One of our last class sessions our professor shared this site with us and right there during class we created an account and made a 30 sec. video using pics we had on our laptop. it took less than 10 minutes ;) Like I said...I LOVE animoto. So user friendly! Because of our Belfast trip in late Nov. we ran out of time to take pics and create our "traditional" Christmas photo card that we do and send out every year so instead I decided to apply some of my new learning and created our very first digital Christmas card ;) ENJOY!

3, 2, 1... I'm NOT done, I've just begun :)

WHAT A RIDE this class has been! Because I am probably the one who started with the least amount of techno-knowledge, I would dare say that I am possibly the one who learned the most and I am happy with that. This class has been BY FAR the most challenging, time-consuming, frustrating, mind/idea expanding, hands-on, how to, action researching, techno-informing class I have ever taken in my entire life! If no one else even noticed at all, the fact of the matter is that I am soooooooo proud of myself for all I have done and am able to do as a result of what I have learned in this class regarding the use of technology and almost EVERYTHING that goes along with that in relation to teaching and leading. For that reason alone i just want to say, "THANK YOU! for 'making' us learn and do so much, for setting high expectations and covering so much ground in such a short time. I'm pretty sure that my thoughts on this are not very popular but I have to say i was a little sad when I thought about titling this post the 'last' or 'final' or 'I'm done' because I am not even close to being done. I plan to continue with my techno blog as a means to share GREAT and EXCITING stuff that I continue to learn and use. I don't want to ever be done learning and sharing especially where technology is concerned because it is so fluid!

So, for now I will share...3 things I learned (this is difficult to limit it to three) but here goes...
1) How to create and maintain a blog, and a wiki, and a Symbaloo, and a live binder....(See what I mean)
2) How to embed and share various media
3) How to use Prezi with Jing to create a presentation :)

2 things in more depth...
1) Symbaloo - when I first created my Symbaloo I questioned it's purpose and how it was different than "My Favorites" other than being more esthetically pleasing but now that i know how AWESOME it is and how I can pull it up on ANY computer I am using to access ALL of my favorites without having to start with a google search and am adding other AWESOME mixes that I come across like a Kindergarten mix and a 2nd & 3rd grade mix and a Janet Slaughter mix and... need I say more :)
2) Embedding and sharing - before this class not only did I not have any of these social media accounts but had no idea about all the little "buttons" that are attached to almost everything I look at and read online that i can just click and share to just about anyone at anytime from anywhere. I LOVE it! It is so easy to share stuff WITHOUT even using email :) just like posting video clips, articles, pins...on my blog.

1 thing I plan to to implement...
1) The web 2.0 tool that I shared with the class (Storybird) I have already implemented as a teacher which I plan to continue to use but as an administrator i think that I would really like to focus on Digital Citizenship (using the common sense media curriculum) school-wide as well as the practices/implementation of the flipped classroom making sure to provide and facilitate individualized, relevant, and on-going PD for interested staff and teachers.

3, 2, 1...I'm not done! There's more to come! Stay tuned...

Transforming Classroom Practice

I watched this today and it is FULL of resources and guidelines for iPad Content Integration. It is kind of long but well worth your time if this topic is of interest to you. The audio/video does go through some technical issues about 30 minutes in but then does get resolved for the question/answer session. GOOD STUFF if your interested :)

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fsoQI-rMzpA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

BYOD/BYOT...IT’S INEVITABLE!

Whether we're talking about BYOD (bring your own device) or BYOT (bring your own technology) to school that is...It is apparent that it's inevitable. It's only a matter of time. The biggest difference that I can see is the approach that is being taken from district to district and/or state to state. Some are "jumping right in"  (21 schools in Charlotte, NC) as where others are more cautious, such as our own system here in Madison County :) According to Tech & Learning with Aruba networks published an eBook entitled Network Planning for BYOD and 1:1 Learning Initiatives http://newbay.ebookhost.net/tl/aruba/1/ebook/1/index.php?e=61&user_id=64212&flash=11.402  which is pretty technical as far as discussions regarding networking infrastructure components and Wi-Fi architecture considerations and such...but it also includes some good points about considerations when deciding when and how to make such a giant transition. I think that Madison County is clearly "beginning with the end in mind" in regards to such an initiative. It seems that they are preparing and planning for such such a transition before "diving right in" which is clearly justified in the aforementioned ebook. In regards to scalability the ebook states, "Once you let students BYOD, the amount of devices can quadruple. Ultimately, you'll want your wireless network to be able to support thousands of concurrent devices with minimal IT involvement."

So whether it's "dive right in" or prepare then implement...IT IS INEVITABLE! BYOD is coming to schools everywhere! "Digital learning is essential in transforming our schools."

Digital Citizenship

The best site that I have come across in regards to digital citizenship is Common Sense Media http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/curriculum  who have developed an entire K-12 curriculum around Digital Literacy and Citizenship. There are eight components of the curriculum including the following:
1) Privacy and Security
2) Digital Footprint & Reputation
3) Self-Image and Identity
4) Creative Credit and Copyright
5) Relationships & Communication
6) Information Literacy
7) Cyberbulling
8) Internet Safety

All of these resources are FREE! and we teachers LOVE free! It would be worth your time to take a look at what is available here :)

Be Cyber-safe!

ipad apps in SpEd

so i know the next topic has to do with the use of ipad apps in SpEd, i just don't have any resorces to refer to here in Starbucks in downtown Belfast so i will have to go on want i already know and can remember :-) Deanna & Sarah did a fabulous presentation in Dr. Finn's class about ipad apps and their use with autistic students. They shared a clip from 60 Minutes relating to this topic as well. I think there is a place for the use of this type of tech especially with non-verbal students. There is so many different apps to use to communicate and create visual schedules and such. It gives opportunitis that at one time did not exist. so yes, i believe that pad apps do have a place within the field of SpEd.