Today's class began quite well for Julie and I, but then went straight down hill! We logged on to Elluminate from the KCI building, but very quickly our internet connection was lost! We scrambled around there for a while, then came over to CAR to our class just in time to present. I was disappointed to see that I had missed Stephanie and Angela's presentation, but will definitely be checking out their blogs.

Having this experience using Elluminate was wonderful. I think that it is an integral part of current post secondary education. I think that Acadia should definitely adopt this technology... and said so in my evaluation. It was a wonderful experience (when my internet connection is working of course!!)

Getting to see my classmates blogs was very helpful. I have many things that I would like to add to my own blog that I have seen in others today that I think would be very helpful. The video creating website that was presented was very cool

(http://www.xtranormal.com/)!

I'm excited to take my new knowledge back to my school on PEI to share with others.

Thanks for a great course Barb & classmates...  Enjoy the rest of your summer!
Krista

July 19, 2011 Conference

The following pictorial representation is of the morning session I just attended with Pat Thomson. Interesting stuff! These are words I pulled from her presentation represented in a check mark design.

I found a really neat substitution online for "Wordle"... My computer does not have the proper plug ins to run wordle and a simple search turned up this site:

Seems to have better options than wordle... glad I found it!! http://www.tagxedo.com/app.html

For today's blog, I have decided to reflect on all that I have been introduced to during this course, it could take a while!

I consider myself in some aspects to be pretty up to date on technology... I mean, I usually can figure something out, love my iPhone and being on a computer... Little did I know, that my iPhone houses more potential that merely checking the weather or my facebook!

Setting up a blog was a neat experience.  A few teachers at my school keep one to keep their parents up to date on what is going on in their classrooms.  I use to shun from this... thinking that it would take up so much time.  No longer!  Such a neat tool that can be used for  many purposes.

Thinking about the reading process was overwhelming.  How did we ever learn to read fluently and with comprehension when so many skills are being utilized??  Knowing that we are not pre programmed to read and write - these processes must be taught is huge.

Elluminate live is amazing.  I wish that this was available for other university courses I have taken in the past.  The possibilities are endless.  It's ability to allow me to take in the webinars and join a live classroom online is very cool. Acadia needs to put this technology in place for their students that currently travel from other provinces to take courses.

Learning about Apps that are available was a very valuable experience.  It took a lot of time, but now I have a better grasp of what is available to help me in the classroom.  I have a few that I have chosen to try with specific students when I return to school... That's a start, right?

The same goes for Kurzweil.  I am planning on checking the version we have at school when I go back in the fall.  The translate option will open so many opportunities for students at my school as we have many ELL who attend.  I would have to say, that using bubble notes is my favorite option on the program so far.

The writing process is something that I am eager to delve deeper into.  It has been a focus of mine for the past year.  I wanted to learn how to better teach my students, and to teach myself as well.  I am not a writer.  I have met many people who are, I am just not one of them!  Our next project, I feel will help me develop a better understanding of the writing process.  Look for a link to our writing process blog soon!

My Favorite App: Presentation

Today we presented our favorite Apps.  There were many great Apps presented today!  This was my favorite app... so cool!  I'll try to get a list of all Apps presented to post soon.

Whiteboard lite: Collaborative Turn your iPhone or iPad into a linked sketchpad!

If two minds are better than one, then two minds with two iPhones must be even better!   But how can you get those two great minds working together and thinking alike? Try Whiteboard, a new app that turns an iPhone or iPod Touch into a collaborative workspace for sketching and sharing ideas in real-time App Title:   Collaborative Whiteboard Grade Level: All ages Purpose:  This is a great way to create drawings or brainstorming collaboratively. Program Functionality: A Simple to set up. Works great when connected to another iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. You may need to wait 30 - 60 seconds to connect with the other device. Overall Educational Value:  A Wonderful way to teach collaboration. Cost: Collaborative Whiteboard Lite -  version for iPhone and iPod Touch - Free HD version for iPad - $3.99 Overview:  Collaborative Whiteboard: Collaborative Drawing offers real-time collaborative drawing. Connect iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth and both people can draw on the same picture. Start with a new blank screen or open any image or drawing and collaboratively draw on it. An image rropened on one device will be transferred wirelessly to the other device. Marker color and transparency can be changed. Pictures may be saved and also submitted to an online gallery. Recommendation:  This app could be used both in the classroom and for students' personal use.  Students could learn collaboration and cooperation by working together to complete a drawing. They could brainstorm ideas, annotate a map, play Tic Tac Toe or Hangman, practice math facts, spelling words, or make a list. It could also be used by students or teachers to annotate screenshots or photos.  Granted, using Whiteboard to sketch wireframes before your big client meeting or drawing a quick diagram of a process for your colleague are all perfectly reasonable and serious uses of the tool. But it's far more likely that - as fun as the app is to use - you'll find yourself using Whiteboard to engage in games of Tic-Tac-Toe and Dots & Boxes with colleagues during meetings. Classroom Use Examples / Ideas:   App Website: http://www.greengar.com/apps/whiteboard/ Developer Website: http://www.greengar.com/apps/whiteboard/ iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/whiteboard-pro-collaborative/id321986541?mt=8

July 12th- Kurzweil Live Elluminate Session

Today we had our first live Elluminate session on Kurzweil.  Wow!

It was so neat how our instructor was not on campus and able to interact with us and still teach us in an engaging manner.  This is something that all universities should offer.  As a student who has traveled to Nova Scotia from PEI and had to take time off from her summer employment, leave family, and most importantly leave behind the beautiful PEI beaches...this just makes sense.

I am looking forward to learning more about Elluminate sessions and using it in more of my courses!

I found this helpful reference guide online that walked my group through a lot of troubleshooting.  Much quicker than referring back to the webinars!

http://www.kurzweiledu.com/files/v12/Kurzweil%203000%20Reference%20Guide.pdf

July 11, 2011 - Kurzweil

Today I watched two webinars around the software Kurzweil. For a brief overview of this software, please take a minute to read the following excerpt from their website and view the youtube video posted below. Amazing potential!

Kurzweil Educational Systems, Inc. is an American based company that specializes in providing reading and writing software to assist people who are blind or partially sighted, or who have learning disabilities, such as dyslexia and Attention Deficit Disorder. Founded in 1996, the company has pioneered the development of computerized assistive technology, and achieved worldwide recognition for its work. Kurzweil Educational Systems has also won several excellence awards within its industry. Its headquarters are based in Bedford, Massachusetts.





I would have to say that this program is simply amazing. It's potential is wonderful. My favorite part of the session was the part on making bubble notes. The fact that teachers can use this in so many different ways for a variety of outcomes is very appealing.



Give it a try... I know I will! :)

Very Cool Website!

http://www.qwiki.com/