Week 2- Using tools.

Q: How will these communication tools/ social networking tools help me communicate with my students?
A: I do not foresee these tools helping me communicate with my ideal students as I am hoping to teach preschool. I can however see how these tools could be useful with older grades as homework reminders, study helps and keeping students and parents informed on what is going on within the classroom.
Q: How will these communication tools/ social networking tools help me communicate with my students’ parents?
A: I can see using a class web site as a source of information for the parents, where I can keep the parents up to date on the on goings of our classroom. I can have updates of what we have done, what we plan to do and ideas for the parents to do to further enhance what their children are learning. I can post pictures of the children in our classroom.
Q: How will these communication tools/social networking tools help me communicate with my colleagues?
A: I can see these tools being a great way to share information with other teachers and collecting information from other teachers. I can keep a blog of the things that have worked for me, I can follow other teachers blogs. I could also keep a website of resources, and use other websites as resources. I can also use facebook and e-mail to keep in contact with other teachers and to ask for help and share information.
Q: Why are these tools so popular with my students?
A:Like I said before my students won't be old enough to use these tools.
Q: In which ways might I employ these communication tools/social networking tools to achieve classroom objectives?
A: I can use these tools to keep in contact with parents so that they can do things at home to enhance what we are doing in the classroom, making our lessons more successful.
Q: What are the pros and cons of the communication tools/social networking tools?
A:The pros of using these tools are that you can keep other people more informed and you have more access to information. The cons of these tools are that it takes time to keep up these sites and tools, and it keeps your information public so other people are more aware of what you are doing and of your failures as well as your successes.


Video impressions-
Mr. Duey Fractions- I could not get this video to work on my computer. I will try to get access to another computer and try again.
Introducing Web 2.0 – This video was full of great information and fantastic resources, however it was delivered at such in such a fast paced format that the information doesn’t stick and the resources difficult to retrieve.

My ideal Classroom

My ideal classroom would be a preschool classroom set up in the basement of my future home. It would be a number of areas set up in one large open room. There would be a couple of large tables set up where we could have snack time and craft time. There would be a large rug where we could sit together for any group sharing time, such as song time, and show and tell and some lessons. I would have a couple of bullitien boards, one for showing off the kids work and one for highlighting the subjects, letters and numbers that we are working on that week.

I would also have play areas, and reading areas, where the children would be free to experiment with pratical everyday items in an enviroment that is safe and fun. There would be a little play kitchen area with pans and plates, and a table and chairs, brooms and mops, maybe even a toy vaccum. I would like to have pillows, or bean bags piled up in a corner with lots of books that the kids can look through or have read to them.

There would be an entrance into a little room blocked off from the classroom by a two way mirror so parents could watch their children without the children knowing it. There would be small area from coats and boots to be left.

I don't know much about teaching techniques yet, so I hope to bulid that part of my ideal classroom more as I go through the elementary education program.

I am sure as I learn more things will be added or things might change, but as of right now This is what I see when I think of my ideal classroom.