Thing #16~Amy Rutledge

Thing #16: Get Organized with Web 2.0 Tool. Ok, how many of us don't need to get organized? If you raised your hand, please contact me so you can give me the wisdom you must possess! I am always "trying" to get organized yet I never seem to get there! The start page I chose was iGoogle. I liked this page because it was very easy for me to move around, arrange, and edit my content. I didn't choose to keep it as my homepage though since my Yahoo is similar. I love using the online calendars because I have calendars for everything from birthdays to homework! Calendars can also be used in the classroom to let parents know about upcoming events or even whose snack day it is. I played around with the "Remember the Milk" website. I chose it because it sounded cute. I had fun playing around but probably will forget to check it out and use it very much. For me the calendar tools are the way to go. I have a calendar I share with my family that shows the dates me and my children have off from school, family birthdays, and important events. This allows my family to see what's going on here at our house and decide when or if they can come up and join us for our activities! I think calendars also work well as classroom tools for the same reason.

Thing #15~Amy Rutledge

Thing #15 is: "What in the world is a Wiki?" I have always been told not to use wiki for academic research because it is not "reliable". I am learning that it is a great place to go for other people's thoughts, ideas, or perspectives. Looking through some of the resources, I found some very interesting links. I know the one from Book Lover's Wiki was an old link, but it was actually pretty neat. I think their idea of having a wiki book club was a great idea. I tried to figure out how to edit on the APSU 23 Things sandbox, but I was completely lost! I think for the most part the wiki concept is good. I would probably be likely to use the same concept as the Book Lover's group for a classroom wiki page. That way students could see what other students were reading and what each student thought about the books.

Thing#14~Amy Rutledge

Thing #14 is "Go with the Flow".  Many of us have probably heard of "flowcharts". Have you ever created or used one though? I think this was a great refresher activity for me. I have used flowcharts in the past, however, mind maps was a new concept for me. Flow charts are something that show a progression, or flow, of steps you would take for a process. For example, you can do a flow chart showing the steps you would take in making a cake, or solving a mathematical equation. Mind maps are more of a brainstorming of ideas. I did a mind map of things I could or should do over spring break. I put "spring break" as my central idea and put all of my "options" around my main concept. Some of my ideas where: cleaning, school work, visiting friends, read, work in flower beds, etc. While this was not an academically related mind map, it was fun working with the tools. I believe that both of these tools would be great to use in the classroom. I can teach the students how to work mathematical problems, the steps to writing a friendly letter, or brainstorm ideas for summer vacation. Almost any tool in the classroom can be made into a fun activity if you just think it out!

Thing#13~Amy Rutledge

Thing #13 is "Web-based applications".  I explored the Zoho Writer tool. This is an amazing tool. You can use it to create documents, presentations, calendars, planners, and many more things. The great thing about this site is it allows you to share it with your peers. You can have your projects be a collaborative effort without having to email documents back and forth for input or editing. It allows all of the work to be done in the same area. This will be a great resource as a teacher to help create documents, presentations, calendars, or whatever I need for the class. I can also share all of this with my parents and or coworkers. Just as I can create and share my documents so can the students to create joint projects with their peers. I think this is something they would find very fun and exciting. I created an example of a calendar that could be shared with parents so that they know what is going on in the classroom.