Frustrations with technology in the classroom.

In this moment, I am feeling very frustrated with technology. I just feel like something always goes wrong! I do feel that technology is a valuable resource for learning to teach and also for using with students, but how do you ensure it will work? It just seems unreliable, at times. I feel that I steer away from using technology because I do not want to worry about something going wrong or not working out. I feel that it is easier to just find someway to do an activity that I know will work and there is no potential of technical issues. I want this frustration to fade because I know that technology CAN and WILL be a great resource for me in the classroom once I get all these glitches sorted out. I am glad to be taking this class because I believe it is giving me new, more efficient ways to use technology that will help me when I am a teacher. I just want to get past the fear I have with technology. I do not feel confident with technology which I feel causes me to not want to use it. I want to gain more confidence with using technology so I will be able to broaden my horizons and utilize technology to my advantage. It just seems difficult for me right now and I feel that I am in the process of working through my difficulties and I am beginning to feel more confident in my use of technology. I hope that by the end of this course, I will feel fully assured and will have gained a great deal more confidence then i currently possess.

Webquests

When I first began creating my webquest, I felt that I didn't really understand the point of them. As I began creating it, I slowly began to realize just how useful they can really be. Due to the fact that I am a Early Childhood Education major, I felt somewhat confused as to how these could be applicable to little children. I realized that as teachers, we can utilize webquests to achieve standards set by the state. I created my webquest to achieve three different social studies standards and I really felt that the webquest was a great way to teach these standards. I created a webquest on culture. The children were supposed to choose a country and then explore aspects of that countries culture through the websites I gave them. I also had the children draw the flag of the country they chose and find similarities and differences. What I realized through this whole process is that technology can really be a resource for teachers of all ages, you just have to know how to make it age appropriate for the children you are working with. I ended up feeling that this webquest could be something I save and really utilize with students in the future. Overall, I am really excited about the idea of webquests and I think it will definitely be something I utilize in the future.

How can we integrate new technology in our classroom, but still develop a sense of wonder in children?

I am a huge believer in developing a sense of wonder and excitement in children as learners. I believe that this first comes with developing a sense of wonder for the world they live in and all of its components. I want to continue to be able to have this value and belief as a teacher, but also be able to teach to where children are at in this world and what is surrounding them. So my biggest struggle right now with technology is how will I be able to do both?

I want to figure out ways to integrate technology and allow children to see what a valuable resource it is, but at the same time, I want them to see how big of a resource the natural world is and how big of a resource knowledge can be. I want them to see the value of learning to do mutiplication i their head without using a calculator ect. I think the biggest battle at this point, is figuring out how to make technology a resource to me as an early childhood teacher. I think it will take a great deal of creativity considering young children can't have a facebook or twitter.

One teacher that I worked with about a year ago, would have her four year olds do research projects on aspect of the natural world. The way she would have them begin their project was through research. She would take small groups of children each day and walk them through utilzing her computer to find pictures of ideas for their project. Although this took a great deal of scaffolding, she was able to introduce them to the concept of searching the internet and using it a resource for achademia. After the chidlren gather their research, they embarked upon a huge journey of recreating one of the ideas they had researched through art. They could utilize what ever type of art media they wished. They were then able to utilize the pictures they had found through there research as references.

This is a great example of how I have discovered technology being a resource with young children. I hope to continue in my search of how technology can be a valuable resource to me as a teacher and how I will integrate it into my beliefs of learning and development.

Integration of Technology in the Classroom

I find technology to be a valuable resource to all teachers and hope that I will utilize it in my own classroom to support learning. Last semester, I actually did a presentation in a Special Education course on the integration of technology in the classroom and ways in which it can be utilized. This was a great topic to create a presentation on because it really educated me on what is out there and how positive of a resource technology really is. When working with younger children, I feel that technology really comes in hand for teachers and students. For teachers, there are tons of great assessment tools that have been created because of technology. There are several alternate programs for instruction in reading and math that can almost act as a second teacher and provide a different form of instruction for children. Technology has also provided teachers with a great way to update and maintain portfolios digitally. Technology has also provided more efficient ways to not only diagnose learning disabilities but also to work with children who have been diagnosed to best adhere to their abilities and learning. Technology has also given teachers many resources right at their fingertips to gain the latest information about changing policies, new findings and ever increasing standards. I find technology to be a vital tool in my field of teaching. I feel that not only children benefit from technology, but also teachers.

PLN

Through my developing PLN, I have been able to find some really interesting resources. There are several pre-school and kindergarten teachers that I have found through Twitter and they have provided me with some very valuable resources. One teacher that I have been following on Twitter is constantly posting amazing activities that correlate with each particular day and really incorporate the seasons. I am always intrigued to see what she will post each day because her activities are always so interesting! For example, on Ground Hog day she posted several great activities that moved beyond the cutesy, theme aspect of Ground Hog day and really focused on learning. I am also following several other teachers who have great posts dealing with just teaching in general and are not necessarily focused on a specific grade or age level. Several individuals I am following have great information about policy aspects of teaching and also ask great questions about a career as a teacher. Overall, I am finding my PLN to be a very valuable resource and have been very interested in all the new information I am gaining!