Exploring Tools

This week gave me another opportunity to explore some of the many tools that are available out on the web.  These tools are all great options for bringing in creative choices and alternative options for assessments and project based learning.  Many of the sites provided can be used with a variety of age levels.  There are a few that seem to be more appropriate for students who have had more computer experience or to be used in very small groups so that students don't get frustrated when needing help.  I am already planning on using Comic Life in my classroom for a variety of activities this year and am excited to see how the student react and feel about using programs like those we have looked at to show what they know.

I am also continuing to explore using the forms applications to create tests.  I have thrown the idea out to a teammate and will be putting together a few sample tests this week to share with my team.

Another thing to try

This week, the thing that I found myself most interested in happened more by chance than anything else.  As I was looking at a few of the already submitted website evaluations, I noticed that most of the other evaluations had been created with Google Forms (initiated by Zac).  I have to admit that at first I was a little hesitant to even look into doing it that way since we hadn't gone through any instruction on it, but it was super easy and user-friendly!  I instantly thought of how great this could be for saving paper at school and having students complete tests using Google Forms.  All the answers would end up on one spreadsheet, making scoring much quicker which would allow the teacher to spend more time on things that will benefit students.  Seeing scores that way will also allow the teacher to quickly see how students did on particular problems and if there is a need for reteaching or further instruction.

A New Beginning

With each new class that starts, I continue to feel a little more comfort and confidence with understanding and handling the work.  Now that we are into the 4th course of the program, it is becoming more and more obvious on how they build on each other.  Seeing the connections and having more background knowledge with concepts than I had with some of the other courses or topics makes it easier and easier to start applying the ideas to my own classroom and life.  Some of the topics that we will be covering this course will be really helpful with my younger age students.