Reflections on a Journey

Well, we started at the beginning of the summer not knowing what to expect. As we come to the end, what have we learned? Well, I have learned that there is quite a bit of technology out there that I have not been using. I use lots of technology, but most of it is theatre specific. I need to reach out and utilize more that is out there! I know the kids are a great resource, but they are not the only resource. I want to have the kids make movies. I think they will have fun doing theatre in a new way. I am in the process of creating an 'Apps' list for my kids who have access to that information. I think they will have fun with that... I have... I know we all have to step up and not be intimidated by the technology that is out there. Take it one step at a time and we will all make it down the road to discovery!

The Journey of Tool #11

Digital Citizenship... New words for a new century. I hope to help my student by finding good sources in advance, showing them how to find good sites themselves and following up with them in finding multiple sources for their work... We have to use the Internet. It is too good a source to ignore. However, we all need to be able to navigate our way through without falling into pitfalls which will both slow us down and leave us exposed! (and not in a good way)

The Long Long Journey of Tool #7

So after many attempts and a new computer I believe I have successfully made the film and, if I can get it downloaded to this blog, I am golden! The movie I made stars my cats Mitch and Butler. I think they are cute! The uses for this in my classroom are too numerous to mention (and obvious). I look forward to using this with my student's performances!

The Journey of Tool #10

Tool 10 is about apps... I liked Tutor.com and myHomework apps. I like them because, as a theatre teacher, I am always worrying about my student's grades and ability to perform! Anything that will help! As for apps for my class, I was able to find several carpentry apps that could be used when building sets. They were all free and include a level, plumb, ruler, flashlight, protractor, ruler, and units convertor. All very handy! I actually purchased an Ipod, not for this assignment, but it was a factor. While I did not have what I would call a 'wow' moment I am now addicted to DoodleJump...

The Journey of Tool #9

Just as Dorothy made her journey to Oz, we are making our journey through the 11 Tools. Tool 9 deals with something that seems to make our road bigger. Much much bigger! We talk today about Jing and Skype. I can certainly see using Jing. I have often wanted to capture what is on my screen to show to someone who is not in the room. The kids could also use this in their presentations to the class and to help when working on group projects outside of the classroom. The map example they showed looks very cool for when I have to give my ComedySportz kids directions to other schools!

Skype is something I have wanted to know more about for quite some time. I have a few contacts who live and work out of state that I have wanted to have speak to my classes. This would allow me to do that! Very nice! I hope to use Skype this fall!

3 more to go!! Woot!!

The Journey of Tool #8

I know, I know... Before you get excited let me explain why we have jumped off the beaten path and skipped Tool #7. I realized that #7 would take quite a bit of time so we will come back to it at a later date (promise) so we can keep the momentum going! Plus Tool #8 is something I already use and know about! As a theatre teacher I use video clips often to show examples of good, and sometimes bad, work! It is also a way that I can show examples of productions and techniques that we don't have access to at school! One unit that I show video in is my puppetry unit. I like to show examples of different types of puppets from around the world. I have never used Hulu before, but I was able to find a clip from Sesame Street that I can use. I also found Sesame Street clips on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5lx_gsjm10. The next clip is about Shadow Puppets. It shows them in use as well as how they are made. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-1j_PntB1g Both are useful as puppet examples, but I like that one uses actor's voices and the other only uses music. I also like the kids to come in with examples from sites that they can share with the class!

The Journey of Tool #6 or Wiki World

Last weekend I went for MYP IB training and actually saw my first Wiki. Our teacher uses them and shared her site with us so that we could get and share ideas with her. I like to do small group projects with my classes, particularly my upper level history units. I can see how using wikis would aid the kids in collaborating their work and ideas with each other, particularly when not in my class. I believe that one of my groups last year actually did this on their own but I didn't understand at the time what they were doing. Nice to finally catch up!! I can also see this being useful in sharing with other theatre teachers around the district. Since I work alone at WAIS it would be nice to be able to work with other theatre teachers again a little more often than our district meetings!