Prezi

Prezi is a presentation tool that I have known about for a while. My learners at school love to use Prezi. It is very user-friendly and unique when comparing it to PowerPoint or Keynote. The learners love the choices for templates and I found that there is a nice selection and I love being able to search for what I may be looking for. It was easy to navigate and insert images as well as video from YouTube. I like how you are able to share your presentations and it saves as you go.  If I did not already use it in my classroom I would definitely because it is so easy to use.

http://prezi.com/b_08i8fmrpic/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

Diversity, Cultural Understanding and Global Awareness

It is very important to teach our learners to appreciate various cultures, diversity and to be globally aware. I use Twitter daily as a form or ongoing professional learning for myself. I follow a very diverse group and through it have connections to many regions throughout the United States because of it. I taught and am now the technology integration coach at for my current district. The society we live in today it is vital for our learners to be globally aware as well as being aware of other cultures. The Vision for my school district is "Our students are lifelong learners who use their knowledge, skills, and influence to make the world a better place." As you can see it is a part of our everyday interactions in a project-based learning environment that we teach and model these things for our learners. We are always seeking out real-world opportunities for our learners. We want them to solve problems for a real world audience.


Our learners are 1:1 in grades three through nine (3rd iPads and 4th-9th Macbooks) so it is very easy to integrate collaboration tools into the classroom. Kindergarten through second grades have a certain number of iPads per classroom. A took and activity that my learners enjoy are Mystery Skype sessions. I use Twitter and my Professional Learning Network to locate other classrooms that want to Mystery Skype with us. We are a Google Apps for Education School and find that other schools that we "meet with" are actually use Google Hangouts. We have also done this with leaders or people within a company that we were interested in learning more about or trying to help them solve a "real world problem". Also, being a Google Apps School the learners love to use G-Suite to collaborate with each other. We are also a no textbook school so we work hard and close with learners in determining quality resources to learn as well as enhance their learning.


Parents and others are shown what all our learners are doing at school through a digital communication known as a SMORE. There are biweekly editions that go out per learning community. There is also a school-wide edition that goes out once a month. The community editions are sent to parents and posted on social media for a larger audience to be able to see what learners are doing. The community editions contain photos and things going on within the community (projects, activities, etc) as well as what standards are being covered through the projects. It also contains important information and dates. Learners attend Chinese classes taught through the Confucious Institute at Troy University here in Montgomery. Learners, kindergarten through ninth grade, either go daily for eight weeks or once a week for the entire school year.


We use "Fishbowls" to give feedback and reflect. We usually do two fishbowls at one time the larger outer bowl being the backchannel with something such as Today's Meet going making comments, questions and advice while only listening to the inner circle share. We did this with both parents and learners in different settings. The one with parents was to gauge how they felt things were going for our school since we are only in the second year of it being in existence. We used it with learners to reflect on their experiences as a learner in a project-based setting. 

Minority Report 2

I would introduce the topic of G-speak to others by first sharing vocally what it is. After introducing what it is I feel the best way to share the topic is through video. It makes so much more sense when you can see it and not just read it. G-speak is an interface that allows interaction when wearing specially designed gloves. It is a gestural interface. The system uses reflectors that are in the fingers of the gloves that are viewed by the system's camera to track motion in 3D. I would then use videos explaining g-speak as well as the trailer for "Minority Report" so those that may not be familiar with the movie and how it relates to g-speak. The resources below would be used to come up with the definition and the list of videos would be options to share with others to introduce g-speak.

Resources:

MIT Lab
UI
Computer Interface
Minority Report OS

Videos:

Vimeo G-speak

Horizon Report pg. 16-60

http://www.nea.org/tools/lessons/57730.htm
page 23
Authentic Assessment Toolkit
The most helpful thing I found about this site is that it provided help with assessments when real world activities are used to demonstrate mastery. I teach at a standards-based school and this website provides the four main components when creating authentic assessments. It also has links within the four components to help you better understand the topics. The four main components are: Identify Standards, Select Authentic Tasks, Identify the Criteria for the task and Create the Rubric. This is a great resource to bookmark for me to be able to go back to at any time I need additional help or thoughts when creating authentic assessments.

Horizon Report pg. 14-15

                                  



Script:

Video tutorials can help students with questions on homework or test preparation. However, students are finding the value in creating tutorial videos themselves for other students. It is very beneficial to have learners create their own videos. If the learners have ownership over their learning and are afforded the opportunity to create videos explaining concepts and standards that they either have high interest in or maybe even something they struggled with that they have mastered and want to help others who may be struggling too. This not only gives them the ownership but also boosts confidence of those that may have previously struggled with learning in a traditional way with a textbook, paper and pencil. It also allows for creativity and making the material exciting. As a teacher, you can start seeing learner’s passions and their passion for various topics. There are many options available on how learners can create videos. I have seen the most learners using iMovie on either an iPad or a MacBook. It is mind blowing how much the learners know about iMovie and making them creatively. If you have access to iPad's learners using the app Explain Everything is a great resource to create a video. I have seen it used for explaining math concepts as well as literacy, comprehension even creative writing. Explain Everything is a unique screen casting interactive whiteboard. It is so user friendly that it can be used by kindergartners. I also really like iMotion HD as a mobile option for making videos. I love that students can use this app to make a time lapse or a stop motion style video. I could see this being beneficial especially in science but could be used across the board. You are able to combine still photos to form a video and with the paid version you have access to music as well as the option to upload directly to YouTube. If you have a channel for the student created videos this is a fantastic and straightforward way for learners to publish their videos. While there are way more than three options available there are the three I chose to share with you. If you would like additional help with one of these or looking for something else please do not hesitate to ask and I am more than happy to help.

Games Can Make the World Better

• Can play and learning be combined?
  Yes, play and learning can certainly be combined. Gamers are willing to work hard all the time, if they are given the right work. Through game play people can be the best versions of themselves. They are also challenged and guess what it is OK to fail. This is a hard-life skill but is crucial to learn because you cannot always win. We want to have a combination of collaboration and problem solving in the environment. 
  
• What role does acknowledging progress play in successful gaming and is their transfer to education?
  Acknowledging progress is important in successful gaming because you are provided with positive feedback. There is transfer to education in that though we don't "level up" or earn things like strength and intelligence from the prospective of a virtual character we as educators can provide learners with positive feedback. We want to provide them with constant positive feedback, support them when they fail and help them be the best versions of themselves that they can be.
  
• What do you think about McGonigal's thought about parallel tracks of education (school/games)?
  I agree that if learners are learning as much about gaming as they are everything else by the time that they are adults they will be virtuoso gamers. They will be good at anything that they do and very successful in the world. Learners are becoming experts at something.
  
• Reflect on Jane's 4 things that games do to make us "virtuosos": Urgent Optimism, Social Fabric, Blissful Productivity, Epic Meaning.
  To be a virtuoso at gaming which is easily transferable to a learner in a classroom the person must be self-motivated. You must be willing to try and keep trying when you fail. Games also teach us trust with others when we play with someone we expect that they play to the end, play by the rules, and in general spend time with us. I see a teacher learner set up in that learners should be able to trust their teachers; we have rules that should be followed to provide all with a safe and effective learning environment as well as they are with you to help you progress as the school year goes on. Gamers are willing to work hard when they are given the right kind of work. This too applies to learners when they are given the right kind of tasks and opportunities they will work until they can't work anymore. They even ask to come before school or after school. As with games such as World of Warcraft learners are attached to missions and wanting to fulfill a story.

Horizon Report 12-13

Read this blog post - http://go.nmc.org/livefro - what teacher blogs are you following? Find and name five teacher blogs to follow and list them on your blog. Post one on the class FB page and give a short description.

1. http://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/
2. http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
3. https://www.edutopia.org/
4. http://www.techsavvyed.net/
5. https://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/



What is "Gamingspace?"  http://go.nmc.org/gamspa

Gamingspace is a unique opportunity for learners, parents as well as teachers to come together to explore. Learners are afforded the opportunity to have more control over their learning this way. It is a time and place for the learners to collaborate and interact with other learners as well as adults.


Read about discussion forums - http://www.k12blueprint.com/blog/michael-gorman/ten-ways-use-discussion-forums-promote-digital-citizenship-and-academics. What should be your point of emphasis when designing discussion forums?

The point of emphasis when designing discussion forums would be to keep in mind your learners. The content standards and 21st-century skills are also a vital part when considering discussion forums.