I have found that the Integrating Technology and Literacy
course to be one of the most valuable and applicable learning experiences in
this program. Throughout the past seven
weeks we have been introduced to all the latest and greatest technological
tools that can be used in the classroom with students. Some examples include blogs, video makers
such as iMovie, Animoto, and VoiceThread, Digital Story creators like
Storybird, and collaborative tools such as Google Docs and Padlet. I have learned that by creating a class blog
and even having student blogs, students
will be able to write in a way that hones their skills authentically, and
parents will have a better understanding and appreciation for what their child
is working on at school on a day to day basis.
By integrating technology within the classroom, students are more
engaged and motivated to learn, and are given opportunities to see what is
going on in the world around them, and to collaborate with peers near and
far. Ultimately one of the biggest
reasons to use these tools in the classroom is because this is the way of the
world. By showing students how to use
the technology and teach them appropriate ways to do so, they are being
prepared to successfully live and work in the digital age.
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| Google App Launcher |
In my opinion, Google Apps offer some great tools for
collaboration and composing. When using
Google Docs, it is easy to collaborate with others without ever having to
actually meet. With Google Docs, anyone who has access to a document can work
on it anytime. There are so many Apps
including spreadsheets, surveys, and slideshow presentations that any tool you
could want to use individually, or with others, you can find in Google Apps. Although other collaborative tools such as
blogging offer ways to stay connected, and communicate, Google Apps offer the
best variety of collaborative tools.
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| Creating a Document in Google Drive |
Now that I know more about Google Apps, I certainly plan to
use them in my classroom. They get
parents involved, teach students about collaboration, and add a dimension of
entertainment to the classroom. The area
where I anticipate Google Apps having the most value is professionally. My district has already made the switch to
Google Drive and Google Apps, but now that I am more familiar with these tools
and all the ways to utilize them, I see greater possibilities for using them to
collaborate within our school. For these
reasons, I have and will continue to recommend Google Apps.
Please take a second to view my Voki, another cool digital
tool, for my final thoughts on using Google Apps.
I completely agree about google apps. I had never used them before, but I think they're fabulous for collaborative projects. I wish I had google docs for all the group papers I had to write in highschool and college!
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely correct about the many ways we could could use Google Apps in our classroom. I also can't wait to use some of these tools with my students. Your Voki was cool and surprising because I thought you would chose a more feminine Voki. Nice surprise...
ReplyDeleteHello Michelle,
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful to hear your school is going Google Apps. The Google Apps for Education does not require students to have gmail. Google for the Classroom just came out, and some cutting edge schools will also being using that platform next year. I saw some demos, but for now, schools that just adopt Google Apps for Education (known by the acronym GAFE) will have plenty to offer teachers and students. Now that you know about Docs, Slides, Sheets, and the sharing options, you can train others. Practice over the summer with organizing files into folders and color-coding them. There are also features that can be added to Google Apps for students with special needs and for other purposes. One app will read text aloud to a students, and another will enable leaving voice comments instead of text comments. Also, see if your school will explore Google Communities, and if so, I can suggest several to join, especially those set up to share ideas about Google tools. Also, I hope your school considers Google Hangout, though Skype is equally useful. I did hear schools adopting the GAFE model can have more than 10 people on a Hangout at once, but I am not sure if that would be needed in the average school setting.