Thing # 12

I used Google Alerts to set up alerts for news articles once a day on the Atlanta Braves, the Hawaiian Government ( because I still consider Hawaii to be my home state), and news on the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy as a few of my friends from my former unit are concerned about the Republicans trying to put it back into place if they beat Obama in the upcoming election. this is a very helpful tool because before I started using it I got all my news from Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.

I absolutely love Google Translate and always have. I didn't need to access it online as I downloaded the app on my phone a few years ago and have been using it ever since to mess with friends. Not only does it have a huge language database but it can also send anything it translates to your contacts via SMS messaging which keeps the user from having to write it down and retype it into his phone. It is a very useful tool and in language courses it can help students who may have fallen a step behind by allowing them to pull up verbs and phrases without having to search from page to page to find them.

Thing # 11

In using the different RSS finders I enjoyed Google Blog Search the most. Google has always been a popular search engine and it's blog finder was simple and easy to use. It brought up a lot of blogs that had very little to do with my search too and seems a bit unspecific with its search results such as a blog entitled "Who is Mister Mister?", but overall it helped me find blogs pertaining to teaching, my favorite sports teams, and video games with relative ease.Thanks to these lessons on RSS feeds I finally know the use of that symbol Firefox is always showing me and I can also now use that to subscribe to blogs.

Thing #10

As the video we watched made obvious RSS or Really Simple Syndication makes it easier to access information we want to read as opposed to wading through sites we arent interested in to get to it. It creates a hub, in this case our Google Reader account, and brings all info we find relevant to us to our hub so we know where to find it all. It's like putting your wallet, keys, and shades near the door because you know that's what you need when you want to go out.

Personally I am a huge sports fan and I have a favorite team in every sport I follow and it is a hassle to search through all the popular sites such as ESPN and FoxSports to find information and news stories about them. With RSS  I can subscribe to their blogs and be kept update without moving from site to site. In schools we can use RSS to link different sites containing blogs relevant to our curriculum together so that we have a wealth of information to use in our daily classroom activities and lectures.

Thing #9

For this assignment I used the smiley generator and the comic generator. I fought with the magazine cover creator for about half an hour before surrendering and admitting my unworthiness.

I watch the Family Guy show religiously and have always loved the evil monkey character so when I saw a chance to have some fun with him I took it. Hope this isn't crossing the line but it amused me.

One of my friends asks me this question at least twice a week and this poor smiley face who is very non-smiley made me think of her. Don't tell her I posted this! Shhhh!

Just like the Flickr mashup sites these sites were a great way to both learn about technology and what we are able to do these days with just a few clicks of a button while also giving students a chance to explore their creativity. It exercises both halves of the brain.

Thing # 8

I used the Big Huge Labs Jigsaw tool to create this puzzle of one of the happiest moments in my life, the 1995 Atlanta Braves championship.

All the Mashup tools are a lot of fun to use and they would be a great way to teach children how to use technology effectively while still having fun. Just by doing Thing's #7 and 8 I learned how to connect my Blogger account to my Facebook and my Flickr accounts and it was extremely simple too.

Thing # 7

Chipper Jones, Chain of Lakes Park, Winterhaven [3/28/05], a photo by dizbuster319 on Flickr.

Chipper Jones is my favorite player all-time. I have watched him play since his rookie season in 1995 and he continues to amaze me with his poise, his loyalty, and his love of the game. He could have taken more money to play in another city like almost every player these days does but even though he has been to numerous All-Star games, won the NL MVP award, and is the only Brave left from the 1995 World Series Championship team, he has spent his entire career with the Braves and will probably retire after this season. He is most of the reason I can continue being a sports fan after having my heart broken by other players who took the money and ran. He has been as exemplary off the field as on and is a genuine role model for the youth of America. He will be missed when he retires

Thing # 6

I chose Skype as my Web 2.0 tool to learn more about. I knew the basics of Skype from my time in the Army watching fellow soldiers use the service with loved ones and I also know that it is a good way of getting around a phone bill some months but that was about it. I installed Skype and linked it to my facebook contacts list and I immediately found I had quite a few friends online. We tried some video chat and got to show off our rooms and our latest gadgets. I also saw that when I searched for businesses in the area and google pulled up their information the telephone number under the address was now a link to use Skype to call that number.
Skype would be very helpful in classrooms as it has conference call features and would allow educators to answer questions e-mailed to them by students over video calls with visual aids for those students who are visual learners.

Thing # 5

School 2.0 is our way of referring to the methods of integrating the new Web 2.0 technology into our classroom. The web is quickly growing into a form of social interaction and information sharing, not just from established sources such as the Encyclopedia Britannica, but from people all over the world. Google allows us access to information that may not have been provided by a college professor or doctor, but is still viable information that we want to know immediately instead of doing heavy research. Yahoo Answers, Wikipedia, and other sites allow users to share what they know about everyday problems with others who have not yet acquired that knowledge. We can use this in our schools by requiring students to use online web resources for group projects which will in turn make it easier for them because they won't have to gather in one place anymore since they will always be connected by one device or another. Schools of the future will not be concrete concepts and buildings. They will be fluid and easily accessible on trips and from home. Homeschooling will no longer put a strain on the parents' jobs as students will still be taught by their educator online.

Thing #4

Commenting on other users' blogs lets them know that what they are writing is important to other people besides themselves. It encourages them to continue down that path and as such gives the readers a form of content control. It can also lead the blogger being read to the blogger doing the reading and expose him to new ideas that he/she might enjoy.

I enjoyed learning new terms such as trolling and the "Darth Commenter." The guidelines and tips helped me understand a little bit more about appropriate blog behavior, such as how while positive reinforcement is always nice to receive, it can really clutter up a blog if that's all people are writing. That is why Facebook has  a like button.

I commented on Ashlee's, Hyams, Corbitt, Rachel Baker's, and Kristina's 23 things blogs. I didn't have any specific reason for choosing these people other than I just picked blogs at random to read and they were the first five I had something to say to. I also started following a blog called ChopTalk, which is an Atlanta Braves fan blog because I have been a Braves fan my whole life. Finally I joined the Colbert Nation because Stephen Colbert is great at his job and while I love both him and Jon Stewart I prefer Colbert simply for his style of delivering all his sarcasm, criticisms, and jokes with the same sober newscaster face. Watching his show is a great way to enjoy watching the world burn :-)

I commented on the blogs of my classmates based on their 23 things and my feelings toward the blogs they had posted for each. I posted a cautionary comment on Ashlee's blog about the dangers of relying too heavily on technology and on Rachel's blog I talked about being careful when allowing students to join the global community during class when what they are exposed to is our responsibility as educators. I also left a comment on the Choptalk blog criticizing the lack of support for Chipper Jones who is one of the last true sportsmen in professional sports today.