Helpful math tips for fifth grade

Well, of course I would hit a wall on thing 23!  I have emailed Shelly to see if it can be fixed.  Apparently, you cannot mess up when recording via phone or they will try to charge you $10.00.

It seems kind of ironic that I would really mess up on the last thing!  That is the way technology goes with me though.  I have definitely learned by my mistakes.  What an incredibly fascinating course I have completed.  It has really opened my eyes to the world that is technology.  I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to learn about so much.  It will take literally years for me to implement all that I have learned to use for my classroom.  I am looking forward to the adventure.  I appreciate all that Shelly Paul has done for us as well as Maggy Lindler and all of my “Wiki Sisters” at Lakeview Academy.  Kristi Baer- you talked me into this, spur of the moment on a Friday morning and I am so thankful you did.  I have really enjoyed all the ups and downs with you! 

Bye for now-

I really enjoyed spending some time browsing Classroom 2.0.  I see how social networking can bring the world together.  I was reading member sites from as far away as Australia. It is very interesting to see how people can give one another advice on how to use technology in their classrooms.  While on Classroom 2.0, I found “Baseball math in your Class.”  This will be something fun to use each day because there is a math problem posed from a previous night’s game.  I have alot of baseball fans in my classroom.  It would be a great activity to start their morning with.  I dod not enjoy Ning in Education as much, although there were some interesting sites I visited.  On Classroom 2.0, I also found ways to possibly use Google Earth in my classroom.  I may consider joining Classroom 2.0 in order to be in touch with other teachers who are trying to expand the use of technology in their classroom.

I had fun playing around and editing pageflakes.  It is another useful tool out there in tech land that could be very beneficial if set up right.  I would need alot of time, but I can see parents and students using it daily.  It would be very good place to post HW and cool math websites for my students to practice.  I can see themes such as ‘Mrs. Blackwell’s fifth grade class’ or ‘math help for all.’  It seems like another very useful tool for teachers.  I also really liked the calculator function. 

I will mark this one down to try to set up this summer.  My goal is to continue to use the technology I am learning about.

Google Docs was very interesting and useful.  We created a book report rubric for second graders that we were all able to edit and have access to very easily.  I see many uses for educators. 

In fifth grade, we work as a team of three.  We could create activities for our homeroom classes and we could add and edit these activities as needed.  Each of us would be able to have inout and we could make it perfect for our grade level together.  This would be a good collaborative use of Google docs.

I could create a spreadsheet for the students to use when they finish and master math facts.  They could “own” the fact that they have to check themselves off of the spreadsheet. 

I also think it would be a great way for students to keep track of novels they have read.  They may also be able to suggest ideas to others.

I plan on using Google Docs in the near future.

Download Video: Posted by cameen at TeacherTube.com.

This was a fun video that I will show when I begin Geometry.  I had fun watching many videos in Teacher Tube and YouTube.  YouTube had some very funny videos that sucked away an hour of my time!  It is very addicitve.  I found more than two videos about teaching math.  The one I looked up for fun is of the cruise director from our spring break trip on the Freedon of the Seas.  His “Evolution of Dance” was hilarious.  I will try to attach it. 

In TeacherTube, I saw where teachers had actually made web vidoes of their students.  Telling jokes and sharing projects are two things I noticed.  This would be a good way for parents to see what is happening in the classroom.  I can tell that I have much more to see on YouTube.  I will explore it more when I have time.

I have tried twoce to attach the YouTube video of Richard Spacey.  For some reason, it is not working.  You can log onto YouTube and put in Richard Spacey.  His Evolution of Dance will come right up.

Have fun!

Here is my podcast explaining how students could use podcasts in the classroom.  I was so proud of myself for doing this and you were right, it was so easy!  I think that is the trouble for most people with technology- this all sounds so scary.  But I am finding that once I try it, I become so much more comfortable with it! 

Podcasting- interesting.  I felt as if I was just listeneing to a high-tech radio.  I explored some of the podcasts in the Grazer and found some interesting ones.  Some in the math section would definitely be over my students’ heads, but I can see where upper school and college students would find them interesting and helpful.  I also listened to s few from the teaching section and I really liked the Tech Chicks podcast.  I think podcasting would be beneficial as a way to learn new ideas in teaching.  Students would listen to math ideas, I think, simply because they have ipods and are comfortable with this type of communication.  I do not have an ipod or MP3 player, but I see how the technology is going that way.  I enjoyed finding out about this interesting topic.

Oops!  I forgot to blog about Flikr.  Click here http://k12l20sandbox.wikispaces.com/Cruise+Girlto see the slide show I added to myWiki page Check it out!  I would use it when i taught social studies and wanted to show pictures of the signing of our nation’s important documents. 

Although interesting, I do not see much use in 43 Things for me personally or for me as a teacher.  I think is could be motivating for some people, but I have enough family and friends to cheer me on.  I do not see the need to post my goals online for the world to comment on or to see.  It is also dangerous to use this in your classroom with some of the topics on the Zeitgeist.  I guess for students, they could cheer eachother on and reflect on their goals.  I was disappointed with this activity.

I have found an excellent resource!  Library Thing is wonderful.  After browsing this site, I recommend it for teachers of all subjects.  Professionally and in the classroom, I can see myself using this to find books on certain topics and to recommend books to students.  I especially liked the author search capability.  It lists books by that author.  I would find this to be an excellent tool for school librarians and I will recommend it to mine.  She could easily give students book titles for authors they enjoy reading.  I also checked out the groups section and found a helpful children’s literature group.  We are currently searching for a new novel for our fifth graders, so I will check this part of Library Thing.  I am very thankful to have found this new site.