Thing #12

MyCalendar
The first tool I used was Google calendar. This seemed like something I could definitely use. I typed in when each of my classes were and even set them up to repeat on specific days. This will be one of the most helpful tools I can use. I have such a hectic schedule with school, work, and family events. I have a calendar on my phone, but having one on Google allows me to share all of my free time with my friends. Instead of us all worrying about when we might all be free we can just compare calendars. This is a perfect tool for a college student, especially one who is living away from home.
Translation
The next tool I used was the translation tool. Being a foreign language minor, this application is ideal. It is hard to find ways to translate phrases without having errors. This site gives you many options to not only translate phrases, but also search for them. In both situations these sites may be more useful for educators behind the desk than in front of the classroom. These two tools will help the teacher with many different tasks they will face throughout the school year. Everywhere from planning field trips to understanding a student who does not speak English so well, or even at all.

Thing #11

It was no surprise to me that the Google Blog search was the easiest way to find feeds. The other two tools available were confusing. Topixnet had a plethora of pop ups and Technorati had way too many options. It seems that every time I have to pick between different sites Google always comes out on top. Google sites are more helpful than any other sites I have ever used. The most confusing search tool was Topixnet. The second I clicked on it there was flashing and some weird pop up. This site was highly unprofessional and probably not reliable. One of the interesting sites I found was through Cool Cat Teacher's blog. This blog feed is called 2cent worth. This gentleman has some pretty good posts about education. There was one unusual feed that looked like it would be something I was interested in. The name of it was npr. When I clicked on the link it only had one post and it was irrelevant to what I was thinking.  

thing #10

 The RSS and newreaders makes finding the information you want even easier. Instead of having to use a search engine to find one simple answer to a question on a website you can just put it in your feed. This way you can constantly be updated with information you're interested in. This is a great way to spend time reading the important subjects from a specific site instead of reading the entire site waiting to find one thing out. As an educator I could use this to see what new and innovative things are coming up with education. I could also use this to facilitate a discussion question for the beginning of class. One of the sites I actually added to my feed is the History Channel site. This would be perfect for a social studies topic. The students could us this site to see there interests or even for information about a class they are taking. There really are an endless amount of options for the websites that have a news feed.

thing #9

http://www.signgenerator.org/

This is the first site I played around with. Signgenerateor was a very easy website to navigate. All I had to do was pick which sign I wanted to alter and then type the text I wanted to use. Younger students would love to go on this site and make all different kinds of signs. This would be a great project for art teachers, computer teachers, and for any teacher wanting the students to use unique pictures. I could see students using this sign generator a lot in social studies projects.

http://www.imagechef.com

This is the second site I created a special imagine in. This is actually the second copy of this image. The first picture I made somehow got deleted when I was requested to create an account for this website. So, I strongly suggest anyone who is planning on spending a good amount of time creating an image, make sure you create a profile first. Other than that one mess up this site was easy to figure out. I had fun finding an image that would look somewhat realistic placed on grass. I believe this site could be used for the exact same reasons as the first site I listed. Even really young students will be able to figure this site out. As for recreational use, this would be a great way to create fun and different greeting card images for all sorts of holidays.

Thing #8

This website was somewhat difficult to figure out, but I eventually got used to it. Flickr would be a fun site to use in one's spare time, but it might take up too much valuable time in the classroom. This would be an assignment I would go over in class and then see if they could complete the rest of the assignment as homework. Students would benefit from Flickr, but it is a very time consuming website that is mostly made for recreational purposes. The most useful place for a site like this would be in a technology based classroom. If the school had a 'computer lab' time this would be an ideal project.

Thing #7

Exploring Flickr was pretty fun. I had some trouble finding a photo that I could save. I also had a little trouble figuring out how to save an image. After I figured all of that out I explored many of the different pictures from around the world. The one in particular that I chose to share was taken in Japan. I have never seen the sun look more beautiful. This is the picture I found:

The artist goes by Sprengben on Flickr and here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sprengben/6830207657/lightbox/.

Thing #6

I chose photobucket as my favorite site from the 2.0 sites. I have been using this site for about five or six years. In my spare time I will take a picture and add different affects to it. There are so many options for altering photos that I can spend hours playing with this site. When it comes to a school using this site, I actually see a few fun ideas. If you are an art teacher this is a great free way to let your students play around with photo design. Also, any other kind of teacher can suggest this site to their students to edit pictures to put on a powerpoint. This is just one photo I edited a few years ago:

This is a link that that site I enjoy so much: www.photobucket.com.

Thing #5

 This first website I visited was Web 2.0: A Guide for Educators. I found this site to be slightly outdated and redundant. The definitions and examples were ones that I have been hearing about for the past five or so years. I didn't feel like I learned anything from that blog. It wasn't terrible, but it was difficult to read something I already know. I was thinking these websites would tell us how teachers can integrate technology in the classroom. Instead this blog told me what technology is out there. The second vblog I read, Web 2.0: Is the Future of Education, was about how professionals can help teachers with education. This vblog was much more interesting. She explained how teachers need technology, but they do not need to be completely emerged into every nuance of technology all at once. She said that at one point they chose a few schools to completely emerge in technology. This idea did not work to their advantage. The teachers who received all this new technology felt overwhelmed. It was decided that multiple schools need a slow progression into technology.
Web 2.0 means education will never be the same. As we progress more and more there are easier, more efficient ways to do almost anything. Technology makes life extremely simple at times. Students already have tools the find almost anything they can imagine. As we develop it becomes hard to imagine exactly how different our classrooms may become. This ever increasing technology will make classrooms even more interactive between the teachers and students. The school system may also be altered. It is hard to visualize the school I went to as a child never being the same again, but it is a move in the right direction.

thing #4

The blogging community would not be nearly as thorough if people merely wrote blogs. Commenting on other people's blogs gives the blogger a chance to reflect on what they previously wrote. The other very important thing is the person who is commenting gets the opportunity to share his or her opinion. After this commenting starts it is like a network of ideas and opinions that can sometimes turn into a never ending circle. Commenting on blogs will also introduce you to people you may have never otherwise met. These people in turn could read your blog and leave important comments. You could then turn around and check out their blog. All of this networking will expand your thoughts and experiences about blogging. The five blogs I read and then commented on are:
Grooveshark thing 6 :) (Shelby Rogers)
Thing 6 (Kayla Satterly)
Thing 6 (Roy Lane)
Thing 8 (Erin Beifuss)
Thing # 5 (Leslie Littleton)
The first blog of my selection that I read was: 'New Music I Love: Pearl and the Beard' on the website 'bethinglish'. First I watched the video that is attached. The video was of a three person band playing one of there songs. I was surprised to find out that what I randomly found was actually really good. My comment pretty much stated how much I agreed with that person on their opinion on the band. The two found the band to be surprisingly good. The next blog I decided to read was title 'can you cook'. The specific recipe I read was how to bake salmon. I was so excited to find a simple recipe that still sounds delicious. My comment was pretty much just to tell the blogger how enthused I am about trying out this recipe.