I have just looked at some of the voice threads that some of the students at the ECDC have created. They were really great! I have commented on the mosquito, salamander, the butterflies and moths and the ants projects. They had some very interesting facts. I learned alot by watching these voicethreads.

I was really impressed with how well they understood the blog and how much fun they had with the whole project. On the first day I worked on the KWL chart with the mosquito group and they were already ready very enthusiastic about the whole project and being able to type in the computer.

I went back the following week to find that they were already working on voicethreads and powerpoints to up load on to there blog. I was really amazed on how well they responed to the whole research.

Great Job ECDC!

I had a great experience with the students at the ECDC. Although I did not just help one group during my visits, I got to see how excited the students were about their projects. On that first day that we visited with the students we really had no idea were we needed to start. Then I went back the following week and it was a whole different atmosphere. Everyone was busy working on the computers or at their tables. After just a week they had really begin to understand the blog and they just knew that they wanted to type something. I think they really got play with the computer and understand how much they could really do. I think we really opened their eyes to how much fun research and projects could be. I was even amazed with how much they wanted to do and learn about.

I think that when I have my one classroom I will wanted to do this kind of project with my students. Depending on the age group I will probably have parents involved with helping at home on the computer. It will take alot of work explaining and alot of patience with parents who are not real familiar with the computer but in the end I think the parents will really appreciate the experience. I think that students need more of these kinds of experiences. Students are not real excited about book and paper assignments anymore. They need more hands on research experiences.

Over all this experience with the students has really been great!

The following link will take you to My Wedding Budget spreadsheet.
Using spreadsheets in the classroom is very challenging and helpful for students. Spreadsheets can be used to calculate all the formulas for projects. The student will also have a printout of everything that is needed for a project and costs.

I can use a spreadsheet like this in the classroom to allow the students to calculate expenses for a project they are seeking. It will also allow students to figure out what if questions. One guided question I will use to guide the students is "List the items you will need for your project?" My second question will be "Estimate what each item will cost." Third I will ask them to "How much money do you actually have for your project."

My project plan and storyboard address the 7 elements of digital storytelling because first of all it has a point of view that of which is about sleep and how certain foods could give you the energy if you have not had enough sleep. The question that will be answered at the end of this project is "Could certain foods give me the energy I need to function through the day?" I will use my voice to help my students understand how to choose healthy foods to make up for the lack of sleep. I could also use music that is upbeat and will not put me to sleep in order to help me to function throughout the day. I will simply put it in a way that the viewer gets the point of what foods to eat and music to listen to. I will also pace myself so that each slide is clear and to the point. The following is a link to my unit question and TEKS.

Digital storytelling is a way to bring the past and the present together when telling a story. This enables a person to enrich the story they are trying to tell. With digital storytelling a person can use other tools to help bring their story to life. Digital storytelling helps in having a visual for you to look at like google maps. It brings the focus on a specific topic using computer-based images, text,recorded audio narration and video clips.
There are so many ideas that can be used when thinking about VoiceThread in the classroom. Most importantly using Voice Thread in the classroom can allow the students to listen to children around the world comment on what they have created and they can also learn what children from other cultures think. It would also allow students to listen and learn other languages. SlideShare would enable students to also post presentations to peers around the world and to get feedback. Using SlideCasts also helps students to create a site where the students could tell their stories. I will be able to use the three when the students are researching about how sleep affects the way you think and function at school.
In my classroom I would like to use the three by having the students tell the story of themselves on the first day of school. I would also like to use the slideshare and the slidecast to share their stories with students around the world.

Using a variety of internet resources will help my students to better understand how to research their topics of interest. I envision using google blog search in the classroom and teaching the students how to customize their search. They can even begin to get the information sent to them using the google reader. I envision my classroom using the internet to broaden thier understanding of research. The following page will help my students when researching.

This topic on "Boggers Who Help You Teach" addresses the issue that some educators complain about , "there just isn't enough training for teachers on how to use technology in the classroom". Teachers just aren't sure on how to create these lessons that use technology. To some educators technology is scary and a lot of work if you don't know the first thing about the technology. For some administrators it just isn't a priority and they feel that they can't spend the time to train teachers on using the new technology that is out there.
As talked about in this blog (http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/?p=1678), the new and exciting things to learn using technology can't be taught in a workshop but is rather learned through doing and trying in the classroom. It is also learned through talking and creating with other co-workers. You as the teacher is going to have to want to have a learing environment that is rich and exciting inorder for you to want to learn how to use the technology. If you aren't one of those teachers then you are going to find it difficult to learn and even if you did attend workshops, you still would not get it.