According to the website, http://www.whendidyoujointwitter.com I joined Twitter on 9 March 2009. It wasn’t until early 2010, however that I started really using Twitter. I had tried many times previously to get into this social networking phenomenon but, like all things technological, I needed to see how Twitter could enrich my life in order to […]
Professional Learning
Tech Tools for Teachers #11 VoiceThread
Each week, Simon Collier and I collaborate on a weekly email newsletter called Tech Tools for Teachers to inform teachers of useful online tools. Find out more here. This week we review the website VoiceThread http://voicethread.com VoiceThread is a popular tool that allows you to narrate images, documents and videos. Others can join in the […]
Thoughts on the Ultranet
The Ultranet is a $60.5 million online portal for teachers, students and parents in Victorian government schools. After years of build up, the Ultranet was officially launched on Monday 10th May and my school was in the first group of schools to come online. The first stage of the Ultranet allows students and teachers to […]
Teach Like a Champion: A Guide for the 21st Century?
Teach Like a Champion by Doug Lemov is a book that came out in April 2010. It has the byline “49 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College” and comes with a DVD of real teachers demonstrating 25 of the techniques in the classroom. The author, Doug Lemov, is the managing director of […]
A Vision of 21st Century Teachers
I heard about this You Tube clip via a few different people on Twitter. The 4 minute video involves 18 classroom teachers “speaking out” on the topic of tech integration and 21st Century skills for students. It’s a really interesting insight into what the technology in the classroom can look like in all curriculum areas […]
Tech Tools for Teachers – Newsletter #1
As I have previously blogged about, I am collaborating with a fellow teacher Simon Collier on a weekly email newsletter for teachers called Tech Tools for Teachers. I aim to post these newsletters on this blog and have created a page where you will find PDF versions of these newsletters and find out more about […]
Digital Natives
Many people talk about the divide between digital natives and digital immigrants in today’s society. Digital natives are said to be those people who have grown up in a world of computers and 21st centuries technologies. People who are considered digital immigrants grew up before the digital age and have had to learn how to […]
More about blogging!
I am currently in the process of introducing my new Grade Two students to blogging. As this is a new concept for many students and parents I have prepared two handouts to send home to families. They are an Introduction to Blogging note and Guide to Getting the Most out of 2KM’s blog note. Feel […]
Blogging in 2010
The school year begins here on the 1st February and for the third year, I will embark on the blogging journey with my new Grade Two class. As my class will still be called 2KM, I have decided to keep my 2009 2KM blog and customise it to my 2010 class. If you are setting […]
Social Bookmarking: Delicious Vs Diigo
Always looking for ways to make my life more organised, I became a fan of social bookmarking a year or two ago. In case you are unfamiliar, social bookmarking is a way of storing, organising and sharing your favourite websites. Instead of having your favourite sites listed in your Internet browser, they are stored online […]
Teaching Technology Post “Noughties”
For a while now I have been questioning the curriculum that is seen in many primary school I.T/ICT/Technology/Computer classes. Many primary school students spend an hour each week in a computer lab learning about Office programs and the like….”how to make a PowerPoint, Word Document, Photo Story etc”. Now that we have left the “noughties”, […]
Shifts Happens: Version 4.0
Thanks to Aaron Peterson for alerting readers to the new updated “Shift Happens” video. This is the 4th version of Karl Fisch’s original thought provoking video and includes interesting facts on the changing face of technology with an emphasis on media convergence. This video was developed in partnership with The Economist and while educators are […]
Great Overview of Web 2.0 Tools
David Kapuler, who writes the blog Technology Tidbits: Thoughts of a Cyber Hero has created this excellent “blog companion” which is an overview of educational Web 2.0 tools. It’s well worth a look for all teachers and educational bloggers.
Try the Knowledge Bank Online Events
Knowledge Bank Online Events is an online professional development program for Victorian teachers. It is organised around a free online meeting space in a program called Elluminate. Activities in Elluminate are live and interactive – you use your own computer to listen, speak to others and participate in activities. Knowledge Bank offers a series of […]