Thursday, January 28, 2010

The New Apple ipad

A lot of hubbub has been going around about this new tablet that Apple was coming out with, but I am not so sure it is that different from things like the iphone and the ipod touch.  Although it does have a bigger screen and using it in the classroom would be better than using ipod touches.  For one thing, since the ipod touch costs between $299- $499 I really wouldn't mind paying $499 for the ipad in my classroom.  I think if would be a lot easier for the children to manipulate items and to view the content.

Anyway...it will be a while before we ever get one in our school, but in the meantime you can take a look at this video and find out more about the ipad.  Especially pay attention to the last part of the segment on ACU down in Texas.  I have a good friend down there that is part of the faculty.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Virtual Field Trips

I steal so much good stuff!  Field trips are hard to come by these days.  I remember going on field trips to the Campus Martius Museum, the Cook House, and even to Washington D.C. in sixth grade!  Kids don't get many of these experiences because of budget cuts and time requirements during the school day.  Although it is not the same as being there in person, many virtual field trips provide great visual aids for students.  I recently stole a few from a fellow blogger that I thought you might enjoy.

UPM- Forest Life-  This is one of the best virtual field trips I have seen!  It teaches the children about conservation practices while allowing them to explore nature on a walk through the forest.  Great, great, great site!   http://w3.upm-kymmene.com/upm/forestlife/index.html

Smithsonian- Of course anything that has to do with the Smithsonian is going to be great.  The children can virtually walk through the museum and look at the different exhibits.  You can even interact with some. http://www.mnh.si.edu/panoramas/#

PlanetInAction-     Use Google Earth to go on different adventures in the classroom through this website.  http://planetinaction.com/places.htm 

ARSights- I haven't tried this, but the website says that you can view 3D buildings on your desk  Yes, I mean beside your computer...not on your desktop in your computer!  Go to the website and watch the video explaining what you need to do.  You will need to download their software, print off a piece of paper so it knows where to postition the building, and you will need a webcam.  I really want to test this out!  http://www.arsights.com/index.php

Friday, January 22, 2010

Natural Disaster Links

With all the natural disasters that have been taking place recently I thought I would post a couple sites about them.

This site is from the University of Illinois Extension called Shake, Rattle, and Slide and it is full of information that is read to the student.  It also has many video clips and animations to better explain the processes.

Storm Chasers is a site that has beautiful pictures of storms.  It is all presented as an audio slideshow from one of the storm chasers.  I just love to watch and listen to storms so I really enjoyed this site!

These other two sites came from another blog that I follow.  I posted about this blog about a week ago and I really enjoy the sites that she comments about.  The two sites come from National Geographic and the Discovery Channel.  Please check them out!

Monday, January 11, 2010

ilearntechnology

I ran across this blog the other day and I knew I needed to share it.  It has a wealth of information on technology in the classroom from a Technology Integration Specialist in Colorado.  She is always updating the blog with new tools and websites for your classroom.

Definitely check it out.  Just click on the words above and it will take you to her page.

Blogging Newbie

I am hopeful that you will benefit from spending your time in front of the computer browsing this blog!  I will be posting here on a regular basis and trying to share some tech that I have learned along the way.  Most of what I share comes from the people I follow on Twitter or other blogs.  Please feel free to use whatever I post and tell other people about this blog!