Thing #12

Just like almost everyone else, I am very guilty of using google search for anything and everything. Other than google search, the only other thing I have used in google is google maps, which i use on my phone everytime I travel. Everything else however is very new to me. The first thing I played with and created in google was google calendar. I am very ocd and have tons of organizers and planners, so the google calendar was actually very useful for me. I also found it very easy to use. You just click on the day and write your reminder and the time. The google calendar is also great because you can set it up to alert on your phone as a reminder as well. The google calendar will be very helpful for me as a teacher because I can post all important dates and homework assignents that the students and parents will need for the year, and send them the link that they can pull up and look at any time. Here is the link to my calendar for the month of march! https://www.google.com/calendar/render?pli=1

The second tool I created was an igoogle page. This was also really easy to do and I really had fun doing it. I love how you can personalize the page the way you want using the add gadgets button.  A few things I added was daily horoscopes, quote of the day, and my personalized google calendar. You also can add games and sign up for weather alerts. There is so many things you can do just by using this one page its crazy! I love it, and have even already set it as my homepage on my computer. Here is the link to my profile:
https://www.google.com/calendar/render?pli=1

Thing #11

When playing around with the other tools other than google to search for new blogs using the RSS reader, I found myself constantly going back to google reader everytime. I just really think google reader is the easiest and most efficient for searching for the topics that i am interested in. While playing with technorati, i found it to be pretty easy to use. The only think that makes it less appealing to google reader is that in your search you have to be a lot more specific or you will get pages and pages of blogs that sometimes were not even what you were intending to search for. With topix, the first thing I did not like was that you had to create a login in before you could even began your search. After creating the login i was kind of disappointed. Topix is more of a new media search tool, not really for looking up peoples personalized web blogs. Also Topix uses key words or phrases only in the search tool, so you have to really narrow down what you are intending to search to get any kind of results, which for me was not very many.

I found many interesting blogs while doing the search however. Of course I subcribed to the cool cat teacher blog. I also found http://educationcloset.com/, which is a great blog I found using technorati, where the author shares personal experiences of her life as an elementary school teacher, mother, and professional photographer, which I found very interesting to me because I to am a mother, will be teaching elementary education and love to take picutres! It is amazing the stuff you can find using these tools.

Thing #10

I have never used RSS reader before, to be honest I have never even heard of it. I am glad I do now though, it is such a great tool! What I like most about it is that it is super easy to use. After setting up my account which only took a few minutes, I immediately saw the subscribe button and started adding feeds to my reader. The first thing i added was the pioneer women because after you showed us in class i fell in love with that blog and find it to be so interesting, quilty i know. I also think the recommended subcribers link is very cool. It brings up a whole page of other readers you might be interested in subscribing too.

I think RSS is an awesome tool for any teacher. Not only does it help you organize, but it also saves you time, which are two very important things for teachers. I think teachers could use RSS to share websites and links that they find for students when discussing certain topics. I also think many links and websites could be provided to the parents using RSS, such as the school website or tutorials to help the children with homework at home. RSS is also a great way to follow other teachers blogs and get updates on what they are doing in their classroom that might also work for you. It is a great and efficient way to share ideas and i think all teachers would enjoy it if they took the time to  make one.

Thing #9

I used imagechef to create this banner for my blog. I thought imagechef was a very fun site genorator. I chose to personalize my blog with the banner option, but there were many other options to do on the site such as sketchpad, word mosiacs where you can pick your own words to put into it, and personalized photo cards and banners.

I also used custom sign generator to make a personalized license plate of where i was born and raised. I thought this was so fun to do and I think students of any age would enjoy making up there own funny signs and comics to share with the class.

Thing #8

I thought playing with the mashups was very fun. I really enjoyed the spelling one. I think it is so cool that they find random images to spell out words, and I think kids in my classroom would really enjoy this too. I would love to let all my students do this on the first day of class so they could have fun but also get to know me and there other classmates in a new and exciting way. I think many of the mashups I played with could be integrated into the classroom to make some learning fun. The puzzle could make for a really fun project for younger kids to do. Also, putting images on maps could help make history fun and enjoyable!

Thing #7

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hudamamat/4608686288/

Exploring Flickr was very fun for me because I have never had anything like it. I think is it a great site, espicially for photographers or people who take a lot of pictures and want to share them or organize them a certain way. I chose this picture because i found it to be a beautiful picture and the quote is an amazing inspiration for current and future teachers.

The process of uploading the picture in my blog was very complicated for me. I am not very good and working with URL's and stuff, so this was all new to me and I know im still learning. I do however love getting the chance to learn about new websites such as Flickr and I definetely think I would use this in my future classroom to take pictures and let the parents view them and make them feel part of their childrens day and let me carry on the memories of my classes as they come and go.

Thing #6

The web 2.0 tool I chose to explore was Remember the Milk (RememberTheMilk.com). This website is the best way to manage your tools online. I have used it for about a year now and love it.  Managing tasks is generally not a fun way to spend your time.  Remember The Milk was created so that you no longer have to write your to-do lists on sticky notes, whiteboards, random scraps of paper, or the back of your hand and end of loosing all of them after you take the time to write it down anyways. You can also integrate it with your gmail and it is now an app for apple and android phones, so you have all your task right there are your phone for on the go as well.

I think this would be a great tool for teachers, not only for personal use but for work too. We all know being a teacher can and will get very hetic, but we also know the importance of being a organized teacher. Remember the milk will help you be just that, and it is very easy to use!