Thing #3

Skype could be used in some sort of international collaborative project, which would be super cool! I could have used it last year when the H1N1 virus surfaced to compare how the precautions we took compare to that of other countries. We could use it in a lab situation...perform same experiment and share results to have a more trials for more accurate data, etc, etc. Seems neat!

Thing #2

Wordle is pretty cool for non-educational stuff, but there are plenty of ways that students could utilize this tool. Definitely in a language arts setting, this could be used for a poetry unit or lesson and as the intro states, it could be used to find the main idea of an article or essay in any discipline.

Glogster wouldn't necessarily require different thinking, but it could. Neither scenarios would be bad. A student would probably simplify their finished project if using Glogster, which could make the student think about what is really important - not a bad thing!

Animoto is super easy to use. I have had students use it for projects before (an animal kingdom project) and they seem to enjoy using it also. I probably could use it when introducing the kingdoms or maybe different types of bacteria...I don't know. I'd have to work out the particulars. As with many of these things, using them in a science classroom takes a little thought and tweeking. Voki could be used to add voice messages to my assignment website & class blog. I think the kids would get a kick out of it, although I've heard that the district filters block Voki...silly!

Bookr - Here is one way I thought of using Bookr as an introduction to biology on parent night or the first day of school. Intro to Biology by Mrs. Hiler Students could use this instead of PowerPoint. I found Bookr to be frustrating to use though...I had to fight with the pictures to go in the place I wanted them, so I'm not sure I would use this.

Thing #1

The connectivist teacher's role at first glance is minimal since the student is in charge of much of his learning, but when one thinks about it, the teacher is the facilitator. He/she will instruct the student on how to use the tools in his tool box. He or she will also guide the student as they implement theses tools. This is the epitome of student led learning, which is what our ultimate classroom goal should be. The video, while very dry, illustrates just how easily a well-connected student can embody student-led instruction/learning. I think a librarian could easily play the role described by the video.

Here I go again...

11.5 more things to learn about, so here I go!