Web+2.0

Alyson Fletcher June 29th, 2010 EDT 3010 Web 2.0

I was amazed by the information and resources that Web 2.0 offers. There is literally a tool for anything you could possibly need for a classroom, workplace or personal use. The amount of information available for classroom use is wonderful. Web 2.0 makes it easy to create whatever you need to make the classroom and learning experience successful and fun. Web 2.0 offers step by step instruction to create learning materials, which for someone like me that is not completely computer savvy, so easy. The five Web 2.0 tools that I have selected are; presentation tools, research tools, creativity tools, writing tools and quiz and poll tools. Of these five Web 2.0 tools I chose I have selected two resources for each to discuss. I have always had trouble when I’ve had to write power point presentations. The trouble wasn’t with the content but more the design of the power point. It is difficult for me to know how to use the tools that are provided to make the power point slides visually interesting, but upon researching the presentation tools that are provided I realized that it is not that difficult to design an interesting presentation that can be used in my teacher education as well as in my classroom when time comes. The two tools that I selected to discuss for presentation are Museum Box and Format Pixel. Museum Box is a program that provides tools for you build up and argument or description of an event, person or historical period. This program enables you to virtually display this information along with text, images, video and sound. This tool could be very helpful in the classroom when teaching and learning about a specific historical event like for example The Holocaust. Information about The Holocaust can be unloaded into this program and designed by you to use in your classroom. The second tool I selected is Format Pixel. Format Pixel is an online program where you can create your own magazines, brochures, catalogues, portfolios and more. This program would be helpful in the classroom when learning about the world and the students could use this program to make a brochure about a specific place they have selected. If your students were doing a lesson in poetry for example, you the teacher could use this program to combine the student’s favorite self-written poetry into a magazine for students to have. Researching for a topic of a paper you are writing or a presentation you are presenting is not always fun, but the tools provided in Web 2.0 make researching more fun and educational. The research tools provide access to just general information needed like what Info Please offers, which is general searches plus almanacs, biographies, dictionaries, encyclopedias and spelling. This tool would be helpful in the classroom when students need basic information about a specific topic they are discussing. Like if for example if your students are doing a research paper about an animal they chose, they could use this tool to find the information they need. Another tool that I found that I liked is SchoolWAX TV. This program provides videos that are educator approved. This makes it easier to know which videos are okay to use in the classroom without worrying if there is content that isn’t appropriate. These videos can be used with homework and also if a student needs some extra help in a certain subject. Creativity is an essential part of a successful learning environment for students. When a teacher is creative with the lesson they are teaching, the students become more interested and involved in the learning process. Creativity makes learning fun. The teachers that stand out the most in my mind from my education thus far have been the most creative. The creativity tools I will discuss are Class Tools and Diffen. Class Tools provides a free way to create educational games, activities and diagrams. This tool would be helpful in all aspects of students’ education. Games and activities can be applied in math, science, history, etc. Games can be used when learning long division or Colorado history. The second tool, Diffen, which I chose because I thought it was interesting, is a program where you enter in two words and the program compares and contrasts them for you. This could be helpful in the classroom when students are learning the differences in words that sound the same but are spelled differently and mean different things. Like their and there or affect and effect. When I took my teaching writing class a few semesters ago, I found out that over the course of the semester, we would be writing a children’s book. At first I was worried because I’ve never written and illustrated a book before, but after it was turned and we received the finished hard cover copy, I felt like I had really accomplished something. The reason the professor gave us this assignment was to show us that teaching writing can be done in many ways; also this also gave us a resource to use in our own classrooms some day. Many of the writing tools provided in Web 2.0 are similar to this. The two I chose to discuss are Tikatok and Confusing Words. Tikatok is most similar to the book I wrote for my course, but it is all online. You can create a book and upload images. The book can be viewed online, sent via email or you can even purchase a hard copy. I know that when I’m teaching writing, I will definitely use a version of this. The second writing tool I chose is Confusing Words which is a collection of words that are difficult to readers and writers. I liked this program because I know there are a few words which I misspell all the time. This program can be used in the classroom for when students are having a hard time spelling or reading certain words. The last tool I chose is quiz and poll tools. The reason I chose this was more for a teachers benefit. Hot Potatoes is a program that has six applications helping you to create interactive multiple-choice, short answer, jumbled-sentence, crossword, matching/ordering and fill in the gap exercises. I think this tool would be helpful to teachers when it comes to writing tests and quizzes as well as making worksheets. Quizlet is a tool where you can study vocabulary, science, math and history and use this tool to make flashcards for a helpful study tool. This tool would be beneficial to both teachers and students.