Presentations on Tues, April 28th

Erin did amazing! I want to use that in my classroom someday! :D :D :D I think she went above and beyond!

Facebook!

I went and looked on facebook for different organizations dealing with children because I am becoming an elementary teacher. I found all kinds of organizations that you can join, such as Change For the Children School Organization, Stop Domestic Violence and Child Abuse, and Devotion to Children. I think that these organizations are good for awareness. It helps the users of facebook to be aware of the different problems with the children in our world.

Frontline Video-The Internet

I think that the internet can be dangerous, but has many good resources. The internet has quite the impact on children because of the world that we live in today. Our world has turned into a booming technology age. The internet can be used for anything in this day and age and I think that this impacts kids both negatively and positively. The negative impacts can include cyber bullying, being the victim of fraud, obtaining a stalker, etc. These things can be avoided in my opinion. Children need to be informed of how to stay safe on the internet. I think that it is our jobs as future educators to start educating them at an early age. Children need to learn what to avoid, and what and what not to do to stay safe. They also need to learn the consequences and the potential dangers so that they are aware. I think this knowledge alone will help childern to stay safe. I think that it promotes education if it is used in the right way. As an elementary teacher I don't think I will have to worry about the internet in use of cheating, but my students will have to learn that it is wrong, so that they don't cheat when they get older. It is hard to draw the line of what is cheating and what is not. I think that the students need to know their boundaries for the classroom they are in and follow the teacher's rules. I don't really worry about my students cheating because of the age that I plan to teach. I do however, intend to inform them on the dangers of the internet and how to properly use it. I also will inform them on what cheating is and that it is wrong. I don't think that there is much more that I can do as an elementary educator. (K-3)

Post Spring Break

The students were crazy and definitely not ready to come back to school after a week off. The energy level was very high, and it was hard to get them to focus!

Dr. Suess

It was Dr. Suess' birthday and there are so many fun things that you can do throughout the week for students. It is crucial to read to your students, and even more crucial to have activities that accompany the literature that you read to them. My favorite example of an activity would be to make actual green eggs and ham! :D

Grading Assignments

I recently was grading worksheets for my kindergarten students, and I realized how much easier it would be if their assignments were on the computer somehow and I could grade them on there. My high lighter even started running out of ink. I think that even the younger students would have fun doing computer work, and it would take a little weight off of my shoulders to be able to go on the computer and grade it.

Today in Kindergarten

Project based learning for Kindergarten works so well most of the time. Sometimes it is chaotic and crazy, but most of the time the students work really well together, and get their work done. The students enjoy helping each other to learn and to get assignments done. They will need to learn to work with others anyways, so why not start early on their interpersonal skills.

Symposium on Water

I was not a fan of the symposium on water. I thought that the artwork was amazing, but I didn't understand how everything tied together. I mean I know it was supposed to be about water, but they needed to tie every speaker together. I was pretty bored because the water laws, water ordinances, etc, do not directly apply to my daily life. If I were a farmer around Torrington, WY, I would definitely have benefited from the presentation. I did, however, think that the technology used was appropriate and helped the audience to see what the speaker was talking about. I doubt I will ever go to another symposium again... I found it to be very outdated for my lifestyle.

Today In Class

Today in my kindergarten class I had a little girl who I like to call "antsy-pantsy" pick her nose and eat it. I found this to be very interesting, and quite gross actually. I didn't know what to say or do. I didn't want other students to make fun of her or draw attention to her. I laughed inside though, and I will always remember the day that I first caught a student picking their nose!

Kindergarten compared to First Grade-Reading to Them

I have noticed that kindergarteners are harder to get on task and focused than first graders. While reading a story, kindergarteners will raise their hands to share a story that relates to the story being read. At times, their stories have nothing to do with the out loud reading. On the other hand, first graders will sit through a story and listen. A few may raise their hands, but their comments usually pertain to what the story is about.