Edmodo

Welcome back friends to my latest post. I have a quick question for you. How many of you have a Facebook My Space or some other type of social media account. Ok times up. I take it that most of you ( probable around ninety percent of you) do. Well now think about it in an educational setting. Imagine a place where you can post new class assignments any daily announcements and other random items that students are always asking for. Well guess what my education friends there is this wonderful place and it is called Edmodo.

So why choose a social networking site when many of my students already have one. First of all Edmodo was created by teachers so it is completely safe to use. Also you do not have to worry about blocking or removing all the items that you do not want your students to see. Another perk to Edmodo is that you control who has acces to the page and who doesn't. Also it is a great way to keep parents informed without having to respond to a million emails every night. Students will have full access accounts that allow them to talk with you and with their classmates about assignments upcoming projects and even tests. And the coup de gra its FREE!!!

So how will I use this? You all know that I have been working on a curriculum project all about lab safety and the scientific method. Using Edmodo I can upload videos and diagrams about the scientific method. Also I will be able to put up a lab safety contract that every student and parent will be required to sign after the completion of the curriculum project. Also this is an easy way for my students and myself to keep track of their overall progress throughout the project.

Overall Edmodo is a great tool that can turn your classroom into an online community. Imagine a world where everything you and your students need is all in one place. Well its here. Get going.  

App Reveiw

Alright friends, its time to take a look some educational apps. Being an inspiring teacher I am always looking for new ways to incorporate technology in the classroom. If you have been following the past few posts you know we have been working on a curriculum project.  My focus has been on the scientific method and lab safety. These two topics are taught every year so students can lose interest quickly. While doing my my research I found an app that is entertaining and will definately  keep your students interested. The app is called Brainpop. Brainpop is an animated education site for kids. This site includes videos quizes and games for six different subject areas. The videos are extremely well done and are short enough to keep even the youngest learners interested. The best part of this app are the quizes. They not only cover the content but word origin and critical thinking skills. The app is easy to navigate and overall its fantastic.

Action Slides

Hello again! This weeks assignment was all about taking the first part of our project and expanding on it. Again there will be another wonderful diagram. This time it is brought to us by PowerPoint (sorry no Inspiration :( Hope you like it.