Day16-17

I know that I have missed a couple of days. :( I got a 5 day weekend due to using the wrong calendar for classes. I was kinda upset when I got the phone call yesterday telling me that I had class this morning. It's okay. Now I know we won't have to go until Aug. 13th. I'm still waiting to get into my classroom, but I will go up Friday to check it out and to start planning where I'm going to put stuff. I can't wait! Well I better get ready for class. Wish me LUCK!

Day 15

Yesterday was the last day for our June classes. :( Two down and __ more to go. I got home yesterday and CRASHED! I was so tired. I've learned a lot from those two classes. I'm very grateful to have great instructors and I can't wait to use all my new techniques and strategies in my classroom.

Today has been very productive, so far. I've vacuumed, did laundry, water the flowers and garden, cleaned up my files on my computer (my computer is actually running a bit faster). Now I plan on finishing organizing my books and my files. Wish me luck!

Have a Great day and enjoy the sunshine!

Day 14

Today was a LONG day! That research class is getting to me. I keep telling myself that it's going to be okay. :) I had fun in our first class today because we had some interesting groups present. After the presentations we had an ice cream social with the former CADRE people. That was nice, except the new CADRE people were worried about getting work done.

Tech class was filled with getting last minute work done and talking about our choice projects. It was going well until Skip (instructor) made most of us cry because he and Ross (other instructor) are no longer going to be with the CADRE program due to new jobs. :) I'm so glad I was in this class with them because I heard about years before (Yikes)! I truly have learned a lot in this class. It's actually stuff that I can use in my classroom and I know my Kiddos will love it.

I'm tired so I'm going to bed! PEACE :)

Day 13

Today is a GREAT day! The sun is shining and it's a beautiful day! Today in my first class I got my first graduate level paper back. I was so nervous to get it back, but it was good. I just have to go back and fix some mistakes. I'm so excited!!!!!!!!

So, last night was our first night in Research class. Again, I was so nervous and scared, but it turned out to be okay. I know its going to be lots of work, but I can do it! This night class was also the reason why I did not blogg last night. :(

Right now I'm sitting in tech class watching these amazing and funny imoves. I can't wait to get into my classroom and use the technology.

Well I better get back to paying attention :)

Day 12

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. I spent some time outside yesterday and this morning. I watched my niece and nephew yesterday morning. I took them to my niece's swim lessons. She did amazing! That girl can swim and she's not afraid to jump off the diving board. I was so proud of her. Unfortunately, she did not pass. :( I think she should have passed because she was amazing. I think they just want their money. I kept telling her that its okay and she can try again, but I could see it in her face that she was upset :( It broke my heart.

Yesterday afternoon I spent some time on my choice projects. I finished my bitstrips and started to add pictures to my prezi. I'm going to work on my website today.

This morning I read my lit. circle book and laid out at the same time. I'm one of those people who likes to lay out and get burned. That's the only way I can get tanned. :)

Enjoy your weekend!

Day 11

OMG!!! Today I turned in my Lit. Review (YAH!) and now I'm nervous on how I did. I'm a little upset that I could not join the other CADRE's for fun at Old Chicago. But I'm having fun with my niece and nephew.

Now I have to finish my choice projects and my stuff for my other class. There goes another weekend. I have to admitt that I enjoy working on my choice projects. :)

Well I better go for now.
Have a great day!

Article Review #2

The article that I read is called How to use Technology in the Classroom.

Here is the link to the article.

http://teachingtechnology.suite101.com/article.cfm/technology_integration

Describe

This article is about why technology is important in the classroom and how to incorporate technology and the internet into the classroom. The different ways that teachers or students can use technology in the classroom are webquests, interactive websites, virtual museum tours, computer games, and video. This article talked about webquests as a way for students to conduct research, develop critical thinking skills and creative solutions to problems. Also, it talked about interactive websites used as a way to engage children with their learning. For example, children could read a story online and answer questions through a game. Virtual museum tours allow students to see artwork or museums that they would not be able to visit. Computer games are used to make learning fun and interactive. Using the internet to find videos as a way to create lessons more enjoyable and engaging. Technology should be combined with lessons to make them more engaging and interactive. This will allow children to make connections to their own world and have new ideas on how technology can help them in the classroom.

Analyze

I liked this article and I enjoyed reading it. I do like the idea of having students take a virtual tour of a museum. This would allow students to see things they normally would not see in their community. All the suggestions that were mentioned in this article are great.

Reflect

I would definitely use the suggestions that are mentioned in this article because I know my young students would enjoy using games to learn phonics, math, reading, writing, etc. I also like the idea of having my students take a virtual tour through a museum in another state or country. I would actually do this as a whole group activity because my kiddos are just in kindergarten and I think it would be overwhelming for them to tour on their own. The only suggestion that I would not use with my kindergartners is the webquest because they are too young to start doing research projects. Overall, this was a good article.

Article Review #3

The third article that I read is Technology as a Tool to Support Instruction by Lynne Schrum.

Here is the link to my third article.

http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech004.shtml

Describe

This article is about putting a new perspective on the ways teachers incorporate technology to enhance their students' learning. In order to use technology effectively in the classroom. Teachers need to setup an environment that is going to be engaging, comfortable, and structured. Teachers also need to know that technology should be used as a tool to enhance the learning for students. Teachers are constantly trying to find new ways to use technology to enhance their lessons. It's important for teachers to know that they need to explore the technology before they start using it to teach. This allows the teacher to feel more comfortable with the technology as they use it to teach their lessons. Choosing and using the tools is another important part to incorporating technology into the lessons. Teachers need to examine their lessons to figure out the appropriate type of technology that could enhance the students' learning. The last part of this article is working together. Its important for teachers to communicate and work with other teachers to learn more about technology. It also helps to find out which technology works best with different lessons.

Analyze

This was an okay article. It explained a lot about the beginning process before teachers actually implement technology. I liked this part of the article, but I did not like that the author did not incorporate ideas that a teacher could use. I would rather have some ideas that I could use in my classroom to support my lessons.

Reflect

I was a little disappointed after reading this article because it did not give any examples of how I could use technology to support my lessons. I will take the time to look over my lessons to determine the type of technology that will enhance my students' learning. Overall, this was an okay article.

Day 10

I NEED A NAP! Okay, today is going by slow and its raining outside. I just finished my first class and we did some really cool activities. I especially liked the team building activity. They put a celebrity name on our back and we had to ask people yes and no questions. I ended up with Will Farrel on my back. He's not my favorite, but I do like him in Elf.

Now I'm sitting in tech class blogging. Yesterday we learned about smart boards and I know that I will never get one, but I would like one. Today we are going to learn about flashcards with ipod. (?) That sounds interesting. :)

After class its off to writer's workshop to work on my Lit. Review. :)

Day 9

Today started off dark and wet, but now it's nice and sunny. :) I actually was dreading to show my literature review to my peer review partner. But it was actually really helpful. I felt comfortable when I left class today. Then I went to tech class and the whole time in there all I could think of was my lit. review. I felt so bad. My instructors showed us about the software that goes with the smart boards. It was interesting and cool. I wish I could have a smart board for some things in my classroom, but my main focus is teaching my kiddos to read and write. Then they can learn how to type. :)

When I got home I was in the mood to start writing the rest of my lit. review, but my niece and nephew came over. So, I had to babysit them until my dad came inside and then I snuck down to work on my paper. I actually got 3 1/2 pages done so far. I am proud of myself. :) Hopefully, when I'm finished adding more to my introduction, two of my themes and my conclusion I will have at least 6 or 7 pages. I don't think I could have gotten to this point without the help of my fellow CADRE teachers and my professors.
Well, I better get back to work.

Day 8

Hey
Sorry, I didn't post last night. I was at the library finding more research for my lit. review. I found an article and a couple of books. In a few minutes I will be on my way back to the library to put everything together and to begin writing my rough draft. Wish me LUCK!

I had fun in Tech class yesterday. We had to create an imovie about teaching kids to do something. So, our group decided to do our movie on "Stranger Danger." It's funny. I had to play the little girl who shows other kids what to do and what not to do when they encounter a stranger. I think its going to be one of the best videos. :)

Well, I better get my stuff ready to go to the library. :)

Enjoy the sunshine!

Day 7

Today was an okay day. I'm starting to feel overwhelm again. I was having trouble with finding the right research for my Literature Review. So, I e-mailed Melissa and she helped me so much. I'm once again finding research that relates to my topic. I'm still nervous about writing this paper. Honestly, I do not like writing papers. I'm looking forward to our literature circles tomorrow. I think these are a great way to talk about the book and to get ideas about teaching or projects you can do with your kiddos. I'm also happy that I am finish with being the facilitator of the group. :)

Tech class was fun! We got to create a little imovie. Our group did the Macerena! :) That was fun, except I don't like being video taped. Overall it was an okay day.

I better get back to doing research. :)

Day 6

Today was a great day! I was able to find a couple of journal articles for my research paper, but my printer decided it did not want to print off the pages. Hopefully by tonight I can get it working. I finished the reading for our assignment. It was very insightful and there was actually a couple of examples that related to the younger grades. I was happy about that. Its easier for me to read examples that are around my grade level because they help me think of ideas on how I could use these strategies with my kiddos.

I had so much fun in Tech class today. I LOVE PREZI!! I had fun adding information to the prezi and figuring out the layout. I came home and I couldn't wait to finish my prezi on my school. I think I'm going to do a prezi for one of my choice projects. I think I will create one as an introductory to my students and their parents. I think that would be fun to have at open house night or for the first day of school. I'm excited to get started!

OMG! I have to tell everyone about my walk today. When I got home I need a break from doing homework. So, I went for a walk with my mom around our neighborhood. I live in Gretna, which has a lot of farms and corn fields. It so happens that surrounding our neighborhood is farm land and corn fields. As we were walking we saw 7 does running through the fields. I thought that was so cool! I've never seen that many deer at a time around our area.
I think I'm going to take a break now.

Day 5

Today was busy, but it was a good busy. I feel much better about the items due in Tech class. :) I'm starting to get ideas of what I can do for my projects.

My other class is going great too. Except for the research paper. I do not like writing research papers. :( I think this one will be different because I get write about something that relates to me as a teacher. My topic is incorporating movement and music into the Early Childhood curriculum. I pray that I can find lots of great research!

This post is going to be short. I have to be done with my homework before I go babysit my niece and nephew tonight.

Have a great night!

Day 4 take 5

Hello,
I am experiencing technical difficulties with this blogg. I told everyone that technology does not like me. I don't know how many times my computer has gone down due to a virus or something else. Lets try this blogg post again.

I just finished my first week of Grad classes and my first week of CADRE. It was exhausting, but informative. I'm starting to like my tech class even more because we have been getting into grade level groups-which I love- to discuss how to use these cool websites with our kiddos. I still have some concerns dealing with the projects, but I believe the answers will come this week. As for my first class we are beginning the first stages of getting our research project (meaning research paper) together. This is going to be interesting.

Okay, I had plan to relax and get a start on doing homework. Well, that did not work out as I planned. Thursday after class I came home and took a nap. I needed that nap! :) Then, Friday I spent the day cleaning and running errands. Yesterday (Sat.), I spent the day babysitting my niece and nephew. I had fun spending time with them. Except, my nephew is going through his terrible two phase. He is so cute when he gets angry and runs off to pout. :)

Hopefully I am able to post this to my blogg. Wish me LUCK!

Day 3: Article Review #1

Today I read an article in Technology class. The article is Survey Reveals Gaps in School Technology Perceptions.

Description

This article talks about the result of several surveys that were given to more than 5,00 schools. The results of these surveys have the administrators VS teachers on the topic of Technology in the classroom. Majority of teachers want to incorporate more technology into their lessons, but they are not receiving the education to do so. Also, in the article it mentions that administrators want to use more mobile devices in the classroom. For example, they want laptops, smart phones, and ipods to be used as a educational tools. About 76 percent of teachers do not want these items in their class because they can become distractions.The last thing that is mention in this article is the students explain to the people conducting the survey that their teachers are afraid to let the them use the Internet because of safety and liability issues.

Analyze

There were many great points in this article that I liked. I think its a great idea for students to learn how fully use a computer. Including, how to fix it if a problem occurs. These students are learning more than I did as a student. For instance, when I was an undergrad all I learned how to do was make a power point, how to use word, make an imovie, and some other basic stuff. I was actually going into my classroom with not much information to incorporate technology into my lessons. Now as a CADRE teacher I get to go into my classroom with some really cool ideas on how to use technology to enhance my lessons and make them more fun. :)

I agree to an extent with this article about letting students using laptops, ipods, and smart phones.

Reflection

I really enjoyed reading this article because it talked a lot about how technology can help children become more self-efficient with technology. I feel that I don't have to worry about the issue of safety because I can have everything setup for them and not have to worry about them trying to find the website. I would like laptops and ipods, but not smart phones. I'm going to be teaching kindergarten and I don't need my four and five year old learning how to use a smart phone. They do need to know how to use a computer/laptop for educational purposes. The ipods would also be great because I could have students listening to books on tape and educational songs as part of their workstations. As a teacher you cannot monitor what your students are looking at every single second that they are online. I know that websites can be blocked, but kids in this generation can find a way around them. I enjoyed having my first grade students help me figure out how to get the computer working or to find a website. This builds their self esteem and they think its cool that they know something that their teacher does not know. Its amazing how tech savvy these kids are. Overall, I thought this was a good article and I enjoyed reading it.

Day 2 Part 2

Hello again,

I'm at home finishing my reading assignments. Today was a better day. :) I do have some concerns with my Tech class because they have shown us some really cool stuff and programs. But, I will be teaching Kindergarten and I'm having trouble figuring out how to use these programs for my Kindergarten Kiddos. I like the voice thread because I can use this program with my kiddos. For example, I can have them create and write their own stories and then they can record their stories on voice thread. Then their parents can log on and listen to their child(ren) read his or her story. I think that would be a GREAT idea for my kiddos. Hopefully in the next day or week I will see more ideas or get ideas for early childhood. Other than that I am enjoying learning new things and meeting new teachers (I'm still having trouble with names).

That is it for now!
Have a WONDERFUL night!

Day 2 Part 1

Hello Everyone!

I'm sitting in Tech class learning about new education websites and more about blogging. Yes, I do have permission to be blogging. So far, today is going better! I'm feeling a little, little, little, bit better about CADRE. Well, I'm going to stop for now.

Have a Fabulous Day!

Day 1 of CADRE

Hello! My name is Kaleena and this is my first Blogg. I'm creating this blogg as part of one of my Grad. classes. Here is a little bit about myself. I'm a Grad. student at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I just graduate from UNO with a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and Specialization in Early Childhood Education. I have been accepted into the CADRE program with UNO. This is an accelerated Master's Degree program. Which means I will be taking classes, while I'm in my first year of teaching. So, by next June or July I will be graduating with my Master's Degree. I'm excited to say that I will be teaching Kindergarten. I cannot wait to get into my classroom and start setting it up! I'm very excited!

So, today was the first day of classes and I was OVERWHELMED! I knew that it was going to tough, but I know I can do it. It's going to be rough, but it will be worth it in the end. In the words of Miley Cyrus, "Its all about the climb."

Have a Great Night!