Bits and Bytes

Ms. Ros Fifth Grade Newsletter

E n d l e s s Po s s i b i l i t i e s - Yo u r O n l y L i m i t i s YO U !
room screaming; but I am glad that I did not. I impressed my teenaged children when I showed them that I actually had an Edmodo account before my daughter had hers set up. Word Art made the flyer I had to work on for my Middle School fund raiser tons easier than when I had to do it last year. Then I started to become braver by exploring all the other websites I was introduced to. From creating a Skydrive account to creating a webpage, it has been an exciting, and at times trying journey. There is so much out there that it can still be overwhelming. Even though I am more informed about having my information on the cloud, I am still not too comfortable with the idea of my information being out there. However, I am certain that just as I have come to love the ease of creation in using Microsoft Publisher, I will eventually find all of my newfound resources too valuable to live without. I am happy that I I chose not to limit myself by my lack of knowledge. I chose to grow and to become a better informed, more confident individual, and I have no regrets.

Volume 1, Issue 1 October 2013.

Inside this issue:

Popplet Weebly Digital Choice Cyberbullying November Calender Family Fun Day Thanksgiving Holidays

I have to admit that on the first day of EDU 354 I started off dazed and confused. Technology is one of the few things in the world that I was afraid of embracing. I was perfectly happy with my flip phoneto be used only in an emergency. Truth be told, I probably would have been perfectly happy with my landline at home, and dial-up internet! I was tempted to run out of the

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losing it if your computer crashes or misplacing your thumb drive is a big plus. StayWhere is this great place that you cannot see but ing connected to your students is as close to you as your connection to the inter- by using it as a place to post net.? The great beyond of the Cloud has benefits assignments and comments that far outweigh its disadvantages. Having infor- makes the Cloud a wonderful mation at your fingertips is a dream come true. tool to keep students engaged. No longer will you have to wonder where you I am fully aware that any tool is stored those files. They are all stored on the only as strong as the security Cloud! Saving lesson plans without the fear of measures that you put in place.

Living On The Cloud

Strong passwords are always a must; the key to successful student use is training and vigilance in digital citizenship. You also must always have a backup plan, since what are you going to do if you lose your internet connection?

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Bits and Bytes

Po p p i n g o n Po p p l e t . c o m
Visual aids in organization and planning is an essential tool. Popplet.com does away with the need for pencil and paper, and is an extremely convenient graphic organizer with its easy color coding and comment making capabilities. website is very user friendly. Creating a popple takes a single click of a button. Main ideas are entered into the text area, and comments are a helpful way to clarify your thoughts. I also loved the way I could rearrange my popples to form a coherent idea, Not only is the this tool handy for teacher planning, but it can be shared within a classroom. It is a great idea for a teacher to initiate a thought process with a single question, and then have students add their own popple with their interpretation, ideas, or comments. Can this be a new version of the Socratic Debate? Popplet will be an asset to teachers who choose to use it for homework assignments and group work.

Just one example of what you can create on Popplet.

We started planning our classroom webpages by organizing our ideas on Popplet.com. The free

O h ! T h e Wo n d e r s o f W e e b l y !
Another user friendly site which is also free, is found at weebly.com. Setting up an account is very straight forward. The initial choice of themes is varied, and once a theme is chosen, it is not set in stone, since you are free to go back and change your choice. Be warned, changing your theme after inserting pictures may be a bit of a disaster, since you will lose your pictures to the standard ones of the new theme. With your Popplet plan in hand, it is easy to set up your pages and sub pages. You also have the choice of having your pages show up on your homepage, or have them hidden until needed. The drag boxes could be more helpful if an explanation of what they did appeared when you hover over the button, but overall it was easy to figure out. Once you have it figured out, its smooth sailing.

Mans mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions. Oliver Wendell Holmes

PhotoJoiner.netOne of the Many Perks of Technology

I was faced with a conundrum. How could I incorporate multiple pictures in one block, when the images each came from different locations? The answer was to use photojoiner.net. I found three pictures that I needed, and saved them to my desktop. Then it was just a matter of uploading the pictures, choosing the layout, and clicking Join. The end result was one picture that was actually three separate pictures pasted together in the order I chose. I then added the image to my webpage. The entire process took less then 5 minutes. It was a quick and easy fix, and a perfect solution to my problem,.

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Choices Who Knew?

Who knew there were alternatives to PowerPoint when it came to electronic forms of presentations? Not me! Before this class I barely understood how to use Power Point, and I would approach creating a PowerPoint presentation with dread. I cant say that I am totally healed as yet, but now that I have experienced some of the alternatives, I have learned to appreciate Power Point for what it offers and I now know that I have a choice of tools at my disposal. Another simple but useful tool is Text2MindMap. I chose this application over Popplet for my web plan in my Unit Presentation for EDU 321. Using words as bullet points on a main idea appealed to my propensity to write things out. I added colors to differentiate between subheadings, and the Text2MindMap application did the rest. My thirteen lines of two to three words each ,was converted to an organized, understandable and attractive web. The class also took a look at applications such as Empressr, SlideRocket, Animoto, and my favorite, Prezi. Animoto is extremely user friendly, and I can see myself using its free 30 second videos in the future. My personal choice for presentations is Prezi (until I learn something new and better). Prezi appears to be more attractive and engaging than PowerPoint. It was easy to use since the templates provided guides you throughout he process. The movement of screens and added shapes are both visually appealing. The downside to Prezi, is that unlike PowerPoint, an internet connection, is essential for it to be used. Printing a hardcopy is also much more practical in PowerPoint.

Parents and kids can prevent cyberbullying. Together, they can explore safe ways to use technology.

D i g i t a l C i t i z e n s h i p K e e p i n g i t Po l i t e . Keeping it Safe.
The gateway to a students technological access in the classroom must contain many limiters. Digital Citizenship teaches the student about his responsibility to be both careful and respectful while online. Teachers must be able to monitor the sites that students visit while at school. Parents must also be aware of their responsibility for their childs online access and safety. With all of the digital access to social media available, students, teachers and parents must be proactive in maintaining a zero tolerance for cyber bullying. You can go to the following website for more information on this topic : www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying In order to keep students away from websites that may not be appropriate, JogtheWeb.com will filter popups and help teachers and parents provide safe, credible sites for students to visit.

When cyberbullying happens, it is important to document and report the behavior so it can be addressed.

November 2013
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FUN DAY!!!!

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Fieldtrip Fairgrounds

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Demarcus Birthday!

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Veterans Day

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Progress Reports

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Madisons Birthday!

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generic questions that are frequently asked about buying or selling a home.

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