Overview of class

IST has been a huge part in helping me grow as a teacher this semester. One thing I lacked in while teaching was using technology. IST has given me the confidence to start using technology in my classroom. I have started exploring with many apps I would have never thought of if it weren't for this class.

Confidence with technology

The biggest thing going into my last year with technology is having confidence with it. The more I play around with certain apps the better I feel about it. As long as I feel confident with what I am using I should be just fine with using technology.

An app I would like to try

EduCade has a ton of free, standards-based, lesson plans to try out.  You can  search by grade-level, content, or subject-area to find any lesson you might need.  All the lessons come with the resources you need, a step-by-step lesson plan, ideas for manipulative and even reviews from other teachers who have tried it out.

Using Brickflow

Brickflow is a web-based tool that instantly builds slideshows based on hashtags (#).  This is a great way to use twitter and youtube in your classroom to share ideas and videos. It's a great, free tool that I think students will enjoy using!

Educlip a must try

Educlip is an awesome tool for collecting, sharing, and organizing digital information.  It's great for students and teachers and it can be used to create a digital bulletin board of useful links, articles, pages, and you can even upload your own documents to share.  It's incredibly easy to use and to top it all off, it's free! I am excited to use this in my future classroom!

Pinterest in the classroom

Pinterest is a great resource to use in the classroom. You can find anything from lesson plans, to bulletin boards, flash cards, videos, and much more. Pinterest is a great way to share ideas with other teachers and is also a great way to learn some ideas to use for your classroom.

How far technology has came in my life time

Technology has came along ways in just my life time. I remember watching tv when I was younger and being happy with just color. Heck now we have HD tvs that look like we are at a game if we are watching a sporting event. I remember when I was very young my grandparents had a bag cell phone. Wow we have went along way it just nearly 20 years!