Blog Post #2

Did You Know? 3.0 - A John Strange 2012 Version

As I have said in my previous post, I am a substitute teacher. When I start my day I always hope, I am not going to have a run-in with a student regarding any sort of electronic paraphernalia. I am pretty lenient when it comes to the students use of these items, as long as they are respectful with their use of them. I was beginning to wonder how I was going to handle this, once I stepped into my first class as a "real live teacher". After watching Did You Know? 3.0 - A John Strange 2012 Version, on YouTube, I am beginning to question why we are trying to remove these items from the classroom.

This video helped me to see what a benefit these tiny computers could have within the classroom. It makes complete sense that we are going to have to embrace these gadgets and utilize them for the students benefit. John Strange's video opened my eyes to some surprising numbers when it comes to the use of different technologies. I am a cell phone user, but I do not even own a smartphone. It has not been that long since I started texting. His statistics show that the United States is falling behind, when it comes to educating our children. Things like texting , YouTube, Google Searches, and personal computers in the home, are on the rise. The message I received from this video, is that we are, and should incorporate these things as learning tools within the classroom. Gone are the days of dusty chalkboards, and boring lectures. It is going to take some pretty special people to get their classes attention and hold on to it in this day and age.

Mr. Winkle Wakes by Mathew Needleman

This YouTube movie's character Mr. Winkle wakes up after sleeping for a hundred years, only to find a new and changed world. Sound familiar? Technology is everywhere. He visits an office, hospital, and a school. During his visit to the office he is confronted by computers, printers, fax machines, and the use of Skype as a business tool. Uncomfortable, and sickened by it all, he visits a hospital hoping they can help him feel like his old self. There he sees machines and lasers at work helping the sick and keeping people alive. Finally he finds the comfort of a school. It is a teaching environment without the use of technology. There, he finds peace as he realizes that school has not changed in the last one hundred years.

This video shows how businesses, and even hospitals are on board when it comes to the use of technology. It shows that schools are slow to change. In my previous post, I came to the realization that these technological devices are not going away. They are in our face daily. They are here to stay. How are we going to train our children for the future, and the best jobs, without the use of technology in the classroom?

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
Sir Ken Robinson who coined the phrase,"If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original",presents the idea that schools kill the creativity of children. During his presentation he cracks plenty of jokes which are really funny. As funny as he is, all of his stories have a point. The heart of his talk is focused on the plight of our children. They are born with such creativity and without the fear of being wrong. The institution of school, and I believe, life itself squashes children's creativity by making them conform to the standards that society has deemed normal. This in turn leads to the fear of being wrong. He ends his presentation with a story that brought tears to my eyes.
Sir Ken Robinson touched my heart with the words he spoke in his video. My son was diagnosed with ADHD. He will be nineteen in a few months. It was a long struggle to see him graduate high school. I really wish that schools could focus more on what a student is good at vs. what they deem needed to survive in today's society. Sir Ken Robinson makes me fear not only for my own babies, that will be starting school eventually, but for every child who might not fit within the mold that they are expected to.

Pinterest

I had a Pinterest account prior to EDM310 coming into my life. It is wonderful, and I have to say I am slightly addicted. I have mainly used Pinterest for home project ideas, recipes, music, and people that I like. I have to say I would use all four of the ideas presented for the classroom. (Lesson Plans, Sharing Ideas, Organization, and Student Use) I will be the first person in my immediate family to have a college degree. Unfortunately, I do not have a mentor, that is also a teacher. So I feel as if I am floundering helplessly sometimes. I am looking for anything that will give me ideas about what to do with my students to keep them engaged in learning within my classroom. The idea of having students use Pinterest for group projects, and using it to get parents involved is wonderful. I will be teaching high school, or possibly middle school. It seems like a lot of teaching tools are geared towards elementary students. I must admit I followed all twenty of the suggestions on the link. It looks like there are plenty of boards and pins that could be used for high school students too.
I looked at several of the boards and pins that I decided to follow. The crafts look like so much fun. It has me questioning why I am becoming a high school teacher.

Project #2 Wordle

Blog Post #1

Greetings
My name is Heather Heiskell. I am pleased to say that this is my first blog. I look forward to lots of constructive criticism from you. This is all very new to me and I want to learn as much as possible. Please pepper me with your comments and feedback.
About Me
I was born in Mobile, Alabama. I have four children and three step-children. My children range in age from eighteen years to sixteen months. I work part time as a substitute teacher for the Mobile County Public School System. My husband is an Aviation Mechanic. During my spare time (which does not happen often) I like to read and listen to music. I love visiting the local thrift stores and going to yard sales. I take Zumba classes three days a week and work out at the gym.
Education
I graduated from Theodore High School in 1993. I grew up thinking I was gong to be a veterinarian. That was until I figured out that I absolutely stink at math. After high school I attended Faulkner State Community College on a music scholarship. I did not stay however, because I got married when I was eighteen and had my first son shortly after. I have attended college when I could for the last eighteen years. I never could seem to make up my mind what I wanted to be when I grew up. My plan when I came to University of South Alabama was to get my degree in Social Work. It has only been recently that I decided to get my degree in Secondary Education. I love history and I thought it was a great idea since I have been substituting at local high schools for several years. After I finish my Bachelors Degree I plan to get a Master's in School Counseling.

My Classroom
I have to be honest and say that it is difficult for me to imagine my classroom in the future. I can not even compare my experience with substituting to having my own classroom of students. Most, if not all high school classrooms that I have ventured into have been pretty bare. I know that I would like for my room to have an inviting and warm atmosphere. I want my students to feel that they are in a safe and comforting environment, despite what may be going on outside of the classroom or in their homes.

My favorite former teachers have always been the ones that pushed me to do things that I thought I could not do. I want to have a close connection with each of my students, but I will expect their best efforts on everything. Rules and respect have taken a back burner to wanting to hand our children everything on a golden spoon. Students are looking for(and need)guidance and boundaries rather than someone babying them through everything.

I want to really get my students to be as engaged and interested in history as I am. It would be wonderful if my classroom had its own set of computers for the students. I would also like to have a set of maps. So many people are lost when it comes to knowing where certain countries are located and how they interact and affect one another. I plan to use visual aids, such as maps, movies, documentaries, and field trips along with information from the internet. All of these will hopefully help supplement traditional textbook learning.

I will obtain more ideas for my classrooms during my internship and hopefully through the people I will meet within this class. Pinterest is also a favorite site of mine. It offers a plethora of ideas for classroom learning and decorating. I also hope to have a close camaraderie with my fellow teachers. We can exchange ideas and work together to turn out the best students that we possibly can.

Randy Pausch on Time Management

I am very familiar with stress due to procrastination. I am the worlds' worst at getting things done, especially when it is something that is not interesting to me. I also procrastinate when it is something that I have never done before. I am trying to change that when it comes to all aspects of my life.

Randy Pausch has some good ideas of how to go about getting things done in a timely manner. Most of it seems to be common sense and something anyone could do. He suggest knowing exactly why you have to do something, setting goals, making list, and planning your life from your day all the way up to your semester. None of his suggestions seem very difficult. It is just about me making the changes in my life to be more organized and using my time wisely.

Test #1