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My EDM310 Blog Assignments are Now Complete

I just wanted to thank everyone for the great experiences that I have had in this class. It had been many years since I have been back in a classroom and you all have made it so comfortable to be there. Everyone has been very supportive when it came to giving positive input after presentations and everyone is always willing to help out a fellow classmate. I especially want to thank my podcast group, Christina, Brian, and Ginny. I think we did a great job coming together as a team. And thank you Dr. Strange for all that you have taught me in this class. When entering I had no idea what I was in for and I have obtained more knowledge then you will ever know. I am thankful that I will have these tools to take with me into my future. Thanks again to everyone. I will miss you.

Things I learned in EDM 310

Wow were do I start. I was pretty computer and technology illiterate when entering this course. Throughout the course I have learned many valuable tools. The biggest one is how to use a blog. I have also learned about podcasts. I did not even know what a podcast was before this course. I have also learned how to use the tools on IGoogle which have been very helpful with spreadsheets, documents ect. I have learned how to plug in formulas now when using charts that I was unfamiliar with before this course as well. I am very thankful for the information in which I have attained. I will take it with me on my journey on to becoming a teacher.

electronic Contact Assignment

For this assignment I used a young lady named Lindsey Walter. she is a second grade teacher at Mashburn elementary in Forsyth County Georgia. I first contacted Lindsey by phone and then we e-mailed about the technology that they are using in her classroom. The first thing that she told me about was the Promethean boards. Promethean boards are white board that are very similar to smart boards. The teacher can connect their computer to these white boards, they are used for television, Internet, flip charts to teach lessons ect. In order to use these boards you must have a stylus which is like a pen that you can use to write on the boards. These have taken the place of all the dry erase boards.
A second thing that they have is something called an activ vote. They are a voting machine that is in the shape of an egg and have the letters A-E on them. Each student gets their own and the teacher can create multiple choice tests and the the children answer their questions on the activ vote and this records the answers from the students. The students also have slates at their seats. This way they can write on their slate and it will show up on the board without the students having to get up out of their seat to write on the board.
As far as computers go in Forsyth county each class is equipped with four desktop computers and then they have laptop carts in which they can check out a laptop for each child for different assignments. Also each classroom is equipped with their own scanner, their own DVD players and even digital cameras. They have many computer software programs that are available to them and they are allowed to use blogs in their classrooms as well. At this time Lindsey is not using blogs but I am going to try and talk her into it!
I am very thankful that Lindsey took the time to talk to me and e-mail me with all of these amazing tools that they have to use. I think she is a pretty lucky lady to be working for a county that supplies the teachers with all of the wonderful gadgets. I am sure it makes her life a whole lot easier as a teacher and I know she says that the students get very engaged in the activities because they truly are part of the assignment. If you would like to check out Lindsey Walters school page I will post the web link here on my blog.
http://www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/130120717101444997/site/default.asp

The pluses and minuses of Blogs in the Classroom

Before entering this class I had very little experience when it came to blogs. In fact most of the things I had heard about them were negative. Such as people blogging about how they were going to shot students ect. I thought wow those blogs are a pretty scary thing. I stayed far away from them. It was a world in which I was leery to venture in to. It seemed so beyond anything that I would do on a computer. I am happy to report that I have gotten over my fear of blogging and now have a new understanding of the blogging world.
In this class it has taught me how to use a blog in a positive way and how I can use blogging in the future as an educator. I had no idea how far that this could go in the classroom. I think it has been a positive experience for me in this class. I enjoy looking over the different assignments and what i have learned. I now also have a tool in which I can use when i am out in the teaching world. If you keep up with a blog I think it is a great tool. It does take time but i think it was well worth it in the end.
I enjoyed looking at my fellow classmates blogs to see what they thought of different subject matter and assignments as well. The classmate that I chose was Christian Ardoin to look over and read. To be honest she was one of the few that had completed her blog by the time I was ready to post mine. I think Christian has a great way of looking at things. I like her because she does not hold back and you know exactly what she is thinking. I think she is going to be great in her field and I wish her the best of luck with her future teaching career.
I am so glad to be completing my blogs and again to have this to look back on. I have so many teaching tools just connected to this one blog that I will be able to use in the years to come. I am happy I am no longer scared of the blogs and that the blinders have been taken off so I can experience a whole new world of blogging out there.

Center for documentary studies/ Duke University

The first one I listened to was by kelly Marks about fears. She started thinking about this when she lost power in her home and started to feel fear. She started wondering what other people were afraid of so she went out on a college campus to ask people what they were afraid of. She found that some were very common and others were kind of irrational fears. The more irrational they were the more people wanted to talk about them. it was interesting to hear the different things that people are afraid of.
The second was by Tim Tyson and Tom Rankin. It was about the south in black and white. There was a cross burning incident in which they want to discuss what it means and whether it was a racist issue or not. The South in black and White is a course in which they can talk about history and bring the racially divided together through history. They will have gospel music and spirituals and different southern story tellers to tell the full richness of this type of history.

Podcast assignment

I just finished listening to some of our classes podcasts and my groups podcast as well. I really enjoyed this assignment. The group I was assigned to was " The Last Lecture" by Randy Pauch. My partners were Brian O'Gwynn, Ginny Grant and Christina Ardoin. I was very excited to be assigned to this podcast both for the subject and my group participants. The positives about my group is that everyone was passionate in my group about the subject matter and everyone had very good speaking voices. I felt that our podcast flowed very well and as a matter of fact I felt it was one of the best ones that I listened to without being biased. The one thing I think that we could have improved on is spending a little more time with my group before we actually recorded. To get our thoughts a little more organized. But overall I felt the podcast was very successful, especially it being our first one.
The second podcast I listened to was another podcast about Randy Pauch done by Brandy
wimberly, Amanda Bently and Daniel Griffin. Overall they did a really good job and like our group seemed to be excited about the subject matter. The one main thing that they can improve on is one of their members seemed to use inappropriate words and language for this type of podcast. It came off as a little adolescent. The other two did a great job!
The third podcast I listened to was about UTube done by Heather Rodgers, Delana Bemis, and Chris Borchardt. They had a lot of great information about UTube and had great opinions about it. I think that they did their homework well. The one thing I think that they would improve on is to use a more enthusiastic speaking voice to keep the audience captivated. There were times were things got quiet it needed a little more flow to it. But overall I think this group did a great job on their podcast.
The fourth podcast I listened to was about experience with using blogs. This podcast was done by my classmates Nikita Reed, Angela Hyer, and Carmen O'Conner. I felt that this podcast did not flow very well. I also found that some of the conversation was a little adolescent. I think that I would just word some of the things different. I do feel that they had great ideas for blogging and had some great opinions. It just seemed that as a group that they just did not mesh that well. Some people in the group seemed to be more prepared then others.

Mathematics with Technology

Judy chandler is a professor at Maine who wants to get other Mathematics teachers to incorporate technology with their teaching. She has found that many teacher are reluctant to use technology in their classroom. They feel that it will create extra work, or that their ways of teaching are working just fine. When teachers use technology with their students she has found that it increases critical thinking, that it is helpful with data analysis, and it also enhances the communication between student and teacher. She is a Strong believer in integrating this into learning and that it will help out all students especially those that are struggling with mathematics.
The second podcast was about thinking mathematically. How to look at the problems in a more rounded way. She said that teachers need to ask questions to their students that they may overlook. challenge them to think harder and they will remember and learn more. She said this type of thinking will prepare them for life long learning.
I agree with Judy Chandler that no matter what subject you are teaching technology plays a significant part in the classroom these days. Technology can do nothing but enhance learning and teaching to the students. This day and age every teacher needs to look at all the possibilities that are out there, because if you just write it off you are doing nothing but a disservice to your students and yourself as a teacher. This a computer generation that we are teaching and what better way to teach to the children then trough ways that they are familiar with.
I have stated before in my blogs that I, even as a future educator was a little reluctant about all the technology that is out there, before taking this class. Now I can't even believe I would have shorthanded myself by not allowing myself to learn of all the teaching tools and possibilities that are out there. I am so happy that my eyes have been opened to this whole new world that I knew nothing about.

"Growth vs "Fixed" Minds

This was a video podcast done by Standford University were a psychologist did a study on two groups of children. One was a group which they called the fixed minds were before they do a task they want to know if they are going to look smart when doing it. In this group all they were given were study skills nothing else and they found that throughout the year that it did not help out much if the students were not motivated in the first place.
The second group was the growth mind set group. This group of children were taught that there brain was like a muscle and it would grow over time. That the brain got stronger with use. They could increase there intellectual skill, that people did not make fun of babies as they were learning new things. They were given an article to read that taught them how to apply this to their schoolwork. Throughout the year the teachers did not know that this had been done but were able to point out what children were using the growth mindset and which were not.
I think that there was a very important lesson learned when doing this experience. That children need to know that it is ok to ask questions, it is ok to make mistakes but that learning from the mistakes that they are making is going to make them smarter and more confident. You can't just through something at a student and expect them to learn it all and take it in. It needs to be a hands on process. A process in which they can apply every piece that they are learning to what is put in front of them. The most important thing is a child's confidence. The children that are scared of looking dumb are the ones that are going to loose out because they are afraid to ask questions. We need to teach the children that this is learning and that everyone is making their brains stronger everyday with the new things that we comprehend.

WGBH Podcasts

I just finished watching a couple of the WGBH podcast videos I watch one about Cancer research and I also watched one about planets. Both of these videos were very educational. The first one about cancer was about a researcher name Dr. Fulkman who believed that blood vessels helped tumors grow. He believe Angiogneisis occurred when a tumor was present. Many people were sceptical and did not believe him but he did a couple different studies that finally proved his theory. The first study was to take a cornea of the eye that had no blood vessels and implant a piece of tumor and sure enough the blood vessels grew to the tumor and it expanded in size very rapidly. But then he went beyond that to prove his theory and found the particular molecule out of thousands that would cause this to happen. He then had people on his side now understanding what he had proven.
The second video I watched was about what makes a planet a planet and all of the controversy that has surrounded that the last couple of years. Many planets have been added to the solar system to later be removed to be either re-named a dwarf planet, an asteroid, or a comet. The most recent to be removed was Pluto. The one thing that made it different from the other planets was that it did not clear its own orbit. They are also trying to add a new planet named UB 313.
These videos that I watched is a great free learning tool that you could use in the classroom to help go along with the material which is being learned. The great thing is that the children can pull up these podcast videos for free. This again will be something that I add to my list of teaching tools in the future. It is so nice to have so many free tools at our fingertips that we can use to further our students learning as well our own.
I am very thankful to have this class which is opening my eyes to the vast array of possibilities for my teaching future. I had no idea how many things were out there for teachers to learn. It would be a shame for teachers not to take advantage of these types of learning opportunities when there is so much that it can add to what we are teaching in the classroom.

Edutopia

I just finished watching the Edutopia videos of " The Edible School Yard" and " A Night in the Global Village". I was very impressed with both of these videos. The edible school yard is such a fascinating concept. It is a a middle school that has their own garden and through this garden the teachers teach them about Math, Science, Geography ect. While learning all of these subjects they are learning even more important lessons such as doing projects together, learning to cooperate and functioning as a community. They also are taught life lessons such as cooking their own food from their garden, setting tables, and learning generosity. The kids are enjoying this so much that they often forget they are even learning.
The other video A night in the Global Village is a very life changing experience for these young privileges children of Denver Colorado. They give up one night of their lives to go and spend the night to get a global gateway experience. They are several small huts set up representing countries such as Guatemala, Thailand, ect. Then there is even a refugee camp. Each child is assigned a village and a family which includes on adult. Each village is assigned a basic need so you have to barter for the rest of your needs. If you are a refugee you have to try to get everything and you are not even able to speak. It really opened the children's eyes up to see how different parts of the world live.
I think in both of these assignment that they are such huge life lessons that the children are learning. The amount of knowledge that they will take from this will stick with them for a life time. I love watching these videos and getting ideas of what I could implement in my classroom one day. what amazing programs these are for children to get a true hands on experience. I feel that it is the best way for them to learn, not through a text book but to truly live it and learn it.

ACCESS visit

I spoke in a previous blog about the program in Alabama state schools called ACCESS. I had the privilege to visit an ACCESS here locally at Daphne high school in Daphne Alabama a few weeks ago. Mr. Roh is in charge of the lab and was very gracious to give me more of an hour of his time in order to explain how the lab works and even let me try out some of the video conferencing tools. As of right now they are the only one that is fully working and running in the Baldwin County school system but a few other schools have the equipment but have yet to have it in use yet.. I believe that all the schools will have it up and running by next year. But with this technology Daphne high school is able to offer a vast variety of courses that they would not otherwise be able to offer. They can even take foreign language classes like Chinese, because there is a high school teacher in Northern Alabama who is offering the class online. So the student just has to sign up for the online course and are able to take the class with other classmates all over the state of Alabama. I think that is so incredible!
The conferencing tool that they can turn on is called IVC ( interactive video conferencing) It is a video recorder that records the teacher in charge teaching the course and then displays it on big screens around the state of Alabama where ever the students have tuned into that class. So it is a little more interactive then an online course. Mr Roh said that most of their classes are based on advanced courses but they do have a fifth period put aside for student to also catch up so they do not fall behind. They are able to take the courses online if they have not passed it so they can try and graduate on time. He did say that the online classes do take more discipline so if the student is determined enough it is good. but if they do not have self discipline that it is not always beneficial. It was very neat to see this system in action and as the years go on they will have even more possibilities. You will see in this blog where I was able to stand in front of the access lab as if I was the teacher giving the lesson and he was able to capture my picture on the big screen so I was able to see what the students around Alabama would be seeing. He also showed me a little about the touch pad and how you can pull up to eight different classrooms. The technology is so amazing! I am excited to have learned about this system and I would love to get trained to be able to teach some classes across the state to help students that are in school systems that may not have the teachers at their schools to teach the course.

Podcasts

The first podcast I listened to is Smartboard lessons podcasts. It basically is like talk radio. They give out different links and websites that you can go to for information for technology teaching. It seems as if this podcast is going to becoming to an end after three years. They were recapping on what there favorite sites and moments. Another podcast I listened to was kidcast. It was podcasting for the classroom. The guy who does this podcast is in a new location in Texas and is doing his first broadcast since Nebraska. He is a teacher in the district to teach technology teaching as well. He promotes teachers and students using podcasts in learning.
The podcasts which I have listened to so far are promoting similar types of teaching in which we are learning in our Edm310 class. It is giving different ways this technology can be utilized to help with teaching. I am enjoying listening to these podcasts and getting different ideas for myself that I can use when i am out in the field. It really gives you a fire for wanting to know more and learn more. And I am excited because i know the kids love to learn in these different ways besides just a standard textbook.

Randy Pauch's last Lecture

For those of you that are not familiar with the Name Randy Pauch. He was a computer Science professor at Carnegie Mellon University. He gave a lecture called the "last lecture". The concept behind the lecture was to give a lecture if it was the last one you would ever give and ironically, at the time he was dying of cancer and it was truly his last lecture. It has become such a national phenomenon because of the powerfulness of his speech.
In his lecture he talks about his life. He goes through his dreams one by one and told about how he either attained them or gave it a good valiant effort throughout his life. He is a man of great strength and wisdom. He had away of looking at the world differently then most people would and continued that outlook even as he was dying and living his last couple of months. What I love about him is that he loves to learn and even more loves to teach.
I enjoyed listening to Randy talk about his students and teachers that he had throughout the years and the amount of things that he took in and learned from them. He had a life in which he took advantage of every opportunity to make it the best he could make it. It is so inspirational. It helps me to see things like that as a future educator. He makes me want to strive to be more like him.
A quote from Randy Pauch is " Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted". What a way to look at the world. Another great quote from him is "Brick walls are not to keep us out, but to show how much you want it". He really was a man of dream making and fulfilling dreams. He knew how to live life to the fullest. I truly feel he has been one of the best role models as an educator that I have seen. I want to strive to teach like him, and live my life like his. He truly is missed now that he is gone, but he has definitely left his thumb print on many lives in this world!

ITunes University

Itunes University is an interactive learning site that is sponsored by apple Itunes. Many college and Universities are putting some of their lectures, podcasts, and audio books on this site so people everywhere can access this information at their leisure. It is like free education! You can look information up by specific Universities or by subjects. You also have access to public broadcasts and other information that may be helpful to learning. The nice thing about I tunes you is that you have access to it 24 hours and day and that you can sync it up with your ipod on the go whenever you want. You always have access to this information!
Again like with many other technological advances that are out there, this kind of learning I believe really reaches the students in this day and age. It puts things in a way that they learn best and are familiar with, rather then just reading pages. It is an interactive way of learning material that may stick with them because they enjoy learning this way. Yet again I am amazed what is available to us just by the click of a button. What an amazing time that we are in for learning.

Using Ipods for instruction

Duke University decided to do an experiment with first year freshman in 2004 giving each of them and ipod to use throughout the year in order to increase technology in their learning. They did a study to see how they used them, and in which way they used them the most. What they found is that people used the recording device the most in their lectures. They also used the music data base and hard drive storage but not as much as the recording device. Not only did the University give the Ipods to the student but they also gave them to the faculty and studied how they utilized them in their classrooms. I never realized how much you could use and ipod for. I was just familiar with the music side but never would have thought about what it can do in the classroom!
Other Universities have been involved in studies using Ipods in the Classroom in fact their were a couple of schools that made up a group called Itunes U that involved such schools as University of Michigan, The University of Wisconsin, and the university of Missouri to see how the Ipods can impact higher education. And because of these studies now they are starting to bring them into high schools realizing it is not just an entertainment tool but can also be a very valid learning tool as well. You are able to go back and listen to parts of lectures you may have missed. Download speeches, record lectures, use it for interviews for papers and the list goes on and on. I would be very interested in using this device as a learning tool for my classroom when I am in the field.

Dr. Alice Christie

Dr. Alice Christie is a retired professor from Arizona State University that taught education at both the K-12 level as well as college level. She devoted her life to teaching and learning and now has a website that is devoted to learning and different ways of teaching through technology. She has teachers from across the country participating in different projects in which she has posted via the Internet. It truly is such an amazing site that gives so much information to teachers that can help them in the classroom.
She has different posts from teachers in how they are using the Internet in their classrooms for projects. This then allows teachers across the glob to participate and use these projects in their own classrooms. It is so neat to see how this can touch so many people and help use the projects to interest the children in their learning. It makes it fun and interactive and makes them really want to participate. I think she is laid out such a great tool that so many educators can use in their classrooms today.

my presentation

Wikipedia, Wired

Wow, I sit here in shock and amazement of how you think you have a trusty source like Wikipedia and to find out how many different groups just go in and change what they want about an article. Different news sources, political parties, ect. Who do we trust with the right information on the internet if everything can be changed so easily! At least we have the ability to see who is making the changes!
After listening to the podcast it really gives you and insite as to what people are doing to better their image. It is away to just magically erase the negative things that may be serrounded by their name. Nicholas does make a good point on the podcast about the wikipedia. He says that it has so much more information with about 90% reliablity. It makes you a little leary. But you do get to see where the changes are being made and it usually points back to the company trying to better their name.
A California Tech Graduate student came up with a way to trace back who is making changes in Wikipedia by tracing the Ip addresses that are being used to change and delete the information. This is a tool that will help out to see what companies and political parties are making changes to alter the way the public views them. This kind of thing truly baffles me. It is amazing what people can do these days. Just when you think you are getting the correct information.

Formula for Success

The blog I chose to read is the "Formula for success" ( Karl Fisch) from April of 2007. In this article he talks about the subject of Math and how it is taught now and a different approach to teaching it. He refers to the teaching as kids memorize it, get tested on it and forget it. " The burp back method" as Prof Strange says. He wants to take a different appoach on it rather then just have one right answer. Look at math from different angles.
He would like math used in everyday situations. Not just equations that are memorized and then forgottten. Learning how to apply math to life and day to day. I think this is an argument that i feel very strongly about also being a student who was not found of math. But finding more and more that I use math everyday just not the algebreic equations. I think that is the point he is trying to get across. Teach children math they can use in their lives. Not just memorization of things that less then a year they won't remember how to do!

Technology in education

I am really glad that I had the oppourtunity to read this blog about keeping up with technology in the classroom. In this post Karl Fisch talks about the importance of keeping up with technology in the classroom today. He is a strong believer that all educators need to be literate in technology in order to teach properly in the classroom. He even compares it to not being able to read and then trying to teach in a classroom. The question he posts and the end of his discussion is "If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write." ( karl Fisch source:http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/09/is-it-okay-to-be-technologically.html. It may seem to be an extreme question but it really got people thinking and talking.
This post really hit home for me because I have found myself guilty of complaining about the fact that I have been out of school and that i felt I was about 10 years behind the technology boom with blogs, podcasts, ect. This article was a real eye opener and in fact has be now more then willing to learn and keep up so I can be the best teacher that I can be. Until recently I did not realize how important technology had become as a learning tool in the classroom. His post was brilliant and got a lot of great reponses from other teachers chimming in on their thoughs and experiences. It was neat to see how strongly people felt about this. In fact he was nominated for an edublog award for this post.

international blogging in the classroom

The first international blog I came across was a blog from New Zealand in a 2 year class of 6 and 7 year old. Their teacher uses their blog to update different events and things that happened through out the day at their school. She also posts blogs and video of the children doing different assignments such as their oral presentations so they are able to hear themselves out loud. They also have links to to other blogs they like. And when children have visitors they are able to comment on their special guests or the activities of the day! Again I really like the interactiveness that the children have with a blog in the classroom. It really seems to keep them involved. The picture I have posted is a picture of a an ambulance that came to visit the school. This website is http://2008meadowbank23.blogspot.com/.
The second blog that I found was out of Canada. It was from a grade one class. The teach used her blog also as a learning tool to show what the kids are doing day to day. As the children the children are just learning to read and write they are posting to a blog daily. what a great way to learn your words and letters and to applying them to a computer at such a young age is brilliant. It is getting them ready to the world ahead of them. These teachers have been so inspirational in what they are teaching such young students, then when I plan on teaching high school the posibilites are going to be endless with using blogs in a classroom. I found this web page at http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=1337

using blogs in the class room

This picture is from a blog that I found from Mrs. C's fifth grade class. She uses her blog day to day to help students go over what they are studying in the class that day. She asks her students to respond to certain experiments and asks them to write about it. But she also wants the students to use complete sentences and grammar when responding to the posts. On her classes blog she has several videos of the students doing projects and their work in school. she also posts pictures and each child has their own personal blog as well. she uses the blog as a day to day tool to go along with the students assignments. She also has different award that they can be given for answering and asking certain questions. The website for this class is http://mrcsclassblog.blogspot.com/.
In an eight grade classroom in Liberty Missouri they used a blog as the read through the novel " The Year of the Hangman" in their history class. He week by week discussed different parts of the book then was able to get feedback from all over the world. The purpose of this blog was to get the students in a online conversation about the novel and really get them interested in learning the history. I believe it was a brilliant idea to have students relate to a historical event in a way that they are comfortable with. He did this week to week and got a great response to the questions in which he posted. At the end he had a feedback part where they were able to tell what they thought about the blog. what they liked and did not like.You can check out this blog at http://mrcsclassblog.blogspot.com/.

Shift Happens

Wow, I sit her kind of stunned at all the information that was just given to me in that incredible presentation. It blows my mind how quickly technology changes and that it is near impossible to keep up with the growth of it. It really hits home with the fact that I do have a child that was born in 2007 and the statistics of where things will be in his life time is mind boggling! It also sets in the reality of what I am going to need to be prepared for as an Educator in the 21st Century.
I was really shocked to find out how little college Graduates we have compared to India and China. The world as we know it I feel will change so much in my life time. I think that we always consider ourselves such a power house of a country, but when you see the statistics and makes you feel very small and powerless. It is an eye opener for what we will be seeing in our future and the generations to come. It leaves you with a very strong message of you better keep up or you will be left behind. As and educator that is the last thing that you want to feel. It makes me hungry to learn more about the technology that we have out there.

ACCESS

ACCESS is an Alabama based program which has been put into affect to help further educate students beyond the classroom. It offers classes that they may not otherwise be able to take such as advanced placement courses and college credit courses done on a computer based system. The students use multimedia learning systems and video conferencing for these particular classes. Students can also take courses to get back on track if they are behind on their scheduled courses for graduation. They even have programs to help students prepare for graduation tests.
I think ACCESS is a great opportunity for Alabama public schools. It allows students to gain access to classes in which they might not have been able to take in order to further their education and prepare them for college. I think the program is truly, in genius and will help out our local students when taking the next step in their education. I also like the fact that you can help those students who are behind catch up and try and graduate on time, which may not have been possible in the past without the web based courses. I believe this a great tool for future college students, since so much education on now computer based. It will help prepare them for the next step in their lives.

ALEX

ALEX is an interactive website which is set up for teachers and students in Alabama to use as a tool for the classroom. With ALEX you have access to many different reference materials, learning plans, activity ideas, web links and you can even gain access to the Access program which I will be discussing in a future blog. I was very impressed at how easy it was to navigate through this website and the vast array of material that is available to you. For example I want to be a Social studies teacher in high school. I went on to the ALEX link then clicked on lesson plans, and was able to put in my study of interest and put in the grade level at which I am interested in teaching. It then gave me an overview of the subject matter in which I would be using in the classroom for teaching my subject. It is amazing!!
I am very excited about this website. I know it is a website that I will be using quite often. It takes me to web links that are associated with the subject matter in which I enter. It is so easy and handy I am just thrilled but the possibilities that I will explore while using the website!! It seems to have every tool that you need in order to find out information whether you are on the administration side, teacher side, or even student side. I am sure the possibilities are going to be endless of what I will find as I continue to use the ALEX website. What a wonder place that has been provided to me as a future educator.

All About me

My name is Sandi Sadlock. I have been married to Johnathan Sadlock for over five years and we have a 19 month old son named Nathan. My husband and I moved to Daphne Alabama 2 1/2 years ago from Athens Georgia and yes we are huge Bulldawg fans #1 ranking this year!!! My husbands job is what brought us here. He is the owner operator of the Chick-fil-a in Spanish fort at the Eastern Shore Center. I have been a stay at home mom since my son was born and this is my first time back to school in years. I have decided to go back to school to get my teaching degree in Secondary Education in Social Sciences. I would love to be a History teacher and a coach. I had many teachers in high school that really touched me and I hope I can give that back! I included a picture in my blog of my son sipping on his tea from chick-fil-a.

Welcome

Welcome readers to Sandi Sadlock's blog page! I am currently a student at the University of South Alabama studying Secondary Education in Social Sciences.