Summer I--Video Class

Summer session one has begun and already I'm totally hooked on video! I've just finished creating my first assignment, an educational PhotoStory. I chose to create a documentary of my son's day trip to Philadelphia with his cub scout den and our whole family. Philadelphia is a great city with lots of history, and it made a wonderful subject for my educational PhotoStory. Check out my PhotoStory below to see some of the interesting sites in Philadelphia!

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Reflections on Year One in T.E.A.M.

What an amazing first year this has been! I cannot believe the amount of technology I have been exposed to, played with and actually used over the last few months. Although this past year has been extremely stressful, trying to finish up my library degree at the same time as starting this Ed Tech degree, I don't regret my decision at all! Believe it or not, working on the two degrees at once really complemented each other. I have been able to use all this new technology in the library lessons I've created for my student teaching this semester and in my assignments for my library classes. Being able to integrate technology in this way into my library work has really been a bonus not only to me, but to my students, and it has made me more confident in my teaching abilities. Now, as I prepare for graduation from library school on Mother's Day (the best and only gift I want that day!), I can look forward to focusing exclusively on T.E.A.M. in the coming summer sessions. I love video and photography and can't wait to get started on those classes, that it doesn't even seem like class work to me! In addition, I have been busy with searching for a library media specialist position for next school year (yes, it has been a very hectic semester!)and am looking forward to finding a job where I can incorporate all this great technology am I learning into my library lessons and media center website.

Having fun with VoiceThreads

I just took yet another workshop, this time on creating VoiceThreads around images. The workshop was held at the Hecksher Museum in Huntington. What a great location for a workshop! We were introduced to VoiceThreads and then given an assignment to engage us in actually working with and creating our own VoiceThread. First, we viewed some of Long Island's best student artwork, then we had to take pictures of certain works, upload them into VoiceThread, then record a description of each piece including our comments and reactions. I really enjoyed the whole process, from the picture taking to working with VoiceThread. Just think of all the possibilities this tool can present in a classroom or library! Now I have another addictive tool to add to my Web 2.0 toolbox! Below is my first VoiceThread I created at the Hecksher Museum: