Assignment 7

   This assignment was to create a virtual field trip and was certainly the most fun of all of our class assignments. I enjoyed learning another way to create a website and look forward to utilizing Google Sites again in the future. The tool was easy to use for the most part. I had to use the 'help' function a couple of times but in general, I am very pleased with my new website. I can see this being a great asset to me in the field of teaching. I intend to further explore it in the coming weeks. I am curious to know what other tools Google has to over those in the education profession. I was drawn to this tool when I discovered that you could use your Google information to access it rather than creating another account somewhere else. I like to stay organized and feel that Google is efficient in allowing users to utilize many different tools from one main source.

This was a wonderful assignment that I truly enjoyed! I'm very proud of my website! You can view it below and please let me know what you think!

Georgia Aquarium Virtual Tour

Assignment 6

An educational software application that I feel would be a useful tool in the classroom is Stack the States by Dan Russel-Pinson, which can be found in both iTunes and Google Play. This is a fun, and really cute, drill and practice tool for the areas of social studies and geography. The basic game drills students on state names, shapes, capitals, flags and other information and giving the correct answer gives you that state to stack with other states to reach a goal line. It gives students an awareness of how large or small the states really are in comparison to one another and after reaching the goal line, students are rewarded with a state to place on their map. As students earn states, they unlock other games within the app such as Puzzler, which gives you a blank US map to fill in like a jigsaw puzzle. I adore this app simply because all the games in it are so fun, students won’t even realize that they are learning!

A useful website for early readers in Pre-K through 2nd grade is Starfall.com. It is a fun, interactive site that teaches and reinforces phonics skills. Students simply click and follow prompts to read stories or the website can read the stories aloud for them. The stories are accompanied by vibrant pictures that come to life when the student clicks on them, keeping students actively engaged. If a student gets stuck on a word they cannot pronounce, simply clicking on the word will highlight it and the site will slowly sound out each syllable and then put it all together. With many different stories to choose from and a variety of other language rich activities on the site, I believe that Starfall is a wonderful and valuable tool for all early classrooms.

Assignment 5

Classroom Technology Grant Proposal

Niccole West

The University of Alabama

This is a grant proposal for classroom technology for our kindergarten class. My focus is to equip the classroom with tools that will enhance many areas of student learning. The amount I am proposing is for two computers, two tablets, an electronic whiteboard, a printer, a digital camera and listening center items. Funds are needed in the amount of $13,344.73 for the purchase of all the suggested items. 

The first and most crucial item is the electronic whiteboard. I have selected the KIDS-2 60” Interactive Display electronic whiteboard from Kaplan Early Learning. It has a 10-touch interactive screen and comes with a fully loaded computer. It includes Kaplan exclusive Shine Explorations and Circle Time Software offering students 10 fun and educational games. This interactive board and software ensures an engaging, whole group experience. The total for this item is $7,995.95 and this price includes shipping and installation.

For a student computer center, I wish to purchase two desktop computers and a printer. I have selected two of the All in One Touch Computers also from Kaplan Early Learning. This computer is perfect for young learners with its 23” high resolution touch screen. It comes preloaded with educational apps and software and has a built-in webcam, mic and Bluetooth. This type of touch screen computer will provide students with a hands-on learning experience.  These computers are priced at $2,195.95. The printer I believe would best suit our class needs is the HP-Envy 7640 wireless e-All-in-One Printer from Best Buy.  It will allow students to print and scan their documents and pictures wirelessly. This printer is listed for the sale price of $95.00.

The digital camera I suggest is the Sony-DSC-H300 20.1 Megapixel Digital Camera. This camera is compatible with the desktop computers and the printer to make it easy to upload, share, edit and print photos. This will be primarily used by me to take photos to document the student’s art, work and learning experiences. This camera costs $179.99 and is also available for purchase at Best Buy.

The two tablets I have chosen are also found on the Kaplan Early Learning website. They are Little Scholar tablets designed specifically for children ages 3 to 7 years old. They have over 150 preloaded apps, eBooks, songs and videos and access to the Android market to purchase additional apps if so desired. The tablets are password protected and contain parental controls, preventing any unauthorized purchases. These tablets also have a built-in camera and Wi-Fi capability. With USB ports, micro SD card slots and Bluetooth, they are also compatible with the desktop computers and printer. These tablets are $199.95 on the Kaplan website.

The final item I have on the list is a listening center. Wayfair.com offers a Hamilton Deluxe CD Listening Center set for $281.99. The set includes a CD and cassette player with a built-in AM/FM radio and 6 headphone jacks. It comes with 8 noise-reducing headphones with padded headbands and ear cushions. This enables up to 6 students to enjoy the listening center at a time and frees up two headphones to be used with either the desktop computers or tablets when needed.

These items will provide a fun and exciting atmosphere in the classroom that will promote learning and growth. Students will be eager to explore and experiment with all of the new technology at their fingertips. Lessons will actively engage children who will now be able to interact in a variety of ways. These educational tools are more than just a wish list; they are a necessity for an innovative 21^st century classroom.

Item	Cost	Quantity	Vendor
KIDS-2 60” Interactive Display	$7,995.95	1	Kaplan
All in One Touch Computers	$2,195.95	2	Kaplan
HP-Envy 7640 wireless e-All-in-One Printer	$95.00	1	Best Buy
Sony-DSC-H300 20.1 Megapixel Digital Camera	$299.99	1	Best Buy
Little Scholar Tablet	$199.95	2	Kaplan
Hamilton Deluxe CD Listening Center	$281.99	1	Wayfair
Totals	$11,068.83	8	-
Grand Total	$13,464.73	8	-

Assignment 4

   For this assignment, I created my first Wikispaces which can be seen here - Niccole West's Wiki! This assignment proved to be quite challenging for me for a few reasons. I had never even heard of Wikispaces before now and learning to navigate and edit the site was difficult. Even after I had the hang of it, somewhat, it was still tedious for me when making even small adjustments on the pages. Overall, the assignment was fun to do, with learning about a new site which is obviously a great tool for educators, and putting together the lesson plan, which was the most enjoyable part for me. I will continue to explore the Wikispaces website and it's usefulness to me as a future educator.

Assignment 3

Niccole West

For the cognitive style inventory test, I went to Info Art - Tests at http://tests.infoartperu.com/en/test_cognitivestyles.htm. After answering only 16 questions, I was given the result of intuitive, a perceiving function, and emotional, or feeling, a judging function. It stated that intuitive people mentally live in the future, use their imagination and are very creative. It declared emotional people to use better or worse evaluations rather than a logical true or false rationale. It says I use the feeling side of my brain to draw conclusions based on my likes and dislikes and the effect on other people. I believe these results to be quite true to my nature.

EducationPlanner.org has a 20-question learning style inventory test which can be found at http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles.shtml. That test stated that I am an overall auditory learner with 40% of my learning style geared that way. It stated that I am 35% visual and only 25% tactile. I am surprised at these results as they claim that I learn best through hearing and listening. I have always considered myself to be more visual but the more I think about it, I believe it to a good combination of the three styles that benefits me best. As a result, I believe the test to be fairly accurate with its outcome.

These tests have each reminded me of the importance of variety in the classroom being a crucial part of the learning experience. As a student, I plan on giving myself more varied opportunities to absorb information in the future. As a teacher, I will make certain to present an assortment of learning opportunities to my students. Anticipating that my classroom will have these diverse learning styles will equip me to better serve my students and meet their individual academic needs.

Assignment 2

Technology in Education

Niccole West

The University of Alabama

For the last eight years, I have been teaching in early childhood classrooms and after-school programs. My experience with technology in these settings has been an overwhelmingly positive one. Technology has the potential to be one of an educators most valuable assets when appropriately cultivated.

Educational technology is any form of computer or electronic device that can be used to assist in the instruction of students. A simple app used on an ipad can have a huge impact on a child who struggling with mastering reading or language skills. The use of the smartboard in classrooms has promoted learning for the classroom as a whole. Students can take turns interacting with the board and encourage each other while they further develop their abilities.

When I first started working in childcare, technology in the preschool classrooms I worked in was very limited. It was simple educational videos or unique ways of exposing the class to music. Moving from VHS tapes to DVDs or from cassette tapes to cds seemed like amazing feats of technology at the time. As years passed, I saw classrooms replace their cd players with various mp3 players and most recently, only a speaker was provided for teachers to stream music from the apps on their phones.

Educational toys that would light up and make noise once held the attention of children, now only to bore them after a short time. Now that ipads are the go-to classroom toy, the applications used must delight the children while providing a stimulating educational experience. Teachers must be selective in order to provide the most appropriate apps to encourage learning in the classroom.

Certain forms of technology can assist students with doing day-to-day tasks that many people take for granted. Something as common as talking can be difficult for children with autism. The Dynavox is an electronic device similar to a tablet that’s purpose is to assist in generating speech. I have witnessed students using this machine and been informed that they were incapable of communicating before acquiring it.

The problem with technology is that it is normally expensive. Teachers are usually at the mercy of their school systems’ budget in regard to what technology can be implemented in their classrooms. This presents difficulty when trying to acquire new or updated tech devices and incorporating them into instruction.

Fortunately, schools do seem to see the need for technological advancement within the educational setting. I have seen more and more classrooms being provided with ipads, laptops, desktop computers and smartboards. Some schools may have more flexible budgets that can make room for newer and more advanced, high-tech gadgets for the classroom. Some schools may be able to provide fundraising opportunities that allow teachers to raise money on their own for electronic upgrades.

The learning possibilities associated with educational technology are truly infinite. Technology will always continue to advance and improve and that presents an amazing potential for educational gain with most all students. Teachers need only to stay informed with what technology is available and how it can be best utilized in the classroom. Employing technology in teaching can prove to be abundantly beneficial in the instruction of students at any age.