Lesson plan using Google Docs program

It’s really a pity that I didn’t know about Google Docs earlier. I was struggling with group work all years long, sending papers back and forth between group members and it took a tremendous amount of time to wait for the papers to be returned for another round of editing and feedback.
No longer! Now I know I can use Google Docs, and my future students will definitely benefit from this, too. At a cost of nothing, one could hardly expect anything better. First, this application has a lot of practical usages. It’s like a wise combination of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, not to mention such interesting and practical functions as “Form”, “Drawing” and “Collection”. With a reasonably large range of document options, Google Docs does a really good job of assisting students in writing their assignments. Second, Google Docs ensures a safe storage of data for any on-going work. Losing a document or having it “automatically closed” due to some technical errors of Microsoft Word is really not a fun experience for users. By saving the documents automatically while they are being created, Google Docs easily becomes our reliable secretary.
Most significant of all, in my opinion, is the fact that works can be viewed, commented and edited among many authors at the same time. I remember working on the same spreadsheet with my classmates when Google Docs was first presented to us. We hadn’t talked much before, but thanks to working together on the same document, we came to exchange more and more ideas, and felt more comfortable talking to each other. So to speak, the chance offered by this application for users to cooperate with each other not only enhances the quality of the final product, but also helps users improve their social skills in various ways.
I will surely make use of Google Docs in my future classroom, especially when my subject is English, one that requires a lot of writing and cooperating between students. Another plus for this application is that it’s free and easily accessible, which is a bliss for teachers who live on a tight budget while wanting to do so much for their classroom.
Users can access Google Docs from their Gmail accounts, or go to https://docs.google.com/ and sign in directly from that site.

B. Purdue Google Docs

During class we used Google Docs to do an m&m counting activity. Google Docs is very comparable to Microsoft Excel. The program is a spread sheet that allows you to enter whatever information necessary. It is a good way to keep your information organized and easy to ready. Google Docs can easily be used in any classroom that has access to a computer. It can be used to record answers to math problems, or to type in numbers found during research projects. It can also be used by the teacher to keep track of the student's grades and progress in class.

I like Google Docs more than Microsoft Excel because it can be accessed for free. The only way to use Excel is to purchase it with Microsoft Office, and it can get pretty expensive to buy that program for 30 computers. Another thing I like about Google Docs is that we all turned in our spread sheets to the same place, and we could just click on another persons tab and see what they did. It makes it easy for students to look at what others are doing if they need help or get off task. Google Docs is simple to use, and most of the tools included on the program are pretty self explanatory and easy to figure out.

Google Docs

Google Docs is an awesome resource for teachers in all grades! The software is totally free and can be accessed by any computer with Internet capabilities. Students and teachers can view each other's assignments and documents, so sharing ideas is easy. Google Docs offers "Document," similar to Microsoft Word, "Presentation," a version of PowerPoint, "Spreadsheet," just like Excel, as well as "Form," "Drawing," and "Collection."
Although it offers less features than the Microsoft Suite, Google Docs is a great addition to classroom technology because of its affordability (you can't get better than free!), ease of sharing and viewing, and its numerous document options.
Users will be pleasantly surprised at the variety of options this under-used program has. Changing font styles, adding images, and calculating complex numbers is simple with Google Docs. Additionally, work is saved automatically - no more lost hours of effort because you forgot to save!
As a future high-school English teacher, I will definitely be using Google Docs. Students won't have to purchase expensive programs or go the the library to complete their written homework. They will also be able to collaborate with each other because of the Sharing feature.
Google Docs is easy to access; users just go to the Google page and navigate to the Documents tab, or they can visit this direct link: https://docs.google.com

Google Docs

I cannot believe that I have never heard of Google Docs before! This is a very useful resource that I will continue to use. I really like that there is one central page that can be set up for all the students at once. This would be helpful during group work during class, or even for students that are paired with a partner for take home projects. This will eliminate the need for them to meet and work together they will simply be able to use Google Docs.
I think that Google Docs can be used for almost all grades, and most subjects. It would be great for presentations and biographies in history, and it would work well for documenting science projects too.
https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?service=writely&passive=1209600&continue=http://docs.google.com/?hl%3Den%26tab%3Dwo&followup=http://docs.google.com/?hl%3Den%26tab%3Dwo&ltmpl=homepage&hl=en

Glogster

I am so glad I learned to use Glogster. It is a great way to involve technology into your lesson plan. It is interactive and fun and allows students to be "hands on" with an activity. It can be used in many ways, with individual students or groups. You could also use it with almost any lesson and is a less traditional way to make a poster. I think students would really enjoy using Glogster and would see it as a more enjoyable assignment.

Glogster will be useful to me when I begin teaching bc I can either build a lesson around it or build the activity around the lesson. Glogster is very useful and can be used for a wide variety of things. This kind of technology is exciting for the teacher and the students.

Google Docs

I am so happy that I was taught how to use Google Docs. This technology blew my mind. I love learning new applications on the computer. This on was especially amaing because of the use of the internet. Every child in the classroom can see what each other types while being on their own separte computer screens instead of looking up at the projector. I feel like this would be a great addition to a science classroom setting. All the students could store all their data on one shett. This will not only save time, but also will be good for the environment when saving paper.

Google Dogs is going to save me so much time through out my teaching career. I can easily transfer grades on to a letter to the parents with just a few simple clicks. It is also a great took for the sudents to compare project data with each other. Learning this new technology was a lot of fun and very exciting. I cannot wait to try it out when I start my student teaching.

Google Docs

I think that Google Docs is a really fun tool for classroom use. I can see how it could be used to help a teacher collect information from students all in one place and also be used to lead to open discussion of a subject. I think that there are many students who would think that responding to a discussion using Google
docs would make them more comfortable than speaking out in class.

I do think that Google Docs is a little bit confusing and I am not sure it would be as useful in a Elementary school setting than other technology that is available. It seems better suited to the High School age level. Still not having much experience with Google Docs I am sure that given the time to explore all of the features available I could find some use for it in Elementary and Middle
school settings.

Powerpoint

Powerpoint is an amazing program that allows you to design an entire lesson in fun and sometimes intertaining slides. You are able to add so much more to a powerpoint then just on a regular piece of paper. You can show pictures with the links, cool transitions, and fun animations. You can even add sounds which for younger children or children with disabilities would really enjoy. Children with disabilities love to hear their own voice with pretty much everything and powerpoint allows you to do that!

I plan to be teaching special education so for certain students that are severe this software could be difficult to use but for others it can be a very good learning experience. Children will be able to work on projects about things that they really enjoy and use materials that really catch their eyes. My favorite part about powerpoint is that you can put your own style on the presentation. Children are different in so many ways, they will be able to change the background to their favorite colors and use font that describes what type of person that they are. There isn't really much that I can find that makes me dislike this application. It seems like there is so much that can be done on one page and I love that. You can use it in a completely messy or organized way.

With other softwares such as word, it can be difficult for children to really get into what they are working on but powerpoint gives them the option to be themselves. To me it is extremely important for children to be their own type of person and to have their own mind. Espically when it comes to special education, these children need to feel like they are independent so it is important to make sure that they get that opportunity.

About Me PowerPoint

In the beginning of Education 214, we were asked to create an About Me activity. We created this activity using PowerPoint. In the PowerPoint we included information about our background, education, and our future goals. We were asked to include a couple of pictures and images that expressed who we were. This activity would teach us the different features that PowerPoint has to offer. This is very important since as a future teacher, I plan on using PowerPoint to get information to the students.
In my classroom I will most certainly use PowerPoint. PowerPoint can be used to present information to the students but also it can be used for the students to present information. In my lesson plan that I submitted, I had the students do a group project that required them to make a PowerPoint presentation and show it to the class. As a teacher, I can use PowerPoint to do productive review games also such as jeopardy. The students are learning and having fun at the same time and this can be a hard thing to do sometimes when a high school student's mind is not focused on school. What makes PowerPoint so nice to use in the classroom is the multiple uses it has unlike the old fashion overheads. Overall, I feel more confident using PowerPoint because of the About Me activity we did in class and someday hope to be able to utilize PowerPoint in the classroom to its full potential.

About Me Activity

We started out this class by doing an About Me Activity in powerpoint. In this activity we had to have 8 slides that told different things about yourself, such as where you're from, what you're plans are etc. Powerpoint is a way to show people/tell people information that is more interesting then doing it some other way. Powerpoint also lets you have a little more freedom and you can put pictures in it, you can just list things (you don't have to use complete sentences), you can pick your own fonts and colors, all the things that will make it more of YOUR type of work, rather than papers can be like other students papers.

In my classroom, I will definitely use powerpoint. I think powerpoint will keep the children interested longer then something like taking notes straight off the chalkboard would. In elementary school there are various ways that you can use powerpoint. You can use it for games, such as jeopardy, or you can use it for classmates to get to know one another just like we used it. Powerpoint is highly used throughout your education so I would want the students to learn how to do it, and get practice with it. When I cadet taught my senior year, the fifth graders I was teaching learned their science animal levels through powerpoint. It would give examples of an animal, then on the next slide go into detail about what type of animal that was and what class it is in. I also have made a powerpoint that integrates PE and Spelling. There are a lot of games, and ways to use powerpoint as an Elementary teacher, and I will definitely be using it, and letting the children get practice with it.

Glogster in the Classroom

http://s6vw2g3.edu.glogster.com/ -Glogster is an online message board system that allows you to visually create an online poster board, allowing you to copy or link pictures, videos, or clip art. You can also type messages on it and even decorate it to form your own personal layout, allowing you to demonstrate your creativity.

Glogster could be very useful for teaching a high school history class. It could be used as a creative way to give notes, or to link videos or pictures for discussion. It would be very useful for teaching a subject like history, which can seem to lack in creativity and interest for students. Also, it could be used for students to do poster projects on. It would relieve them of the stress of having to buy the materials for a poster board and carrying them around with them all day at school. Students would have almost unlimited amounts of resources to use to demonstrate how they learn the material and what possibly works for them. It is also very easy to learn and a fun way of showing the student's own creativity within their learning. It would also allow students an easy way to access homework assignments, or classroom lecture materials. One problem with using Glogster is that students would have to have access to a computer outside of school.

Liz Hall: Review About Me Presentation

          I have not had computer classes since my freshman year of high school. With that said, I am not familiar with many of the things on our syllabus. When we started out the semester with a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation, I was relieved. I find technology a bit intimidating, but PowerPoint is something I have been using since intermediate school. I appreciated that you opened our class with something simple that many of us were familiar with so it wasn’t overwhelming.

            I also really liked that you gave us the opportunity to share about our lives. In my methods class, we are actually learning about how important it is to be more than just a teacher and actually develop a relationship with students. The topic was also nice simply because we didn’t have to do any research on the first day and it kept things light-hearted.

            If I could change one thing about this project, I would change how we posted the PowerPoints. In one of my classes we created and posted Photostories under Discussion in Blackboard. This allowed us all to learn about each other and feel a little bit closer as a class. All in all, I really liked this as an opening project.

glogster

I thought this activity was pretty fun. It was definatly different than what I am used to in school. At first, I had trouble because I am a science major and it was difficult to come up with a biology lesson for the poster. Once I came up with a project it became easy. I really liked how you could upload just about anything to the poster. You could change the font, color, size, background, etc.

I am excited to incorporate this website into my class when I become a teacher. Science is usually not considered creative and this will add a little spice to my class. It will also allow my students to express themselves. Maybe my students will hate it. Maybe they will love it. Either way I am interested to see if this new way of doing things will grow.

About Me Power Point Review

In the beginning of Education 214 Class, we were asked to create an About Me activity. We created this activity using Power Point. In the power point we included information about our background, education, and our future life goals. We also were asked to include a couple pictures that depicted our life and incorporate them into our power point presentation as well.

Power point is a computer program where you can make slides, and put information, sounds, and pictures on it to help present your topic. I think that power point is a very influential tool that can be used in classrooms of all ages. Young students would be able to do simple power points about themselves, and add clip art to their pages, while older students would be able to use power point to present information from research papers, book reports, and many more. Power Point is a very flexible tool, which can be used for many different things, and students not only learn from making power point presentations, but they enjoy it as well. I feel like the about me power point presentation was a very beneficial way to start the Education 214 class because it was a fun way to get used to using different forms of technology, I think that I could use the about me assignment as well as many other assignments with power point in my future classroom and it would benefit my students well.

Review of About Me Project

A project that we worked on during the first class period in Technology 214 was an About Me activity.  The activity had to be created using PowerPoint.  In the PowerPoint we included basic background information, educational history, work experience, and goals.  Along with a variety of information we also had to include pictures as well as clip art.

I feel like this activity was valuable in that we were refamiliarized with using PowerPoint.  As future teachers, it is very likely that we will use PowerPoint or a similar software when presenting during our careers.  Along with being able to use it to present, it is also something that is simple enough for all grade levels to use.  With younger students in mind, they could use it for simple things such as making collages or simple presentations to older students who could do descriptive presentations. I feel like PowerPoint is a great resource in that it is simple to use and yet effective in presenting information.  The presentation served as a tool that our fellow classmates could view and learn more about us from.  Also, the PowerPoint we created was valuable in that it is something we could use to show to future employers as a way for them to know more about us.

Glogster Blog

The Glogster activity was fun and a very good tool to know. It can be applied in a variety of ways in every grade level. I did my page on a kindergarten level presenting what the child (in this case me) did over their winter break.

It is applicable in a kindergarten setting as it is fairly easy to navigate, understand, and has a lot of fun unique options. For this grade level it would probably be best to start out in small groups so that students can help each other and not get overwhelmed. However, after one or possibly two glogs with a group they students would be fine to work on their own. Glogs can be made on the alphabet, numbers, basic addition rules… anything you can teach in a classroom you can incorporate into glogster to make it fun and interactive learning.

The software itself is a new way of show-and-tell, replacing poster boards and messy, glue-together projects. It introduces new technology to children of all levels and is a fun, easy way to share that can be viewed in the classroom, at home, and can even post movies and links to other sites! Visit http://www.glogster.com/?eduwarning=1 to learn more and create your own glogster!

Glogster Blog

Sarah Kercher
Edu. 214 S. Penney
Spring 2011


The Glogster activity was fun and a very good tool to know. It can be applied in a variety of ways in every grade level. I did my page on a kindergarten level presenting what the child (in this case me) did over their winter break. It is applicable in a kindergarten setting as it is fairly easy to navigate, understand, and has a lot of fun unique options. For this grade level it would probably be best to start out in small groups so that students can help each other and not get overwhelmed. However, after one or possibly two glogs with a group they students would be fine to work on their own. Glogs can be made on the alphabet, numbers, basic addition rules… anything you can teach in a classroom you can incorporate into glogster to make it fun and interactive learning.
The software itself is a new way of show-and-tell, replacing poster boards and messy, glue-together projects. It introduces new technology to children of all levels and is a fun, easy way to share that can be viewed in the classroom, at home, and can even post movies and links to other sites! Visit http://www.glogster.com/?eduwarning=1 to learn more and create your own glogster!

Glogster

In using Glogster (http://njlattimer.edu.glogster.com/), an online program used to create a virtual posterboard, I found many benefits and only a couple of downfalls. Glogster allows a student to put together pictures, links to websites, descriptions, and clever backgrounds for a posterboard-like page to help teach or present a certain topic. I really enjoy the fact that a student can so easily put together a "glog" on any topic. With the freedom on the internet confined to an online presentation the student does not have to buy supplies or spend as much time on a project as if he/she was using an actual posterboard. Since everthing is done online, no student can boast in resources used on a project, the playing field is leveled with Glogster.

In a middle school social studies classroom, Glogster is ideal. Because of the access to resources the internet provides, how easily it is used and the creativity it allows, Glogster could only help a middle school student put together a collection of facts and links. However, Glogster could pose a problem for certain students. Considering Glogster is a computer-accessed resource, the students must have access to a computer outside of a classroom. Also, an e-mail address is necessary for Glogster, something that most middle school students probably do not have.

On the upside, the two issues presented with Glogster can be overcome with a student going to a public library. Glogster is a great tool for a middle school social studies student!

B. Purdue Glogster

http://www.glogster.com/

The above is a link to glogster. Glogster is an online resource that allows students and teachers to make what I call a digital poster board. It allows people to post links to websites and videos, and also post pictures.There are many different layout options to choose from. The program is pretty basic, and most people should have no problem figuring out how to use it. Once people get the hang of the program they may find that it is pretty enjoyable to use and play with.

The program could be used easily in a fourth grade classroom. I did an example of it for my assignment using a fourth grade math skill. The program could be used to aid the teacher while teaching a lesson, or could be used by a student when presenting a project. The program is fun to used and would be a much more appealing aid rather than a poster board or writing on the chalk board.

I liked that the program was easy to use. I also like that everything is saved to the website and the teacher can just check what you have done, that way there is nothing getting erased when trying to transport the file to a flash drive from a computer. I feel the program had very few glitches when i was using it. It did not randomly shut down or erase my work like powerpoint often does. Overall, I am glad I learned of this resource and will try to incorporate it into my future classroom.

Review of Glogster

This week in my educational software class, I was introduced to an online interactive poster making application called Glogster. Before this class I had never heard of such an application online, especially not for free. Going in I was skeptical that a free website would offer enough tools and options to make using the site worthwhile, but shortly after logging in and playing around I was quickly proved wrong. The way Glogster is set up, anyone with basic computer knowledge can quickly get the hang and start creating their own interactive posters.

After creating my first Glog, I can say that it would be beneficial for teachers to have their students create their presentations using Glogster. Planning to teach high school I can see how students would probably prefer to make an electronic poster than mess with scissors and glue, and the results probably turn out better too. Overall the website is a great online tool, but there are a few things that might cause problems in the classroom. While creating my Glog I found myself wondering how my presentation would translate from the computer to a projector screen or smartboard. Another thing I found was that menus when selecting images or text boxes was a little cumbersome, it would be nice to see the menus become bigger to show more choices at one time. While there are a few flaws overall Glogster is a great application.

Link: http://www.glogster.com/

Jared J. Poeling