Summer is a time for me to both look back and look forward. I've spent several hours reflecting on the good, and the not so good that was my classroom last year.
For the good, I felt like I introduced my students to a lot of different technology tools. All of my students were enrolled on our district's Google Apps platform this year. They were the only class in the school to be using this awesome opportunity.
They also used http://www.wallwisher.com for a math project and played math games on many different websites, including http://www.coolmathgames.com. We used http://www.spellingcity.com several times to practice spelling/vocabulary words. Thanksgiving time was exciting as we got our new SmartBoard installed and the kids and I learned the software together. Students were SO helpful in opening and using lessons I had placed in the programs when subs were in my room.
Of course, kids learned the Microsoft basics of Word, Publisher and Powerpoint. But I think the best lesson came when we explored Google Sketchup during our unit on 2D & 3D geometry.
So, the not so good:
Although I did a lot of technology in my class, I think I could have done better with consistency. For example, we were using Google docs pretty successfully at the beginning of the year for literature circles, but after Christmas, I didn't follow through and create new groups/docs to keep that going. We used wallwisher, but after exploring the program more thoroughly in the past few days, I can see so many more instances where this tool could have supported learning and assessment.
So, it all goes back to learning goals and using technology to achieve those goals. Beginning with the end in mind, one of Covey's Essential Habits, sometimes says it all.
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