I-pod Touch Training

I attended the district staff development for the I-pod touch on Tuesday, June 22nd. I had no idea there were so many apps out there. There is an app for just about anything you would ever need or want to do. Creating apps must be a very lucrative business. Now I want an I-phone or an I-pod touch of my own! I could see myself using it every day and spending a lot of money on apps too. ;-P
I was also one of the lucky winners of the raffle for the class. I won 4 sets of earbuds that will be delivered to my classroom in August.

Tool #3 Image Chef

I used Word Mosaic on the imagechef.com website to create this word image. I like it better than wordle because it makes a shape with the words. However, it is difficult to read some of the words because they run into other words. This image generator and Wordle could be used in the classroom to post words that are grouped together under a category. Such as Parts of a Note: note head, stem, flag, beam, etc. Perhaps it could be used as an assignment in which the students could color certain words in particular colors, depending on their meaning or how they relate to each other. For instance, tempo (fast or slow) words could be placed into Word Mosaic and students would color all the words meaning fast in red, all the words meaning medium speed in green, and all the words meaning slow in blue. All in all it is a very useful tool. I also explored flickr.com a bit and I realized that while it is a powerful tool, it will definitely take some time to learn how to use it.

Tool #3

I created this image using Comic Strip Generator. It was fun to use and would be a great tool to help kids to get excited about writing. However, as I was browsing through the options of pictures to edit, I saw a few inappropriate pictures of women. Also, I had some difficulty figuring out how to download the image without having to pay for it. In addition, there were many different links floating around the page that one could click on. There is always a possibility of downloading a virus from clicking on links. I did this exercise at home so I wonder if the Spring Branch system would block some of the inappropriate images and links????

Tool #2

I think that collaboration among educators is wonderful! I really value different viewpoints and the advice of my colleagues. I see two ways that online communities can be helpful.

1. Online communities allow people to share without having to schedule meetings.
2. Readers can take or leave the ideas that are presented in the blog they are reading.

Music teachers in our district already have a folder on the district server in which we share power points, mp3s, listening maps, and ideas for teaching the curriculum. I have enjoyed the ease with which we can share.

When reading the commenting advice I was most affected by the idea that you should add something meaningful with a comment. Leaving a one word comment like, "Great!" might be nice and good etiquette, but it doesn't make the blog better.

I found commenting on blogs took up A LOT of time. I had a difficult time finding blogs to comment on because I had to read quite a few to find blogs that I could identify with or had an opinion about. I commented on the following blogs:

1. 2 Cents Worth
2. Websites of the Day for ELL, ESL, and EFL
3. Southbound 45
4. Mary's Art Spot
5. Mrs. Dixon's Blog

These were all good blogs. In the future I will be on the lookout for websites, apps, and blogs having to do with teaching music. Suggestions are welcome!

Tool #1 - New to blogging

I have had a little bit of practice with blogging before, so setting up this blog wasn't too painful. I had a lot of fun decorating and playing with my Voki avatar. I might still change her some more, but after an hour of playing I just HAD to move on to the next step. One drawback I noticed in setting up these accounts is that there are a lot of accounts, usernames, and passwords to keep track of in this process.

I could see myself using a blog like this to keep in touch with my students' parents about upcoming concerts and music events at the school. I could also post pictures of concerts and events that are finished. In the classroom, I could have students create videos to post on the blog. Videos could be anything from Animoto slide-shows of our concerts to creating their own opera.

Students could read the blog and post comments at any time about pictures or events that they see posted.