Thing #8

I love the idea of sharing photos online. Flickr.com can be used in the classroom in order to create some decorative pictures. It can be used so that children can express their personalities. I also came across some maps where you can upload photos of cities and place them on a map. This could be a great visual geography lesson. The ideas are endless! I don't really have much to say about this, but I love it!

Thing #7

Well I was excited to search and play around on Flickr.com, but to be honest, it wasn't what I thought it would be. They have pictures of everything don't get me wrong, but I was expecting it to be all pictures of random shots that people captured that were unbelievable. They did have those pictures too, but mostly it was pictures that people had taken with their own cameras. I searched Chi Omega pictures because I am a member of Chi Omega. I found a picture of our Symphony that is absolutely beautiful. I could not upload the photo because it was copyrighted, but I will attach the link so you can look at it. All in all, I enjoyed this site because I love photography.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25197733@N00/343424228/

Thing #6

Wow where do I begin? Ok, so being in a relationship it is a give and take matter on everything. When it comes to watching T.V., I never get the chance because my boyfriend has to watch sports or his favorite T.V. shows. Well now that I have recently discovered Hulu.com, I am obsessed. I can watch The Biggest Loser, which my friend Hannah Curlee from the Purple Team is on the show now, as well as watch old T.V. shows that I loved.It also has movies that you can watch! What can be better than this? Best part, is that it is FREE! It is very simple to use, but the only thing I hate is that they have commercials in between segments. The only reason to use it in a classroom or school setting would be to show an important show that portrays a message on what the class is learning, or if a show has an excerpt from a literary source.

http://www.hulu.com/

Thing #5

Web 2.0 is the idea that children are using more technology than books or other resources to learn. Children are more comfortable with computers these days than they are a book. Teachers are always having to keep up with the latest trends, and this is one that can be controversial. When I was in school, I knew what a computer was and my family had one, but only my parents could use it. Nowadays, children have their own computers and laptops. As a teacher, I feel like incorporating web based activities or learning objectives in the classroom is important. It holds the children's attention.

I know that some classrooms now have Smart Boards and that is only the beginning of a new classroom look. The future classrooms will be full of technology resources, but as long as the children are learning in a way that fits them best and they understand the information they need to succeed, why not use technology?

Thing #4

Comments are like compliments. Someone took the time out of their day to comment, or compliment, you on something that you wrote. I know you may say that not all comments are nice, but if you look at it like someone did not have to comment on your post, it is a compliment. CoolCat Teacher has some very good tips when it comes to commenting. She says "Don't be afraid to comment and also write a meaninful comment." This is very true. Another good tip from Problogger is "ask questions." This gives people the opportunity to express their opinion or thoughts on a subject you are writing about.

I have chosen to follow:

Taylor Plummer- Taylor and I have a personal relationship. We are not going into the same area of teaching, but I am excited to see what she is doing and see if I can borrow some ideas that will work in K-6.

Kayla Bearden- Kayla and I also have a personal realtionship and we are in the same area of teaching. We both love reading so I am looking forward to see what things she posts about.

Michelle Baumgardner- Michelle and I have recently become close friends. We both have the love for 2nd grade, and so we can share ideas through our blogs.

Kristin Barrett- Kristin and I have a personal relationship and I am excited to see what she posts. I am always looking for new ideas to take to the classroom.

Amber Kerns- Amber and I have been friends since we began college. We have taken this journey together and I am just curious about her posts. I know that she will post some things that will come handy one day.

I am not so sure about the other two yet, so I am still searching. I will let you know when I come across some bloggers I want to follow.

Thing #3

So as a teacher, I will use a blog to inform other educators on things that have worked really well for my classroom. As educators, we all want many ideas that we can implement in our classrooms. It can also be used to inform the parents of important things that are coming up in the classroom. It would almost be like an email. The students could also blog about their day, of course this depends on what grade you are teaching. I must admit, the more I blog the more I love to blog.

Thing #2

Well to be honest, I am not sure about blogging. I've only seen people who publish their feelings or daily lives on a blog, but to be fair, I see this on T.V. and we all know that T.V. isn't always reality. Setting up my blog was easy for the most part, but it took me awhile to decided on my template. I am still trying to figure things out, so my layout will probably change throughout the semester. As far as picking my Blog name, I chose The Whimsical Walker because whimsical means spontaneous or playful and Walker is my last name. If you know me personally, I am very spontaneous and random, so I feel as if it fit me perfectly!

My avatar is Sleeping Beauty. I have a random dream of being a Disney Princess one day and I love to sleep lol so I feel as if it fits me perfectly. She is a sleeping beautiful  Disney Princess. Yes I know, I'm weird but that's me and I wouldn't change it for anything!

Thing #1

So after watching the 7 1/2 Habits video, I have decided that the easiest habit for me is to use technology to my advantage. I love surfing the web for information that I need or want to know. Although some websites are not very trustworthy, I do my research to make sure that what I am reading is the truth in many different sources.

My habit that is the hardest for me is viewing problems as challenges. I think that some problems can be an opportunity for me to learn, but for the most part I see them as obstacles. I guess that comes down to me needing to have a positive attitude. From now on I am going to try to see problems as challenges and not obstacles that can seem impossible.