Sierpinski/Reflection 4

I always sign up for technology classes with much anxiety, being afraid I will not be able to keep up with the class or lose what I have created. But what I took away from this class was well worth that anxiety. I learned how to organize pictures that I took with my digital camera (using lots of new photography techniques) for my students in iPhoto. Now I can edit them, make them into slideshows, books, cards, etc. I learned to upload them to Picassa. I can now use the pictures from any computer. iMovie is amazing. I was able to use the video I took on my flip camera of my students' field trip and turn it into a video that they can watch over the summer to help them transition to the high school next year. It will also help ease their parents anxiety, as well.

Besides creating the video for ease of my students' transition, I plan on using the "rectangles" slideshow I developed on the Smartboard to help my students learn "rectangle" in another fun way (with my students, I need lots of ways to teach the same thing over and over again). Maybe Chad can help me find a way to have my guys draw a rectangle around each "real world" rectangle on the Smartboard.

My special students do not get to brag or chat about fun things they get to do in school. Their parents only hear from me on a "talker" about their day. I will be teaching my assistants to utilize iPhoto so we can make a "talking picture album" with all the pictures we have taken of the guys. It is fun for them to see and hear about themselves, great for learning to turn pages and pressing the talk button.

Next year I will be getting more students and some with higher abilities. I would like to use the flip camera for modeling procedures and behaviors. I know it will be beneficial for my kitchen safety unit.

This was an excellent class for me. It was taught in a way I could understand. I gained more technology information that can be applied directly to my classroom and learned from others in the room.