February 1- Google Part 2

What? We learned about google sites and creating them. I wasn't able to make it to class last week so I was trying to figure out everything by myself. I'm sure it took me way longer because I missed the instruction on it, but I feel like I figured most of it out pretty well and that I really know it now. There was a lot of different options that we used in order to make the class website.

So what? I think this is a great tool for us to become familiar with as teachers. Having our own classroom website for students and parents of our students is a great way to create a safe environment where everyone feels comfortable. This keeps parents involved in what is going on in our classroom and a gives them a little hole into the type of teacher we are and what types of activities their children are involved in on a daily basis.

Now what? This is something I definitely would like to become more comfortable with and so that I can create a great website that is something the kids and parents want to and feel like they need to stay updated with. This is great for us to be able to use in our future teaching careers and I plan to keep mine updated so that my students can have a bunch of great resources and so that I can get to know them better as well as then getting to know me on some level as well. I think that all the different pages that you asked us to create are great and make for a very full and helpful website for students. It is important to keep everything clear so that it is easily accessed by all of our students.

25 January~ Google Part 1

In class this week we learned about google and all of the different things that we can do on it. We were able to use google calendar, docs, spreadsheets, and presentations. It was great to see all of the different options and tools we had at our disposal. It is important for us as teachers to know how to work these things so that we can teach and allow our students to use them as well. We would be uninformed and under prepared if we didn't try and educate ourselves on any tools that we could use as teachers. Any resource that we can use as teachers will be important for us to learn and about and see if we can or want to use it in our future classrooms.
The google docs are a great source for students of all ages to work on projects with other class members or alone. By using this later on we would be able to edit students' work throughout their writing processes and give them tips as well. I definitely see myself using that feature as an English teacher later on. Also, the google calendar can be a helpful tool for students to have access to so that they are able to have a copy of the schedule of the class at all times and so that they are always informed about what is going on and where they should be in the class. Having free tools such as these are helpful no matter where we are teaching. When we all become teachers we can use this regardless of SES of our students. They can use google docs, presentations, spreadsheets, an the other tools in place of programs that cost money and offer basically the same thing. I'm excited to become more comfortable with some of these tools so that I can feel like I am adequate enough to explain it all to my students as well.

January 18- Introduction

I decided in High school that I wanted to be a teacher. I had had great teachers that made me want to come to class, other teachers that made me want to never come back to school, and teachers and coaches who had a passion for what they did and what they taught. I always had excelled in English and in Math, and I tutored both for years. I always felt like those that I helped with reading and writing I was able to find a deeper connection with because of the content area. We were able to discuss our thoughts and feelings about certain characters, events and ideas. Because of the greater freedom in teaching Language Arts I turned my focus to them when I first went to the University of Utah. From there I have had more amazing teachers that ignited a love and passion for literature of all kinds that I still enjoy reading and studying now.
I also plan on coaching volleyball at a high school level. I have played volleyball since I was eight and after finishing up playing at the University of Utah I have coached at the club level. I have learned so much about teaching, politics, parents, and the game itself being on the other side of the whistle. I look forward to having my own English class that I can make into my own environment of learning and enjoyment.   
I hope that from this class I am able to become quicker and more knowledgeable about computers and creating  websites especially. I am pretty computer literate, and I am always learning and up to try new things, but it would be great to not have to think about every step I do when creating web quests and hopefully a classroom website. I have heard great things about what this class can do for us in the teaching profession and I look forward to everything I have to learn.