Teaching with Technology: UDL Learning Lesson

Creating the UDL lesson was fun and exciting. It was very helpful to use the UDL website and its resources as a guide. I also felt that the detailed UDL lesson template made the lesson very detailed and thorough so that every component was covered and that every student was reached. It was also helpful to break down the lesson into individual parts, i.e. anticipatory set, introduce and model new knowledge, provide guided practice, provide independent practice, etc. By focusing on each part at a time, I was able to design a more engaging lesson. This lesson made me think about how I currently create my lessons and what I need to do differently to incorporate a more inclusive teaching style. I feel that using all three network activities (Recognition, Strategic, and Affective) allowed me to create a broader and more in depth lesson plan.

I also enjoyed creating this lesson because it involved integrating technology with a core subject area. I teach a technology class, so I see and use technology all the time. However, I like to find new and creative ways to integrate technology into other subject areas. Overall, using the UDL model helped me design a lesson to reach a more diverse student population.

Multimedia Course - Final Blog

The final class PSA video project provided an exciting and fun opportunity to work with others in our course. After creating our group, we quickly met in an online video chat to discuss our PSA assignment video. Everyone had several activities going on so we all decided to incorporate those activities into our PSA video. Everyone worked together to create our initial shot list and outline for our video. Throughout the next week or so, everyone collected video clips and still images to submit to the production process. After a rough cut of the video was produced everyone viewed and discussed some edits that needed to be made. Then, the final edits were done and the final PSA was produced with voice-over narrations. The entire group agreed that the video format should be presented on You Tube.

Our group did a great job working together to produce an awesome PSA about technology. One thing we can do better next time is to provide more video clips and still images to work with so the editing process will have more options.

All copyright assets can be contributed to the group members. All video clips and still images were taken by the group members. The voice-over narration was provided by our group. The sound effects were taken from the Apple Macbook sound effect catalog in the iMovie program.

Our group interaction was done through group video chat, Google documents, email, and phone conversations.

Overall, the process was successful and fulfilling.

Video Editing Software Review

Working with video editing software to make a movie can be exciting, easy, and fun.  This is especially true if you have easy to use editing software, with lots of effects and other features to make your final project an award winning feature.  I chose Apple’s iMovie as my editing software for this week’s assignment.  I have used several programs before, including Windows Movie Maker and Adobe’s Premiere Elements.  Premiere Elements has more than enough functions, effects, and add-ons that you could possibly need, however the learning curve is high and geared toward more advanced users.  Windows Movie Maker another alternative, however its synergy with other programs does not compare to Apple’s iMovie.  iMovie has the ability to integrate seamlessly with iDVD to make DVD menus and a full-fledged DVD.  The iMovie program also has an option to convert your final movie to your iPod or automatically upload it to You Tube.  In all, Apple’s iMovie has got you covered for all of your basic movie making needs.

Personal Digital Story Reflection

Creating our personal digital story a fun and exciting assignment.  I love working with this medium.  Taking images, and ultimately videos, editing them, adding effects, transitions, titles, and special effects, and narration to create a final product to convey a message is a huge undertaking.  However, it is a great way to communicate and teach a concept and/or idea.

The idea of sharing with the classroom (or the world) knowledge, personal thoughts, or experiences and conveying them using technology, music, and the Internet is the wave of the future.  That is why You Tube and other similar websites have become so popular.  People love to watch videos (whether raw footage or edited) of just about any topic.  

My favorite aspect of the whole project is being able to share my feelings, emotions, ideas, thoughts, and viewpoints with others in a creative and exciting way.

Where Dreams Come True

Check out this short vacation video.  It's where Dreams Come True.

Tech & Learning - Website Review

In the 21st century, educators need as much help as they can to reach and teach students. The Tech & Learning website, www.techlearning.com, allows teachers to access technology information whenever it is needed. The site also offers an RSS feed which automatically sends updates to the user’s email inbox. There are blogs and tech forums that provide a place for educators to share their ideas and questions with an online community. Another feature of the Tech & Learning website is the “Webinar”. A webinar is a seminar offered on the web. Topics include subjects such as, “Integrating Math Curriculum and Interactive White Boards”, “Professional Development Through Just-In Time Learning”, and many more. The website keeps previous webinars archived making them easy to access. All of these resources are free to use without any obligation. The information is free, easy, and offers instant access to current news and technology reviews.

Though the Tech & Learning website offers valuable information regarding technology, a few aspects of the design layout could be improved. For example, to contact Tech & Learning, the user must scroll to the bottom of the site. Having this link at the top would make the contact feature more accessible. Also, due to the vast amount of information on each page, the novice Internet user may find the website overwhelming.

The Tech & Learning website has invaluable resources for educators. I would recommend this site to any teacher, administrator, or technology facilitator. This site offers educators a collaborative community to learn, teach, and share technology insight with other educators.