Melissa



My link to my wiki is http://edu573mf.wikispaces.com

On my wiki site students will work on long and short vowel sounds. A lot of my students have a difficult time reading words because they do not know what the sound of the vowels are. I have done a fishing for vowel game with them and it has really got them motivated to learn the sounds. Designing the wiki was very difficult for me and I did not clearly enjoy the program. I think it is a great tool to use and once you get the hang it probably works wonderfully. I believe that older students or teachers may get more use out of it then younger students. I think the wiki can be used a fun tool during literacy centers in the classroom i hope to get soon. It is a great content delievery tool especially in literacy. After viewing everyone elses I have seen so many great ideas and ways things can be taught through the wiki.

I think wiki's can be used as a review tool too. When children have diufficulty with some reading, writing or any other lessons, it is important to have a tool and different way to go over it with them. The wiki program can be a great source for teachers to post and discuss upcoming lessons within the curriculum they are working on. I like how students are able to contribute and add their own ideas to the wiki. This can be a great way for classroom discussions with upper grade students. I think students will feel like their ideas matter and this usually makes them want to go further with their learning.

PODCAST... After reading the article and chapters in the textbook, I am now a little familiar with some of the benefits of podcasting. Podcasting first started to be used for conveying information and entertainment, but as stated in the article, podcasting offers many benefits to developing learners listening and speaking skills. Children need to be able to have opportunities to both speak and listen within their own classroom. Through podcasting children are offered many opportunities. Cooperative learning or group work can take place, children learning from one another, and children learning from their teacher can all be promoted through podcasting. Children aslo need to feel comfortable and be offered diverse ways of learning, and in some cases listening to a lesson, or actually doing some work through the technology aspect can help. I know from working with special ed. children technology plays a huge role in their learning. Podcasting can be used in the class I work in now by having different lessons on podcasting. Phonetic pronunciation activities, listening comprehension activities, and short stories are a few of good podcasts that can be used with the children. Presenting information to my children in different ways is very important and always benefits for the entire class. Computers are very important and as I said that podcasting can be incorporated into the class i work with now, I will also want to try and incorporate it into the future classroom i hope to have really soon. I believe that any child or adult can definately benefit from podcasting once they get the hang of it. Both the children and the adult can learn and also have some fun with this technology. Listening skills are extremely important with all ages of children, therefore podcasting seems to be a wonderful tool to develop lessons, discussions, activities, stories, songs, etc. I agree and liked wihat the artcile when it stated about how not only can teachers create podcasts, so can the children. I believe in the upper grades the students can create podcasts according to what they are learning in their classes to help both their peers and themselves with their learning. I think the younger grade students can be put into groups to create their own podcasts and this can be very beneficial. Podcasting is a great tool to help develop listening and speaking skills in the classroom becasue it can be a group activity or an individual activity that helps everyone learn. Podcasting can also be very good to help some students build confience in their work if technology is a strong skill of theirs. I theink its extremely important for childrne to feel comfortable and confident in their work.