Blog Assignment 2

1. Did You Know?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY
This video was extremely eye opening to me!! The power of the internet and technology today is absolutely mind blowing. We are even preparing ourselves for the future of the internet. We don;t even know what will be available to us in the future, but we are already preparing ourselves to solve future problems that we don't even know are problems yet!
I think that most people are aware of the power of the internet, but not to its full extent. This video for sure heightened awareness for me. I'm not completely sure that I can even grasp the extent of this video, but it sure has opened up my eyes and mind.
2. Mr. Winkle Wakes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lm1sCsl2MQY  
I thought this video was done in a really cute way! I really enjoyed it. It was very creative and the point was clearly made. It is very comforting to know that even though technology is changing faster than we can keep up with it, education is staying fairly consistent for the most part. There is a good bit of comfort in that for everyone I think. Technology is extremely helpful, but at the same time, it is nice to know some things do stay the same.
Technology is an awesome thing, but I think it is easy to get wrapped up in it and to lose sight of the importance of standard education in the classroom. Even today, online classes are a great idea and can be helpful for working parents or students with other full time jobs etc., but more and more traditional classes are going online and it is easy to get caught up in that.
3. Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html
I never thought of creativity in schools like this until now. Creativity is being minimized in many ways. Ken Robinson made a great point in saying that most kids nowadays are afraid of being wrong and that leaves no room for creativity in them. Schools do push the "important" subjects such as math or science far more instead of dance or art. This is hurting the children more than helping them As he said, dance is just as important as math.
I really enjoyed the video! Creativity is a must in children. It is important for them to not "grow out of creativity". If the schools continue to minimize the need to keep creativity in children as they grow, it is in a sense taking away their individuality. That is unacceptable. Each child is individual in his or her own way and we need to teach them how to grasp their individuality instead of blocking it out with math and science.
4. Cecelia Gault Interviews Sir Ken Robinson
This was a great video! She is a very bright little girl. She seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say. It seemed like it was more than just a school interview for her. You could tell her creativity wasn't stripped from her. In my future classroom, I hope to keep creativity in all subjects, even in math and science so that my students can fully get in touch with their creativity.
5. Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts
This was a very informative video. Vicki Davis seems like such an awesome teacher. She has a passion to connect her students and she is very hands-on. She lets the students teach her as well. This helps the students become technologically informed. Standard classroom learning is very important, however, this is so important as well. The possibilities of students blogging to other students and learning programs and sharing with each other are endless! It empowers the students to connect and share and to teach themselves.
These students are the future. This is so imperative to have available to students in the schools. They can express their creativity and learn things at a young age on the computer that most of us probably have no idea what it even is! So many great present and future outcomes are coming from this. The students in this video inspire me to get out and learn new technologies and programs and to blog just because I can!

Wordle Project

Blog Assignment 1

I was born and raised in Mobile, AL. I graduated from Murphy High School in 2008. From Murphy, I went to Jacksonville State University for two years. I really enjoyed my time there in Jacksonville, but I really missed my friends and family in Mobile. I decided to move back home in the summer of 2010 and applied and got accepted to USA. I chose Elementary Education as my major. I chose this major because I have always loved children and I have always loved teaching them. My first grade teacher had a huge impact on my wanting to be a first grade teacher as well.
I come from a huge family. There are six kids in my family. Five of the six kids are girls and only one is a  boy and he is the youngest. I loved growing up in a huge family and that probably has something to do with my love for kids. I currently am working two jobs. The first job I work is during the week and it is as a nanny to two of the most precious children you will ever meet: Hannah and Hampton. Hannah is five years old and Hampton is three years old. The second job I work is usually on the weekends only. It is at Cold Snap Frozen Yogurt. It is a laid back, enjoyable job that helps pay the bills.
I have many interests in life. One of them being almost anything that has to do with the outdoors. I love running, hiking, biking, kayaking, etc. the list goes on. Anything challenging that is outdoors is something that I tend to love. This pretty much sums me up!