Pinterest is a web and mobile application that allows users to visually collect web images by bookmarking them into a board for safe keeping. I personally have fallen in love with the app and regularly login for tips on fashion and recipes. To my surprise it is actually a huge platform used by educators. Pinterest can be used in the classroom a number ways such as;

•  collaborating with other teachers on lesson plans.
•  finding new and innovative teaching methods.
•  finding good reads to use in the classroom.
•  finding project ideas or experiments.
•  using images found on Pinterest to use with lessons.
•  have students pin ideas for projects.

So, for my Ed Tech assignment, I had to create a project using Pinterest. I had a lot of fun with this project and I completed it with my daughters. I learned that 1 inch of liquid precipitation could fall as 10 inches of snow in 30 degree weather. How cool is that! I first pinned some links that lined up with the project I decided to create, which is Making a Rain Gauge. There were so many pictures available. Just type rain gauge in the search engine of Pinterest and voila! So take a look at my rain gauge and the steps I used to make it. I've also included a link with the lesson template if any of you teachers out there would like to use it. Rain Gauge Lesson Template

The materials I used were:

box cutter or utility knife (An adult will need to handle the knife)

empty 2 liter bottle

ruler

duct tape

sand/pebbles/gravel

scotch tape or use duct tape

1. First, cut about 3-4 inches of the top off the 2 liter bottle. Do not discard.

 2.Since the bottom of the bottle is not even, you need to have a even zero measuring point. Pour sand or gravel in the bottom of bottle until you have an even level. This will also create weight so that your rain gauge won’t blow away.

3.Take the top of the of the bottle you removed on step 1 and turn upside down and place inside of the bottle. This will create a funnel.

4.Put duct tape around the edges of the top of the bottle to hold the funnel in place.

5.Use tape to attach the ruler vertically to the side of the bottle. Make sure the ruler begins at the top of the sand/gravel (the zero level).

RAIN GAUGE COMPLETE!!!

I also have a Precipitation Measurement Chart included on the link for the students to measure the precipitation up to 30 days. Have Fun!

      COOL TOOLS TO USE FOR SCHOOL

There are hundreds of online educational tools available to enhance the classroom experience. Here are a few that I have come across and may consider using in my future classroom.

1. http://prezi.com/

Prezi is a great tool to use when creating presentations. It eliminates the need for a power point with multiple slides by creating a colorful, zooming, user interface. In my opinion, Prezi could hold the attention of students longer by zooming and moving around the page. I could definitely see myself using this to present a lesson in the classroom. Another great thing about Prezi is that it is cloud based, so I could pull it up on my laptop or Ipad and share with my class.


2.www.edmodo.com

Edmodo is a learning management system. It is platform where teachers can stay connected to both students and parents.  Teachers can post assignments that can be seen by students and monitored by parents. There are also discussion boards for students to communicate with their teacher and other students. I have experience with Edmodo as a parent and I used it frequently to monitor assignments posted. I was able to see whether my son had homework even when he claimed they did nothing in class.

3. http://www.lulujr.com/teachers.php

Student publishing or Lulu Jr. is an easy way for teachers to create a classroom book. I've seen teachers create handmade books that has pictures of the students of the current class. This would be a more creative way to create a classroom book. I could upload photos or art created by my students to this site and within 2-5 weeks (spring is peak season) I could have a hardcover book to display in my classroom. There is even an option for students to create their own individual books that their parents could choose to purchase.

4.http://www.tfd.com/

No classroom would be complete without a dictionary. As a mother of small children who constantly ask the meaning of words, Sometimes I may not even know the definition myself, so I will hand them an electronic device and tell them to look it up. I guess I'm preparing them for the new way of learning by finding much of our information on the web. So I would definitely incorporate The Free Dictionary in the classroom. It contains much more info than just definitions. It is also an encyclopedia, contains other interesting facts and even has hangman


5.http://popplet.com/

Popplet is a great tool to use for visually brainstorming ideas. I recently made a popplet for a class and was impressed at how easy it was to put together. A popplet consists of linked rectangles or popples that can contain text or images. Once, the popplet is created it can be printed or shared via a link. I could have my students use this tool to collect ideas or use it to create study material.

6.http://www.classtools.net/

Class Tools is a really cool way for teachers to create their very own online games. You select a template for a game, such as Pacman. You then input questions that pertain to the subject matter of your choice. You save it and embed it in a website or blog to use in the classroom. How cool is that! Class Tools is a creative way to keep students engaged in learning.

7.http://www.quibblo.com/

I really found Quibblo as an interesting way to create quizzes online. This could be a great tool for teachers to use to create quizzes that can be assessed outside of class. Also, Quibblo is a great way for students to create quizzes to share with one another. I would use this more with older students. I like the idea that Quibblo could be shared on other sites and could even be embedded into my blog.




8.http://www.equizzer.com/

eQuizzer gives teachers the opportunity to come up with quizzes and post online. This can be used during the school day or as an assignment for students to complete at home. The questions are in the form of multiple choice. There is even a way for the students to contribute by coming up with questions to post to quizzes if approved by the teacher. This would be a good way to test students' knowledge while at the same time saving trees.



9. http://www.educationoasis.com/curriculum/graphic_organizers.htm

I appreciate the online tools to create graphic organizers but sometimes I prefer paper and pen. Education Oasis has 58 free graphic organizers that can be printed and used in the classroom. Some graphic organizers can be completed online then printed. I think Education Oasis is a great resource to have when having students use this type of way to organize thoughts. The only thing is they are PDF documents and you would need Adobe Reader to access the organizers.

10.http://www.epals.com/#!/main

With America being known as the "melting pot", it is important that students have a understanding of the different cultures that exist. ePals is a great way to do just that. ePals is the modern day take on pen pals. Students have the opportunity to connect with other students worldwide with the click of a mouse through email. There are ready made projects for the students to collaborate with their pal to take part in. I remember writing to my pen pal in elementary school and it was a memorable experience that I would definitely like to incorporate in my class.

Social Networking: The Good, The Bad, and The Stupid

Before I tap into the effects of social networking, let me just say that I can maneuver around Facebook quite well. Unfortunately, although I have both a Twitter and Instagram account, I am still waiting on my sons to teach me how to use them. Sad. As I parent I feel it is my duty to not get consumed in Tweeting and checking these accounts throughout the day. I have to be an example to them that there are more productive things you can be doing with your time. Like sleeping, hehehe!

But this article helped me prove some of my points. Such as, that social media could have an effect on your brain and in some cases be making you stupid. Or so I thought.  Social Media Is Making You Stupid  The author points out that some users of social media could be losing their ability to think abstractly on an individual level. The idea is that participants of a study, when given questions, answered them correctly only by depending on others through social networking. Therefore, participants copied others for answers rather than thinking on their own. I can't say that I agree that this was a good determining factor of whether someone indeed becomes stupider in the instance of using social networking to get an answer to a problem quicker. I think lazy is more of the word.

This next article didn't help my argument much either. Social Networking Affects Brains Like Falling In Love Rather, it proves that social networking could affect your brain in good ways. For instance, your oxytocin, or "trust hormone", levels can increase when you take part in social networking. Paul J. Zak, a professor at Claremont Graduate University, says that oxytocin is the  "social glue" that adheres families, communities, and societies, and as such acts as an "economic lubricant" that enables us to engage in all sorts of transactions. Dr. Zak actually took blood samples of a participant to test his oxytocin levels before and after being on Twitter. His oxytocin levels increased and stress hormones coritsol decreased. Also, your brain thinks that when tweeting that you are actually having an in-person interaction. Amazing! I guess its time I get on the tweeting bandwagon. I may see my stress levels decrease, especially, after having a stressful mommy day, . Don't tell the kids I said that!

A Little About Me

Hmmmm. About me? I tend to believe that I am not that interesting of a person. Whenever I attend a meeting or class and they ask everyone to state something interesting about themselves, I have the hardest time recalling anything that I consider worthy of sharing. I consider myself to be an extremely private, open book. The ultimate contradictory statement I know. But when it comes to the internet, I was told that once it has been posted to the world wide web it is there forever. So, I take careful consideration about anything I post online, even pictures. So the fact that I have to start a blog for a class, is a bit of a challenge for me to expose things about me that possibly the world could see. But...I also feel if there is anything that you would like to know about me, just ask.  I don’t have an issue with sharing things about me or my past. Who knows? Something about me, may be encouraging to you. 

The thing about me that shocks people the most is when I mention that my husband and I have 7 children together. You would think I said I was the mother of the Duggar children.  I brought 3 into the equation + his 4 = 7 gorgeous children.  I look a lot younger than I really am, so I’m sure that plays a role in the initial shock.  We live in the great state of Arkansas. I am a Elementary Education Major at Henderson State University. I was born in South Cackalacky (Carolina), but I have lived here in Arkansas since I was 10.  I have a close knit family and I love being with them all.  One of my favorite things to do is to cook Sunday dinner after church and just hang out with my family.  I enjoy cooking and trying new recipes, especially dessert recipes. So I will be trying out quite a few recipes and posting pics here on the blog. I will also share meals or recipes that have been hits in my family.  Stay tuned!