Vidcasts

What?

This week we learned about how to make vidcasts four different ways: through video, PowerPoint, Photostory, and Jing. My partner and I decided to teach a Science lesson on the three types of rock. We also decided to try to use Photostory to create the presentation (before we post it onto YouTube).

So What?

I already knew the benefits of making a video-based vidcast (I made one for another of Prof. Waters classes), but I had never thought of using the other three tools to create one. Knowing several ways to create vidcasts will be helpful in the future, if I ever want to create them. Not only will it help me if I ever have to create a presentation for one of my classes, but it is also a helpful tool to know when I start my student-teaching.

Now What?

In the future, I will definitely be using presentations like vidcasts to keep my classroom unique and interesting. I will be the first to admit that most students LOVE it when you play them a video of any kind; if it actually teaches them something, all the better. It is also a useful tool to use if you are trying to keep parents and colleagues up-to-date on how/what your class is doing. Not only that, a teacher can also use vidcasts to help substitutes see what they need to be doing in the classroom while you’re gone. Lesson plans, game ideas, links they can use, etc. The possibilities are close to endless, actually…

Podcasts

What?

This week we learned about how to make Podcasts. We created a Public Service Announcement, then pasted it into our websites. My partner and I did a PSA about the Effects of Smoking on youth.

So What?

Podcasts can be incredibly important in the classroom. A teacher can use them to help teach a lesson, or to keep parents informed on what the students are doing/learning at a certain point. As a student, I can use podcasts to help me in a presentation, or there are even podcasts that help me learn certain lessons that my Professors might want me to listen to.

Now What?

Looking into the future, I can see how Podcasts could help me teach lessons in the classroom. All students need variety in lessons, and Podcasts would be a unique way to break up a monotonous lesson. Teaching them how to make podcasts would also be a useful lesson; students learn from students as easily as (and sometimes better than) they do from teachers. Having my students make Podcasts that their peers—and even my future students—can listen to would be a benefit to everyone.

Web-sites (with some digital stories thrown in...)

What:

This week we are not only making our own Web-sites, but we are also collecting information about our digital stories.

So What?

While my team-mate and I haven’t decided on what we want our digital story to entail, I can already see the benefits of making one for a class. It is a fun, interesting way to teach a subject that might otherwise lose a student’s interest. As for the web-site, I am thrilled to be learning how to make one. It will be a wonderful asset to me once I am a teacher, and should virtually eliminate troubles with homework and future assignments, as well as keep parents informed on what we are doing in the classroom.

Now What?

In the future, the web-site will come in very handy—not only in helping me to keep my curriculum on track, but also to show parents what we are doing in the classroom, what homework is due and when, and also how they might help me guide their children successfully. This web-site can also help my colleagues see where I am in my classes, and might make collaborating much easier.