Author: Jacob Dunn

Xtranormal

~ Jacob Dunn ~ Leave a comment

  If any of you have seen the Insurance commercials that have super heroes or those weird animals in it then you have seen and Xtranormal video. I believe this type of website is a game changer to our modern education. Especially the way our students learn today. This neat website allows you to create videos with out having extensive creative ability.
   How does it work? You chose characters, a scene, background noise, and best of all you create the script. This can be used in so many different settings and subjects to help your students learn to their highest ability.If you wanted to explain the Pythagorean theorem in math or how osmosis works in science, or any other subject you might teach, you can do it in a cartoon form. Today’s students are so adept to technology and are difficult to keep their attention. This tool is great for the classroom.
   I personally believe this will engage the students to listen more intently and understand the concepts you are trying to get across. There is a cool factor to this website, and will keep the students entertained more than you standing up in front of the classroom.
   A downside to this site is that you have to pay for some of the scenes with points and if you run out you have to pay to get more. Points are given to chose your characters and your scenes. Although, once you have purchased a character you can use it again. Educators do get discounted prices for the use of the movies.
    This is the future of education and we need to jump on board or we will be left behind!

Xtranormal can be found here.
http://www.xtranormal.com/index
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Teaching with technology

~ Jacob Dunn ~ Leave a comment
                Technology is everywhere and you cannot hide from it. As a society we are moving from the once wired world to wireless, and teachers and schools are being left behind. Look in your pocket chances are you have a cell phone or an MP3 player in it. There is more computing power in your pocket today than some of the very first computers. I have a cell phone today that has a faster processer in it than my first computer I built, which totally amazes me.  So, why are some teachers afraid of using technology in the classroom? I feel some of teachers think they can’t use it because they are scared they will tear it up and it not work for them anymore. Others might think I am not going to use technology in the classroom because I have always taught this way and I have good test scores.  Whether or not you as a teacher feel you are left behind there is always time to catch up.
                Our student’s attention span is less than it has been than ever before. Fifteen minutes of fame are now 1.5 seconds (unless it goes viral). We have to reach our children with different strategies than we have in the past and we need to start today.  So, you are asking yourself, how can I reach my students with technology today, or how can I help my students raise their test scores. Better yet how can I get my students to pay more attention in class? Well not every question has the same answer, and every situation is very different, but I can tell you if you integrate technology in your class room you will see improvements.
                 Something technology brings to a classroom is a fun factor. We have all heard or read studies that say if you make learning more fun you kids will do better with the curriculum you have developed. Today, the way our students have fun is with technology, whether it be texting, playing video games, or on their favorite social network. Our students are constantly connected to the digital world and that is where technology in the classroom should begin.  Some simple steps that you can use if you have the equipment are.
Projector: if you have a projector in the class try and put notes on them the students can relate this to being more like a TV screen and we all know that most of our information is taken from a screen, most of us do get our information from it.
Videos: I am not the biggest supporter of watching videos in the classroom, but some serve their purpose. I believe students are more engaged when you can correlate your lesson plan with a video.
Websites: websites are useful to help collaborate lesson plans with other teachers that use the web. You can find great lesson plans, and ideas on web.
                I am not saying go out and totally revamping your classroom with all the bells and whistles because the initial cost, but I am asking you to at least explore the possibilities technology can possess while in your classroom for the betterment of your students.

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Google Science Fair

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     Google is at it again! They have began the 2011 Google Science fair. This is not ordinary run of the mill science fair with paper mache volcanoes or lemons that make a light bulb work. This one is online for the whole world to see!
     So what is Google up to? They are taking education and making it global. For anyone who has internet access you can view the science fair. The basis of the science fair is creating a project and posting it on YouTube, so it can be judged. The grand prize winner will receive a $50,000 scholarship, a trip to the Galapagos Islands from National Geographic, a Lego prize pack and so much more. Runners up will receive a $10,000 scholarship, Lego prize pack, an Android phone and a new Google Chrome Notebook.
    For all students interested in this, it is a great opportunity to get some of their work out to the public. This also is a great way for students to receive college exposure. Not to mention possible future employers that will be looking at these videos as well.
    If you are and educator and know a student who loves science please, let them know about it. This would be great for the student but also even better for the school they represent.

Here is the link. http://www.google.com/events/sciencefair/
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Google Earth in the Classroom

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By now most everyone has heard or used Google Earth, I am hear to tell you that it is the most utilized tool in my curriculum today. Being a Geography teacher I utilize maps everyday to illustrate what I need to get across and Google Earth just helps me to solidify what I am wanting to teach. It is so rich in content I do not know how teachers lived with out it.

Features like street view and 360 cities I can take students to places they have only dreamed of, by not only looking at where it is on the map but letting you explore the city or country on your terms with out stepping foot on a plane. This is extremely important in schools that have a higher poverty rate or that

are in a more rural setting. Not only can you use Google Earth to show cities it is also great for sharing pictures that people have taken at various places in the world it is also great for teachers to show the topography of an area. When I use Google Earth to show an area to my students I will show the landforms and how they interact with the surrounding areas as well as the nearest cities as stated earlier in the writing. One of my favorite tools to use is the measuring tool. I use this to show the distance from one place to another. Sometimes I use it to show how long a lake is or how long a river will flow.

Google Earth is such a content rich program I feel that it would be a shame if teachers did not use it in their classroom. This has opened the doors to the world to my students and I am grateful that I can share this with them. This is one teaching tool I would recommend and will use well into the future. Google has hit a home run for education with this product.