Teaching other students

I a firm believer in using your knowledge to help others. I also feel that after learning something, the best to retain that knowledge is by teaching one of your peers how to do your newly learned task. In my future classroom, I would like to have my kindergarten students go into to upper level classrooms at least 3 times a semester. I would like to pair them each up with an older student and have them teach their older peers how to use a form of technology that has been introduced to them. By doing so, the children will show that they truly know how to used this technology while they are having fun with older children. This is just one way to let children use their knowledge of technology to help their peers.

skype

I believe that Skype is a GREAT tool for classroom use! This semester I have used Skype in my personal life. Being a college student, I have friends that live all over country attending colleges such as Ole Miss, Auburn, Alabama, Kentucky, Notre Dame, etc. Skype has really made it much easier for us to stay in touch with each other and still be a big part of each other's lives. I have also used Skype in my class at The University of South Alabama to communicate with an elementary teacher from Canada. It was a great experience and it is FREE (a quality that all teachers love)! By using Skype, you will not only be able to communicate with people in different areas of the world, but it will help maintain a child's attention by being able to see the person you are communicating with. Skype is a great way for students to be able to learn about many different cultures and societies without the cost of taking a field trip or through a boring classroom lecture. I will absolutely be using Skype when I get my classroom!

Google

Www.google.com is one of my favorite websites I have learned to use. Though most people think of google as simply a search engine, it really has so much more to it. Here are a few things that you can use google for.

• Gmail
• Google Docs- a word processing device
• Google Presentation- ex: slide shows
• Form Builder- create surveys and have the results automatically updated in your google docs
• Google Earth
• Google Chat- instant messaging
  

The best part about google for a teacher? IT'S FREE! Everything listed about is cost free and easy to use. I have used all of these tools in my personal education and I will definitely be using them in my own classroom!

Blogging

Blogging is a tool that I have just come to really enjoy. At first I found blogging to be a nuisance, I have really enjoyed some of the things and people I have stumbled across through blogging. Though I still have a great deal to learn about blogging, I am already able to see how useful it really can be. Through blogs (which are FREE) students are given the chance to communicate with people from all over the world! I have seen students as young as 5 years of age use blogs as a way to express themselves or to share information that they have learned. I have used my class blog as a means of collecting my work for class in one place. You can upload or embed virtually anything into your blog, sharing it with people everywhere! Here is a link to my class blog: www.mckinnellkellyedm310.blogspot.com

Timetoast Timline

I have recently been introduced to Time toast Time line and I feel that every educator could use this program in their classroom! This new tool is a way to create time lines for any event. I have post on my class blog that explains in detail how to use Time toast and create your own time lines. The slide show below was created for my class blog as well and shows you the step by step procedure for using this website. Enjoy!

About Me!

Hi! My name is Kelly McKinnell and I am a junior at the University of South Alabama. I graduated from McGill Toolen Catholic High School in 2007. I am currently studying to be an elementary school teacher. I also work as an all star cheer leading instructor at Cheer Force One.