During the past two semesters that I have been in the Instructional Technology Labs, I have learned an incredible amount of technology skills and programs that I can use in my future classroom. However, this lab was definitely the longest and the most difficult to finish, but I am so glad I learned what I did the rest of the semester otherwise I would not have been able to complete it!

For this final lab, I revisited some of the programs and skills that I’ve mastered during this course some of which are Excel, PowerPoint, Inspiration, and Google Docs. Inspiration has to have been my favorite program that we have used this semester! Although I sound like a nerd, there are just so many possibilities and reasons to use it. I love inspiration and I will DEFINITELY use it not only as a teacher, but also right now as I continue my college career. Anyway, this lab was a very beneficial one because it allowed me to combine all that I have learned to do and apply it to a real life teaching experience-making a unit.

I created a second grade social studies unit because I would love to teach first or second grade, and I love history/social studies and hope to teach it in the future! I created a lesson plan that would include a way to use technology in my class through simple PowerPoint presentations on national monuments. I made a pre and post test to assess my students’ progress in this unit. I also made an excel spreadsheet to monitor their progress all together. Also, I was given TEKS to base my unit around. The TEKS were about national monuments and landmarks as well as national holidays. I used these TEKS as a guide as I chose how to focus my assignments.

While this class was a difficult one to juggle with all of my other classes (and during my most academically busy semester) I actually learned so much that I will need to apply to my future classroom and my future endeavors as a teacher using technology in her lessons.

Media Literacy is the ability to understand, utilize, share information, and create messages through media of all kinds. This lab taught me things I never even realized about digital media and how it impacts my daily life. I never realized how saturated we are by it every single day of our lives.  Also, while I knew anything we post via  social media sites are forever on the web, I did not think about the fact that our digital footprint begins before we even enter the world! Our digital footprint documents our lives on the web, and while I think that it’s fascinating, I also think it’s scary. Anything you put on the internet can be linked to you, and this could be detrimental to our future as educators if we are not smart.

Teaching children media literacy is more important in today’s media-saturated society than ever before; not only for the purpose of teaching children the proper way to portray oneself online, but also because children with media literacy skills will be better prepared for a successful future. It is extremely important for teachers to equip students with the critical thinking skills they need in order to utilize media to its maximum academic potential. As a teacher, I will encourage my students to use and understand media so they will be able to enhance their learning experiences.

Interactive power points are a good teaching tool especially in the elementary classroom. They can act as visual aids when presenting lessons and fun activities like review games that increase student productivity. I created a jeopardy game that reviews basic second grade level grammar skills.

Excel is a great tool for teachers. As Microsoft’s go-to program for data analysis, including graphing and producing tables, Microsoft’s Excel is a wonderful application that can be used to achieve student learning outcomes. As a teacher you can not only average grades and sort students by abilities, but as I learned in this lab, you can also create seating charts. Students can benefit from using excel as well. The program enhances the understanding of content with  a graphic presentation of the information;therefore,  it provides a visual representation of data that makes it easier for students to analyze. In addition, students can see how different types of graphs and charts can be used to represent the same series of data, which is an important point for kids to understand. Excel is a tool that students can learn the basics of at a young age, and the skills can be built upon over time.

Inspiration was a a great visual learner friendly teaching tool. I learned that I can use it to create diagrams and webs. I used it to show my tutoring plan, but it can used for brainstorming as well as projects in the classroom. Microsoft office Visio is similar to inspiration and can be used to make flow charts, diagrams, and mind maps just like you can do with inspiration.

In iMovie, I learned how simple it is to create a movie using PowerPoint slides, narration, and music! I would use this program in my classroom. I could have my students use it to create a digital story with pictures that they can narrate and personalize And share with the class. It can also be used to create a story board for my students. iMovie can be used to not only integrate technology into the classroom, but to truly bring lessons to life. A user friendly alternative to iMovie is called Slideshow Maker for Mac. Personally, I prefer this application to iMovie because it is easier to use and offers a lot of themes to enhance your videos in one click!

The Efolio is a really great way to showcase and keep up with our progress through the School of Education. Because it is such an important part of our journey, even if it is a pain to work on at times, I decided to change a few things about it from last year. First of all, I changed my picture to a more professional one that I felt would be much more appropriate for the efolio. I also went back and edited my teaching philosophy and one of my benchmarks (so far).  I think the most difficult part of the process was actually remembering how to use Dreamweaver the way we were taught last year.  From this experience I learned that the efolio isn’t as scary as I thought last year, and I should treat it as an essential part of my time in the school of education. I also learned how Narratives should be written.This can also impact my future website as a teacher because in the 21st century it is best to keep up with technology, especially when you can use it to communicate what’s happening in the classroom with the parents. I can use what I learned from the efolio and apply those skills to my future website as a teacher.

My name is Ashley, and I am a sophomore from Dallas, Texas studying Elementary Education at Baylor University! I have a passion for working with children, and I hope to be a teacher at my old elementary school once I graduate.

As a child, I idolized the many fantastic teachers I was lucky enough to have in elementary school. My friends and I used to ask for the extra worksheets and then go home and play school. At an even younger age I would arrange my stuffed animals around the living room and “teach” to them while wearing my mom’s high heels. I always knew that I loved children and the idea of being a teacher; however, it was not until my senior year of high school that the idea of being a teacher solidified into a true career goal. I took an elementary teaching internship course and was able to spend my senior year as a 4th grade teaching intern at my former elementary school, Brentfield. I learned how to plan lessons that corresponded with TEKS and got to teach them, was able to observe my mentor teacher and interact with my students both in groups and one on one, saw first hand what being a teacher is really about, and realized that this is the path I am supposed to be on.  Both my course teacher at the high school, Mrs. Waller, and the teacher I interned for, Mrs. Howen, are Baylor Bears themselves!  I owe being an elementary education major at Baylor to my experience in this internship course. I realized just how much I love working with children, and how at home I feel not only in the classroom, but at Brentfield Elementary.

I am so passionate about working with children and making a difference in their lives. As a teacher I will be able to help guide my students as they grow throughout the year, and I hope to make the same kind of impact that is still with me today from my own former teachers.

So far at Baylor I have learned so much. I know what my path to graduation is going to look like and have built upon the skills I gained from my internship as well as learned so much more in addition to that like the one on one skills I learned from the tutoring experience in the Introduction to Teaching course. After graduation I will hopefully be an early elementary school teacher at Brentfield Elementary, or even another school in the Richardson Independent School District. No matter where I end up teaching I know that I will be happy to be pursuing my dream and hopefully making school a fun and enjoyable experience for my students.

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