The Physical Geography of the U.S. & Canada

Students, as we explore this unit over North America, I will begin to assign students to blog on certain days and/or topics.  This will be incorporated into your grade.  Each student is responsible for making sure that the blog is completed on the correct day.  Please refer back to the Wiki & Blogging handout that was given at the beginning of the school year.  You may access a copy on Moodle by using the link below. Go to #2.  Feel free to print one if you need it.


http://moodle.bryanisd.org/moodle/course/view.php?id=25&topic=0#section-4


Happy Blogging!!!!

Congratulations!!!

Howdy students!  Thanks for getting your blogs set up and joining our class blog.  If you have not finished this task, please do so as soon as possible!

I look forward to all of us working together to learn, share, and grow by connecting not only to each other but to a global community.  Living in a digital environment has opened so many doors for all of us but it is up to each one of you to walk through those doors with me.  Technology is not going away so we should learn and apply as much as we can to ensure our success in the 21st century.

As we explore the upcoming year, I am always looking for new interactive techniques that can be used in the classroom to engage my students.  If you come across something that you feel is awesome, please let me know.   If there is a particular type of technology that you like, please share this information with me.  You will be introduced to a number of web 2.0 applications (and you may introduce me to a few as well) that can enhance your digital literacy. 

Please take a moment to review the guidelines for using the wiki and blog on Moodle.

pbj 

Student Joining Day

Each student need to send me a message through the comment section of this blog entry.  Thanks, pbj

Using QR Codes in the Classroom

All of you are familiar with QR codes.  QR stands for "quick response."When you shop in stores, most items have a code that allows the scanner to identify the item and its' price.  QR codes are very similar to this.  These codes are now being used in the classroom in a variety of ways.  The following website provides exciting explanations and ideas about the use of QR codes! Go check it out!

http://t.co/0SyDK7G

Transforming Education

The majority of high school students today have been exposed to various social media outlets such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter to name a few.  How can these, as well as other web 2.0 applications enhance education?  According to Will Richardson , noted author, blogger, and web 2.0 guru, technological changes are imminent and must play a major role in how we teach today.  We want our students to be life-long learners in a globally, connected world.  If we are to be successful in this day and age, we must "use the power of connections to transform education."

Technology Workshop 2011

The majority (97%) of graduating seniors are not considered digital literate.   According to the National Center of Teachers for English, students should be able to:

• Develop proficiency with the tools of technology
• Build relationships with others to pose and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally
• Design and share information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes
• Manage, analyze and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information
• Create, critique, analyze, and evaluate multi-media texts
• Attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments

In other words, the days of standing in front of the class lecturing, using handouts, overhead projectors, and limited technology like power points are becoming more and more obsolete.  Today's youth are growing up in a digital-world.  Think for just a moment, compare television of old to digital movies today, the way they listen to music, video and online games, social media.  Times have changed and so must the field of education.

As we continue to make sure that our students learn the required objectives to pass state mandated assessments, we must examine the integration of technology in "teaching" these concepts.  Therefore, teachers would be using new strategies to teach required concepts. For many teachers, this takes them out of their comfort zones.  We have got to start teaching outside of the box.  If the use of technology is not a required part of our curriculum, then  we are handicapping children when it comes to learning & thriving in a 21st century digital age.  Children are no longer competing against the kid next door but against the global community.

Another Day of Technology - Wikis & Blogging

I am privileged to attend a workshop today over Wikis and Blogging.  Hopefully this will enable me to make better use of my class blog and wiki.  I will share with you the new information that I learn!

TitanPad to the Rescue!!!!

Google Docs let me down this year.  It kept giving my students an error message over and over.  This was disappointing.  We switched to TitanPad as a place to post research and for students to collaborate.  This has worked pretty well.  It doesn't provide many of the applications that Google Docs do but we are managing.  If you haven't checked out TitanPad, go give it a try.  It allows me to see what student is doing what ... I really like that!

http://titanpad.com/

New Technologies

Students were introduced to a couple of new technology applications that they will be using this semester.  Google Docs will be utilized by the students as they research and develop an in-depth analysis of a global issue.  Google Docs is great for collaboration, storing research, developing presentations, etc.  It is also great for student accountability and should help encourage each students to pull their weight, even though they are working in pairs.

Another Web 2.0 application that students were introduced to was the class Wiki.  The Wiki provides an avenue for students to work together in learning Geography.  Terms and identifications have been placed on the Wiki for the students to define together.  Hopefully, the students will be able to collaborate and teach each other important Geography concepts that pertain to each of our units.  New pages will be created in the Wiki as we progress through this semester. 

This is our first class Wiki and we will constantly be looking for ways to improve it over time. It is my goal that everyone contributes a little but reaps a big benefit!

The Pursuit of Education

Based on your knowledge of Social Studies and the article, "The Price of Going to School," explain why the pursuit of education should be an unalienable right.

"The Price of Going to Class"

Your paragraph should be posted by the time that you come to class Thursday, February 10.

Time to Critique!

The writings below represent short essays written by your classmates.  The writing prompt was, "How has the abundance of oil in Southwest Asia affected life in the region?"  Please critique the following brief paragraphs by explaining what is correct or incorrect about each one in a comment

1.  The abundance of oil in SW Asia has affected the region greatly.  It's region has gotten more trade from different countries.  The water is very scarce so they have to learn to trade and share with other countries. The amount of oil has greatly affected SWA sia with trade.

2.  The abundance of oil in SW Asia has helped them develope and modernize faster.  SW Asia have build more hospitals and schools due to the sell of oil in the region.  The sell of oil has helped the region by modernizing their daily life.

3.   The abundance of oil effected the life in the Southwest Asia Region posotively.  SW Asia has a good abundance of oil in their region.  The abundance has effected the living, and has improved it.  The abundance of oil in SW Asia has improved the region and made a good impact on living.

4.  Asia has really taken advantage of their large oil supply Asia can use it for themselves Asia can ship it to other countries Many people would be unemployed if not for it

5.  The abundance of oil has improved the Standard of living.  People used to live and work in small farms to survive.  The increase of oil has brought more money and allowed people to have easier lives.

6.  The abundance of oil in Southwest Asia has had both posative and negative affects on life in the Region.  Posative because of the cash profit from other countries wanting their oil.  But also negative due to wars fought over the oil.  The price of oil today has increased therefore Southwest Asia is making profit.

7.  The abundance of oil in Southwest Asia has made this area gain a lot of money.  The money has been used to help lessen the problem of freshwater.  Money has also made this area more modernized.  Southwest Asia has changed a lot due to gaining money from oil.

8.  As oil in Southwest Asia Prices gos up.  It affects the ones who buy it.  The United States buys most inf not all the oil from them so it ther prices go up USA would go up too.  The Gas Prices need to go dow or make a solution

9.  The abundance of oil made other countries rely on Southwest Asia (SW Asia) to import their oil to them.  Many countries live in locations that mainly has water, plants, and animals rather than places that has oil.  SW Asia has mostly a non renewable area thus making trade difficult.  So in conclusion the oil SW Asia has affected their lifestyle by making other countries rely on them all the time.

10.  The abundance of oil had dramatically affected life in the Southwest Asia region.  It has increased the Standard of living dramatically.  With the exports and price of gasoline, the OPEC receives a positive outcome.  Therefare, the abundance of oil has greatly affectes life in the Southwest Asia region.