Wow! What a journey this has been! Who would have thought at the beginning of the semester that we would end up in a global pandemic scrambling to figure out how to educate children from home. Some of the tools I used this semester were extremely useful and others not so much. There were some that I would have liked to have used with kids but did not get the opportunity.
Working with other students is always where I learn the most. I know that it isn’t technically part of the coursework, but it is so powerful. I treasure the friendships I’ve made during the course and how much I’ve learned from working with them.
There are many apps that I never thought that I would utilize to the extent that I have this semester. Zoom anyone??? I have totally fallen in love with Screencastify. I use it daily to record lessons with me in the corner and to explain how to log into apps to students and parents. When I am back in a more traditional school setting, I see myself continuing to utilize Screencastify. I like that students can watch it over and over again. Screencastify has a direct benefit to students.
The bog feed readers were the most difficult for me. I know that they are useful and that I will utilize them in the future, but right now they overwhelm me. It is too much information for me to digest. Again, I’m sure that if I used them more often I could see more value in them. I’m not a big blog follower to begin with so that doesn’t help.
Facebook was another tool that I feel has had its time. I reviewed several library pages and even follow a couple. The amount of views in comparison to the amount of time it takes to curate them doesn’t make it worth it in my opinion. We have over 80,000 kids in our district and I haven’t seen a post from our district library site that has even 100 likes.
Twitter is something that I’d shied away from in the past due to the negativity. Through this course I dipped my toes back in Twitter and was amazed with everything I found. Yes, there is negativity, but on the whole, there is so much great information. I love following authors and my local bookstore. I have connected with tons of resources through librarians who are active on Twitter. I am so glad to rediscover this app.
On the whole, I feel like I’ve learned so much in the class. I’ve put things into my practice that I don’t think that I would have otherwise. I learned a lot of practical things that I’m excited to show students in person and reach out to my students, teachers, and community and share this knowledge.
The video was created using Toontastic. It is a fabulous digital storytelling app. I'm sure the kids can make much more creative projects than I did. They can probably move the characters and talk at the same time. It was very easy to use and I can't wait to try it out with kids.
