Blog Post # 5

Krissy Venosdale
On Krissy Venosdale's blog If I Built a School, was great. She explained her dream of building a wonderful school. She explained how creativity would ooze out of the walls, and how there would be a tree house in the library, and how students would have access to pretty much anything they would ever need. Ms. Venosdale dreams big, and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with that. Reading about her dream school gave me chills, it sounded amazing! If no one ever dreamed before, not much would be accomplished today.

My dream school would be very similar to Krissy Venosdale's. The whole school would be neon, and welcoming. Each class would have desks, rolling chairs, and bean bags. To me not every one learns well in a desk; some learn best when they are most comfortable. My computer lab would have computers of all types for those who are not quite up to date. My lab would also have a group of assistants to help students get "up to date". My dream gym would have weights, bats, balls, nets, and any other equipment one may need for physical education. I would also make my doorways extra wide so those in a wheelchair can properly fit through. The library would have couches, bean bags, and books of all kinds, even electronic ones! I want my library to have a special room that children can go in so a recorder can help sound out words for the children. Most importantly my dream school would never be on a budget, it would always have enough money. When on budgets schools have to cut out important things children may need, and that would not be the case in my school. The children and their needs come first.

Eric Whitacre 
In Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir he shows an amazing use of the internet. I have honestly never seen anything like it. He showed a choir performance from people who have never met or practiced together before! At first I had no clue what was going on, and then I realized these people all did their own individual video and he pieced them all together. The things we can now do with technology is outstanding. I can only imagine what we will be able to do within the next ten years.

Kevin Roberts
In Kevin Roberts video (Dr. Strange edition) Teaching in the 21st Century he makes a lot of valid points. What does it mean to teach in the 21st century? Well to me teachers still have a very important role in the students life. Yes they have all this information at the tip of their fingers, but who will teach them how to properly use it? The answer is us. We will teach them how to determine what is true information, verse false information. To most all the questions asked in the video, I thought to myself "I would definitely Google that". Technology is taking over the classroom, no doubt; however we as teacher will always be needed to teach something. Whether it is on how to verify information, or how to turn on an iPad, teachers will always be needed.

Flipped Classroom
In Katie Gimbar's Why i Flipped My Classroom she explains how her students were all on different levels and she was spending too much time going over material, instead of teaching new material. That is why she flipped her classroom. She had information online where students can pause, rewind, and re-watch any thing they needed to, and as many times as they needed. The students could also post questions online to other students and the teacher. This can be very useful, and I will definitely look into applying this method in my classroom.