April 21 Class

I really enjoyed our sharing time last week. The lesson plans are very creative and useful. I’m so glad that they will be posted for us to use as needed. I will also share the website at my department meetings. Thanks to our roving reporter, Scott, for the details about our presentations. Speaking of roving reporters…I look forward to reviewing the information all of our roving reporters shared. Some lazy summer day, I’ll have time on my hands to study and practice handheld basics and software applications. I’m glad that Tony included information about grant writing. I’m hoping to schedule a time before school is out, to meet with our principal and the fifth grade teachers to demonstrate some strategies for using handhelds in the classroom. It is important for me to act on this quickly in order to get them interested. I hope the Willowdale fifth graders will give me some ideas on what to share with my staff. It is in our site plan and we need to continue moving toward our goal.
I’ve really enjoyed this class and hope that we can stay in touch in the future. I finally registered for my summer classes. I will be focusing on web writing and desktop video in the classroom. Speaking of technology information, I’m looking forward to attending NETA this week. I hope to see some of you there.

Lesson Plan- More Questions than Answers

I'm going to try to edit my Blog. The most important thing I learned today, is to soft reset when having tech problems. Also, to be patient... I was looking for a separate Sheet To Go in my handheld Aps window. After taking a look at my Documents To Go, I now see that it is included. Problem solved. I deleted all of my questions about downloading software & now am moving on. I'm hoping it will be okay to use Documents to Go for this plan. I think that the handhelds that I will purchase for my school will have that on it. My initial Blog continues here...

I’m working on my lesson plan, however, I’m having a lot of issues (mostly user). I teach a learning block class for 5th grade about explorers and want to have information about the explorers in an eBook from my notes. However, I don’t know how to get around the copyright issues. I have the information, but I did find it from a source, probably the Harcourt Brace Social Studies Teacher’s Edition and several other sources. The info basically includes the explorer’s name, year of birth, country of birth, continent explored, date of exploration, and date of death. I wonder if I can write a paragraph about each of the explorers. Tony doesn’t want any copyright problems…Is there any way I can do this?

By the time I got my Sheets To Go to work, my keyboard didn't. I changed the batteries, still not working. A simple soft reset & I'm good to go. Wish I would have done that first!

I did take a break to walk to the mailbox and was so excited...a $50.00 rebate for the purchase of my Zire 72! It must be a sign to hang in there!

Handhelds and Summer

April 7
This semester is flying by and I wish I had more time to explore all of the Palm software that we have been introduced to. I keep trying to review, but need to spend more time learning each program in depth. I’m looking forward to this summer… my handheld can go anywhere with me & I’ll have the opportunity to become more familiar with the applications.

I really appreciated information that Tony gave us about troubleshooting issues and I’ll probably keep a hard copy of the roving reporter’s report about solving problems. Troubleshooting is my greatest concern as my school moves closer to purchasing our classroom set of handhelds. Experience is usually the best way to become more confident. The Internet offers so much information, not only a Google search, but the Web Discussions are so valuable. It seems to go in spurts. Not much new, then a flurry of sharing. The number of posts and the date really help guide my searching.

As the technology leader in our building, I hope that I will be able to motivate our students and staff to use the most appropriate technology as a vehicle to accomplish their goals. I love the way digital photography is integrated into our technology projects. At times, it will involve using a desktop computer and other times it will be a handheld. I am anxious to have the handheld alternative. I appreciate the video we saw about the simplicity of using handhelds. They are quick and easy with fewer “bells and whistles”. As we’ve gotten new desktop computers, many of my staff members complain that they are slower. I tell them that the new computers and some of the applications have so many sounds and video that it eats up the memory and brings them to a grinding halt. Handhelds are versatile, mobile and simple…the perfect tool for elementary education!

Making eBooks and More

March 31st
As I was looking through my blogs, I discovered that I had forgotten to share my thoughts about eBooks. Before taking this class, I thought an eBook had to be a classic that was out of print in order to comply with copyright law. Now I see them as instructional tools for teachers to focus on the curricular needs. This in turn meets the needs of the students and raises student achievement. I hope to create an e-book for my lesson plan. I need to consider copyright issues and hope that I can come up with a plan. That would force me to become more familiar with the process and I would be more comfortable using it in the future.

I really appreciate Tony’s emphasis on organization. I’ve been on a “mission” to organize everything at school and at home for a couple of years now. Tony’s highly structured teaching style has reminded me that we need to cover all of the bases when teaching technology. The lesson on concept mapping, webbing and graphic organizers is very important and makes such a difference in the quality of student work. Showing examples and demonstrating the process are very important tools that Tony uses when teaching a new concept. He also emphasizes that the lessons be simple.

Downloading & Installing Software

March 24, 2005
I have learned so many new things in this class. It was fun to find the hidden “Easter Eggs” that the software programmers have created. I couldn’t believe how many programs are available as freeware. I really like Quizzler and thought that Tony mentioned that you can get the same type of program for a desktop computer. I thought we could use that until our handhelds are in place. Although, I think that Quizzlers & handhelds are the perfect match.

I sat down on Saturday to blog about using Quizzler & downloading and installing software. I started taking the Social Studies ELO Review that Tony created. It’s a wonderful learning tool! About an hour later, I was going to power off, but Hexplode caught my eye. I thought I’d try just a few games. Time flew by as I kept trying a new strategy. Meanwhile, I didn’t get my Quizzler made. This reminds me of when I first started using the Internet…time passes so quickly & my eyes get tired, but I can’t stop exploring.

I’m still thinking about my lesson plan and definitely want to use handhelds to differentiate something that I’m already teaching. I am meeting with our grade level teaching teams this week and hope that an idea will begin to take shape. I was thinking about using BooksLog and Quizzler. However, I really downloaded BooksLog for my personal use for Book Club. Several of us have handhelds & it will be helpful for tracking the books we read monthly.

March 3 Class

I’ve been living between two different handhelds the past month & it’s time to get everything on my new one. I have a lot of useless stuff on my old handheld & wanted to clean it up before I beam information. I removed the Palm software from my desktop computer in an effort to delete all of the information that had been synchronized from my old handheld. However, when I loaded the new CD, my old information appeared. I was hoping to use the same user name, but couldn’t figure out a “work-around” to accomplish my goal. Anyway, I am now able to sync my new handheld & hope to enter more info…especially my calendar & many repeating events.

I am very busy at school these days, our website consumes a lot of my time, not to mention teaching & so many meetings. I am working with my staff in planning our next technology purchases. Our school is still using the original AlphaSmarts. The students enjoy the mobility of them and the teachers consider these limited word processors to be a “hook” to keep students interested. I’m excited as we plan for handheld computing in the classrooms. Our students & staff will be amazed at the mobility and versatility of handheld computing, especially the variety of applications.

David Warlick’s podcast is thought provoking. I think that comparing handheld computers to even wireless laptops is like comparing apples to oranges. They are both very good, but they serve different needs. Handhelds are more flexible and can be turned off and on…no waiting to boot up. Work is saved automatically and beaming is a wonderful way to share. The students stay focused in the classroom & the small size allows for usage on field trips and outside the classroom. Cost is a factor, too. Digital natives are very comfortable with small gaming devices and handhelds are an easy transition. The fact that handhelds have cameras and are getting more sophisticated makes handheld computers a great learning tool and “hook” for students. We will continue to use our computer lab for appropriate projects and hope to explore many kinds of technology.

SEIR*TEC eBook

Using Handheld Technologies in Schools

We used eReader to view this information & it has its pros and cons. I do like the way I was able to navigate to the Table of Contents and other main ideas. It’s handy to set a bookmark to get to review information quickly. I liked being able to get to the glossary and back to my reading quickly. I was able to use the automatic scroll for a while, however, when I tried to speed it up, I couldn’t get the scrolling to work again. I had to use the 5-way navigator to change pages after that. It mentioned that eyestrain can be a problem & I agree.

1.It’s also important to have clear written objectives as to why you need to use the handhelds in education. Since the user needs to consider the lighting conditions, handhelds might not be a good choice for track & field events due to the bright sunshine (hopefully).

2.However, it would be a great choice for high school students who are already required to buy a graphing calculator. The cost of a handheld would be very similar and it would be so much more useful.

3.Ubiquitous computing is my new favorite phrase. It means that it is everywhere and can involve a variety of computing devices. They are everywhere!

4. Mobility is probably the biggest advantage of using handhelds.

5. Security and theft can be a problem, especially with so much information on the handheld.

6. Collaboration and sharing are positive in the learning environment and beaming is another way for students to work together.

7. I didn’t realize that viruses exist for handhelds, too.

8. The 2 major Operating Systems are Palm OS and Windows Mobile. There are others such as RIMS for the BlackBerry.

9. They recommend a 4-Step process when implementing: pilot, support, train, and support. Also, having 1 lead teacher in the building is important.

10. Some schools offered additional training for parents and that is a great community partnership!

Teacher Interview

I just attended the site plan for my school and we have some important technology goals. One of our strategies includes our plan for upgrading hardware and one of our action steps is to “Explore the use of hand-held computer technology in the curriculum with the goal of integrating this technology into the 5th grade classrooms.” The fact that this is in our site plan confirms that we need to move toward our goal.

In January of 2003, our building tech team requested support from the district in pursuing our goal. Here are a few good guidelines that were shared with us… “Plan how our building can become a handheld friendly school…your staff needs to become familiar with handhelds.” And “Handhelds (tools) change the way we work and think.”

We were also encouraged to visit Tony’s class at Willowdale. We invited one of Tony’s 5th grade students to present to our tech team. She shared uses, assignments, rules and care of the class handhelds. She really liked the way that it “saves without worrying”. I loved her closing comment. “The first day of school, I didn’t even know what a Palm was, and now I think it’s a breeze.”

The purpose of a site plan update is to focus on our action steps. Timing is important and we are now ready to make the next step. I contacted the media specialist at Ezra Millard Elementary in our district. They currently have a classroom set of Tungsten E’s with the keyboards and Elmo. The 5th grade teachers, media specialist, and the principal visited Willowdale and implemented the use of handhelds this year. The media specialist included this project in her teaching goals and they are tied to the evaluation process.

They organized the handhelds and keyboards in plastic tubs and store them on a rolling cart and have a checkout sheet with one hour increments. During the first semester, the media specialist collaborated with the 3rd, 4th, & 5th grade teachers to introduce the handhelds. Some basic rules are that they must be sitting when they use the handhelds and always carry them with two hands. And they are very strict about following directions. They practiced Graffiti 2 the first session, introduced the “onscreen keyboard” during the second session, and then the wireless keyboard in the third lesson. The students continued to practice their Graffiti strokes by using “Giraffe”. They incorporated some writing experiences as they practiced using their new handhelds. “Docs To Go” has been very useful software for these open-ended writing activities. The media specialist noted that she was so glad that this software came on their Tungsten E handhelds. After the introduction, classroom teachers are welcome to checkout the handhelds on an hourly basis. The can also continue to plan projects in collaboration with the media specialist.

They only use freeware and found many projects to incorporate “Sketchy”. This application involves drawings and animation. They drew the planets and their movement and the growth of a plant. I have used animation in the HyperStudio desktop application and am anxious to become familiar with “Sketchy”. “MathCard” is freeware in which students practice their basic math facts. They also use strategy games like “Coconut Fern”. The emphasis is definitely on the use of “Docs To Go” with classroom projects adapted to the word processing, spreadsheet and database. The Tech Club researched trivia on certain topics and turned them into “Quizzlers”.

The biggest problem they had by the end of first semester is charging. The handhelds are checked out so much that by the end of the day, they need charging & it’s difficult to have them ready for another class project. The power strips don’t have enough room for the adaptors, as the head of the adaptor is too big. This makes it very cumbersome to have the handhelds ready when they are being used back-to back by different teachers and classes.

Since students are sharing handhelds, they learn to be considerate of other users. The media specialist and para synchronize the entire set of handhelds on a regular basis.

They are currently introducing the handhelds to the kindergarten-2nd graders. The curriculum integration units are listed on the Ezra Website. The fifth graders presented their handheld projects to PTO in the fall and the 2nd graders have been invited to attend PTO in the spring. They also used them during conferences. The students are excited about learning and especially enjoy beaming. It’s been great P.R. and they are ordering another classroom set at his time.

It’s exciting to hear about other schools in our district as they are incorporating handhelds into their curriculum as another tool for teaching.

Class # 2 Handheld Basics Part 1

January 20, 2005

Our second class started with a clarification about our Blogs. Tony was right, I see the word “blog” everywhere, including a special CNN report about the bloggers who exposed CBS News and the bloggers who assisted during the tsunami. By the way, Microsoft Word 2000 considers the word blog misspelled

I really enjoyed learning about Palm OS 5. My favorite update is making capital letters on the center line. I didn’t realize that you can single, double, and triple tap to select words and lines in Palm OS just like word processing on a PC.

I had trouble deciding which handheld to purchase, but finally decided to buy a Zire 72. Since I’m the technology leader in my school, I decided that the digital camera might be useful. The free shipping and $50.00 rebate also helped me with my decision. I ordered it online from The Palm One Store. Hope it arrives by Thursday!
Thanks to Bridget for the great meal! It was delicious. I hope she’ll share her recipe.