Alabama Virtual Library

The Alabama Virtual Library is really handy tool for teachers, students, and parents. It is basically an online library where people can access library and information resources. It is an online database where students can access articles from magazines, newspapers, and journals. This is only available to students in Alabama. It is used to raise the level of education in Alabama. There is an AVL council that meets every so often to discuss the library. The public is welcome to come and put their thoughts to good use.

There is a really handy tab on the website that helps people who are computer illiterate. It is the training resources tab. It helps you find a trainer in your area to help you get to know the site and its full usage. It also has age group tabs so elementary school kids are not looking for information on a college level article. It also goes by topics so it is very easy for everyone to use. I think the AVL is an awesome tool to have.

Google Tools

Google is an absolutely fabulous tool for in the classroom. It has so many cool gadgets for the kids to play with. A few of them include blogger, google earth, gmail, groups, books, scholar, finance, and tons more. The students could even make their own websites for the class to view. It is a really easy site to use and fun too. Google even has a product where the students could talk over the computer. If they ever had to do group work the students could all get on their google accounts and talk to each other while they work. The kids would really enjoy google earth. It is a product that shows pictures of the world taken by a satellite. You can zoom in far enough to even see your house. Google is easy to use and anyone could do it. Teachers might consider having their students make a website or a blog to get them used to using technology in the classroom. The teacher could also make a google homepage for the students to see when they get on the computer. The teacher can put whatever he/she wants on the homepage such as links to learning games or today's weather.

itunes and ipods

Ipod use in the classroom has become a unexpected phenomenon. Duke University is a school that uses that quite frequently. The number of ipods in the classroom has quadrupled in the second year of use. They now have classes where ipods are required, they even give them out for free. The ipods are used to enhance the classes lectures, assignments, and quality of learning. Duke now has a program called Duke Digital Innitiative, also know as DDI. They use this program to incorporate the ipods into the classroom. They now have 280 students and 19 courses using this program.
A lot of elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools are even getting into the swing of things with ipod use in the classroom. They use podcasts to help get the children involved with learning. They use the audio tools to enhance their learning. Ipods engage the students and make things fun for them. Children nowadays know how to use technology pretty well, so why not incorporate something they know into something they can learn. Children as young as 3 are using ipods nowadays. Elementary school kids would reap the benefits of ipod use in the classroom the most. They would see that learning can be fun and not just boring. They could download academic materials off of itunes and listen and learn while they ride in the car, before bed, around the house, or anytime they had free time. They could incorporate learning into their everyday life.

Podcasts

Podcasts in the classroom is an awesome idea. We did a podcast in our classroom and it was a lot of fun and interesting. I think that kids would really get a kick out of these things and enjoy doing them as they learn. We were split up into groups of three and four. From there we researched different aspects of our topic. While the kids research their topic they will learn valuable information. Then the kids would have to broadcast their podcast. This would give them a way to speak their mind and tell the class what they know about their topic.

Kids would also like podcasts in the classroom because they can show off what they have done. They can tell their friends and family to listen to them as they talk to about what they have learned. Podcasts in the classroom can also be used by the teacher. He/she can research different podcasts that relate to the subject at hand that they are teaching. They can have the kids listen to the podcasts and get them involved in their learning.

Podcasts are becoming more and more popular in today's classroom society. I really enjoy listening to the ones we have to listen to for class. You get an insight on other people's views and opinions.

Blogs as Teaching Tools

Blogs in the classroom are becoming more and more frequent. I believe that having blogs in the classroom is really handy. The students can give their opinions on subjects in class, do homework at home without bringing all of the books, explore the uses of the internet, and much more. Blogging is a good tool for the students, but its uses do not stop there. Parents can also get good use out of blogging in the classroom. They can actually see what their child is doing in class and how they are participating. Parents can become more involved in their child's academic life. Teachers can also comment on the children's work and let them know how they are doing in the class. The students can also interact with each other on the blogs by commenting on posts. Blogging in the classroom is a really good way to keep the classroom communication at a maximum. The children really enjoy speaking their mind and feeling like they have a voice in the class, especially shy children who would not comment in class.