Keeping Students Engaged and Excited in Their Education

Schools can do a better job by keeping students engaged and excited about their education. Ways that schools can make learning fun are they they can find new ways to teach. Most teachers just teacher the same old, boring way. They stand infront of the class and talk for 45 minutes straight. If once in awhile you have the students teacher the class for a change might be a fun way.

Another idea that I have about how to keep students engaged is the scenery around them. Next year we will have the Ipads so location is no problem. On a nice day why not take the class outside to sit on the picnic benches for class. Or the library on really hot days since its cool in there. The classrooms all look the same so changing it up sometimes will regain the students attention.

Sinally, since we will have Ipads in the hands of every student why not put them to good use. Fun, educational websites are always good. Like Edmodo. If a teacher wants to give a project let it be something that includes the topic and something that the kid wants to do. I know from experience that the most fun projects I had this past year have been the ones that I got to choose what I wanted it to be about. Many projects that are simple and creative are always good because they are like a breather for students. After weeks and weeks of hard studying and lots of work fun little projects are nice.

This is my last blog post for my Web 2.0 class. I will definitely continue blogging on whatever I want because it is a place to share what ever I want. This is a good example of what a nice change is. All of my oher finals for freshman year I will sit in the room for one and a half hours using a scantron sheet and my hand will hurt from writing so much. For this class's final I had to answer a few questions and write this blog. What a fun final! Plus I don't have to go to school to take it!

Apps for the Ipads

I think that kids should be able to put what they want on their Ipads. If a teacher wants their students to have a special app for their class than they should be able to. I can see where teachers would think thats students would use games and things like that. When students are in their study period and they don't have any homework what are they going to do. I know that I always play games on my Ipod touch. If there was some way that during class the teachers could see all the apps being run by students during the class. So that they would be able to control what they use in class but that the students would be able to have the things that they want to have on their Ipad. There may be problems with some students but I think that most of the students can be trusted.

Common Sense

This website its the nail right on the head i think. The common sense website is a great way for parents and students to become informed about their school surroundings. It gives parents the knowledge on the technology advancements around the world. Also it tells them exactly what goes on in schools so no matter what their children tell them they really know what happens with their children in school. It also is a reliable source for kids to see and know what is around them.

BHS Expectations for Student Learning for Next Year

When the punishing of students adults can be really harsh. The kids maybe follow what their parents did. The adults punishing the kids might have done the same things as the students and they are trying to help prevent that from happening to the students. Instead of suspending them from school you could talk to them and explain what they did wrong why it was wrong. Whe some kids think of suspension thaey just think of it as time off from school and not a time to think about what they did.


After reading the Burlington High School Technology/ Network Acceptable Use Policy seems to be a really good way to know for next year that all of the new technologies and equipment will be protected from any harm. I think that there will still be some problems with students not following the rules because there are always a few that don't listen.

Take a Seat: 5 Office Chair Alternatives

In schools there are hard orange, red, and blue hard plastic chairs. They are so uncomfortable and after awhile they start to kill your back. Every once in awhile you get a tan colored chair that is connected to the desk. Those are the absolute worst. They are slightly tipped back not like a normal chair. They are not at a 90 degree angle but they are not far enought to be a recliner type of chair. My desk in history is one of the tan one and I have to keep moving, then I get up in the end of class my back hurts so much that I feel like I can't walk.

A great investment for the school to make would be that the chairs should be gotten rid of. The 5 Office Chair Alternatives are:  

"The Saddle and Pony Saddle seats, part of Humanscale’s award-winning Freedom seating line, are the most comfortable and versatile stools ever made. The original Saddle and the more compact Pony Saddle accommodate comfortable seating in countless applications. These stools encourage you to sit in a saddle posture, which lowers the thighs, opens up the hips and puts the spine into a healthy lordotic curve. The stools are ideal for shorter term sitting—or even for getting your feet up off the ground by using it as an ottoman."


"The Variable balans^® is the perfect instrument for the work at a desk – for children and adults. Runners and kneepads promote an open and dynamic sitting position that keeps your spine in its natural curvature and improves breathing. The chair gives your body the freedom to find its own equilibrium which keeps your back and abdominal muscles working. While tension in back and shoulders is prevented, this ‘active sitting’ improves circulation and oxygen levels; thus concentration and creativity during your work."

"Alternately sitting and standing. Always on the move. That is the secret of the "muvman". Thanks to the patented flexzone® technology the "muvman" gives you support whenever you need it. And freedom of movement when you want it. That is comfortable. That is healthy. That is sitting as it ought to be."

There are two more options and I will tell you more tomorrow because you will want to hear about them.

The Cafeteria Food

The Food Revolution that Jamie Oliver is creating is such a good idea because students are eating horrible food that the schools are providing. All the food that the schools are getting is processed and made with nasty cheap scarps that they can sell for really cheap. They only care about is the money that they make. They use cheap stuff and sell it making and that is how they make a profit.

The schools teach their students how to be healthy and then they send them off to lunch where they eat junk. What Jamie Oliver is trying to do is that he wants schools to continue teaching about being healthy and then follow through with the lesson at lunch time.

Goal 5: Reflect, Step Back, Act

Goal number 5 asks us to reflect on your best and worst lesson this week or last semester then share this reflection and to read comments on the blog and respond to some of the questions and struggles of others in our community!

Yesterday I had a track meet. I was placed into the 800 meter race which I was nervous about running since it would be my first time. So, my worst lesson was that as I was at the starting line my coach goes "just run but not to fast and not to slow and don't go to fast on your first lap and then go faster on the second lap."

The best lesson was in Geometry class we normally are all completely lost and have no idea what is going on. For the past few days we have been learning about circles and how to use the sin, tan, and cos buttons on the calculator. I so happy because I actually understand it. That is the best school lesson that I have learned especially in that class.

Goal 4: Leave It Behind - Stress

We were asked to create a list you can leave your stress behind and not carry it around with you into the classroom.

• Take a hot shower that morning
• Eat
• Get a good night sleep the night before
• Talk to your friends
• Study so you don't have to worry about tests
• Pay attention in classes

Goal 3: What do you believe about learning?

Goal number three wants us to make a bullet list of what you believe regarding how you and others learn and to answer the question how would you redesign school and classes to best meet the needs of high school students?


Everyone learns better in different ways like:

• Environments
• Comfortable around teachers
• Technology
• How much they slept the night before
• Testing skills
• Oral teachings
• Visual teachings
• How quickly the student can learn

Having teachers who can work well with their students and teach visually and orally to everyone so that all that they can learn the most in that time period.

Goal 2: Re-Evaluate your values

Goal number two is about helping someone look at something by how much effort you put into your project or into an assignment. You should see that progress made, the learning achieved, and the the work put into it.

Today I got back a quiz that I got a B on (85%). Rather than being mad at myself I looked at it that I did really good because I studied hard, payed attention in class , and saw how much math I know and understand now.

Those were the short term goals that we were given. We were also given long term goals to accomplish.

The long tern goal for Goal 2 was in what ways could you help students re-evaluate the way that you look at things and in what ways can we have them look at the with more reflection?

The way we can do that is maybe by teachers staying for extra help so that they understand all of the concepts that they will be tested on. Also maybe pop-quizes could be removed because maybe a student needs extra help but the teacher wasn't available to re-teach what is needed.

Goal 1: Be a Beam

In class we are doing a challenge where  you have to post 30 blogs each time with a goal to do something good. Today I have to help someone that is stressed or having trouble conquering something.

What I did is that one of my friends was dealing with stupid teen drama and I helped her see that everything is fine. It all ended up being a misunderstanding with one of them and got upset because she thought that rumors were being spread about her. She blamed everything on my friend who then got upset. I helped her realize that there is so much stuff going around that is not true and that there is nothing she has to worry about.

Osama Bin Laden

On Twitter there are categorizes that are trending and the number one slot belongs to #osama. What a shocker!

I went on and clicked to view all the posts people wrote. I have to say that there are some pretty funny posts. My favorite is from kielbeze who said "They buried Bin Laden at sea? They did that to Megatron at the end of Transformers and we saw how that worked out" I can't stop laughing after reading this. It's a good thing that people can still, after the whole scene that just happened.

I think that there are good and bad reasons for the death. Good being that he is gone! And that we won't have to worry about protecting everyone from his ideas. Its bad because now the people in his army are going to want to attack us even more.

Should Facebook be Blocked at Schools?

In schools, Facebook and other sites like that are blocked.  At Lunch time though you can't go on also. I don't know what I would do in my study and at lunch time. If I dont have any homework to do in study I use my Itouch to play games and go on Facebook. I would feel so empty.

Adults who don't really understand what Facebook is just thinnk of it as a waste of time. It is a fun way to talk to your friends out of school. For adults they can go onto Facebook and maybe see that their friends from college or even high school are using it.

Next year when everyone in BHS will have a way to get on to Facebook, through their Ipads, there will be the thought to block it but I think that the school shpuld start out not blocking it and to see what happens. If many kids are now paying attention and are on Facebook. Then something should be done. School comes before Facebook. It will definitely be a challenge for some people no to go on but that is where the trust should be placed on students. They need to learn what is right and sometimes if they do the wrong thing then they can see how far the limit can be pushed.

Ipads

In class we have been able to play around on the Ipads and really have fun. I have found some really fun Apps that are also educational and will helps in the years that we are 1:1. The best one was called My HomeworkNOW & School Alerts and it allows you to have an agenda and a calender of important projects and school work.

I really like all the Apps because people who make them know that kids don't want to use boring Apps. That is why there are no such thing as a boring and not fun educational app or educational game. Epecialy when you get to use the Ipads. Ipads make learning fun!

There is an App for that

Next Burlington High School will becoming a 1:1 school. Since every student will an IPad top bring with them to every class. Usually the school gives very student an agenda. because of the fact that the school is giving us the IPads they will not be giving us any agendas. I think that there are many good apps that can be used in place of the agenda. I found an app called My HomeworkNOW & School Alerts. It is an app that acts like an agenda. It tells you if you have a delay or if you don't have school. If you type in the due dates of projects and homework then it will give you reminders. It's seems really helpful cause sometimes I can't read my hand writing.

Pictures of What I See Everyday at School



This is the cafeteria where i have lunch everyday with my friends. Since we don't have that many classes with each other, lunch time is when we get to talk. 



This is where my lockers is, in the history hall. Every morning I go to my locker, at the end of the day, and before lunch. It has so much stuff in it because I need so many things for classes. 

This is hallway "A" or the red hallway. I have to walk up the whole hallway at least 3 times a day. It is crazy.  It is such s good workout!

This is the lower library where I spend my study periods doing homework.  Or  I'm in the upper library because of the computers. 

This is the famous statue at Burlington High school. After school if you need to meet up with some one that is the "landmark" you go to.

This is the rubber gym. I took a picture of it because this is where most of the freshman gym classes are. So much fun! aldo because for the whole winter track season everyone on the team would go to the gym sit down and Coach Lev would give us a speech.



This is my Web 2.0 room. By far my favorite class. We get to blog and test out some different sites. We go to the library for achange of scenery and it's just a fun class all around.

Everyday during the track seasons the team goes to finish our workout. The equipment is great because it is so nice and everyone know the rules of the equipment.

This is the Mac lab in the library. I love to go there and use the computers because of how new they are and because its so much fun it play around on the Macs.

 

13 Things You Shouldn't Tell Your Facebook Friends

The things you should keep secret from your Facebook are

1. Your birth date and place
2. Your Mother's Maiden Name
3. Your Home Address
4. Your Long Trips Away From Home
5. Your Short Trips Away From Home
6. Your Inappropriate Photos
7. Confessionals
8. Your Phone Number
9. Your Vacation Countdown
10. Your Child's Name
11. Your 'Risky' Behavior
12. The Layout Of Your Home
13. Your Profile On Public Search

You should keep your birth date and place of where you were born secret because if there is someone trying to steal you identity or something like that. They could trace you. You should keep your home address a secret because giving out that is another way someone can track where you are going.You should keep your mother's maiden name secret because that information  is personal and is too much information that people don't need. You should keep when your going away on long and short vacations just incase someone that you are friends with on Facebook if they want to break into your house. Telling them how long you will be away gives them a time frame to break in. Also a vacation countdown tells the people when you will be leaving so when the house will be empty.

You should not put any innappropriate photos of you because now colleges are looking at profiles of the kids that are applying to the schools, to know what their other hobbies are and if they will be out of control. Your phone number is never a good thing to publish because you don't want strange poeple to get a hold of you and be able to put you in bad situations.

The Possible New Schedule

Some of the teachers at Burlington High School have proposed a new schedule for next year. We would Have the same schedule on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (first, second, third, fourth, Lunch, fifth, six and seventh) with no long period and each class only lasting around 35 minutes. But on Tuesday there would be four long periods (first, second, third, and fourth)  each having about 86 minutes. On Thursday we would only have three long periods (fifth, sixth, and seventh) at about 86 minutes also. The great thing about Thursday would be that we would have a start time at around nine o'clock.

I personally would love to have a late start every Thursday because you have lasted the worst part of the week (Monday Tuesday Wednesday) and deserve a break and a little extra time to sleep. When the sophomores had MCAS school didn't start until nine o'clock. It was so nice because we had extra time to sleep and it was just a good refreshment to catch up on some sleep. It was onlty because of the MCAS but everyione else in the school loved that extra sleeping time and they didn't event have to take a test.

More of My Project Online

Another project from my english class is the book Little Brother that I told you about. How we are reading and then blogging about it as our homework every night and that is what we are getting graded on. Well, I forgot to say that the reason why were are reading this book is not only because it is a good book but because you can read the whole thing online as a digital copy.

Obviously another class is my Web 2.0 class. That is why I started this blog. We look at new websites and basically explore the internet for things that teacher might be able to use to improve their lessons. I so far have really enjoyed this class because who doesn't like to explore the internet and write little bits about the topic.

I can't wait until next year when all the students will have Ipads and we will be able to include the internet and different things into the teacher's lesson plans that we were never able to do. I'm so excited.

Projects that Involve the Internet

In my English our teacher is out for a few weeks. When he said that we would be working on a project while he was gone. We are doing an independent book report project. Our homework for every night is that after we read we have to blog about what we read and then comment on other people's blogs. We have just started but so far everything is going great. To make the blogging easier the book that I'm reading "Little Brother" is really good.

Another project that included the Internet was also in my English class. If you haven't figured out, my English teacher is loves technology so that is why all of out projects include the Internet. The project we did was based off of the book "Lord of the Flies". We were grouped up into about 3 people, 2 writers and 1 artist. The thing was that we were all from different schools. We used google docs to complete the project. My group wrote more than 3,500 words in out conversation that didnt include the 800 words that our paper was. Everyone in the around 34 groups wrote and paper which we will turn into a magazine. The artists in each group designed the pages. I am so excited to see the finished magazine.

In preperation for the Mid-years we had I recieved a packet for each class that had tonas and tons of questions that I needed to answer. For my Biology class I had over 100 questions to answer. I needed to answer them in a place where I would never lose them. The answer was in a Google Docs. The only bad thing that about google Docs are that they dont show you how many pages you write. I wrote around 17 pages of all Biology question. I hated that! I also did that for social studies. It was sucha big help in preparing for all of those tests.

Kids Using the Internet

The video that we watched in class today just proves that kids like to explore different thing, in this case it was the Internet and using video editing. The speaker's daughter, Tess, was playing the piano and wanted new music to practice. Where else can you find as many new sheets of music as you want besides the internet.

I think that some people underestimate the things that kids know abput technologies. Tess is and example. She wanted new music so she searched for it. When you use the internet everything is basically at you finger tips. If you want to learn how to play the piano, you can find a video about, if you want to learn how edit a video, there is a video for that, even if you want to cheat on a game just to beat a level there are many videos for that. When the 17 year old boy named Mark who hasnt had any classes about video editing, but he can still do it. Never doubt the things that a kid knows about technologies.

What's Your Sentence? Here is Mine...

Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami

On Friday there was a horrible earthquake that happened in Japan. It had a rating on the scale of 8.9. The earthquake then created another catastrophic event, a tsunami. If someone survived the earthquake and then the tsunami then they had to survive for around two days with out and food, water, and would have been wet and cold with no pertection. The rescue teams couldn't get to anyone because of the fact that it was such a big and bad disaster. It happened around 2:45 on Friday  March 11 causing damage with blackouts, fire and a tsunami.  My heart goes out to everyone in Japan... I know that Lady Gaga has already created a way for people to donate money to help! She created braclets that cost five dollars that you can buy annd the money goes towards helping people in Japan. Imagine if it happens to you and your family... Loosing your home, your cars, and jobs. I feel so bad for all of those people who lost everything! This is just heartbroking.

Technology in the Classroom

Technology in the classrooms has become so advanced. In my English class we used the Ipads to take notes on the teachers presentation. then the notes were displayed on our class's website page. Since the presentation was going to take the whole class period any questions that students had couldn't be answered right away. We had to send our teacher a tweet via twitter and then later that night we got answers to those question.

We also did a project that we had to write a paper as a group on a book that we had just read. The people in each group though were from all different schools. The way we had to communicate was through google docs. It was really fun because now I know that you don't even have to know the prson you are writing the paper with.

KerPoof: Learning Through Creativity

I think that Kerpoof is a great website for schools to use because it can make learning fun. It is such a creative website that I'm glad someone came up with. There are a bunch of different parts that could be used in schools that can be incooperated into the lesson plan. Under the title Kerpoof Scholastics there are all these different options. For example there are lesson plan ideas, newsletters, and the general guidelines for teaches to follow. On the main screen you will find different ways to make the learning fun.

For example of a way to use one of items is maybe to makes video or movie. If you had to write a story in your English class then you could turn that story into a cartoon movie. If you were having some type of fundraiser with your grade you could make fliers wih the drawing item or if you need to create invitations you can do that, too.

There are really so many things that you can do with this website. Somehow, no matter what the lesson plan you are working on you can try and incorporate it.

Apple is Releasing the Ipad 2

On March 11th Apple is coming out with the Ipad 2. So many thing have been modified to make it even better. Its is hard to believe the technology. I think can't just give one thing that I'm excited for that the Ipad contains now. I am so excited to use the camera and video, it is 33% thinner and 15% lighter, and to have the Smart Cover.

The camera and video allow to have the camera apps and video apps. You can skype or Facetime. Being 33% thinner than the first Ipad you would htink that the battery life would be less but it has the same battery life as the original. 10 hours of battery how crazy is that. It's even thinner than the new Iphone 4. To save the battery life Apple has also created the new Smart Cover. The Smart Cover automatically turns the Ipad on when the cover is opened and turns it off when the cover is closed. Plus it's 15% lighter.

I think that the only good thing that Apple hasn't changed is the price. The original price was $499. The new price $499.

Teaching the Facebook Generation

Some teachers believe that teaching the Facebook Generation is tougher than when there was no website. Some teachers think that Facebook is changing that the student generation. They feel that Facebook, Twitter and Myspace are huge distractions that are having a bad result on kids. I know that some students are on Facebook so much more than others. 2 of my friends can's live without going on Facebook 5 times every hour. I myself only go on for 1-2 hours a day. Other people have an obsession with it and can never get enough. They are the ones that are struggling. Teachers need to realize that most kids are not like that and are very responsible with managing their time between school and being social.
There are also reasons that Facebook, Twitter and Myspace should be allowed. They are a great way for students to communicate. If a student is sick or missed class they could go online and be able to talk to other kids in their class to do the work that was missed.

The internet has become such a big part of the kids growing up today. If the internet exists and in someway can help with the education why should we not be allowed to use it?

Grammy Award Show

Sunday night there were the Grammy Award show. Which is something that I have been excited to watch for a while now. I loved to watch the red carpet seeing all the gorgeous dresses. Seeing the dresses is one of the best parts about the Grammy's. The other great part is all the great performances.

My favorite performance this years was the one performed by Jennifer Hudson, Florence Welch (of Florence + the Machine), Yolanda Adams, Martina McBride and Christina Aguilera to honoring the soul legend with a medley of her own songs(Aretha Franklin). Even though I don't know who Aretha is I thought that it was really nice they since it was the first year that she hadn't performed in a really long time. So somehow in the Grammy's she was a part of it. Although I have to say that Lady Gaga's performance was also excellent, it was very weird. Just like she is, strangely weird. She went on the red carpet in an egg/ pod looking thing. Where does she get these ideas? Her song though has now become my favorite song for right now.

The other part that I love about the Grammy's is just watching the red carpet and seeing all of the interviews and the gorgeous dresses. Every year there are new styles and colors. Last years color was purple.I would say that this years color would be more of the pastels, whites, and silvers. There were acutaley lots and lots af sparkly and shinking dresses. No matter what the color was all of the dresses were extremely gorgeous and the designs and styles were so different that they were uncalled for.

In the end it was a greet award show and I loved every second of the performances and outfits!
Now I can't wait till next years Grammy's Award show.

Should There be a Ban on Cell Phones in School?

          In the article called "Cell Phones-Time to Lift the Ban on Mobiles in the School Setting? by Thomas the discussion over if cell phones should be allowed in schools. There are arguments coming from both sides.

Thomas says that "Needless to say, the general consensus regarding cell phones and schools is that the two simply do not mix. However, a new study from across the pond gives strong indication that schools should give greater consideration to putting these handheld mobile devices to work." That is a great statement to say because there are many uses that the phone can have in the education of students. Kids love to play with new technologies and a great way to include them would be to bu using cell phones. Now you can access the internet off of your phone. Why not use the newest and coolest?

        With any good thing there are side affects. With using cell phones in school students might get to distracted. Students might take the priviledge of the phones to far and not be staying on track. Also if you are a teacher and are going to be incorperating cell phones into your class and all of the students except for one have cell phones what are you going to do? Can you still do the lesson or can you not just because of one student?

        I think that students would love to be incorperating these new technologies into their education. I know I would. The risks are something that can be taken. The majority of the students I know would abbide by the rules becvause they know that they are being given a chance and if they mess up then they won't have that privelage anymore.

I just made a new Voki. See it here:

Christina Aguilera singing the National Anthem at the Superbowl

On Sunday, the Superbowl was in Dallas, Texas played between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers. What a great game! Every year my family and I go to a huge party for the game. Usually every one's highlight is an amazing catch or interception, but this year we all couldn't stop talking about how Christina Aguilera messed up singing the National Anthem. Normally at such a big event like the Superbowl all the songs are prerecorded. Now I understand why the songs are prerecorded to decrease the probability of having a mistake happen.

All across the country the top news is about how Christina Aguilera messed up while singing the National Anthem at the Superbowl. Seriously people mistakes happen. Just think that  if you were the one who messed up wouldn't feel really embarrassed about the whole thing in the first place. So what if she forgot a line its better than singing the wrong song. Many many more worse things could have happened. For example the Pittsburg steelers could have won! That would have been a serious problem.

School district turns snow days into 'e-days'

        This year in a school district in Ohio has been having a ridiculous amount of snow days. They had NINE snow days! Because of the fact that they have had so many snow days the school district turns snow days into 'e-days'. They were thinking about how almost every student has a computer the teachers have been teaching their classes over the internet. Students that don't have a computer to use get an extension to get the work when they go back to school.
        I think that this is a great way of getting in those missed days. From my perspective I believe that students would find this fun and entertaining but also a challenge. They would like it because who else do you know gets their class taught to them over the internet. It's just so shocking that that is how far our world has come to. The difficult parts would be that in school the teachers are there to force to to get to class and pay attention but when a student is online they have more distractions and is harder to stay focused. The other difficult part would be that on a snow day the only thing that kids want to do is sleep late.
       I know that I would really enjoy having my classes taught to me over the web. Who doesn't want to not have to wake up crazy early and sit through class after class? I know I don't.

Changing Education Paradigms

         I was very fascinated with what this video contained. I was not expecting to be so impressed with what was contained in the video. I really enjoyed how it was a different way of giving a presentation. It was a good change though because usually when you watch a video of someone giving a presentation is that the speaker is walking around on the stage taking and talking with no emotion. The great thing was that it was a drawing which was such a refreshment compared to all the other speeches I have heard.

         I agree with what the speaker was talking about. It was a great way of bringing about the topic in a new way. the presentation was something unpredictable.

         The things that surprised me the most about the presentation were that you never saw the speaker while he was talking. usually the whole video would be of the speaker just walking back and forth, back and forth rambling on and on. Another thing that surprised me was that the speech was given through a drawing, a really big drawing.