Smartboard Resources

I am very blessed to say that I have been able to use a SMART Board in my classroom almost the entire time I have been teaching. I have found that having a SMART Board to use has connected my class to the world in a new way. I have also found that I don’t have a whole lot of time to create a ton of new SMART Board lessons myself. Through the years, I have collected links to find SMART Board lessons, interactive websites, videos, and other resources I can use with my SMART Board. First check out my Diigo list of websites that I have bookmarked. Then check out some of these great places to find more resources.

SMART Exchange
SMART Board Revolution - A Revolution in Education
Interactive Whiteboard Games - PBS KIDS
SMART Board Templates
SMART Board
Teachers Love SMART Boards

Do you know more resources that are great for SMART Boards? Please add your resources to the comments.

What is Web 2.0 technology in education?

After spending most of my summer in forums and reading blogs, I've now come to an understanding of what Web 2.0 technology is. I was very confused when I first heard the term. Is is some sort of new software? Who made it and where did it come from? I really had no clue.

Web 2.0 technology is just a term to explain the new trend in technology today. It refers to the social networking and collaborative tools that are on the cutting edge. It is a huge movement in education today. It is mostly seen in secondary education, although many teachers begin early and web 2.0 tools can be used in any classroom.

I've included some links that helped me to understand web 2.0 tools and become familiar with them.

Here is a wiki about web 2.0 and it gives some helpful background information on the term. Web 2.0 in Education & Profiles - Intro.

Here is a great blog post that has details about web 2.0 in education. Moving Toward Web 2.0 in K-12 Education

Classroom 2.0 is a social network of educators that use web 2.0 technology in there classrooms. I have spent endless hours learning from the blogs and forums here.

I hope these help you to see how much more we could be doing in our classrooms. I'm still not sure what I would like to do in my classroom. I currently have a classroom website, but the students do not contribute to it. I'm thinking about maybe doing a classroom blog. We will see how this one does first.

Where are we going?: Technology in the Classroom

I was recently asked the question, "How is education different from when you were a child? and Where do you think education will be in twenty years?" I am a young teacher, so the differences are not huge for me. Technology is definitely different from when I was in school. Students today have more ability to interact with the global world. I think that there is more collaboration than when I was in school as well. I don't know that the differences make my job easier. I think they just make it different. Students now need different tools and ways of communicating. They also need the tools that I learned, about speaking in front of groups and interacting with others face to face. I think education is going more toward being individual. Many of the schools with cutting edge technology are going to 1:1 classroom. (That is one student with one computer.) It's good for technology, but are they receiving the time with actual people that they need? I'm not sure if this trend will continue in twenty years, but I hope they do not do away with real classrooms. Don't get me wrong. I would be in heaven if my students each had a computer in class, but we would not be spending our entire day using it.

I love to use technology in my classroom and I think it is very important. I read a great blog post about what teachers need to know about technology. The Top Eleven Things All Teachers Must Know About Technology It really helped me see how technology has changed and where we need to be heading. It is so important to teach our students about "digital citizenship." Teaching students to be responsible when using technology, especially Web 2.0 technology will be very valuable to them.