Blog Post #8

21st Century Learning and Communicating Tools
Teachers Pay Teachers
I am currently observing in a third grade classroom for three of my other classes. My mentor teacher, Ms. Williams, told me about some great sites that she uses to get worksheets and activities from. One that she told me about was Teachers Pay Teachers. I created an account with Teachers Pay Teachers so that I could access the tools that it provides. Teachers from all over can sell their original works to other teachers. You can sort your options by grade level, subject, or price. This is a great tool to use when you need extra help on certain subjects. My mentor teacher uses it in reading, because many of the students have a hard time grasping how to find the main idea of a passage. I would use this tool whenever I wanted my students to have a little extra practice on what we have already learned. The prices are cheap, and it's quality work that you are buying. Some other great tools that it provides are: bulletin board ideas, classroom decorations, PowerPoints, rubrics, and so much more! Teachers Pay Teachers is an excellent site for teachers in all aspects. -Michelle Detar

Education Place and Jump Start
As I searched the internet, I came across two very good learning websites. One is called Eduplace and the other is called Jump Start. Eduplace is a basic site, specifically for second grade, that gives tools to help plan your lesson. It consists of a glossary, manipulatives, graphic organizers, and, of course, games. All of these tools are specific for second grade learning. This learning tool could be used often in my classroom, mostly for the games and manipulatives. Jump Start has educational resources for pre-K through sixth grade. Some of the resources are: games, worksheets, lesson plans, and much more. The movie Madagascar and How to Train Your Dragon are some of the themes used for the different games. Each game is available not only online but on a number of sources like the iPad, Nintendo Wii, Mobile Device, and Nintendo DS. As you can see, Jump Start stays up to date on 21st century learning, and that is why it grabbed my attention. This is something that I will use in my classroom on a daily basis to reinforce what we have learned or to even introduce something new. The many worksheets, lesson plans and activities will be of great help in my classroom. Each curriculum is based on national and state standards so my students will always be learning efficiently. Jump Start is also a great way to keep my class interactive in learning. This site will help make the boring or more difficult topics fun. -Demetrius Hamner

Tech4Learning and The 21st Century Teacher
One of the great sites that I stumbled upon was called Tech4Learning. This is a great place that encourages what we are learning in EDM310. It can be accessed by Parents, Teachers, and Administrators. It gives you all sorts of interesting information including “How to create a 21st Century Classroom”. It offers guides of common core standards that must be followed and “award winning” programs to download and use in your classroom. There is also a “connect” tab on the homepage that allows you to connect with other teachers, see lessons, and the work of other students. Another interesting site that I found was called The 21st Century Teacher. Here you can find articles, blogs, and videos that offer tips for 21st century learning. I would use both of these websites as an educator. Not only do they offer you great advice, but they also allow you to connect with other educators from all over and share ideas, which is very helpful for creating your own “21st Century Classroom”.-Miriah Grantham