Google Street View

Google Street View is awesome! If you haven't used it in your classroom, it's definitely something that you should think about. Google Street View is a great way to incorporate culture into a lesson - ancient ruins such as those from Pompeii are even within Street View's database. This tool allows teachers to bring history and cultural lessons to life via the internet. This is important for foreign language learners because many students may never have the opportunity to visit such historical sites in person. Using Google Street View stimulates learners to be more interested in current lessons and feel more connected to the material.

When I did a thematic unit on Pompeii, I introduced the unit in two ways. First, I showed a painting, L'ultimo Giorno di Pompei (Pompeii's Last Day) and asked students questions about what they saw in the picture - what did they think was happening? What did they think the painting was called? (Students did not know the title of the painting.) Afterwards, I "walked students through" Pompeii via Google Street View.

This can be a great tool for ESL Learners in New York City, too. Nobody is familiar with every borough and area of NYC. Street View is a great way to have students explore and become more familiar with areas, especially if they are new arrivals.

It is really cool that such a thing is so easily accessible and free. I think it is a great educational tool if used properly, and is one that can really facilitate student interest.

Go!Animate

I love Go!Animate! I took note of it during Allison's presentation.

On Go!Animate, students can create videos where they choose a scene and their own characters. Students input text for each character to say. After you type in the text for your character, you can choose which language you want the character to speak. So I put in Italian text, and then chose the Italian flag so that my characters would sound like Italian speakers. Students can also choose emotions for their characters as well. Students and teachers may use the website for free, though if you want more features, it costs more money.

I made my own Go!Animate here and had a lot of fun doing so! I think it's the coolest thing. It is also great for students who are shy and may not like presenting. I think this is a good tool to practice writing. Instead of producing writing assignments with boring paper and pen, you can create a dialogue and produce a video all in one.

Blackboard

I have been using Blackboard all through college and graduate school, and never thought twice about it. In our last class, we were exposed to different softwares that universitys use. After exploring some other softwares, I have come to realize that I like Blackboard for its structure, simplicity, and cleanness.

A view of our course on Blackboard.

Blackboard acts as a forum and platform for student and teacher communication. Students can post on threads, ask questions, share their work, and post assignments in certain sections. Ana and Mimi shared in class that Blackboard's template is not able to be changed - it includes announcements, staff information, course information, assignments, external links, a discussion board, and library research. If it were my first time using Blackboard as an instructor, I'd be grateful for its structure, but like Ana said, when you get used to it, it may become more of a nuisance that nothing can be changed. I can't believe how expensive it is, either - that's crazy! I can't imagine what NYU pays with all the students that we have at the university.

I've enjoyed my experience using Blackboard as a student. I think it's clean and well structured. I'd probably enjoy using it as a professor or teacher since I am so used to it now. I don't think it would be too different on the "other side" (the teacher side).

Microsoft Publisher

I have never used MS Publisher until class this week. I've heard it, but never saw it/used it before. I was actually under the impression that MS Publisher was a bit ghetto. I'm not sure why.

MS Publisher is a great tool to use for culminating projects. Students can make their own newsletter or magazine using the software, which acts as a great template for such assignments or tasks. I personally think this software is great to make newsletters for parents. Over the course of the year, students can work towards a biannual or seasonal (four times a year) newsletter, to keep parents updated about the happenings of the class. I think this is particularly good for younger students, because they especially seek to make their parents proud of their work. In doing this, it helps parents to be more up-to-date and involved in their child's education.

Older students can create their own magazines that can be "published" as a project. This would be great for a culminating project, or a project that is done over the course of the semester. In a class such as foreign language, students can write small articles or blurbs using new tenses or vocabulary that they have learned. Before "publishing" their magazines, students would hand in rough drafts to their teacher, so that they can revise their work towards a final draft.

Rosetta Stone

All yours, for $499.

I have never bought or used Rosetta Stone on my own, so it was interesting to watch as Ana fiddled around with it in our last class.  I've talked with a friend who has used it previously (before studying abroad in Italy), and she loved it - until she got there. She felt that she learned a lot at home on her computer, but when she was thrown into her new life in Florence, she felt lost and confused. She also felt disappointed in the "progress" that she made, because it didn't seem like she made any progress at all.

Rosetta Stone's promise.

Trying out Rosetta Stone on a language such as Arabic or Chinese must be difficult.  Being that you start out just repeating vocabulary, it can be hard to properly dictate tones or even understand how to properly say the word.  Many of the words from Greek Rosetta Stone just sounded like mish-mosh to me.  I felt the computer's audio-lingual method was not working for me all - I was basically mumbling what I thought the computer was saying, most definitely without proper diction. But I guess this is Rosetta's way of throwing you into the language. I find it's extremely difficult to identify and read the written word in languages that do not use the Roman alphabet.

Still, I will always think that a master teacher or the host country are better ways to provide spontaneous immersion of the language.  I like Livemocha better than Rosetta Stone from what I have seen thus far - Livemocha is much more interactive than Rosetta seems to be.  It is also much more affordable. $499.00 (Rosetta Stone) or Livemocha (free).  This is a deciding factor for most.

One of my concerns about Rosetta Stone is that it will replace the teacher in the foreign language classroom. Not because it is better - but because of money. Yes, it is expensive for the individual - but $500 is much cheaper than a teacher's salary. Many schools are already having students learn on Rosetta Stone. It's disheartening and frightening to say the least.

Voice of America

Voice of America's "Special English" section is pretty amazing.  This portion of the website is dedicated to English Language Learners, and it is like nothing that I have ever seen before.  All articles are authentic, but there is an audio player that actually reads the articles.  This is great for English Language Learners - they can play the audio and follow along with the text.  Students can practice their listening skills by just playing the audio, can follow along with both audio and text to listen for pronunciation, or just read the article by itself to practice their reading and reading comprehension.  All articles are up-to-date with current events.

Above is a Special English video from Voice of America. In it, the reporter speaks slowly and clearly for ELLs.  There is also text that scrolls up the screen so that ELLs can follow along.  I think that these videos (and articles) are really great for learners of English, and can easily be incorporated into lessons and activities.  What is even better, is that all topics are relevant to what is going on currently in the world.

In addition to the articles on the website, language exercises, idiom dictionaries, and word books are also available on the website.  Lesson plans for EFL teachers are available as well. 

Acapela Group

I LOVE Acapela Group's Text to Speech software! It is absolutely amazing. I am really excited to have found it, and I think that it can indeed help students with their intonation and speaking in the target language.

Acapela Group's Text to Speech is very simple and easy to navigate.  Simply visit the website and then click "select a voice." When you select your voice, you decide if you want it to be male or female, and in which language you want the voice to speak.  After you have done that, type in your text.  When you are done typing in your text, simply click "play." The voice that you have chosen will speak the text that you have entered.  If you notice any pronunciation errors in verbal speech by the software, you can "report a pronunciation bug."

I think this software is great to use if a student has trouble with pronunciation. Google has something similar that I sometimes use. In the Google Translate portion of Google, you can type in a word and hear it's audio and pronunciation.  I think that this is a great way to build confidence in speaking, as students can mimic the intonation of the software (with caution). It is good to be wary of pronunciation errors, because after all, it is all computerized.

Above, we see Google's variation of text to talk.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is a website that allows you to "Watch. Practice. [and] Learn almost anything for free" (Khan Academy, 2012). The key is almost. In all of my searching, I did not find an English section, nevertheless a foreign language one. The closest thing is SAT prep, which is not exactly very useful for ELLs to practice their everyday English language.

Overall, though, the website offers an incredible amount of lessons for subjects that range from Art History, to Finance, to Calculus. I clicked on a few lessons in varying subjects, and all of them featured video/audio explanations of a lesson.

I think that this website would be helpful to teachers of science, math, art history, finance, etc, but there really is nothing for English or Foreign Languages.  Even all of the SAT prep that I clicked on was practice for the math sections.

A video about evolution and natural selection from Khan Academy's website.

So in short, I think that this website is great and I will tell my friends about it who are going to teach other subjects, but I unfortunately cannot utilize it.

Edit: After reading other people's blogs about Khan Academy, I realized that I needed to go a little bit outside of the box with my thoughts on the website. These videos may be helpful, especially with drawings like the video up above.  Videos may be a good review for learners at home. I think that this would most likely best suit advanced ELLs, though.

The Flipped Classroom

After watching The Flipped Classroom (above), I thought about the pros and cons of such a classroom.  Aaron Sams is obviously doing something right by the looks of the video, but I don't think that such a thing would work in every classroom or school.  To give you a little bit of a background of what a flipped classroom is, let's first think of a regular classroom.  In a regular classroom, the teacher stands in front of the class and delivers information, of which students are expected to receive and understand.  In a flipped classroom, students are assigned a topic the night before a lesson for homework.  Mr. Sams gives students a lecture in which they are to watch via technology, which guides them in completing their assignment.  The next day, students continue to do their work and Mr. Sams acts as more of a "tutor" than teacher.  It is his goal to have students learn for themselves, and not have such a teacher-centered classroom.

While it seems like it is working in his classroom/school, this would not work in every classroom.  Some students may not have access to technology to watch Mr. Sams' lectures, or the motivation to figure out homework for themselves.  While, yes, students should have the motivation and desire to learn on their own, I could easily see students give up and not do their homework, or even get angry that the teacher is not doing their job in "directly teaching" them what to do.  I am interested to know what Mr. Sams' administrators originally thought of his idea of flipping his classroom. While I think that it is great and ideal, most students need structure and need to be told exactly what to do. I can see students who do poorly on homework, quizzes, or tests blame the teacher for "not teaching" as a result of this technique.

Audacity

Last class, we learned about a new podcast, called Audacity. I actually really enjoy this software, and think that it is very user-friendly. You have to download the software along with LAME, but it's a pretty simple download. When you get into Audacity and make a project, the interface allows for you to record, then to play it back after you are finished. It takes a little fiddling around with when you want to export your project and send to someone, but after trial-and-error it was pretty easy to figure out. After you are done with your project, you export it, change it to an MP3 file, and connect it to LAME. LAME is on the Audacity website under downloads.

Here is a description and "map" of all the features that are on Audacity.

I think that podcasts are great to have students create in the language classroom.  With up to 34 kids in each class, having each student speak every single class can sometimes seem unrealistic. With group work activities and assignments that include podcasts, such as Audacity, students are held accountable to speak in the target language and get the practice and linguistic "exercise" that they need to progress in their learning of the target language.

I would definitely use Audacity in my classroom, but would be a bit hesitant because everyone may not have the software that is needed to create a podcast.  If I were to use Audacity, I would assign students to answer a "question" and have them give a 30 second to 1 minute response for homework. I think that this would be great practice for speaking and intonation of the target language. It would also work well for students who are more shy in class, who can work on this activity at home.

La Repubblica

I was originally going to talk about RAI in this entry, which is Italy's Version of BBC, but I am going to post about La Repubblica.  La Repubblica is one of Italy's most popular Italian newspapers.  Repubblica.it is La Repubblica's online version of the newspaper.  Its website is pretty user-friendly, and all commercials, videos, and articles are in Italian.  Access is free.  All videos work on the website, and no additional software needs to be installed to watch them, unlike RAI (which is why I am not talking about it!)

I think that La Repubblica's website is a great tool for both student and teacher to use. By using the website, a teacher can ensure the use of authentic materials that include relevant topics and culture.  It is also good for an Italian teacher to use on his/her own time, to keep up-to-date with what is going on in Italy.  I think that using particular articles and videos would be good to have students practice their reading and listening comprehension (click on Repubblica TV for video clips).  For homework, the teacher can give guided questions that are to be answered about the particular article or video clip that is assigned. (It is important for teachers to review articles beforehand to ensure that the level is appropriate for students).  I'd probably have students also find five words that they didn't know in an article, and find the definitions online.  The next day when students come into class, I would assign groups to talk about the article, and share vocabulary with each other.

What's best about La Repubblica's website, is that it has Repubblica@SCUOLA (The Republic at School), which is geared for students.  Here is an article about Adele, one that students would probably find interesting and not too difficult to read.  I would probably use this website with high school students - from intermediate to advanced level Italian.

Common Core Standards

The Common Core Standards are divided into two parts, English Language Arts and Math.  These standards are those that are to be met by the whole nation.  The Common Core Mission Statement boasts that The Standards are related to the real world and will have all students ready for college.  It is a teacher's responsibility to carry out these standards into his or her lesson plans.

Looking at all of the standards on this website is extremely overwhelming.  The ELA Standards alone are 64 pages long, and the Math Standards are 71 pages long.  Standards are broken down by grade level and categories/subjects. It is extremely confusing, and again, overwhelming.

I think that The Standards are both good and bad.  Most of the standards that are on the website can be met easily, but at times the standards can without a doubt restrict a teacher and leave him or her with not much freedom to do what they want.  With all of these standards and junk that we teachers have to adhere to, I feel like I a lot of passion and the "fun" of teaching can easily dwindle away.  With all that is going on in education right now, I would not be surprised if the statistic that 1/3 teachers drop out of the profession all together within their first three years, increases.  I definitely believe in holding teachers to high standards, but holding teachers to unrealistic expectations and having them receive barely any respect or support is leading the best and the brightest to go into other professions.

I believe that those who created The Standards have (mostly) a good motive (you never know with politicians these days), but I believe that the government can't save education with all of these bogus standards.  Something has to change, but I don't know exactly what. In my opinion, I think that the core issue is what our society values.  Until this country can re-prioritize, the education system will still suffer, with or without the Common Core Standards.

242 Movie TV

Last year, when I went to the NYS Foreign Language Teachers Conference, I attended a workshop on digital shorts in the Italian language classroom, and was introduced to 242 Movie TV.  242 Movie TV is an independent movie website that features digital shorts in many different foreign languages.

But...what is a digital short?
A digital short is basically a movie...that is short, ranging from 5 to 20 minutes long.  A lot of the digital shorts on the website do not have a lot of language.  Many major events in the movies are just spoken through actions.  There are not many characters in the film - the movies are simple and simplified. Great for a language learner who can easily get confused when watching a foreign film.

Using these sort of clips are great to stimulate discussion.  Students won't get confused or frustrated if they don't understand dialogue, because there isn't much of it.  It really is to facilitate learners to think, analyze, and discuss what is happening in the digital short.  I'd say that using this website is most appropriate for university-level students or older high school students.  The tasks that Mimi and Ana told us about after watching a trailer would be pretty much the same for digital shorts.  Acting out a character, writing a dialogue, or writing the letter from the perspective of the boy in the film (the Italian movie short) would make students think and push students to use the target language.  I think that these activities are well-suited for group work, so that students can fully discuss their thoughts about the digital short that they watched.

Here is an example of an Italian digital short. The movie is called "Due di Tre" (Two of Three). What do you think it's about?

For all of my Spanish and French friends - here is a link to the rest of the international independent films on the website! Hope this helps someone!

iTunes Movie Trailers

iTunes Italia

Today in class we learned how about how to use iTunes Movie Trailers as a motivational technique. I thought it was awesome!  Basically, all you have to do is go to this website and choose a free trailer, and play it for students.  I really liked the tasks that both Mimi and Ana pointed out to do with students after seeing the trailer.  What is so great about a trailer, is that it gives a basic summary of a movie, but it keeps you hanging.  There are so many activities that you can do, no matter what level class you teach.  Acting is great for kinesthetic and artistic learners, while writing a dialogue, short summary, or prediction may better fit those who are not as eager to get up in front of the class.  There are endless possibilities and tasks that students can engage in after using a movie trailer now matter what the learning style or level of students you are dealing with.

I am not sure if itunes.com is available in schools, but like I've said in a previous post, keepvid.com is a great website to upload and save media as an attachment and not have it blocked in schools.

La Vita è Bella trailer ...Cosa succederá nel film? Che cosa pensate? (What will happen in the film? What do you all think?)

Quizlet

One of my colleagues at LaGuardia High School uses Quizlet ALL the time in his Italian and French classes.  I had never heard of the website until I observed him.  Almost instantly I realized how useful (and fun) the tool was, and how much students love it.

Quite simply, Quizlet is a great language learning tool.  Languages range from Italian to Gaelic to Danish.  You can create your own Quizlet Flashcard Set for students to practice specific vocabulary, or you can search and practice those that others have made.  What's great about Quizlet, is that you can make sure that your students are ACTUALLY doing their homework and practicing (students email you their scores after practicing).  And Quizlet is not just for vocabulary, you can be quizzed on verb tenses and conjugations as well. You can also scramble up your flashcards so that you do not always have the same sequence.

I have also used Quizlet in my Italian classroom the day before a test to review with students.  They get all excited and riled up about it, which makes studying fun.  Assigning this with other homework a few times a week will have students prepare over time for tests, resulting in better test scores.  I most definitely recommend this tool for language teachers to use without reservation.

Free Rice

Multi-tasking: "the performance of multiple tasks at one time." (Merriam-Webster)

This is exactly what students are doing when they practice vocabulary on freerice.com. This website allows students to practice vocabulary in Italian, Spanish, French, German, and English (other subjects are also available).  For every question that students get right, 10 grains of rice are donated to people in need. What could be better than that?

My Spanish professor in college used to assign us to do vocabulary practice on this website.  There are a variety of levels for each subject.  There are no specific topics within a subject to choose from, though.  Still, I think this is great practice and a great way to get extra-credit while doing something good for others.  You can also create groups on the website, so you can add your students into one group.

Here is the multi-subject link.  Choose which subject you would like to practice.  Then choose your level. Simple as that!

Prezi

Prezi is just like Microsoft PowerPoint, but much more modern looking and cool.  It allows people to create their own presentations, whether it be for educational or business use.  I searched the website's examples, and presentations ranged in subjects: from resumes, e-portfolios and learning foreign languages to conference presentations.  You can also search other peoples' presentations and use them for your own, but make sure to review them first before sharing them with your class. I searched for an Italian presentation and the one that I found had phrases with incorrect grammar and expressions that did not make sense.  Besides slides in the presentation, you can also upload media.

Prezi looks cool and modern. But this picture alone shows how Prezi can seem a bit confusing and all over the place!

I think this would be good to break down lessons and topics for students, and the website is probably not blocked in schools.  I am not going to lie, the presentations can make me a little dizzy, though, being that there is so much movement when changing slides!!! I was also confused in how to play presentations as well. Once I clicked the "play" button, I thought that the presentation would just play each slide one after the other on its own, but I had to continuously click the play button in order to move from one slide to the next. This may be confusing to employers if using this for an e-portfolio.

Here is an example of a Prezi presentation.

VoiceThread

VoiceThread is allows for full-class access, the use of differentiated instruction, and collaboration.  On this website, the course instructor can upload a picture, and have students respond in three different ways: they can write, speak, or draw.  These options are great for students being that personalities and learning styles always differ.

In class, I uploaded three different pictures from the Ellis Island category.  The pictures on the website can allow students to think and storytell about each picture.  Students can view pictures and respond any three ways.  All students can view or hear other students' responses.

I still need more time to become better acquainted with the site. It is still a bit confusing to me, and I had some technical difficulties in class on Tuesday.  I think that once I figure out how to navigate the website comfortably, this could be a great tool in the classroom.  It may be hard though to ensure that all students have access to the internet, microphones, etc. And if they don't have access to those things at home, it is not necessarily true that it will be available in school.

Bookr

Bookr is my new best friend.  Bookr allows students to create their own virtual book for free, and search and add their own images as well.  It also has a feature that allows you to turn pages just like a real book, which is really cool.

What I like most about Bookr, is that it can allow students to write simple stories with pictures.  You can really use Bookr for any level, but I think that it would work great with beginner students of a foreign or second language.  Students can write one or two sentences per page.  They can keep their sentences very basic and simple.  Using Bookr is very simple, and the format makes sure that students keep their work that way as well.  I don’t think it would be overwhelming to students.

Students can share their Bookr with other students for reading comprehension as well.  Other students can answer questions about each other’s Bookr.  It may also be used for presentations or a mini-project where the main focus is either vocabulary or a certain verb tense.  One thing that is really annoying about this application, though, is that you cannot use your own pictures (or other searched images) in your book. When I attempted to drag in a picture from Google Images, it completely deleted my whole book and I had to start over again. Also, there is a link that guides you to share your Bookr on a blog, but none of the codes work (at least here on Blogger they don't). I just ended up copying and pasting the web address.  

Click here to view my very own Bookr. It's about pizza...yum!

audioBoo

My boo, or boyfriend, appropriately introduced me to audioBoo, a website that allows you to make your own digital recordings via computer or telephone (for FREE!).  The website is genius for those who teach in the foreign or second language classroom.  In New York City public schools, most teachers have up to 34 students in their classes.  Speaking tasks can be a nightmare.  With audioBoo, teachers can have students complete speaking tasks for homework, or have them practice all at once in the language lab.

I would use audioBoo with high school students, especially during the year that students have to take the Regents exam.  As for instructional goals, I would have students use audioBoo for speaking tasks.  I would give students a topic, and ask them to speak for one to two minutes on the topic in the target language.  AudioBoo is great because students can preview recordings, and if they don't like them, they can delete them and start a new recording.  Students publish their best "boo."  Students can follow each other's "boos," or just be followed by the teacher.  You can do multiple things here - you can have students complete a speaking task and just solely grade it, you can have students listen to other "boos" as a listening task, or have students respond to each other's boos.  After my recording, you will see "record a comment."  The limits seem endless with audioBoo.

I tried out the software and found it to be very user-friendly.  Everything was pretty self explanatory and I don't think students would have any issues.  I used my MacBook to make my audioBoo.  Besides your computer, audioBoo is compatible with any Apple, Nokia, or Android phones.  The downside to this is that there is always a chance that students will not have the proper tools to use the website, but that can be arranged.  AudioBoo may also be completed in a language lab, if a school has one.

I would definitely use audioBoo in my classroom.  It makes students more accountable for their speaking, which is very important when learning a foreign or second language.  Sometimes, being that the number of students is so high in the classroom, some students fall through the cracks.  With things like audioBoo, EVERYONE is accountable for speaking, and everyone gets practice.  It is good for those who may be super shy in the classroom, who can make their audioBoo in the privacy of their own home.

**Edit**  - I created my own audioBoo, and went to upload it into this blog entry. It would not work. I guess you would definitely need tech support if uploading audioBoo to a blog. I don't forsee any issues, however, if you were following others on audioBoo.  The problem would be embedding the code onto a website. Nevertheless, I was very disappointed that it didn't work on here. Oh, well!

PowerPoint

PowerPoint is one of the most used applications on my computer. I use it both as a student and as a teacher.

PowerPoint would probably be most appropriate for high school and university students, but it may be used in middle school as well.  I have never taught in middle school, but I know that most kids nowadays are extremely good with technology, and pick up how to use technology quickly.  I never used PowerPoint when I was in middle school, and never knew it existed.  We are in the digital age now though, where technology has taken over, so it may be suitable for middle school students to use.  No matter what, it would be appropriate for a teacher to use with students from the middle school to university level, as it is a concise and clear way to explain and breakdown elements that one wants to teach.  It is also great to motivate a lesson with visuals/videos, which can be easily added into the application.

I have probably been using PowerPoint close to seven years now, so I'd say that I'm close to being a pro. PowerPoint has many layouts and templates when creating presentations. The best part is that they have cool effects when you change to the next slide (which is my favorite). Like any other software, it takes some getting used to, but in general, it is user-friendly and easy to navigate.

But - I have had some issues with PowerPoint in the past.  A few times, when I've inserted links and videos, the links didn't work.  This has happened in public schools, where internet access has been lacking or websites have been blocked.  I have also had the videos completely disappear all together when opening it on another computer. Beware when converting PowerPoint files for this reason.

Overall, PowerPoint is a great tool for both student and teacher.  I find that this is a good way to present and breakdown elements that I want to teach for my students.  It also allows me to incorporate visuals, which are great for vocabulary practice (I have used PowerPoint for vocabulary quizzes and sections on a test and it has worked well).   As mentioned in class, it is also a great "crutch" for students to use for class presentations, and helps them to break down their ideas.  A very useful tool, for sure!

Blogger

Yes, I am writing about Blogger, on Blogger.

I have never used Blogger before taking this class, but I really like it!  Basically, Blogger is an online blog (hence the name Blogger).  Blogs may be used for personal or business use for people to express their thoughts.  The journal-like format also allows you to label your entries so you can track them in the future.

Online blogs are a great tool for language learners to utilize.  The student population that would most benefit from websites such as Blogger would be upper middle school to high school level students.  For instructional goals, I would ask students to keep an online journal in the target language.  Students who do not participate in class may be much more willing to write in their journal independently.  Also, students may feel less pressure with no time restraint when doing a writing exercise.  I would probably give students a topic or question to write about/respond to for each entry to give them some direction. I would also make sure to give them a minimum word count.  Blogging is a great way to keep track of student growth and to reflect on the learning process.

I have done a good deal of work on Blogger these past few weeks, and I enjoy it. The new Blogger interface is VERY confusing, though.  Changing to Blogger's old interface was much easier for me to navigate.  It took quite a few days/hours for me to get used to using the website, but now I think that I am getting the hang of it.  (But I still sometimes get a bit lost!)  There are a lot of different templates that Blogger offers, and there are many ways to personalize your blog.  It took me hours to do this, though, and I am afraid that students may get a bit off task and into the "look" of their blog. I surely did, I probably wasted 5 hours total on that alone! Besides that, I also really like the privacy settings that I can have students set to their Blogger. This way, their blogs can stay private from public search engines and I know that my students will have a safe experience using the website.

I think that Blogger is awesome.  I would definitely find a way to incorporate this into my Italian or ESL classrooms.  It is a great way for both students and I to keep track of their work and progress throughout the school year.  I also think that it could be a lot of fun for them!

Lesson Writer

I was completely amazed in class to learn of such as thing as Lesson Writer, which is basically an engine that generates lesson plans for teachers.  Teachers are to input text that they want to teach into the Lesson Writer engine (a maximum of 500 words for free users), choose exactly what they want to teach/what element they want to teach, and then may choose the format for class exercises.  Everything is done for you, in a click.

I am in complete awe that this is even possible, and think that it is great; but I really don't think this is for me. Maybe if I were to be really swamped and pressed for time, but I'm not all about generic things. There can only be so much quality in a lesson plan generator, and no matter how good the teacher executes, if you have a so-so or lousy lesson plan for a class period, you can only take the students so far.  This may be good for a teacher who is starting out, however, to give him or her ideas for lesson plans, etc.

If this were able to have a function where I could create Italian lesson plans, maybe I'd be more for it, but I like how creating my own lesson plans helps better prepare me to teach and explain grammar, syntax, etc. Maybe it's just me, but I would never want anyone to know that I use Lesson Writer. Maybe 20 years down the road when I am a burnt out, (I hope that never happens), but not as a new, young, fresh teacher.  You should never get used to shortcuts.  My CT for Italian always recreates the wheel every year - while it may be exhausting, it is most definitely stimulating for students' brains, and for her own.

So, in short, the idea of Lesson Writer is cool, but not my cup of tea.  My students would probably be bored with lessons from Lesson Writer, along with myself. The reason why I love teaching is because I use my own ideas and have fun.

Livemocha

Livemocha is a website that allows students to learn a language and engage in a new language.  What is so great about this website, is that it is FREE! I have used this website in the past, and I feel that I have taken it for granted.  It looks as if the website has certainly gotten better, now possessing conversational videos so that users not only can recognize language, but hear it as well.  What is so great about this website is that natives actually correct your work and give feedback. (I can’t wait to finish this blog post so that I can start learning some French…!)

Middle schoolers or high schoolers would most definitely benefit from using this website.  The website is pretty easy to use and is self-explanatory.  Since this generation of students has grown up with technology, it should be no problem for them to use.  Instructional goals that I would employ with this website would probably include listening activities, vocabulary review, and sentence practice.  I would leave speaking activities to be done with students in class.  This website is great for people to learn language on their own, but should not be used as the only learning tool.  Other students (and the teacher) are the best learning tool one can ask for – getting real spontaneous practice with language will most benefit language learners.

I tried out this software and found that it was very user-friendly, but I had issues opening up some pages.  I had to reload numerous pages for content to show up.  Otherwise, everything worked pretty well.  I do not think that tech support will be needed for Livemocha; however, if you do not have internet access, it is not possible to use the website.  Also, if you have spotty internet access, it may make the Livemocha experience pretty painful, because I was having issues as is opening certain pages with good internet access.

           
Overall, I think this website is pretty incredible.  It is rare to find a language-learning site that is free.  What I like most about the website is that it is interactive and has natives give feedback on student work.  While it may have some glitches, the website is still worth it.  Compared to Rosetta Stone, which is over $500, I’d take advantage of this any and every day.

*****I just realized that they have a speaking section, where you can send your speaking to a native speaker! I really like this idea and feel that it is great to get native feedback.  I have a feel though that schools may not have this type of technology in the classroom or in a language lab for every student, but it would be good to do at home.  However, this is another obstacle at home, that students may not have microphones in their computers to record themselves onto the website.*****

YouTube

YouTube is a website that both teachers and students are familiar with.  While many use it for personal use, YouTube can be very good to use for motivational techniques in the classroom, and is a great way to introduce a topic and get conversation started.  YouTube can be used for many levels being that it offers a wide range of content.  I think that it is most appropriate in the middle or high school setting, but it may be used in upper elementary school.  As for instructional goals, YouTube is a good way to introduce a topic or give students a better understanding of a topic.  YouTube also possesses many instructional videos, which help people with the breakdown of the learning process.  I use YouTube very frequently, and find that it is very user-friendly.  All one has to do is type in what they want to search in the tool bar (just like Google) and scroll through the results.

           

As for tech support, it may be needed in certain situations.  If a computer does not have internet access, it is not possible to use YouTube.  Also, in most schools, YouTube is blocked, so there is no access.  One secret that I learned though, is to upload the YouTube video that you plan to use in a lesson plan to the website keepvid.com.  You can email yourself the video as an attachment (it will not be connected to YouTube, so it will not be blocked), or save it as a file on a thumb drive.  This is a great way to share videos in the classroom without the worry of not having access/it being blocked mid-lesson. 

A motivational activity that I have used in my Italian class.  Good for colors, foods, weather, etc.

In general, I think that YouTube is a great website to use in the classroom.  It is a great way to make lessons interesting and make students excited about a topic.  This up-to-date technology is a great way to relate to kids as well.  Having grown up with television, iPods, computers, etc., YouTube and computer technology is more “on their [a student’s] level” and is something that a student will most likely be excited to explore.

Who are my heroes?

I have been very fortunate to encounter such loving, compassionate, and nurturing people in my life.  There are two in particular who have molded me into who I am today – one as a person in general, and one as an educator.

My first hero is my grandmother, who not only made me develop a strong love for the Italian language and culture, but for life in general.  She shaped me as a person – to carry a light and warm heart, to have family at the center of it all, and to give and love tirelessly to those that we care about.  She stressed the importance of education, something she never had the honor of possessing. She gave my life direction – her influence has led me to where I am today, getting one of my Masters degrees in the Teaching of Italian.  I live my life through her and strive to be like her. The most important thing she has taught me is to follow my heart, do what I love, and just trust that everything will fall into place. Because of her, I always see the glass half full, never the glass half empty.

Big Antoinetta and little Antonette. I owe so much to her. Attached at the hip since I was piccolina.

My other hero is my first cooperating teacher.  Not only has she become my best friend, but she has molded me into a dynamic educator.  She is very accomplished in her own right, but always had the time to help me better myself.  She built my confidence and made me realize all that I am capable of in the classroom.  Her attitude is something that I look up to and that I have adapted for myself. She always set me to the highest expectations when it came to teaching, and now those are the only ones that I have for myself in the classroom.  She let me be more than just a “student teacher.”  She gave me a real sense of responsibility and a place in her department.  I love and look up to her, and appreciate all the time that she has invested in me (and all the time she is STILL investing two semesters later!).  She has made me realize that my limits are endless.