Movie Maker part II

So this is a way over due project but here is my movie over a story that we had to make. Mine is about a turtle that has to save his best friend...its a real nail biter and I hope you enjoy it, click the link below to see it!


 Link: Turtle's Courage

Looking Back at Tech Ed

This year in Ed Tech has been very beneficial to me. I learned a lot about my strengths and my weaknesses as apposed to Technology. I now know how to use several features of my computer that on my own, I probably never would have touched. This year although I struggled made me realize that I can accomplish my goals even they seem too far outside of my comfort zone.

A few areas that I think think that I have grown in are my abilities to create i movies. Although i definetly wont be quitting my day job any time soon to become a big time movie maker, I do feel more comfortable in my ability to show someone how to use it and how to tweak it to make a presentation if need be. Another thing that I never ever would have ventured into if it had not been for this class was branching into blogs and creating online accounts for things like youtube and pinterest. These may be something you do in your everyday life but for me I never do anything of the sort, so for me to actually get the use of doing so really was an accomplishment for me.

 One of my all time favorite things I did pull from this semester was the incite our Proffessor gave us. In all honesty, even though I may never have felt fully confident in my ability to use technology on her level, I did feel like she taught me how to not only be a better teacher, but to be the kind of teacher that students want you to be. I'll never forget a lesson before class had started that she taught us about the most important characteristic that a teacher can have and that it is all about forming relationships. I loved that and that is a big part of what I want to be as a teacher and a coach.

 I don't know if my views of technology have changed that much, but I definitely respect what it can bring to the classroom. It offers a window that can be the key to unlocking the potential of children of all types. Therefore, I'm glad I'm a little more savvy than when I first began. I do feel like I can do more than when I started but I know that this class was more than just about the technology aspect of it, and for those extra parts, I will charish this class.Was it hard and difficult? Yes absolutely and I'm glad it is over, but I'm so glad that I got to be in this class for the extra bits of incite that I got at the hands of an experienced teacher.

This assignment for our Tech class really was scaring me. Having to use the movie maker app on our laptops to illustrate our own philosophies about Technology in The classroom, but with the help of an incredible lady named Morgan Webb I was not as frightened to try... and low and behold I did it!!

Now I don't want anybody to get too excited, Im not quitting my day job by any means to make movies, but I now know that I can use it effectively and can at least get my point across.

So with that you have been warned if you wish to see my movie click on the link below, but try not to laugh hard at my lack of artistic display, I tried to add some different animations, but it jumbled all of my sound bites up and it caused me to start over. So with that..

 Enjoy!->Link Link

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity".

-Albert Einstein 

I believe what Albert said was definitely true, we have come so far with our technology that it's crazy to look back where we used to be even 25 years ago. With this being said, we were asked to think about our own philosophies on Technology and Education, and this is what I have come up with. -

"I don’t fear where we are headed in education with technology. We have to be willing to understand that this next generation of student’s are going to require us as  teacher’s to be sold out on the advances and the adaptations of technology.

 We are a pivotal time where the older ideals mixed with newer ones and honestly this gives us the chance to take our students no matter what the educational level no matter what the subject is, to a whole other level of an education.

 Imagine instead of just reading about a certain animal in science class, looking up on your smart board or whatever new device will come out in the next tomorrow a video that gives a live feed of the animal in their natural habitat, or instead of using the rigid times tables that slowly bend minds into their memorization, individualizing multiplication games that go as far as peaking there interest as any other PC game, while at the same time their learning comes not from force rather than a spark of desire to WANT to learn. 

Technology will never take the place of good old fashion teaching, yet at the same time good old fashion teaching will never survive unless it adapts itself into new techniques, and this adaptation comes from these new techniques that allow us to make our work not only easier but also more efficient. Although I struggle with technology, but I want to be better, because I know that technology if used appropriately can be a tool that can reach children on any kind of level, and I want to be able to use these tools to reach these students.  I firmly believe in technology as much as I believe in the phrase,” Work Smarter Not Harder”.   

   These are the 3 apps that I found to help with keeping on track with things while your running a classroom. I found them to be very helpful as I thought about having to run a class


My Work  Clock App

 Description for this App Simple punch-in/punch-out clock & widget for tracking the time at work.
Features (very partial list):
 * Overtime support
* Multiple jobs support
* Calendar update [Job Setting] add records to the calendar (it's recommended to open a separate calendar for 'My Work Clock'). ONE WAY-SYNC ONLY.
 * Punch in/out directly from the widget
* Quick day, week & month information
* Simple reports
* Send to mail as CSV
 * Add/remove/edit records
 * Multiple overtime and report periods: daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly and more.


. StayFocusd-
 I understand it's a bit much to ask you to go completely cold turkey from Angry Birds. Fortunately for the Internet browsing addicts out there, StayFocusd puts a cap on a list of sites you choose to limit. Whether you're wasting time on social networks, blogs, shopping or gaming, you can customize your list of restricted sites. Then, set your limit to the amount of time you will allow yourself to waste. . Google

Calendar Checker-

 Rather than navigating between your work and your schedule, this easy app counts down until your next engagement in the corner of your browser. Google Calendar Checker's simplicity keeps you focused on meeting your deadlines and preparing for engagements

Article Over Education in the class-

 Recently we were asked to find an article about using technology in education. I stumbled upon this article by Dian Shaffhauser. She does an incredible job making a case for using video games as a tool to help with understanding hard to teach concepts to kids.

 Its name is Will Gaming Save Education Or Just waste time? I found it to be very engaging and she is very good at articulating the arguments for and against it. I think if your trying to make a decision about this subject you should read this topic.

Click this link to visit the article. - http://thejournal.com/articles/2013/09/02/will-gaming-save-education-or-just-waste-time.aspxticle "

My Parent Teacher Log-

I had a good experience making my teacher log. I can definitely see where these would come in handy. They are great for making sure that you have all the information needed to be able to contact your student’s parents for any reason at all. I will definitely make good use of these later on.

As I posted earlier, I joined the NASPE I have recently received a notebook that has the following:

• A guide to coaching methods, or what makes a good coach.
• Training Techniques like workouts with instructions.
• An articles from Vince Lombardi world renown football coach and legendary icon.

I am eager to read this and see what kind of different methods are inside.

This has been a really beneficial assignment. I have really enjoyed the idea of creating a small lesson plan that I would implement in my class and it's also been great because of the feedback I have received from my peers showing me possibilities for plan.

 I am using an app called Math Aliens from Math Arcade Games to help y students with the review process. This app will take the place of a review day along with another hands on game with skittles that they can play instead of the app just in case they don't enjoy video games.

What I would want to see from this would be these 4 goals:

1. Does this kind of a review day alleviate stress from the students?

2. Will good scores be achieved from this kind of a review day while at the same time having fun?

3.Do I as a teacher feel comfortable using a review plan like an app or a hands on game to implement an alternative review instead of more widely spread methods?

4. Do my students feel confident in their abilities through this method to achieve success?

This are all things that intrigue me as I would go into the quiz. Obviously the students would have more fun playing a game than a review, but will they be able to perform adequately with this as a substitute? And above all else would they feel confident in themselves? Ii would be interested in seeing this as would I also want to take into consideration of what I could have done better. Such as, did I put in enough time finding a game that would be challenging to their minds as well as being entertaining for them, , or did I give them easy to follow notes for them to have success? All these things would be important to me.

Now here are the following links to gain access to my game, my power point, and my outline of my lesson plan.

Click here for the power point Link

Click here for my game Link

Click here for my outline Link

These are my apps that I have downloaded because I thought that they would be the easiest to use in a lesson or used to create a lesson in a fun way. English Space Invaders, Easy Essays, English Vocabulary, Thesaurus and Typing Club. All these apps can be used to help with writing essays and understanding the English language.

 1. English Space Invaders is fun because it gives you a goal and a score as you type you keep the enemy alien ships away. This game focuses on typing skill and it also throws words at you on various levels.

2. The Typing app is a competitive app that times you type the words out. It's great for going back to the basics and increasing typing speed. It reads a page off to you at a pace that you select and it allows for growth in challenging speeds and different words.

3. Easy Essay is an app that shows you step by step instructions to writing an effective essay. It is a good way if you need pointers on how to brainstorm or how to start with a bubble chart.

4. English Vocabulary is primarily just a dictionary reference app. Not a whole lot of bells and whistles, you just type in your word that your needing to understand and it allows you to get a good definition, what art of speech it is and how to use it in a sentence.

5.The Thesaurus app is a good reference for typing up a paper and using good jargon. Its great for keeping you from sounding redundant and is a great tool for mixing it up as far as word choice goes.

 The goal from using these apps would be to increase your ability to type papers and also the quality of your papers will increase.

Joining the NASPE

I just joined the NASPE ( National Association for Sport and Physical Education) and through my subscription Ill be able to gain access to a training guide and tactics for creating a meaningful workout for my classes. I also will be able to gain access to a journal of other coaches and this will help me gain incite on what great coaches do to help me learn strategies for my coaching job. I am very excited to see how this will enhance my ability to train and coach.

A Little About Me

My name is Chatman Laxton, I am currently seeking my Education degree from Family of Faith College.   I have a brother, James, who is starting his first year in college at Seminole State. My mom and dad have been married for 21 years and are amazing parents!I am engaged to the most wonderful Ginger on the planet.  I cannot wait to see where God plans to take us from here.