Moving right along...

Been a while since I blogged (obviously)!  Lots of changes have lead to a drop off in the implementation and integration of ICT learning at SPS and there's just me trying to lead the way back on track.  Add to that mix - implementation of learning journals with emergent learners, limited release, students working below expectation,  extra jobs and non-functioning internet and student laptops etc.  But enough excuses.... on to the good stuff....

Spent a day at BDS reconnecting with the Eastnet cluster girls and visiting classrooms to see how far they have come on their learning journey.  Got some fabulous new ideas to try in my classroom...

Writing in a year 2 classroom - some children writing in books (as you would expect to see in any classroom), some children working in pairs on student laptops using a powerpoint (downloaded from communication4all) with images of creatures under the sea beginning work on a story (they drag images in, type text to match etc.), some children working on designing a storyboard in preparation for making a simple animation using digital photos, some children buddy writing in large newsprint books.  The teacher commented that last term when the children just wrote in their books they were very unmotivated and didn't really have an understanding of writing for an audience.  I love these fresh ideas and I will definitely be making similar changes in my classroom programme to reinspire my Year 1's.  So excited again!

ipad2 - I want one!  Enough said... educational apps are awesome!

Comiclife2 - I am going to investigate purchasing this for use on my personal teacher laptop (single licence), drag digital photos in, add text, speech bubbles etc.  Love how the photos are automatically adjusted to fit in the shapes on the comic template.

www.picnik.com - photo editing tool

www.literactive.com - literacy activities

web2.0 tools wiki

Term 2 goals:
get class blog going again with regular posts
balance between consuming content and creating content
get publishing cycle established using Kidpix to draw picture
web2.0 tools - glogster,  wordle, wallwisher (as a wonderwall for inquiry?)
make changes to writing programme to encourage writing for an audience with authentic purpose

From thrown in the deep end to finding my feet...

Well what a roller coaster of a year it has been! From starting the year as Team Leader of Year 1 and as a key member of the National Standards Implementation Team, things soon changed as the leaders of ICT moved onto to other journeys and I stepped in as co-leader of ICT. While I had a good practical and pedagogical knowledge base, there were so many other aspects of this role that I had never even had to consider. I have become proficient at fixing computers that just won't work, troubleshooting SmartBoard and ActivBoard issues, writing milestone reports/action plans/strategic plans and listening sympathetically to peoples ICT problems but my class has suffered as the immense workload has taken over and they have not coped very well with a variety of relievers and a tired, sometimes grumpy teacher!

Highlights - being able to inspire others in eLearning pedagogy; attending uLearn10; AHA moments; clever New Entrant/Year 1's making picturetrails, Toondoo cartoons, Kid Pix pictures, photostories, blog posts, flipcharts on the ActivBoard and many other amazing things (true digital natives); finding out how much I have learned and how quickly I can pick up new skills; having an ActivBoard in my classroom

Low points - lack of sleep; weekends spent writing milestone report; frustration (on so many levels!); not knowing what level of involvement I will have in ICT leadership next year; lack of computer access for students; constant pressure; my class did not cope well with me being out of the classroom randomly (one week they had 4 different teachers!!)