My Digital Story Experience

Christmas with the DeFrenzas

I chose to do my digital story on Christmas traditions with my family. Christmas is a very special time for our family and I believe that it makes us closer. It is a way for us to spend time together and to enjoy our family and the season. I had a lot of fun doing this project. I took pictures off my phone of photos from my family photo album and it really gave me a chance to look through our memories.

iMovie Reflection

I used iMovie to create my digital story. I have used iMovie before, so I was fairly familiar with it. However, I did experience an issue with the narration aspect. Initially, I recorded my voice without any problems. But when I was trying to record another section of narration it would not play. I ended up figuring out that I had record my voice twice and double up the recordings in order for one to play. I am not sure why this happened; however I got through it and succeeded in finishing my assignment with all of the requirements.

Every other feature of iMovie worked smoothly. I simply dragged in my photos, added in my songs, and uploaded the videos from YouTube after I converted them to a MP4. It was also very easy to overlap text into photos and videos. Thus, besides the narration glitch I thought the process was enjoyable and rewarding.

In the Classroom 

I would definitely assign a digital story project to my students. I could use this tool for many assignments in my English class. For example, one could be a digital story explaining a book that they read for a book review. I could assign a group of students a book or allow them to choose their own and tell them create a digital story about it. They would need to include narration, pictures, music, text and any other features that they feel would be helpful to aid in their explanation of the book.  This will be great for the students to use their creativity, explore more in depth about the book, and learn about other books after watching their classmate’s movies. Digital stories are an excellent way to integrate technology into the classroom and to allow students to employ their creativity. 

Christmas with the DeFrenzas

PLN

PLN: Twitter

Within the PLN assignment, I found that Twitter is a great source to use when considering learning more about the field of education. It is a great way to stay up to date on news in education, find helpful links, and connect with teachers or classmates.

Educational Resource

One resource that I found very interesting and a potential tool that I would use in my classroom was the link to “6 creative tips for using QR codes at school”. This resource includes many ideas that would employ QR codes in an effective way. For instance, one of the tips that really stuck out to me was the idea of supplementing homework assignments. This suggests that the teacher can include QR codes into the student’s assignments as a tool that will help them find the answer. For example a math teacher could create QR codes for difficult math problems and attach them to students’ homework. The students can then scan the code and watch a video of the teacher working through the problem step-by-step. Thus, this can be a very effective way to help students when they are working on their assignments at home. This resource that I have discovered via Twitter can be very useful for a teacher who wants to employ technology into the classroom in a fun and interactive way.

Link to resource: 6 tips for using QR codes at school

Posted by Graphite: @Graphite

#Edchat

I participated in an #Edchat by using Twubs and I found it to be very useful. When I first signed on, I saw many retweets of links to educational resources, but not many conversations. I commented on a participant’s retweet of a link entitled, “Updates to Google Classroom are Coming”, however I did not receive a reply. I then waited a few minutes and commented on @Jyoung1219’s retweet of the resource, “Why Your Whole Staff Should Be on Twitter” and got a reply. We began to chat about our thoughts on Twitter in the classroom and he even showed me an example of how he uses Twitter with his students. This proves that #Edchats are a great way to communicate with other educators by collaborating and sharing new ideas that can be used to benefit education. I found the #Edchat to be very helpful for students and teachers as they can impart valuable information to participants and viewers.

*Be sure to check my Tweets to see all of the resources I have posted to #educ353

My Twitter: @KaylaDef

#Edchat: No Reply 

#Edchat with Joe Young

Our Conversation

Joe's Twitter in the Classroom Idea

Webinar: Google+

What is Google+?

David Chan led the Webinar on Google+ and explained how to utilize some very interesting features that can be used professionally and in the classroom. Google+ is a social networking service that allows you to communicate with other users through many different formats. Through Google+ you can share and collect photos by simply linking Google+ to your phone and uploading them or allowing Google+ to upload them after the photo was taken. Google+ is available and user-friendly on a mobile device so you can communicate at any time. You can also conveniently group your contacts into separate categories (ex: friends, family, co-workers). This feature allows you to filter your contacts so they are easily visible in various groups. Google+ has many efficient elements; however, David specifically explicated the benefits and functions of hangouts, events and communities.

Hangouts

Hangouts are a great way to communicate with individuals and groups of people. Hangouts are video conferencing calls in which users can share documents and their screens with others. Multiple people can participate in the hangout through screen share and the chat function. Hangouts allow you to watch YouTube videos together and chat about it at the same time. You can also add many various apps to your hangout feature. Hangouts on air are accessible to anyone and are similar to a broadcast. Many people can participate at once and you can control whom you want to see on screen. These hangouts are recordable and you can schedule it in advance.

Events

This function allows you to schedule events, invite others, and share about them. You can access recorded events through YouTube and collaborate after the event has been live. David shared an example of using this tool in the classroom by letting students teach each other by leading discussions through the videos.

Communities

Communities allow users to create conversations about various topics. This allows others to gather together by communicating in groups based on your interests. You can post within these communities and create resources.  You can also share and receive information anytime and anywhere though this feature.

My Thoughts on Webinar

I really enjoyed participating in the Webinar. I believe it is an effective and efficient tool to use professionally and within the classroom. It allows you to communicate with others through chat, webcam, microphone, and screen sharing. It is very easy to use and I would love to use it again. I think it is perfect for lectures that can take place out of the classroom. I also liked the feature that allows you to record the session for people cannot attend live or want to watch it again. It is also very effective because multiple people can participate at once through the written chat or by enabling your microphone. Webinars are a great way to communicate via technology and I believe it is a valuable tool for people in any profession and for students. 

Introduction

                                                                   Personal Photo
Introduction:
My name is Kayla DeFrenza and I am a junior at Dominican University. I am studying Secondary English Education and Theatre. I will be doing my semester of student teaching in the Fall of 2016. I participate in many of the plays and musicals at Dominican which keeps me extremely busy. I enjoy acting, singing, spending time with friends and family, and going to new restaurants. I would like to work in a high school and teach English, acting, and direct productions at the school. I would also like to further my acting career and participate in more productions.

Why I am Pursuing Education:
I believe that teaching people is one of the greatest gifts to give. I love helping and providing for people, thus the field of education is a great way to do so. When I am an educator I will make it clear to all of my students that they come to me for any type of help or support. I will supply them with the tools they need to be successful in the literary or theatrical world. These two subjects will allow the students to be successful in many other areas as reading and writing are found in every concentration. My background in theatre will also allow my students to better understand themselves and gain more confidence when speaking or performing in front of people. I would love to share my knowledge with others and help them succeed.


Fun Facts About Me!:
I have a Maltese dog named Mia.
I am Italian.
I love watching the Food Network.
My favorite artist is Britney Spears.
I love the TV show Boy Meets World.
My feet are extremely cold all of the time.