Step by Step:Inclusion

I thought that this video was great because it demonstrates inclusion in the school system. I think that it is great that students with special needs are being mainstreamed. In the video, it shows another student helping Heather. I thought that was amazing. I also think that teachers still have to keep a helpful eye out and make sure that students like Heather are staying caught up and adjusting well to the mainstream enviroment.

Who I've Been Chatting To..

I've been trying to find other Special Education majors to chat with but I havent had alot of success so far. I did, however, find Special and Stephanie. I also found AMACK and Jamie on our Blogger site. I'm hoping that maybe we can keep in touch and help each other out with this class.

A Peek for a Week in a Kiwi Junior Classroom

Let's take a peek!
A Peek for a Week in a Kiwi Junior Classroom
http://dotsub.com/view/df775d26-5877-4829-83ed-6633dbdef58a


My biggest take away from this video was how she said that even 6 year olds could utilize the site. I thought it was neat whenever my 5 year old nephew came home from school telling us about the fisher price sites he got to play on that day. It still just concerns me that maybe younger kids are getting on computers too early. I'd like to take science outside and teach real life mathematical experiences.

I do like the idea of kids having kind of a syllabus to go by day by day like we do in school. Some kids like to work ahead and that could enable them a bit more.

This is just a random blog composed of all out boredom.I'm practicing hyperlinks and trying to see what I remember from high school. These are a couple of the bloggers that I have commented on:

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The Breakfast Club is my all time favorite movie..

Nafiza's Blogging Life

I thought that Nafiza's video "Digital Generation Project Youth Portrait: Nafiza"http://athena.uco.edu:8090/webct/urw/lc5116001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct was quite intriguing. I, myself have a facebook, but that is about as far as I go with the internet social systems.



I think that my biggest take away from this video was the fact that Nafiza was so young yet, she was such a big leader in her organization. I think that it is awesome that some kids can step up like that and help out others in their community.

I think that this video shows how the internet can be utilized in so many different ways. I think that just about everyone has a facebook or a myspace these days but I hadn't really heard much about Second Life. I doubt I'll ever open an account but I think that I'd like to look into the site.

I hope that whenever I am a teacher than I have a student that steps up like Nafiza did. Sometimes, I think that some students would rather seek help from their peers than asking a teacher and the whole class hearing.

Blogging at all Ages

In "We Like Our Blogging Buddies: The Write Stuff With Blogging mentors" http://dotsub.com/view/0b9d4c2e-43ae-49f2-a7dd-753ba629ab75, the video showed how blogging can be a positive attribute in the classroom. I think it also helps that each child is getting one on one attention whereas in a classroom without the program, each child would get a minimal amount of attention.



My most significant take away from this video is that there a a way to guarantee that a student is getting all the attention possible in the reading and writing subjects. Some students start writing with habits that never get caught and then as they grow older, those habits like not using commas or not using proper punctuation become an even bigger problem. It is essential that students develop the proper habits early in life and carry them through their lives.

My only problem with using this much technology in class come from a personal experience that occurred when I was tutoring a special needs student last semester. The school that he attended used computers quite a bit in his classes. This meant that he wanted to do all of his work on a computer and that wasn't always an option. When using a computer wasn't an option, the work was often not completed. Another problem that we faced was that some programs have automatic spell checks and grammar checks. This meant that he wasn't going back and proofreading his work, which should have become a habit by now. So, when he was just writing in on notebook paper, he wasn't catching his mistakes and often many points were being deducted from his grade.

I would try to incorporate "Blogging Buddies" in my classroom but maybe at a minimum. I would also want to see plenty of physically written work as well. I do think that it is awesome that the program assures positive feedback from the mentors. I think that a little positive feedback can go a long way. It is too often that a student's work is nitpicked which can be discouraging.

An Age of Technology

My most significant takeaway from the "Cameron" video is that I am twice Cameron's age and he probably knows four times more about technology than I do. Even though, I consider myself to be quite speedy with technology, there are still some areas where my knowledge is lacking. I'm sure I could learn alot from him. I think that Cameron's video connects with my life because there are quite a few times where I find myself answering my parent's questions about their IPOD's or their computer. The part in the video where Cameron had actually made a video to help his teacher make her math lesson more interesting was great. I remember when I was in high school, we made several videos for my AP English class. It definately livened up the classroom. Those videos caught people's attention more than just reading the assigned book would. This is the kind of enviroment that I would like to use in my own classroom. I think it would be great for all the different kinds of learning styles. I also think that as teachers it is our responsibilities to help kids grow as technology does.

A Little Something About Myself.

My name is Samantha Settlemyre. I am a junior here at UCO and I am majoring in Special Education. I am the youngest of two children. My older sister is 26 and I will actually be 21 tomorrow =]. My older sister has two amazing children. My niece and nephew are pretty much the greatest kids ever. I moved here from Oktaha, Ok, which is about three hours away from Edmond. My family still lives there so i frequently visit. My parents are great! My mom is pretty much my best friend. I attended NSU in Tahlequah for two years before venturing to UCO. I can say without a doubt that I definately like UCO so much more than NSU. Music and photography are a couple of my greatest passions in life. I also love sushi, my friends, and family time. If you have any questions, just let me know!