Week 1 Reflections

The first week of class, we learned how to create a GoogleSite and how to build a page of bookmarks. The GoogleSite is a very helpful tool that is relatively simple to use. We learned how to name our GoogleSite, how to change its layout, how to add images, and how to add/delete different pages to the site. We also learned how to create hyperlinks to outside webpages. This assignment met the following ISTE Standards: S1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity, S2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments, S3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning, S4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility, and S5 Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership. Furthermore, the bookmarks helped us to learn how to create hyperlinks, insert/crop images using the PrtScn button, how to summarize the main points of a webpage, and how to use text-wrapping in a Word document.

In the future, I will definitely be able to use these skills as an educator in the classroom. The GoogleSite can be used as a tool for each student to create a personalized site that can be accessed by him or herself, his or her fellow peers, and me as a teacher. The site can be used to organize and post different assignments and lessons. The bookmarks assignment can definitely be integrated into the classroom, as well. For example, students can create a bookmark site while working on a research project to organize the resources they used to gather information. Just as the GoogleSite is used to organize information, the Blogger tool can be used, as well. Students could create their own Blogger sites to create posts pertaining to various classroom ideas. The students can read and comment on each others' reflections, and I as a teacher could give my input, as well. Overall, the tools and ideas learned in the first week of class are very helpful and will be used in the future as classroom tools.