BP_20091121__Commercail_Asset

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rq5NnQNPpY

BP_20091117_Educational_Blog_Uses

A blog could be a useful tool for education, in or outside the classroom. Blogs can be used for collaboration, sharing ideas or newly discovered information and it can be spread far and wide. This tool really is limited only to by you, the user. Blogs can be developed subject specific, group specific - school groups, class specific, topic specific, friends or family. No matter the reason for starting a blog, they can be a useful communication tool.
In an educational setting, a blog can be used as a reflection tool. Students can post their thoughts about a given concept from class. They can post questions that they forgot to ask or did not feel comfortable asking in the classroom during class time. For those students that missed class, the blog posts maybe helpful in recovering the information that they missed. Links could be posted of supplemental material available for the students use.
My favorite use for a blog is to collaborate. As an artist and Art teacher, though many aspects of art assignments can be individual, we can always benefit from collaborating with others. I have my students collaborate routinely at various points of their project development to help the students understand others' perspectives of what they are developing. What's to say this couldn't be done also in a blog?
AP students have to select a central idea or topic for their Portfolio Concentration. Why not blog through these ideas in the process of deciding which direction to go? This way they would not feel as though it is such a difficult choice to make and they are able to think through it with others, problem solve. Again, blogs are limited only by the user.

BP_20091115_ReflectiveMedia_Asset

BP_20091115_NewWeb2.0_tool_post

Mutapic.com is a web 2.0 tool for art students or graphic design students. This tools takes two images and will morph them together. The application then has various tools that allow for manipulation of the morphed design, giving numerious outcomes for the possible design.













How one could use this in the classroom would be as a tool for a lesson on Logo Design. Students could use the images, shapes, icons or symbols available on the application or they could import new images to work with for their design. This lesson could be organized as small group or individually developed projects.
The small group approach would promote collaborative learning concepts and citizenship in the classroom. This lesson would extend beyond just that of design development, but socialization skills and teamwork. Concepts traditionally thought to be fostered in athletics. This lesson would also use technology applications that would foster skills the 21st century learner needs to be productive in our future society.

BP_20091115_Post_to_Peer_Blog_4

A post that Van responded to gives me yet another great tool for my classroom. Kuler is a tool that one can use for Art classes, to help students choose color combinations for their project. How they want their work to be interpreted, by suggesting mood or feeling through color. This application will help grab my Art 1 students with the use of color. It will help them understand the differences in color and it's three properties. How we see color and how we use color, can be explored through this tool. You can select color schemes through a variety of options. You can explore color through tempeture, seasons, mood and even some words and be inputted and creates a color chart of reference colors for you.
Always on the look out for tools that will grab my intro students, they may then sign up for up level classes, which keeps me employed.

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@ ArtsMatter21, I found a post about a web site I had come across awhile back the first time. Like ArtMatters21, I was not overly impressed with this site at the time. What had led me there, I had to really scour the site to find the desired material. Since then I, like ArtsMatter21, have found that the site has re-organized to make more user friendly. Finding an old site that has re organized to make itself marketable among the many websites available on the web.
This site has lesson plans, art samples, link resources, suggested reading lists and more. A one-stop shopping place for elementary to middle school level student lessons in the arts. There are high school level lessons that I have reviewed and found them to not contain the level I am looking for. So I take bits and pieces that I can use and create new lessons with the materials I need for my curriclulumn.

BP_20091115_Post_to_Peer_Blog_2

Disney sure knows how to captivate kids, young or old. This application is no exeption, as it gives you many tools in one place to be creative. Create your own greeting card...I think I may develop my Christmas card here, you can develop your own movies and many other applications in one tool location. I will have to go back and explore more later. Great post!

BP_20091115_Post_to_Peer_Blog

This screenshot of post to peer blog, belonging to Lori. Lori found a fantastic application for design/artwork development. I can't wait to try this with my art students.
It is like MUSHA or other 'smushing' type tools. The generator takes two images, stock or can be uploaded, and the tool creates multiple variations of the two images selected. You can select to rotate the images, scale the images, as well as tile the images. That is just a taste of what you can do with this tool. This application can help students with design problems and show them the number of outcomes that one could come up with using just two images. With those two images, and making some alterations, how the outcome can change and change and change.

BP #8_20091108_ReflectiveMediaAssetWk2_Web2.0_Tool_BlogPost

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arg9N-Ay548

Having trouble uploading audio with my screenshot. I'm having to trouble shoot the problem. I have an inquiry into FSO. Check back later for full post.

BP #7 20091107_Peer_Response_Web2.0_Tool_BlogPost

Jesus and Cristina both had a Flickr lesson posted that I really enjoyed reading as I also plan to start using Flickr in my lessons. As I commented on Cristina's blog, I have several students that already have Flickr accounts and I had been in the process of viewing their posts when we were instructed to set up a Flickr account of our own.
Using a tool like Flickr will allow my students to store a great deal more work (images) in their new Flickr account than they would on their 'student folder' provided by our school district. Having others give a thumbs up on a tool is reassuring when there are so many tools available. Using iGoogle as our PLE helps, as with district filters many sites are blocked, entering through iGoggle gets around many of the blocks. These tools will help our teaching, our students advance forward when the establishment is reluctant to let go of the reins.

BP #6 20091107_ Research Web2.0 tools - 3

My third Web 2.0 tool I chose, I will use in the classroom, but also use personally. MixTape.me is a site that you can put together a variety of music into a 'tape'. Allowing several people with varying tastes in music to share what is being played. The radio tends to be on a loop and radio stations have to air ads that help to keep them on the airwaves. MixTape.me is free and commercial free. MixTape.me would allow my students and I to have music in the class room that we all have selected and no one is left out in the type of music played. When iPods and electronic devices are banded, this will allow us to have music that we have control of what is playing and change it at anytime.

BP #6 20091107_ Research Web2.0 tools - 2

In looking through the Web2.0 tools, I found an application called qwiji. qwiji.com is a site full of artists' work that also contains interviews with the artists. This is a great site for art students, as they can gain inspiration and insight into other artist and their art. I plan to have my AP Studio art students study three artists from this site and share their findings with the rest of the class by creating a graphic design product of their choice. The product that the AP students develop can then be used as a resource to share new artists with level 2 through 4 art classes.

BP #6 20091105_ Research Web2.0 tools - 1

Castroller.com is a podcast cite that one could create their own channel. Your channel could be your class discussions that your students would have the ablility to review for test material, if the student was out, they could listen to the podcast to gleen the information discussed in class that day. Cast Roller's settings allow you to limit who has access or ablility to set permissions.

I could see this being used with Art History lessons or lessons that students are working in groups with the class textbook.

BP #5 20091104_Flicker

I have have some fun uploading some of my pix to Flicker. Friends and Critical Friends, please visit my Flicker at www.flicker.com/photos/crwmatt I would like to know what you think.
In joining the National Geographic Flicker group , I plan to have my students use this group for research and encourage many of my students who are little shutterbugs to submit their photos. As an Art teacher I am always on the look out for avenues for my students to show off their work, in contest, exhibit and now through online sources. Of course we will have to make sure the cite is authentic and any and all paperwork is filled out and on file for the student's to participate with parent permissions in place.

BP #4 20091103_ Ed. Uses for Social Bookmarks

Through researching Social Bookmarks in Delicious, I chose to focus on bookmarks that would be helpful for the teacher in the class room.

1 - Teacher Tube
Teacher Tube offers a great deal helpful tips on making use of technology in the class room and connecting with our 21st Century learners. Included are slideshow and videos that introduce content concepts to 'hook' the learner in the introduction of a new unit of most classroom subject taught. As well as resources to re-enforce the concepts to continue to keep the learner interested and not lose the learner through traditional teaching methods.
One such resource; Flickinger, B.,21st Century Skills: The Next Steps

2 - Free Technology for Teachers

Hendy, S., who writes Digital Tools for Teachers. Created a slideshow, Tap Into the World of Comics, presents a series of comic creation tools followed by twenty suggestions for using comics in your classroom found at the social bookmark, Free Technology for Teachers. [BYRNE, R., October 2009]. This resource is designed to engage the learner in a fun way learning content formatted as a comic or creating their own comic of what they have learned.
Bennet, T., shares a slide show 20 Interesting Ways to Use Audio in Your Classroom showing teachers how we can use a variety of audio devices to fully engage the learner in learning subject content.

3 - 100+ Google Tricks That Will Save You Time in School| Online Colleges
Google has tons of applications available for the average technology user that one can benefit from using or incorporating into the classroom and is rarely blocked by school network settings.
One such application is Google Notebook which allows the user to collect research notes in one location and not have to 'copy paste' into a new document.
Another such Google application is Google Sketch-Up allowing the user to create 3D images in this application for showing the images full mass and form. This is an effective tool for not only the Art teacher, but also the science teacher and math teacher teaching Geometry, as well as many other content areas. This application giving the learner an optional way in which to complete assignments which require having to draw out the students' conclusion or idea.

I plan on sharing #1 and #2 with my campus colleagues in a way to help them incorporate the use of technology more effectively in their classroom. #3 I plan on using with my students as they have to research and develop a research essay on a theme in which they will create a Mini Concentration of work for their portfolio. The Google Sketch-Up application will be introduced to my introductory art classes as a way for them to be able to use their cell phones in the class room, under contract that has been approved by the campus administration.

BP#3_20091102_Blogging-Web2.0Tools

Through my browsing of the Go2Web2.o applications I have to say I was a bit overwhelmed. There are a minimum of 20 categories and at least two pages of applications in one category. It was hard to say really where to start with looking at the various Web 2.o applications. I think it would have helped if we were given a specific category to browse this first time, as not to feel so lost and overwhelmed in this first exploration.
After spending a good deal of time wading through quite a few of the categories within the Go2Web2.o applications, I started to try to focus on those that I would likely use in either my campus leader role or as a teacher. Still the number of applications that are available even in this direction, are extremely numerous. While this is great in the long run, it makes it very difficult to really evaluate the various applications available in the limited time we are given to do so for our FSO assignments.
So after wading through numerous applications that could be useful to me in the capacity in which may be useful to me professionally and or in my classroom, in an educational capacity, I settled on Layers.
The Web 2.0 tool Layers gives you the ability to 'super impose' text or an image over any existing web site. The application http://layers.com gives you the ability to either place an image on an existing website or place a text box with instructions or comments on the website selected. I see this being useful in the future as I continue to build my inclusion of multimedia assets into my classroom teaching and in my role as a campus leader. Layers.com allows you to give direct comments or instructions on the website that you wish to share with others. This gives your audience the ability to see what it is you what them to view of the website and they do not have to go back and forth between an email and the link that you have sent them to view. I feel this can be a helpful advantage in communicating what it is you wish others to get from these websites that you wish ti share.

BP#2_20091101_GoogleReader-RSS Feeds chosen:

Digital Storytelling = chosen to keep up with applications in which my students can use technology to keep a digital journal of the artwork and the art making process.
Education Week = keep up with what is new and pertinate in education.
Integrating Tech into the class room = looking at ways to use technology for LD students in the class room
Technology in the Classroom = suggestions on how to use technology in the classroom for student interaction with technology for class content.
Web 2.0 Tools & Apps. = to keep up with the latest tools and apps. to preview what may or may not be useful in implementing technology in the classroom.

BP#1_20091101_ETCpics-iGoogle

Not sure about blogging...

There seem to be too many directions one may go with some applications that gets confusing.

What was I thinking?

Why did I think it was a good idea to start an accelerated Masters program and become a team leader in the same year? I must have had to much leaded cola.