Web IEP's

I work at a school site in the Special Ed Department where almost all of the children are on IEP's. An IEP's is an individualized education plan, that allows us to address the area that the child is struggling in and show the progress of the child. For many years they have used a simple form that they filled out with a pen. Recently they developed an omini form, which is a program that allows you to type in the information you need to regarding the child. This is a wonderful idea that allows you to read the IEP clearly and will also help to avoid many spelling mistakes.

The new form that will be effective January 1, 2009 will be available online to everyone with an access Id. This will allow all the personal involved in the IEP access to the IEP so they can have the goals, strengths and ect ready before the meeting. This will benefit the OT, RSP and also the SLP's. They will also be able to be viewed by many other school districts which will allow the new school to access any special services faster and they will not have to wait for the release of paperwork to arrive.

I think the only down fall in the Web IEP's will be if the Internet is down for some reason. The personal will not be able to access the completed form online. Another issue they may possible face is the fact that not all the staff will have access to a computer and with budget cuts this could be an issue. I know that the employees will face some difficulties in getting used to the new IEP, it will not allow you to print out the form until you have completed the whole IEP. On the other hand this will be a benefit to many people because as sometimes they forget to fill out the very important fields that are needed.

My Space

My Space is a wonderful place for communication to take place. It allows you to get in touch with your friends who my now live out of town or even out of state. I have read of situations where families and friends have been reunited after years of seperation. I think this is a wonderful forum for communication however, it has its flaws.

I have many issues with My Space. I don't think that young children should have access to a site that allows them to communicate with older people. I beleive that there should be safegaurds in place to ensure that underage individuals are not using the site. I think that this is one of the leading causes of sexual harassment. These young children are allowed to post pictures of themselves and pose as an older adults. It can also work the other way around, an older man or woman could pose as a younger teen and have very explict conversations with the child. This could also lead up to the participants meeting in person where anything could happen.

Their is a very popular case in the news now where a child was having some issues with another child. The mother got involved and created a My Space to act as a individual that was attracted to her and then began harassing her. This mother was able to attack her personally on the web, without anyone knowing it was ever her and not a child. This is a very sad case where the young teen ended up killing herself, the discussion the mother posted was viewed by many of her peers and was to much for a young child to handle.

I believe that they need to improve My Space by setting limitations and strict age limits. They should create some sort of program you have to join and they connect your account with your bank account or through your internet service provider. This will insure that the person on the other side of the computer is of age and is not making up a story.

The effect that technology has on children

Recently I had some family come to visit. I have a young cousin that is so involved in technology its scary. The first thing I noticed is that he had an Ipod and it never left his ears. I think the Ipod is a good invention, however I think its needs to be more educational. Instead of just the most popular songs it should be a science lesson or a upcoming story that the class is studying. They are up on all the newest songs, can you imagine how smart our children would be if they could listen to a classroom lecture instead of the music. If we can find a way to engage children in technology as a learning experience it would be wonderful.

The next day when we were going to go shopping, the first thing he needed to do was to get the navigation system and figure out the directions to the mall. I told him that I did not know the address and he used my aunts phone to find the nearest Sears and then got that address and set the system to get us to the mall. I was totally amazed in how technical the child was he how he knew how to utilize technology in more ways then I could think of.

Another factor of the technology is video games. I witness many children playing them day in and day out. I think video games have a negative impact on children. Most of the games available are violent and have sexual scenes that young children should not have access to. I personally don't understand the need to play a game filled with crime and adult conduct. Its hard for us as parents to teach our children how to act, to then have a video game teach the total opposite. I understand that its just a game but that is a hard concept for a young adult/child to understand.

After seeing the impact that technology has on children I want to be more knowledgeable when it comes to technology. I believe that if the children are interested in it they will strive to learn and will be more involved in school. We as educators need to find what children want and figure out what it is they are interested in and build our curriculum off technology. If the children all could use the computer for assignments and research I think it would be more interesting to them. They will perform better and learn more.

The Water Cycle

The Water Cycle
1. Print the worksheet.
2. Use the following links to complete the worksheet questions.
http://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/index.
htmhttp://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/concepts.
htmhttp://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/cycle.htm
3. Using what you know about the water cycle, create a slide show that illustrates the various parts of the water cycle.


The Water Cycle

Click on http://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/index.htm. Answer the following questions.
Define "water cycle".
What fraction of the earth’s surface is covered in water?
What percentage of all the Earth’s water is in a form that is useable to humans and land animals?
Click on http://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/concepts.htm Answer the following questions.
Evaporation is the process where a liquid changes from its __________ state to a ___________ state.
Why is evaporated water so clean?
Condensation occurs when a ____________ is changed into a __________.
Condensation is the opposite of ____________.
When the ________________ and ___________________ are right, the small droplets of water in clouds form larger droplets and precipitation occurs.
Click on http://www.mbgnet.net/fresh/cycle/cycle.htm. Answer the following questions.
Using the terms "evaporation", "condensation", and "precipitation", explain the water cycle in your own words.
What factor is most important in determining whether water is a solid, liquid, or gas?
Is the amount of water on Earth always changing or is it a constant amount?

Internet research

I am going to discuss the effect that technology has on young children. I recently allowed my children to use an online web-site to study for a up-coming test. The results were 25% higher then the last test. The children were allowed to use the search engine to gather information that they will be tested on. They printed out on average six to seven pages of copied and pasted research. I believe that if the children are allowed to use a computer they are preparing for the future and will be very successful. During the task they learned how to search for the subjects and how to copy and paste.
I think that each child should be able to use a computer to do their work and research for projects. I think it will improve the scores and the learning levels of the children. The children are seeking technology and we need to offer it to them. I think it will change their outlook on school it and might actually be a fun experience for them.

From first hand experience I know I learn more from the computer then I do from a book or other resources. You are allowed the chance to get to the main point of your research quicker.

Internet research is a wonderful thing it takes the countless hours out of searching the libary shelves for the information you are looking for. Its easy and you can do it on your time and not by the school libarys hours or even the public libary hours. I enjoy researching topics now with the internet, another benifit is being able to copy and paste the mla/apa format for the citing of your resource. I can see the childrens point on wanting more teconology incorporated in their home and school settings.

Technology in the Classroom

Technology in the Classroom

The topic I wish to discuss today is technology and how it is used in today's classrooms. I believe one of the most effective ways to incorporate technology in to the classroom is by allowing the children to have fun while learning. If they feel like it is a game and they are enjoying themselves they will want to engage more with the computer.

I myself choose to allow the students in my speech room to earn time on the computer every ten times they come to speech they earn their lunch recess time on my computer. I allow them only a few web-sites to choose from. One of the sites I allow them to use is starfall.com. They enjoy this site, it allows them to start with something easy and work up to more difficult levels. This site starts with sounds and moves up the blending of words which leads to reading.

Another reason I enjoy using this site is because it teaches the children sing language. I have a handful of children at my site that are hearing impaired and use sign language as their form of communication. This allows them to feel comfortable and also teaches the other children how to sing the ABC's. I will guide them to the areas where they can get the most help.

The site is not only teaching them how to read and spell but, they are learning how to use a computer. Technology is going to be a necessity in the future and everyone will need to know how to use a computer.

Another great web-site I use is nickjr.com. I like this site because the kids are able to see the same characters they see on TV. They can relate to them and are more likely to work a little harder. This site however, is more for activities like art then academics.

I believe that if we don’t start incorporating technology into our curriculum at a young age children will have a hard time learning it when they are older. I know when I was in school we had very few experiences on a computer.