Last Assignment

I truly enjoyed writing up the lesson plan for this last assignment for this class. I think it really got me thinking about how I can use technology day-to-day in the classroom to mix up instruction. Students today do not want to come to school and hear every single teacher lecture all day about their subject. Instead we can mix it up and let the students do research and then let them become the teacher. Kids learn really well from their peers, so why not give them the opportunity to do so. It will also let students find the information themselves instead of just being told it. Students learn best when they do something so why not give them the opportunity to do just that. I think I would like to do something like this at least once a unit that way it mixes up the days and lets the kids explore and have fun. Eventually I would like to try more than just Glogster with the students but I think for now I will just focus on that one, that way I can master it too and become a good resource for help on the program.

Almost graduation

This week as graduation nears, I have been reflecting on what my classes have taught me and how I can implement them into my classroom. I think the technology resources will be some of the easiest ones for me to and my district will be happy with them, as we have a technology goal that each teacher must meet during the year. I also like the idea of using more technology because students today are very familiar with it and it is such an important part of their life that it makes sense to relate it to education. I have a class website but I am going to do update it and try to use it more often. I am definitely going to suggest that my students use some of the tools throughout the year as ways to help them study and increase their knowledge of Physics.

Sample Glogster as a Discussion Board

One of the things you can do with Glogster that I would like to use in my Grade Level Physics class. I would like to create a weekly question of the week that they could answer either online or in the classroom with post it notes. I think the question of the week would be a good way to test the big ideas for the unit or put up a very challenging question that encompasses all of the different parts of the unit. Below is an example of one.

Sample Quizlet

Below is a sample Quizlet that my students could create.

July 27

This week, I attended an Advanced Placement (AP) conference for Physics that took place at Rice University, here in Houston. While I was there we talked about the changes coming to the AP test for this coming year and I started to think more about how making my class more online will help students. They can discuss things on online and post sample free response answers and then help critique each other's in order to help them all improve. I think that the Quizlet program that I learned about this week will also be a huge help to them because they can create flashcards to study all of the terms and units for the topic. By having a complete understanding of the topics and vocabulary that will help the students be able to explain their concepts and solve mathematical problems easier.

Classroom Survey

Please take the survey below to help me learn more about you.

It has been another crazy and busy week for me. First off, I drove over 1240miles to get from my parents house in Ohio to my apartment back in Houston, Texas. It took me two days to make the trip. I think I am still recovering from that a little. However, I am not back on the road to drive 6hours from Houston to New Orleans, Louisiana for a friend's wedding. It is both my fiancé's and mine first time there so we are pretty excited.

Other than that I am starting to prep for my AP Physics class and have created a class website for my students to use and am pretty excited by that. I have also created a class blog for them to use as a place to ask questions. I want to set it up so that way they can post and ask questions about homework or concepts and other students or myself can respond back. I think will be a great place to get extra help when they are not in class. My school is one a block schedule so I only see my students every other day, and with the weekend that can seem like a long time to wait to ask questions. By using the block we can communicate all of the time.

Changes to Picture

This week has been a little crazy for me. First off, my sister and brother-in-law from Texas had been visiting my parents, younger sister, and I here in Ohio. It was nice to have them here for a while. I have been visiting Ohio for almost a month now and it has been difficult balancing school and visiting with family and friends. I also found out this past week, that I will now be teaching AP Physics this coming year which now gives me three different preps for this coming year. I will be teaching grade level physics, PreAP Physics, and AP Physics. It will be the first time I have taught this class and the first time I have had three preps. I am pretty nervous about it.

I am heading back to Houston on Tuesday and it will take me two days to get back home. I will hopefully make it to Memphis on Tuesday night which is about the halfway point on my 20hour drive back home. Once I get there, I plan to start working on prepping for this new class and trying to figure out how to start incorporating technology into my class. I really want to do this so hopefully I can come up with a few ideas and start working on them for August.

Wordle Crutcher

Hi everyone, I am April Crutcher and am 27 years old and teach Physics at Stratford High School in Houston, Texas. I have taught Physics for 4 years and during two of those I also taught PreAP Physics. I received my bachelor's degree in AYA Chemistry/Physics Education from Bowling Green State University in 2010 and am currently working on my master's degree in Curriculum Writing and Instruction through BGSU's online program and plan to graduate in August 2014. I am currently planning my wedding which will be June 27, 2015.

By completing this blog, and this class, I hope to gain a better understanding of technology and ways to incorporate it into my classroom. I have a decent understanding of technology but I would like to learn more and most importantly to try to make my classroom more technologically advanced.