Technology Project

For my technology project, I want to use Google Earth to create a virtual field trip for my classroom. In this virtual field trip, we will look at Athens, Greece. As we go through this field trip together, the students will fill out a worksheet, based on what they see and what we discuss in class while we are on our field trip. Part of what I would like to focus on in this field trip is how geography affected the development of ancient Athens. We will discuss how it is on the coast, and how that led to Athens becoming a naval city. We will also talk about how mountainous Greece is, making all of the city states that developed there very separate entities. I believe that by using Google Earth, the students will be able to get a concrete idea of what Greece is like now, helping them visualize how it was thousands of years ago. I also believe that it will be much more engaging for the students and help them to tie abstract ideas to concrete images.

Copyright Laws

I think that I have mixed feelings about copyright laws. Most of the time, I find them annoying, because they require me to go to so much extra work. This is especially true as a historian, where you must cite every little source that you use or even look at. This can make copyright laws pretty annoying. However, I do see why they are good. One thing that we talked about in class last time, which I had never thought about before is that copyright laws encourage innovation and creativity. I believe that it would be very difficult for historians to make any progress in history if we were all just copying each other and saying the same thing over and over again. One other thing that I also find annoying is that we must cite all images, especially those found online. This bugs me, again, because it is such a hassle. However, I do recognize that it is important to give credit to those who do/create something.

Finishing My Website

I have finished my website and I am very excited about it. I definitely learned a lot of new things putting this site together. One of the things that I a most proud of is my Picassa slide show that I included on my "About Me" page. This includes pictures of myself and Oregon. I had never previously made a Picassa slide show before, and I feel like this is a very useful skill that I have learned. I also am very proud of my use of YouTube. I found a cartoon from the WWII period, a rendition of the Three Little Pigs which relates their story to WWII. I am using this for one of my classroom assignments and I am excited about the way I was able to find a connection between WWII and pop culture. I think that this connection will really help the students become more interested in what we are studying in class. I also feel like the website will be a very useful tool for keeping my students and their parents informed and helping them keep in touch with me. The calendar can help to keep them on track with their school work and help them to understand what is expected of them for class. I will definitely want to set up a classroom website when I am a teacher.
Here is a link to my completed website: https://sites.google.com/site/jenn39class/home