Here I am gearing up to teach 3rd grade again! I have restocked my supplies, cleaned and organized bookshelves, created new bulletin board displays, labeled folders, and all of those things that prepare my classroom for the stampede of 8/9 year olds this Wednesday. These preparations are the same every year, so why is there a new spring in my step as I anticipate this school year? I am excited about infusing more tech into my classroom just as tech has become an integral part of our everyday lives.

This summer I spent some time getting “wired” myself. I was inspired by a presentation made by our Director of Academic Technologies on an inservice day in February. Next, I was invited to a technology conference in May. I didn’t have my first computer experience until I was taught Basic on an Apple IIE in 5th grade. Today’s kids are different, and if I don’t figure some of these things out I will not be able to help my students navigate through “Life 2.0.”

Here is what I’ve been up to:

1) I set up this blog. Those people who know me best know that I am always someone with something to say. Therefore, putting it into writing in the form of a blog was a natural fit for me. For those of you who are intimidated by the idea of blogging - take heart! There are still many way to get “wired.”

2) I set up a wiki as a space to write, share, and further organize notes. I was given a summer grant which involved a lot of reading. It was a new and different way to take notes. Now I don’t have to retype them later, and I can edit them as many times as I like. Click on the link to see what I have accomplished so far. This is a much more efficient way to work with a group than by emailing documents back and forth.

3) I joined Classroom 2.0. This is a great social networking site designed for educators. I set up my own page and was surprised by how quickly I began to connect with other teachers across the world. For those of you who are reluctant bloggers, it is a way to write short blurbs without the pressures of maintaining your very own site.

4) I began reading other people’s blogs. I use Netvibes as my RSS aggregator (a way to organize the blogs I subscribe to). I am in the process of linking some of these blogs to this blog so you can check them out yourselves. I have a mixture of blogs written by teachers and class blogs where the writing comes from the students. I hope to set up a blog for my class in the future as part of our writing curriculum.

5) I set up my family road trip on GoogleMaps. I was able to figure out the best route from place to place and link placemarks to webpages for lodging, attractions, restaurants, traffic information, etc. I could also share the link to my map with my family members ahead of time so they could comment on what excited them. Click here to see where we went!

So you can see why I am energized for this year in a new way. Far from being overwhelmed by technology (as I used to be)I am now inspired and trying out a “can-do” mentality. I know that embracing these things has enhanced my life, and I will begin to translate some of these new ideas to my teaching this year.

Think of it as an adventure!