Course Reflections

   What an intense eight weeks! I am amazed at how much was packed into it and how much I learned. More importantly, I'm thankful not only of what I did learn, but what I will actually use with my classes. I'm excited to try all the digital tools we used to create wonderful pieces. Tools like: blogging, wikis, Animoto, Google Hangout, Skype, digital storytelling, just to name a few. It's hard to pick a favorite assignment. I was very proud of how my Animoto turned out. I'm actually going to use it on my school's website. It was the easiest media tool to use. I put a great deal of work into my digital story which was an I Am From poem. It was very personal so it meant a great deal to me. Working on my literacy project, I think I was the most surprised. I had kindergarten students use the video option on iPads and they took to it like ducks to water. It was amazing. They are so young yet so capable! We underestimate them. Blogging was time consuming but well worth it. It really focuses your thoughts, which would help students tremendously. It's also very interesting to read the replies to the posts. I can see the tremendous value in using Skype in the classroom. As a librarian, knowing how expensive it is to book authors in person, this alternative is great. Students get an almost one on one experience with the author. Definitely going to try that.
   Perhaps the most valuable aspect of this course was the collaboration we enjoyed with each other and the incredible help we received from our teacher. Those lessons go much farther than book learning can. It supplies us with more confidence to try new things and collaborate with colleagues in our own workplace. That's worth it's weight in gold. What was frustrating was the feeling of not having enough time to complete everything, and worrying about technology breaking down. That creates a lot of stress. All in all, I feel like I've just been through a crash course in digital media and I came away with invaluable knowledge. Thank you Judy! Thank you cohort!