Blog Post #5

If I built A School
What would you so if you were given an extremely large amount of money and told to build the school of your dreams. Krissy Venosdale began to dream about what her dream school could look like. The school she describes is very creative. The surroundings would promote learning. If was given that same opportunity, I would make my school very visually creative. The students would know which bus was theirs not because of numbers on the sides but because of the animal painted on the buses. A bus may have monkeys, whales, tigers, bears, lizards, dogs, and etc. When you walk in the school the students would be walking the mouth of the mascot. Every classroom would have its own theme and with decorative things hanging from the ceiling. All the desks would have positive notes from the teacher and from a student to help encourage a nice start to the day. In the hall there would be a large aquarium for the kids to look at every day. In the library would be several comfortable reading nooks with beautiful pillows for the kids to get alone and read. The shelves would be larger than life books to hold the library books. The playground would have a tree house, safety nets, bump and jumps, and a fun house. The school I would build would be fun and eye catching at every corner. Learning experience would have a lot of hands-on projects to bring the school work to life. Learning would not be just a chore; it would be a joy that causes curiosity in every student. All of the classrooms would have computers because every class would be a Flipped Classroom. Classroom time would be spend mostly on reviewing, group work, and helping students individually. I think flipping every subject helps not only the teachers but the students and parents. Classroom time should not be about repeating lessons. It should be about building off what they have already learned so they lessons can go deeper.

Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir
In this video a choir is made by singers that have never met or performed together. The entire performance was put together through the internet and posted on You Tube. People that are not musically inclined might look at this and say it is not a big deal but they don't understand all the effort that went in to this. Being a singer, I am completely amazed and speechless. I am so curious of how this is possible. Singing with a group of people that large is hard enough but when you have never sang together or even met, it can be very difficult. It is completely astounding to me how all the parts are correct. If you notice in the video some of the people are wearing headphones and listening to the music so they can stay on the right key and follow along with it. The technical part putting all together would have also been very difficult.
It is incredible how this type of technology can connect so many people. People from all over the world are coming together for a purpose and walking away from this virtual choir with close friends that they can continue to connect with. It is so fascinating how people who don't know each other can come together and accomplish something as beautiful as this. To listen to Eric Whitacre talk about all of the thousands of people and that wanted to be involved in his virtual choir, it reminded me that everyone has a longing to interact with others. People want to feel a part of something. This choir has allowed them to be in contact with people they normally never would.

Teaching in the 21st Century
In this video it reminds us of all the resources and technology that can be used for teaching today's generations. There is not problem finding information because there are so many resources that can be used on the internet. Where we have been lacking is teaching the students how to use different resources and information. In this video is explains the difference between keeping students entertained and engaged. Engaging is the key to grabbing student's attention so they can learn and continue to learn. Keeping students entertained will not accomplish much. Entertainment only lasts for a short amount of time.

Flipped Classroom
I have never heard of a flipped classroom until watching all the videos Dr. Strange gave us to look at. After I finish my degree, I want to teach math and this is a perfect tool to use. I am super excited about this type of classroom setup. I think this is the best way to keep students engaged in the classroom. It causes them to learn to work outside the classroom and become more prepared before coming to class, which gives more time in the classroom for helping each group of students. Flipping the Classroom makes the students want to be more involved in what is going on in the class. It also allows students to help each other. This style of teaching allows the teachers to connect with the parents. The parents are able to keep up with what is going on in the class. This learning style can help students learn at their own pace. This allows the teachers to help the students that need more help in the class and it also allows the students that grasp the concepts faster to move ahead so they are not bored while waiting on the other students to understand. A flipped class allows the students to excel in and out of the classroom. This type of learning allows students to become more independent learners. I think in the future we will see more subjects and schools to be involved in a flipped Classroom.