Mrs. Irvin’s Tech Page

It is the day after Christmas and I am thinking about all the generous things friends and family have done for me. The beautiful gifts, the time spent together and laughs we shared.

I am also amazed at the generosity of the students and families at Oak Ridge. Being new to the building, I wasn’t sure what the holidays would look like at school. However, after the last week of school, before the holiday break, I was inspired. The teachers were busy creating wonderful memories for their students and each other. I saw an amazing abundance of gifts and food being prepared for families in need this year. Students came to the lab with thoughtful gifts and cards written with kind sentiments. Parents stopped by and welcomed me with generous compliments and holiday greetings. Having only been at Oak Ridge for 4 months, I was overwhelmed with the generosity and kindness shown to everyone who enters it’s doors. It is an amazing place to go and work everyday.

So, my questions to you: How have you (been) shown generosity this Christmas? Maybe it was a kind word or a special note or a thoughtful gift. Whatever it was, I’d love to hear how your generosity or the generosity of others has made a difference in your holiday!

It is amazing to see how technology can be used in a positive way.  To see students here at school learning new concepts, practicing skills and sharing their ideas with each other is wonderful. 

Recently, I read about Laura ,on a collegue’s blog.  Laura is a 10 year old girl, who started a blog on December 1st, to keep track of all the things she could do to make a difference in the world around her.  She shares about her grandfather who inspired her to start making a difference.  I found it absolutely amazing that this young girl was able to tell her story of wanting to make a difference to so many people using technology that is readily available.  Take some time and read about what she is doing.  I hope it will inspire you to make a difference in your world too!

Some of you may have noticed that the blogroll on my site has not changed much lately.  It’s not because I’m not adding any new sites that we use in Tech Class, or that I haven’t had time to add them.  The top link on the blogroll is now the only link you need to find all the sites we access in class.  It is our K5tech at diigo.com.  Click on the “k5tech” link and away you go to all the great sites, yes, even the holiday ones we are using right now.

To use the diigo site effectively, you click on a topic or grade level in the ‘tag cloud’ on the right-hand side.  All the sites tagged with that topic or grade level will come up on the screen.  You can read the titles (in blue) and click on them to go to the site.  The ‘tag cloud’ can be sorted into alphabetical order by clicking on “alpha” near the bottom.  You can also change it from a cloud to a list by clicking on “list” near the bottom. 

If you ever click on a site and it doesn’t work, send me a comment on my blog so I can check it out.

You may want to make “Mrs. Irvin’s Tech Page” a favorite and then you can get to the blog and k5tech easily.

 We have been using PhotosStory 3 in grades 3-5 for a variety of topics.  PhotoStory 3 brings storytelling to a whole new level.  Digital storytelling is happening around the world with schools now catching on!  Third graders are working on writing informational stories about a famous rock formation around the world.  Fourth graders are finishing up their photostories about a topic of their choice.  Fifth graders are in the midst of explorer stories.  The lab is bubbling with creativity and excitement as students work on importing pictures, adding titles, recording narrative and creating music to fit the mood of their stories. 

If you have Microsoft Windows, you toocan make photostories at home with your family by going to the Microsoft site and downloading the program. 

Here is a story I made to use as a sample for students to see a finished product.  It is about my daughter’s summer.  Enjoy!  Summer of Fun

 PS.  This is my first time uploading a video file, so if there are any problems, please let me know and I will work on fixing them.  Thanks!