To be honest, I really didn't find the video that intriguing- the video we watched a few weeks ago "Did You Know?" got the point accross in a more entertaining and informational way. I've started making up my UEN website and I, personally, think this webpage will be a better way for me to keep in touch with my students' parents and keep them up to date a lot easier. Don't get me wrong- i think google is a wonderful resource, but UEN just makes it a little bit easier to get access to different resources and information. But you never know- I might just change my mind again once I learn more about Google and its' resources.

The purpose of this Technology Article is to teach my students all about environmental conservation. Resources: Paper University http://www.tappi.org/paperu/all_about_paper/earth_answers/earthAnswers.htm - topic articles http://www.tappi.org/paperu/art_class/makingPaper.htm - arts and crafts http://www.tappi.org/paperu/links_resources/links.htm - links and resources http://www.tappi.org/paperu/fun_games/hiddenPics_classroom.htm - fun and games http://www.tappi.org/paperu/fun_science/testStrength.htm - ‘fun with science’ science projects This website is especially resourceful for learning about the conservation of trees and how to conserve them by making your own paper. The main reason I love this resource so much is because it allows children to go in to this webpage and read about something that we will learn about in class (trees and environmental conservation). The most outstanding piece of information that I learned from this website was that the first paper was made over 2,000 years ago by a Chinese man, named Ts’ai Lun, by grinding up mulberry bark, linen, and help and spreading it out on coarse cloth and letting it dry. The children can also learn how: to do different crafts, paper is made, trees are harvested for paper making, and many other topics that have to do with paper and how it’s made. The pros to this website are the many different resources and links there are to the world of paper. The cons are that the website pretty much stops at paper and trees, but I’m sure there are many other websites out there specifically about other environmental issues, we just have to find them! This website would definitely affect my curriculum by allowing me to teach the students hands on (which I love).

For this technology article, I decided to use two different pieces of technology together. Spot The Block! Yo! www.spottheblock.com I love this tool because it makes nutrition fun by turning nutrition awareness into a fun-loving cartoon and allows us to teach our students and children how to get healthy and stay that way by simply watching what we eat. This website has many activities on it that will allow children to become more comfortable with watching their caloric intake, nutrients, and their serving sizes. It also has videos, downloads (wallpapers), and cool music (for the children’s enjoyment). The pros of this website are the many things children can use to become familiar with healthy nutrition. I also like the style that Cartoon Network uses to reach the children. What are the cons? I do not think there truly are any cons to learning. Personally, I think this website is the best thing since sliced bread (not literally). My Pyramid- For Kids! http://www.mypyramid.gov/kids/index.html This tool is completely AWESOME because it allows kids to make up their own sample meal plan, using a game, so they can see kind of what their day is supposed to look like. The pro to this tool is the amazing insight it gives to children while they are having fun! The con is definitely that they will be on this website playing games instead of doing their homework. ( I don’t know if you can actually call this a con, but it is the only thing I can see wrong with this website.) The way these two websites will impact my curriculum by allowing me to easily, and in a fun way, incorporate healthy living into my classroom.

video reflection Every time I tried to watch the assigned video, I just kept getting the quicktime logo with a question mark over it. So, I tried upgrading my version of quicktime, and I still keep getting the same picture.

Wow! What do you say to something like that?! The videos, I mean. I'm just dumbfounded by all the information that was presented in the videos. The most surprising thing was in the first video (Did you know?)- I could not believe that India and China have more college graduates than the U.S.! Holy Cow! I guess we, as Americans, live in a sheltered world where we believe we are the most sophisticated. As far as the second video went, I do believe those statistics, since I'm guilty of a lot of those accusations myself. It is, however, hard to hear put into words. I don't know what to say, other than we, meaning us Americans and teachers, need to open up our minds and try to make the most influence in our and our students' lives in any way possible. Obviously, the most effective way to do this would be to incorporate technology into the classroom, since that's what our students already are listening to. Again, WOW! Those videos will certainly be stuck in my mind for ages.