EDU-241 Blog #1

This week in class we have used Microsoft Word and Publisher as well as Web Expressions. I have worked a lot with Microsoft Word, but I never knew it had templates you could use to make things go by faster. I can definately use those templates in my class for flyers or handouts so that the task goes by faster and I can move on to working on other things for the class. I had not used Publisher or Web Expressions ever before. Now with these two I can make more handouts or posters for the class as well as develop a webpage of information I want my students to see. These are both useful pieces of technology because it allows me to teach in many different ways, instead of the lecture-style classroom. With Web Expressions I can set up a Web hunt for students to use to learn about different authors or for them to practice grammar. It would be an interesting new way for students to learn instead of working out grammar on a worksheet.

I can also allow my students to use these tools for projects. They can make their own flyers, or whatever else the situation calls for, on Word and Publisher. That way not only will students be learning about English topics but they also will be attaining necessary technological skills to succeed in the future. They also can create a webpage on an author or book they are researching instead of writing a paper. This would allow them more creativity in their project and allow those students who do not like writing papers to show that they grasp the concept through another medium.