Getting to know you glog

http://cherin85.glogster.com/Cherin---Getting-To-Know-You/

Multimedia Tools

Multimedia tools can help communication with parents in a few ways. Use of things like animation sites and video making sites can make school webpages and electronic newsletters more engaging and motivating to read for parents. Also sites like teachertube provide free video resources for parents on things they can do at home to help their child as well as inform them of the types of things the teachers are doing in the classroom. Video sites would be very helpful communication tools in my school as so many of our parents have limited reading skills and might feel more comfortable viewing a video rather than reading a lenthy letter on how to help with spelling or something.

Effective School Websites

A school's website is often the first thing parents see before enrolling their child. Even after their child is a student at the schools, the website might be the only way the parent "sees" the school if they work a lot and don't come in to school ever. Therefore, I think it is imperative that the school's website positively present the school, represent all aspects of the school from the office procedures to the classrooms to the cafeteria information etc, and it should constantly stay current so parents who check back frequently will always have up-to-date information. The website needs to have current school performance data, contact info for the whole staff, a calendar of school activities / functions, grade level curriculum information, policies (eg attendance, homework, library etc), enrollment info, commonly used forms (eg change in contact info, permission slips, cafeteria menus etc), and parent resources for supporting students at home. I will be using Weebly to create my website. I will be including my MSA trend data, my analysis of the data, and web based resources for parents.

Pros and Cons of Google Docs Presentation Tool

Google docs is a free web-based word processor, spreadsheet maker, database, and presentation maker. After looking through the google docs and thinking about my own use of presentation tools, I have seen that there are some pros and cons to this program. The most obvious pro is that its free. Another benefit I found is these Google applications seem to be a bit more user friendly than some of the MS Office Suite applications I use regularly. I found it easier to navigate and think that would be helpful to someone who doesn't use a computer as often as I do. Also, it's definitely a positive to be able to have instant access to your documents anywhere you are in the world as long as you have Internet access. It seems very convenient to not have to carry a computer or storage device with you in order to access your work. It's also helpful that you can share files with someone else in order to work collaboratively without having to email attachments back and forth or be in the same room at the same computer. A disadvantage in some scenarios of Google docs presentation tool is that you have to have Internet access in order to use it. If you are on a trip or someplace with no Internet, you are not able to work on it or present to anyone. Another possible con is that someone who is so used to the commands and menus of another program like MS PowerPoint would have to relearn how to navigate which can be frustrating if you have them memorized.