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My journey included working with digital images and digital video along with side trips to both Inspiration and Captivate. My journey went fairly smooth with only a few bumps in the road. I was able to return back home with no major damage, and full tank of new ideas.

The journey and side trip activities will enhance my math lesson plans. I plan on using the Inspiration tool at the start of the year with each class. The first few days of class usually include some math games and time to get-to-know everyone. Using a bio web is a great way to introduce oneself. As a class, we could use the computer lab to create and share the student bio webs. In order for the kids to understand how to use the Inspiration tools, I could incorporate the use of the Captivate side trip. Using the Captivate tool, I could put together a slide show that explains how to use Inspiration. The digital images and digital video journeys will also be beneficial to my math classes. Students will need to understand how to crop and enhance digital photos that are required for a yearly baking project I assign. Within the project, students will be required to use movie maker to edit a short video presentation. I will also use the digital video for my projects throughout the year. I also plan on creating a short clip for my symmetry, coordinate graph, and tessellation (reflection and rotation) projects. The benefits of the activities I took part in this class are many in the classroom setting.

When I become a media specialist, my role will change as far as the curriculum and the students and faculty I will be working with. My concern will no longer just be math. I will no longer be in the math learning community as far as planning. Soon I will be working with all subject areas, all grade levels, and the entire faculty. A few benefits of the course jump right to mind. The use of the digital video will come in handy for many reasons. I will use this experience to help with the TV productions course, creating short videos to advertise the media center as a whole, highlighting an author or genre, and for extras curricular activities like a book club. The use of the tools within Captivate will also be valuable when I become a media specialist. I will use this tool in making power point slide shows explaining how to use new technology, like Safari Montage, as well as highlighting media procedures for new teachers. I am not really sure how Inspiration could be incorporated in the media center except to use with students who sign up for the book club. Those students can use the tool to share ideas about characters and events in the story.

Ultimately, I believe that all the information on the various tools from this course will help me to introduce the media center to new students and teachers, and teach both students and faculty about the resources and tools available in the media center. As a media specialist, I will also be working with teachers or grade levels to put together research projects and presentations. While helping in the planning stages, I can offer the use of the tools to enhance classroom lessons and projects. Although the Windows Media Maker is available, the other programs and tools are not currently available in my county. Therefore, I will need to look for similar tools that are available if the school or media budget cannot provide the funds. Overall, this journey has given me the experience and knowledge to help put together presentations for faculty meetings and professional development opportunities.
Kelli