Google Earth Tours, https://earth.google.com/web/@47.38636818,0.68519617,52.26344a,28822.82001172d,35y,38.57565035h,0t,0r/data=CkcaRRI_CiQweDQ3ZmNkNWIzNGE5NzlhNTU6MHg0MGRjOGQ3MDUzODg0MzAZ5P35_nOyR0Ahj9iJndjp5T8qBVRvdXJzGAIgAQ, is a great virtual reality resource that can be used in almost any classroom. You can explore all different parts of the world and when you are on the website, it looks like you are actually there. If you click on the location, it searches the web for all of the information about that specific place. It can be a great tool for students who want to gain more knowledge on different places around the globe. If you are learning about a place in one of your classes, you can use google earth tours to pull it up and show your students. You can get the 360 degree view of the place that you are searching and it can be really helpful if you are researching that location.

In all, I think that google earth tours is a great resource for teachers to use in the classroom and can be really helpful in researching different places around the world.

Julie Barron

The first humans to explore the Earth made the long journey out of Africa during the Stone Age, and Paul Salopek is walking their same path. This photo maps out their 24,000 mile trek through all of the continents covering the globe.

There were many people who walked this path and Paul even quoted “Not an inch of this antique vista hasn’t been fought over, cursed, blessed, claimed for one divinity or another. It is a land worn smooth like a coin traded through countless fingers”. They thought of the desert land of the Arabian Peninsula as the holy lands which was the history for the three monotheistic faiths. So many people believed in this so it made it easy for them to all want to walk this journey. Still to this day since the Stone Age, the Out of Eden walk is still being talked about by trying to connect all of the diverse partners involved. The path crosses through the Silk Road in Central Asia which was one of the largest trading paths in history. This meant that it connected so many people because lots of people were located around the Silk road.

Overall, this project that Paul Salopek started is meant to connect the different, diverse continents. It shows the path that the first humans took during the Stone Age to connect the different bodies of land. To learn more about the Out of Eden walk, explore https://www.nationalgeographic.org/projects/out-of-eden-walk/#section-0.

Julie Barron

As I was exploring the WE teachers website, https://www.we.org/en-US/our-work/we-schools/we-teachers/, I noticed this map and I found it very interesting. You can click on any state or region and it shows you how We Teachers is making an impact on the teachers in that specific area. Under the map there is a little phrase that states “To date, we’ve impacted 59,000+ teachers! Read some of their stories below” and under it is their stories. I think it is fascinating that all of these states have so many teachers that have been impacted by WE Teachers. It shows how one organization can spread so quickly and influence so many people. Overall, I thought this website was interesting and I learned a lot from it.

Julie Barron

The Hyperdoc I found was one that is a template for elementary school teachers. Since I want to be an elementary school teacher, I thought this was an interesting website because it has a whole bunch of Hyperdoc templates for teachers to use. The specific Hyperdoc that I clicked on was called places in my town, https://hyperdocs.co/document/show/1822. It helps students to put together words from a quizlet, a sentence, and a picture, all about a singular word. It is an interesting lesson for elementary children because it helps them with their vocabulary. I think Hyperdocs are an interesting way of teacher because instead of lecturing for an hour, it is more interactive and will keep students engaged. I think that students would also rather learn off of a Hyperdoc than having their teacher talk for so long because it gives them something to do. Overall, I think Hyperdocs are very beneficial to teachers and students because it keeps everyone more engaged and interested.

Julie Barron

After exploring the website, https://911tributemuseum.org/, I definitely feel moved by the information. Since I was born in 2003, I was not alive for the attacks that happened on 9/11. I have learned about it every year in school, but I still do not have the memories that many have from that day in history. After looking through the website, I am able to learn more about all of the people who tragically lost their lives that day. Once you see the reflection memorial with all of the names of the people who passed on 9/11, it makes you realize the large amount of names written. It is a horrible thing that happened in America, and the new generations were not alive for it. I hope that as Americans, we keep talking about the tragic event and make sure that the new generations know how horrible of a day it was for all people.

Julie Barron

I am choosing to write about Jane the Virgin because it is a show that I am just starting to watch. So far, I can already tell how family-oriented they are. They show their Spanish culture a lot in the show by speaking Spanish and preparing Spanish meals for everyone. I think something that differs for their culture and mine is that their grandmother is very controlling and she pretty much runs the family, which is not how my grandmother is. The family is very close, a similarity I have with them because my family is also very close. I think this is a good show to watch if you want to learn more about the Spanish culture.

Julie Barron

After reading and annotating chapter 2 of Sail the 7 Cs, a part that really stuck with me was when the author mentioned how important communication is between teachers and students. I believe that communication is the strongest bond between students and teachers and is truly so important for their development. Students learn so much from teachers, not just the curriculum, but also life lessons. After doing some research, I found this article https://www.highspeedtraining.co.uk/hub/communication-skills-for-teachers/ that touches on effective communication skills for teachers. I think that if you are going to be a teacher, this article is a good read because it focuses on the best strategies to get through to the students. Communication is also important for the parents too because most parents like to stay informed and on top of their child and their learning needs. If the teacher can create a safe and healthy learning environment, their students will feel more comfortable talking to them about anything they need. A teacher is a big role in a child’s life and some children have no other people in their life that they feel comfortable talking to, which is why it is so important for teachers to be an open-book to their students.

Julie Barron

I believe that ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all is one of the more important goals out of all the sustainable development goals. Since Covid-19 has tremendously affected the education system and has wiped out 20 years of educational gains, this goal is more important now than ever. Many other countries don’t even have clean drinking water, electricity, or hand washing facilities in their schools which are all necessities. In the United States, we are blessed enough to have these resources and the basic necessities in our schools, but other countries do not have the same opportunities. Looking at the article, https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal4, the reports show that the completion rate in schools is gonna get worse and more students are going to drop out. Overall, I think that the world should be focusing extra on the education systems right now because there are rising drop out rates which could be stopped.

Julie Barron

The global educator’s tool that stuck out the most to me was the National Geographic Explorer Classroom. After reading the short explanation on their website, https://www.nationalgeographic.org/tickets/explorer-classroom/, I am super excited to use this tool in my future classroom! They have many different scheduled events that students can sign up for where they are able to interact with different scientists, researchers, and storytellers. They have set times for different aged children, so they can gear their sessions towards their learning levels. They have their events planned out almost a month in advance so people are able to plan accordingly.

This video is an example of how one of the events would be run. The speaker would introduce themselves and teach/inform about their topic. Overall, I think this tool is an excellent resource for young children to be able to interact with other educators and learn about different topics.

Julie Barron

I think that a key technology tool that we have in the world right now for collaboration is Zoom. With all of the things that have needed to be moved online, Zoom was the main way people were able to come together and communicate. As I was looking on the #MSFTEduChat hashtag, I was noticing that a lot of the pictures were people having a meeting on Zoom. This tweet, https://twitter.com/ShramkovaHelen/status/1272968400508203020 , just made me realize how necessary Zoom is during these times. On zoom, the participants are able to talk with others, chat over the messages part, share their screen for the viewers, and turn their camera on or off. If zoom was not around during Covid, learning would have been much more difficult, if not nearly impossible. So after this year, if I have realized anything about the world, it is that Zoom makes collaboration so much easier.

Julie Barron