Photosharing is Inevitable

Photosharing in the classroom is inevitable. I use visuals all the time. Although I don't use the computer to do this, I still am able to share the visuals with students. I have used Google Earth and think it's amazing. My daughter and I track Santa every year to see where he's headed. She loves it.

I use photos/pictures to help students understand the setting, theme, mood and point of view. I can use pictures to explain irony and symbolism, as well as provide brainstorming ideas for writing prompts. For To Kill a Mockingbird, I show picutres of pocket watches, soap sculptures, Indian Head pennies, and the like. The more they connect with the symbols from the story, the more they get out of it. When I teach the teenage brain, I show pictures to students of people with different looks on their faces. It has been proven that an adolescent brain can't always distinguish between someone who is sad versus someone who is angry. I find this to be true when I do this activity.

Photosharing is going to be a part of our classrooms soon. Hopefully our districts can keep up with technology and push us to move in the right direction. I can't wait until my students can collaborate on a project using photosharing, video clips and blogging. I would be curious to see the difference in grades. I had 32 Fs at the end of this quarter. Would that number decrease if all assignments were required to be computer based? I can't wait to find out.