"Breath'n Easy"

Do you remember the Preparation H commercial, “I was twitching from the itching and squirming from the burning”? Sure that is a light-hearted advertisement, but swap those terms around a bit. Imagine twitching from shortness of breath or squirming in panic from being unable to calm your racing lungs. In a nut shell, that is an asthma attack.

I was brought into this world, at no fault of my mother’s, with asthma. Never having a drop of alcohol or abusing a single drug, my mom was and is the picture of health. Unfortunately I was going to grow up with asthma regardless. Many other people battle much worse situations, and I have an incredible life, but asthma has always been a race I cannot finish.

Thankfully healthcare has vastly improved over the past twenty-one years of my life. Controlling my asthma has transitioned from hooking myself up to a machine during every episode to carrying around nothing more than a pocket sized inhaler. Lucky me.

Much like the advancement of healthcare, I have also begun to outgrow my sickness. My inhaler usage has been depleted from an unhealthy amount of “puffs” daily to just several weekly. Despite the giant steps I have taken, the constructing of my air ways during an attack often leads to severe anxiety. My problem is that I panic and cause my asthma attacks to worsen. As I pump medicinal oxygen into my lungs during these onslaughts, I feel as comforted as a small child cradling their favorite stuffed animal.

Whether I have my teddy bear in my back pocket or not, asthma is a chore I dread each day. Each task is, to a degree, more difficult. I have always been a half of a step slower than my friends in each sport, I have always had to take that unwanted rest mid-run, and I have always had to avoid certain circumstances such as spending the night at a friend’s house because they have a shedding cat or dog.

Still, asthma has only given me that much more of a chip on my shoulder. Whether it is school, athletics, or even my social life, my will to succeed is unmatched. Having to struggle when others thrive, I have gained if even a small amount, an advantage. Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I have begun to understand that each person has daily issues, and how we deal with them is the real key. Life is good, don’t worry be happy, relax and breathe easy right? In my case, as long as I have my tinker toy sized life support at my side, then yes.

In Regards to Technology Use in My Classroom

When I finally have the fortune of leading my own classroom full of children as an educator, there are several aspects of technology I will do my best to make sure my students comprehend and learn to use not only in school but their daily lives as well.

First off, technology is everywhere. That has been established. Because of the undeniable efficiency and capabilities of the Internet and other technologies, I want my future students to be able to use their computers effectively.

Having a student hop on the Internet and telling them, "research Christopher Columbus" will have no educational benefit. I plan on providing my students with the understanding of how to research and utilize certain tools. I want them to be able to identify what is a quality search engine, how to research effectively, and also how to use the Internet for their personal gains. Through blogs, email, PowerPoints, educational activities, and many search engines, the amount of "gains" technology has is endless.

Whether used for school, work, or enjoyment, technology is an incredible tool. By preparing my students and physically showing them how to apply new technologies well, I can make their "job" as students not only easier but more enjoyable and fun. New technologies are being created each day, and we would be unwise not to try and harness as much of these new applications and tools as we can. The more we learn, the more we can teach our younger generation. In turn, our students will be better prepared for their futures in the real world.

Insights Related to Technology and Teaching

Well, what can I say? We live in a technology driven world. Everything I do now consists of using some form of technology that did not exist just several years ago.

First off, I cannot go a day without the use of my I-Pod. Everywhere I go and every time I work out, I need my I-Pod. What did I do a couple year ago? Geez, I must have been a caveman to work out or take a jog without music playing in my ear.

What about email? Can you imagine the times when each household had a single telephone to share amongst an entire family. Now not only are there cell phones everywhere, but I often just shoot my mother an email at her school or to my dad in the middle of work at his office.

This class has been really interesting in advancing my knowledge of technology. Some simple examples are PowerPoint presentations and blogs. Each PowerPoint presentation doesn't need to go from slide 1-2-3-4-5 and so on. By using all these new sorts of methods, we can make our presentation not only interactive but fun and interesting. Blogs are a great but easy use of new technology as well. Blogs can be used for teachers to reach out to their student's parents and other teachers.

The way technology is advancing at such an amazing rate, we can only hope as educators to harness even small pieces of it (blogs, email, PowerPoints, etc). We need to use these to help us communicate with others and become better educators in the future.

As I sat here today, a girl in my class took five minutes out of her day and absolutely blew my mind. There is a website called teachertube.com filled with all sorts of educational videos. Her example was power teaching, and I can only imagine the other ideas teachers have posted on this site. Would teachers have been able to share information and incorporate other strategies into their classroom twenty years ago? Not a chance.

Technology is everywhere, and we better hop on board or we'll get lost in the dust. This class has been one small key to helping me adjust to some of the new and useful technologies of the world today.

Technology's Role In the Classroom

• Technology is something no one can hide from. If you do not own a cell phone, use the internet, or have an IPOD you are basically getting left in the dust. My Dad owns Cellular Plus Communications, and I remember when he first installed a "car phone" in his truck. It was big, plastic, and hooked up by a cord. Today you will see no such thing. Cellphones are getting smaller and smaller, and the way they are being utilized is ever changing (eg. IPHONE).



• As far as technology in the classroom, I think it is a must. While teachers are continuously learning new ways of teaching with computers, smartboards, Podcasts, etc, it is only smart for our students to be instructed to do/learn the same technology's. Yes, with new inventions and such, it is getting more difficult. Still, knowing this stuff for the future will only help us advance in our careers and lives.

• While I am an avid user of the internet, my IPOD, and my cellphone, I do not consider myself an expert when it comes to the new technologies. I am fairly comfortable using Word, Powerpoint, and such. Still, I have a long way to go in learning how to effectively utuilize newer apps. I am not very confident with a digital camera and USB, but I am getting much better using my IPOD. I enjoy downloading all sorts of sports Podcasts. The only problem is my lab top is older and does not run very well, so I have to do most computer work in a lab on campus.

Lately...

• Hey there. I just thought I'd drop a line to anyone who actually cares to read this. Lately I have been starting to gear myself up for heading back to Oshkosh. It's not easy being off for 6 weeks and having to all of a sudden become responsible again.
  
  
• Anyways, I have gone into my Mother's (Mrs. Ward) classroom a couple times in the past week. My plan was to help teach several of her students how to create and add to her classroom blog. Well I went in twice, and I am pretty sure those kids already know more than I do when it comes to blogging. Their creativity is awesome. On their classroom blog, they have been writing about things such as their Jump Rope Contest and Art and Music Night. You should definitely check it out!

• Hopefully I can get in there another time or two, but from the looks of it they really don't need any help.

=)

Hope to post again soon, see ya later.

-Rich

Well, I am officially a "blogger"

Hello all,
To those of you who actually care to read my blog, this is my first time posting. I am guessing my main follower will be my Mother. So Mommy, now you can keep up to date with me =). Anywho, I don't have much to say today, except that boy is it cold out. Stay warm everyone, and hopefully I have some better stuff to write about in the near future. Follow me as I go from Mr. Lazy to an overwhelmed and stressed out college student in the next few weeks. See ya!