A lot of the resources I use in my classroom come from my colleagues as we collaborate frequently. I also use Discovery Education a lot for videos and lesson ideas, mostly in science and social studies. In my district we use Journeys to support our language arts curriculum and we use Go Math to support our math curriculum. Both of those programs offer a variety of online tools to use for instruction and also has resources and games for students to use.
Who do you look to for support and research for new ideas?
When I need guidance, I often turn to the Technology Facilitator in my building for support involving new ideas and technology. I consider myself pretty capable in regards to technology in the classroom (although this is my very first blog so bear with me) so I am very open to trying out different tools with my students.
What challenges do you face as you try to incorporate new ideas and research with your students?
The only challenges I faced this past year was the availability of technology. My school does not have a computer lab; rather we have a set of 30 laptops on a cart that we use in the classroom. Teachers have a time slot to use this cart and we can also sign it out if needed (which I frequently do). I recently started using Google Apps for Education with my students which they were very motivated by, but I wish I had computers in my room all day so I could incorporate these great resources more frequently.