Foot: The Socially Networked Classroom

When I first started reading this book, I thought it would like like every other book that was written by one of my professors; boring and useless. In my experience with books likes these I tend to just not care what they say want to use them in the classroom, because I don't find them up-to-date or currently what is necessary. I am happy to say the Dr. Kist's book is not like those other books that I have read. I was a little bit surprised to see that we were actually using some of the strategies from the book in our own Multi-Modal class. It's really exciting, and such an easy read. Going over some of the activities for a low tech school, I realized that I may not actually work in a school that has a lot of money and technology. Having some of these projects and strategies will help students stay connected and in the know about technology and how to use it.

My favorite strategy in this chapter is that one we are using the Multigenre Autobiography.  Now, I am have been working on mine for a couple weeks. I've been compiling photos and music clips, and even some video clips to show what books, movies, tv shows, magazine, and music have made the most impact on my life. I think this is a really good project to have students participate in, because it is what they are interested in. This way, teachers will get to know their students, and their level of reading as well as their likes and dislikes. Students will not find it boring to do, because it is about what they like and have influenced them . That is the best part of this project I believe. I believe you can also use this activity to introduce books and other types of media that are going to be in the classroom the entire year. I think it is definitely important for all teachers who use this method, also make one of their own. Students want to feel connected to their teachers in some way, even if they don't know it. I really hope that I will be able to incorporate this into my own classroom once I become a teacher. I'm still working on reading the rest of the book, and I'm excited to see what other methods and strategies I can use to make my classroom a more Multi-modal one.