Screen Capture of RSS Feed & Reflection

After learning how to work an RSS feed and seeing all the different ways you can display your feeds, it’s become a habit to check my feeder a few times a week.  Sometimes I don’t necessarily have a lot of time to read all of the interesting articles or new feeds sent, so I sometimes find myself scanning the list, even if it is just to read the interesting news titles coming through! 

I’ve also learned to love following others blogs even though I really didn’t realize that blogs were still around (boy was I wrong).  I remember way back when we were really into ‘live journal’ but I hadn’t heard much about them until recently.  I think the best use for the blog that I have found is to expand my ‘circle’ of information.  I have read many peoples blogs and offered my thoughts or suggestions on an educational topic they were asking about.  One of the comments I have posted dealt with a blog about smartboards and the benefits that people have found in the classroom.  I responded with some of the things I have found and how I have used it within my classroom.  I think that it’s nice to get ideas from others that you do not necessarily know, to widen your opportunities within education and I hope that some of my blog comments help others in the same way.

         After tracking my RSS reader throughout the last couple weeks, I have noticed that the updates from some readers occur very often, and others do not have updates or new ‘feeds’ from the last few months or even years.  One of the major things that I have noticed in a lot of the news feeds I get is that they deal with technology of some sort.  Whether it is something about the new technology coming out (ipads, etc.) or how to incorporate this technology within the classroom or within your life, technology has taken over our world and news.  I have learned things all over the board from dealing with suggestions of rules you should have with children dealing with social media, to math jeopardy power points to use within my classroom, to even news dealing with violence across the world.  Many of my feeds keep me updated on many different types of information dealing with the world today.

One of the ways that I have applied the content of my RSS page in my current setting is that sometimes I have found articles that I share with my principal and staff because they are pertaining to discussions we are having within our building.  I think that this is the main way that I have found myself currently using my RSS reader page in my professional and personal life as of right now.  I think that it is something that I will now keep up on and continuously add more feeders into my page to keep up on more educational news, blogs, and information, and be able to have one place to look for all the updates.