SKYPE with Danielle

Out of all the assignments we have had in this class I finally found one I really enjoyed. I used Skype which you can download for free and be able to communicate with others around the world near and far. You can chat on microphone or through typing and you can also video to see one another. I have used Skype before especially with my husband being deployed. I have also used with with many of my good friends who have moved from being deployed too. But today I "skyped" with Danielle. She is in my EDU271 class. We are working on unit lessons and we basically talked about what was needed to be done. She asked questions about the resources and references link and what needed to be put in there. We came down to the conclusion that we needed to put things like where we got our information from on the internet and any resources like our venn diagram and powerpoint used in our lessons as well. We connected with webcam and spoke through our mics so we didn't have to type. It was easy, fun, and informative at the same time. I could use Skype in the classroom with parents who can't come to conferences about their child. I can also use this in my classroom with students who are sick at home like the flu or anything that keeps them from coming to school, to keep in contact and informed on anything missed while they were gone. Skype is a great tool for communication. You can also do projects with it if you can get up with another class in the building and connect, have children explore, and use Skype. With Danielle we didn't run into any obstacles we both pretty much knew how to use and explore with Skype. Some advantages of Skype would be being able to stay in contact with those far away, still being able to see them live, and it makes you feel like they are really there. It's a great way to stay connected. Sometime in the past, I have lost connection on Skype and it was hard to connect especially when the server is being used all at once with many soldiers trying to see their loved ones at home. That is one disadvantage that I can say I have ever run into. Sometimes it was to the point where it would be the next day before we got in contact again. Overall I think it has lots of benefits for families and even for schools. We just have to use our imagination!