here is my concept map

Concept map

Concept Map reflection
I have recently had the privilege of seeing several concept maps on a variety of subjects. These are the top five that I found to be useful for both students and teachers.

Zack Armijo -The Pueblo Revolt for grades 11 and 12
I learned a little more about the Pueblo revolt, really more than I learned in my New Mexico history class. I learned that the cause of the Pueblo Revolt was the disruption of economy, and the rape of pueblo women, forced labor, and forced practice of Spanish religion.
What I found interesting about this concept map and the presentation overall is the depth that Zack went into. It explained what caused the revolt, how the revolt took place and how it ended with the Spanish being driven out of the Pueblo's territories. I think a teacher could use this a great teaching aid for their class, or it could even be used as a fill in the blank activity.

David Guerin-What an ideal Daycare should be- Expecting parents
Though I am not an expecting parent I found this concept map to be quite interesting. I found it interesting because David explained that one could never be too careful in where a parent should place their child for daycare. He also brought up that most parents should ask for a tour of the facility in order for them to see what their child will be doing. I also learned that there is free state pre-k for both 3 and 4 year olds and that those who live in a title one district gets priority. I could easily see this being used as a teaching aid in a planned parent hood class.

Shanan Oppedahl- How to make a plant grow- kids k-2nd grade
I do know how plants grow, but I liked Shanan's concept map because it illustrated how plants grew in a way that I never thought to explain, she had it set up in a way where each element in the process played into the next. I did however learn that some plants don't need sunlight to grow through someone else's question. This concept map could easily be used not only to explain the topic of plants but also further characterizations of plants, like specific types. It could also be used as an in class activity where kids could possible draw on the board what each plant looks like.

Litzia Gonzales-Orozco-Eco Systems- grades 8th and 9th
I liked Litzia's concept map because it showed the various components of an eco system as well as explaining in great depth what each component did and its importance. I learned that an eco system can occur pretty much anywhere, including on the tip of a pen, due to the various bacteria's that live there. What I found interesting is the amount of components found in a successful eco system, I had no idea that there were so many deciding components in an eco system. Her concept map can be used as a teaching tool, in the sense where she could teach it all in one day or she could choose to focus on one part in a separate lecture.


Crystal Thompson-Leonardo da Vinci- High school art
Crystal's concept map was quite impressive. I learned that Leonardo da Vinci was born in Florence in 1492, and that he went on to have several famous paintings outside of the Mona Lisa, most notably the Vitruvian man. What I found interesting about her concept map was in the way she organized it, by explaining his paintings first and then moving into other aspects of the famous artist/inventor. I think that she could use her concept map not only as a lecture tool but also to introduce the different types of tools and techniques that she will teach her students in class.

Again all of the concept maps were wonderful, but theses are the 5 that stuck out most to me.
Markita Williams

Hello! This is my concept map of what a student would learn in a DECA class. This map can be used as a teaching aid or to show parents and new teachers alike what they can expect to see as far as curriculum goes for this course. I do apologize if the font is too small to read, this is the largest that I could get it, in order to properly display it with out it taking up the entire page.

Marijuana PSA Rubric as created by Crystal Thompson and Markita Williams

Marijuana PSA rubric

Score Levels	Content                                    _/20	Enthusiasm     _/20	Organization     _/20	Presentation     _/40
4	·    Is well thought out and supports the central theme. ·    Has clear goal that is related to the topic ·    Sources were utilized correctly and accurately. ·    Is accurate	·    Is passionate about topic ·    Supports their own perspective on topic ·    Makes topic engaging ·    Inspirational ·    Excellent teamwork.	·    Information is clearly focused in an organized and thoughtful manner ·    Information is constructed in a logical pattern to support the solution ·    Does not get off topic	·    Multimedia is used to clarify and illustrate the main points ·    Format enhances the content ·    Presentation captures audience attention ·    Presentation is organized and well laid out
3	·    Is well thought out and supports the central theme ·    Has clear goal that is related to the topic ·    Is pulled from several sources ·    Is accurate	·    Is interested in the topic ·    Minor flaws in teamwork ·    Excited to present ·    Entertains audience/ keeps them engaged.	·    Information supports the solution to the challenge or question ·    Facts could have been explained in greater detail.	·    Multimedia is used to illustrate the main points ·    Format is appropriate for the content ·    Presentation captures audience attention ·    Presentation is well organized
2	·    Theme is identifiable ·    Has no clear goal ·    Is pulled from a limited number of sources ·    Has some factual errors or inconsistencies	·    Tries to entertain audience ·    Could show better interest. ·    Multiple disagreements among team members during presentation. ·    Lack of enthusiasm.	·    Project has a focus but might stray from it at times ·    Information appears to have a pattern, but the pattern is not consistently carried out in the project ·    Information loosely supports the solution	·    Multimedia loosely illustrates the main points ·    Format does not suit the content ·    Presentation does not capture audience attention ·    Presentation is loosely organized
1	·    Provides inconsistent information for solution ·    Has no clear goal ·    Is pulled from few sources ·    Has significant factual errors, misconceptions, or misinterpretations	·    Very little effort. ·    Not at all interested in the topic. ·    Poor attitude. ·    Lack of teamwork. ·    No enthusiasm at all.	·    Content is unfocused and haphazard ·    Information does not support the solution to the challenge or question ·    Information has no apparent pattern	·    Presentation appears sloppy and/or unfinished ·    Multimedia is overused or underused ·    Format does not enhance content ·    Presentation has no clear organization

 Also welcome Crystal Thompson to the high school blog!

Today in my Computers/Schools class, I was introduced to two new websites. One for teachers and the other for students.
 The website  for teachers that I found interesting was http://ehistory.osu.edu/ .
I love this site because it allows a teacher to look up resources by region, era, and topic. When a region and an era are entered the site not only provides articles but it also provides the battles that occurred as well as books, videos, and biographies. This website would be useful for both history teachers as well as English teachers. English teachers could use it to explain certain works written in different eras and regions. I recommend this site because of it's vast wealth of resources.
 The website for students that I found interesting was http://www.makemegenius.com/ .
I am quite fond of this site because of the resources it provides for students in elementary school. This site has free educational power points, videos, and facts on a wide variety of topics for kids. The topics are made easier to understand so that the young viewers of the website can enjoy it further. This website is useful in helping young students learn about science and other topics that they may find  interesting, and I would love to use this as an example in my own class if I were to ever teach an elementary class.
While also in my Computers/Schools class I introduced other classmates to websites that I found useful. The website that I showed them was http://www.learn4good.com/games/index.htm . I chose this site because it had several games that can be used in the classroom especially in the business classroom. The game I had my classmates play was  Monopoly Idle. I evaluated their progress by the amount of properties they owned and the amount of money they had at the end of their first trip around the board. On average, after one trip around the board, most had at least two properties and around $19.23 in funds. I think that it is a useful website, and I look forward to using it in my own classroom one day. I highly recommend all of the afore mentioned sites, they are quite useful and entertaining! Hope you found this post useful!
Markita Williams DECA teacher-to-be (hopefully)

My name is Markita Williams and I want to be a high school DECA teacher!
I may change to a creative writing in the future. But for now I'm just trying to get through my freshman year of college!

Reflection:  Shannon Oppedahl presented a concept map on how plants grow.  The presentation was interesting and full of fun facts.  I did not realize how little is required to grow plants or how each plant interacts with other plants to form a system.

I was very impressed by the presentation.

Reflection:  Litzia Gonzales-Orozco presented a concept map on ecosystems.  She covered a great deal of information on the subject.  She explained that sunlight is the major source of energy for most ecosystems.  I did not realize that.  I also did not realize how intertwined most ecosystems are to each other.

I leaned a lot from the presentation.

Reflection: Markita Williams presented a concept map about DECA. 

I learned a lot from her presentation.

I did not realize that there was an organization like DECA that taught high school students how to become business men and women.  It never occurred that high schools had evolved to the degree that they have. 

The sheer depth of the instruction concerning working as a cashier is mind boggling.  I worked at Burger Chef and learned concepts that high school students are now learning in classrooms.  It is a real advantage to students to have that opportunity

DECA competitions and scholarships allow advanced students to succeed in ways that I never knew.

The presentation makes me wonder how many other organization are in high schools that I do not know about.  I am going to start doing my research and find out more.

Reflection: Zack Armijo used a concept map to teach the class about the Pueblo Revolt.

This is what I learned from Zack.

Pope, who was the leader of the revolt, was the first person to until the tribes.  He united 9 tribes to fight against the Spaniards.  The Revolt took place from August 10-21 1680.  400 Spanish were killed and 2000 Spanish were forced to leave.

The Pueblos had self government for 12 years before the Spanish re-established power over the Pueblo Indians in New Mexico.

Crystal Thompson used a concept map to teach the class about Leonardo DiVinci.  I learned that DiVinci used both oil paint and tempura and pesto for his paintings.  I did not know that DiVinci reintroduced the world to both Greek and Roman architecture.  I also did not realize that The Last Supper is the world's most famous painting.

My concept map on Leonardo DaVinci.

Hello, my name is Crystal. I am a fun, enthusiastic person and hope to become a high school art teacher.

This is my bubbl.us concept map for theater.  I showed my Kidspiration 3 concept map in class but it is not supported by blogspot.  Bubbl.us is severely limited in its capabilities and I would not choose it to do concept mapping.

John Martin