Digital Spaces
Digital Spaces
I actually think about this a lot, but I am so truly lucky to be part of the generation that knows both life before technology ruled the world......and life during it. 90's kids, am I right?? I am proud to say I had a land line! And now I have an iPhone, a Mac, a Firestick, and way too much other unnecessary stuff. I can recall the pain of dial up internet, and also know the ease of Wifi. Being an 'inbetweener' like this, I think it has been easier for me to not let technology take over my life. Of course I have my go-to apps and websites, but I don't have my phone glued to my hip. In looking at my digital spaces map, I realized I am quite 'boring' with my digital life.
Image source: Google Images
Personal-Resident
I found myself with the most digital spaces in my personal/resident quadrant. I do not post very much on social media- definitely not one to overshare. I think mostly because of my career choice. Though all of my accounts are private, I just believe that as a teacher we do have a certain reputation to uphold. I use Facebook the least, and only keep it because I have a lot of family who lives far away. I find it to be the easiest way to stay connected and up to date on everyone's lives. I do use Instagram more often than Facebook. I will post the occasional selfie with my roommates, 'like' a friend's engagement announcement, or comment on a old college friend's new super adorable baby. I would say I post the most on Snapchat. I only have friends as followers- no coworkers, or older family members. So I feel most comfortable sharing on there. Twitter I strictly have for entertainment. I read tweets before I go to bed- some are just pure gold! I admittedly do not have such funny tweets to share myself. And of course I have my messaging app- I hate talking on my phone so I mostly text. I have a couple group chats between family and friends. Blue bubbles over green bubbles >>>
Personal-Visitor
Ahh BuzzFeed- the website I love to hate. When I am in Saturday class from 9:00am-2:00pm, I am bound to sneak in a BuzzFeed quiz or two. I mean come on, they are so ridiculous how could you not!? On any given day, you can find out something about yourself you didn't even realize you wanted to know. Today you can find out if Tom Holland will date you by answering a few simple questions! Or how much your wedding will cost!
Netflix got me through my college days, and now helps me unwind after a long day at work. I can binge a whole series in a day, or throw on my favorite rom-com. Youtube is usually always an open tab, it is right now as I type this. For me, there is something so motivating about listening to music while I do work. I can't work in silence. Currently I am listening to Dermot Kennedy, who is a phenomenal Irish singer. Listen to his best song, and never be the same again. I also usually have my Gmail open at all times as well. All my accounts are linked to that email, so I get important emails throughout the day.
Professional-Visitor
In a previous post, I spoke about how I do not use much technology in the classroom but I do have some frequently visited sites. Epic! is a great resource with so many books available for read alouds. We typically do read alouds on Wednesdays and Fridays. The kids grab some cube chairs, scoot up to the SmartBoard, and listen to a book or two. They absolutely love it! YouTube gets used primarily as a reward for some of the students. I have one student who has a feeding tube, and he watches YouTube during feedings to be distracted so he does not try to interfere with the process. Another student works for Taylor Swift songs- her favorite. And another one of my students works for various different videos- she is a huge fan of songs and music in general.
GoNoodle is probably my most visited site in the quadrant. If you do not know what it is, or do not use it- I highly recommend it!! They have so many cute videos. They have videos that are designed to get students moving, relax students, calm students down...or just for students to have some fun! Making an account is totally free, and so is most of the content. The kids adore GoNoodle. Check it out here.
Professional-Resident
I do have to admit this is the one quadrant that surprised me. I genuinely thought long and hard about possible websites or apps that would fall under this category, but Gmail is truly the only one. In thinking as to why, I believe it has a lot to do with being elementary and instructional. At the elementary level, primarily K-3, there is automatically less digital spaces involved because the kids are so young. We are really focusing on teaching the students how to be at school. Beyond that, special education is such a team based process; most of our connections happen in person. We have weekly team meetings, IEP meetings, collaborative plan time, etc. I do not necessarily see this as a bad thing because it means we rely heavily on having strong interpersonal relationships, which is so vital to the IEP team.
In Conclusion
I miss my purple sparkly landline. But I am glad to have my rose gold iPhone. I think with so many available apps, websites, and platforms- technology these days is about finding the perfect balance! It undoubtedly helps in so many ways, but it does not need to be present in every aspect of our lives or days.
Image source: boredpanda.com
I appreciated your analogy about knowing both sides of the "life with technology" and "life without"!
ReplyDeleteNellie,
ReplyDeleteI loved your blog this week! I am constantly in search for balance in my life so I could connect to your post. I always find myself telling my children that they don't know how to be alone or too be "bored". They struggle with being able to sit still for even just a second without feeling like they need to be on their tablet or watching tv. We are apart of a rare group of those who enjoy the benefits of technology but who also understand how simple life can be just as satisfying.
Mercedes
Mercedes,
DeleteI totally understand! All of my younger siblings are like that- it drives me crazy.
I hope your babies are doing good! They're such cuties :)
I too remember a life with out technology! But I also remember a world before microwaves, Velcro and desktop computers (insert old lady emoji here). I appreciate all the amazing things we can do with technology and this mapping exercise had me evaluating my usage too. I also keep my social media site private. I enjoy having separate personal and professional lives. Occasionally I will get friend requests from parents, and while I don't think I post anything too wild (see old lady emoji above), I ignore those requests to maintain that professionalism. Working with Pre-K students, I agree that they are not yet as involved in digital spaces, but YouTube and GoNoodle are definitely in heavy rotation in my class as well.
ReplyDeleteMelissa,
DeleteI love that you focus on keeping your professional and personal life separate. I think it is vital to staying sane!
Happy GoNoodling :)
Hi Nellie,
ReplyDeleteI am also a 90s baby, with the 2000s technology. Growing up without all the new gadgets was a great experience, but I don't think I would've enjoyed being without it as a professional. It has become such an integrated part of my professional life. By reading your blog you have used it as a great tool to be able to motivate your students, and I know that if there was such a thing as no technology again, you would still find a way to do so. However, the ease of access makes it a lot better. Thank you for sharing all the different ways you use your websites, I really liked the organization of your blog.
Jannette
Hi Jannette,
DeleteI definitely agreed that technology has helped me alot in teaching! My coworkers and I often discuss how hard it would be without it. We have lost power a couple days, and you sure realize how much you use technology!
Nellie