Pay Attention

   This is worth watching the entire 7 minutes and 45 seconds of video.  You never realize how much we have in our pockets and at home when you stop and think about how much technology we are using today.  I remember in high school, cell phone use was prohibited and it was frowned upon to use any musical devices outside of band or choir.  As this video explains, why can't we use the items we are given before us to help teach our students using something we are so familiar with?  The video throws out a statistic that only 39% of students "believe that school work will have any bearing on their success in later life."  It's sad to admit but I was one of the 61% who always questioned "When will I ever need to know this when I get older?  I don't think it'll be useful to me later in life."  While some of the things I did learn in high school helped, I would have to say that a lot of it that I learned has not given me much to help me later in life.
   I never thought of using a cell phone in a class to learn let alone an iPod or music player.  I even forgot that in this class, we use our cell phones to take surveys while in class.  It gives me an idea by using iPods and music players later in life, have students listen to their music and come up with a poem or short story of their music.  To make it more interesting, have them look up a few lyrics from each song and come up with a story or poem that fits.  It can be silly or serious but it's something that can incorporate technology into the classroom, no matter how small the technology device is.