Chapter two- Hardware Basics

Chapter two gives the reader a vast overview of the many forms of technology that teachers will use in their classroom. Most of them I am already pretty familiar with and already know how to use them. For instance, I own my own digital camera and can use it extensively, with ease. I am not familiar with its classroom applications, but the chapter gives us ideas on how to use them. A digital camera would be extremely valuable in demonstrating the children’s work level. You could take photos of your students work, and then upload them to your blog, and your children’s parents can see exactly what their children have been working on in class.
There are however, some pieces of hardware that I am not familiar with and have not been exposed too. This is the first semester that I have seen a smart board. They were not available to the school I attended back home. The school that I am doing some volunteer work in now does have a smart board and it seems to give the teacher an extra hand and makes teaching and organization just a bit easier.
Since I am in the dual enrollment special education program at USM, I found the adapting for special learners on page 52 very interesting. I did not know that there were so many devices out there to help students with learning disabilities. There are screen magnifiers, keyboard wrist supports and even a Braille translator. I thought all of these would be helpful in the classroom, especially since inclusion is becoming more and more popular with special needs children.