Summarize what you learned in the class, what technologies you plan to integrate into your curriculum and how you plan accomplish this.
What was the most valuable idea or application you learned from this course?
Once there was a little teacher who really loved what she did. She rolled up her sleeves and in just about every way jumped in and learned with her students. Every way, that is except when it came to computers. There were three that sat in the corner of her class. Of course, when asked why she didn't use them, she was quick to respond with disdain, "They just don't work!"
Then one day, this little teacher found herself needing to clear her credential. So she took a computer class. She found herself in a beautiful computer lab with great computers. She started clicking and surfing and bumping into error messages, icons she didn't recognize, words she had never heard before. She couldn't blame it on the lovely computers. She realized it was her! She was scared and nervous and didn't know what to do.
She took a deep breath and started pressing buttons and asking questions...she went into school the next day and started asking her students. Then a very interesting dialogue began. Student to teacher, teacher to student. Roles were actually pretty blurry. One thing was clear. They all began to learn. Cords were unplugged, websites explored. The district computer support person contacted. Google Earth was downloaded. Math Games played and coolest of all were the images. Students who were just learning English were looking up words using online dictionaries and google images.
There was an interesting buzz that floated from that corner of the classroom that was once occupied by dusky computers. It was the humming sound that floats around when learning is taking place.
So the teacher is me and the students are the ones I'm lucky to have in my class. The most important thing I have gotten out of this class is acutually something that I lost...I lost my fear of computers. I see them as my allies and I see what a powerful tool they are. I also see a need for me to continue to learn more about them. I am considering going back to school to get a masters in liguistics. After seeing the impact technology had in vocabulary development with my nonenglish speakers, I want to explore how technology can be used in the area of language development. I believe in it and am excited about learning more about it.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Web Activities
For this activity, review the links below
Using your blog: Review & Rate (3) of the Web activities listed below. Have fun and play a couple games!
Discuss in your blog about the possible uses for these eLearning sites in relation to teaching. Might you use these sites in your classroom? Why or why not? How could you use them
This was fun!
The three activities I enjoyed most were:
The Children's Ditigital Library. I would rate it a 9/10. This is a fantastic learning tool for my students because most of them are learning English. The stories in English are interactive and engage the students by having them select and name the main characters. Also, students get a chance to hear the story being told and acted out. However, my favorite aspect of this Library is that it is bilingual. Many of my student speak Spanish but have no formal literacy education in their mother language. This is a great chance for students to practice reading and listening to a story in Spanish. Parents who are EL learners can also use this Web tool to have a shared story time with their children. I will use this site in my classroom to reenforce what we have been learning regarding parts of a story. It will be interesting to see students complete a story map of a story from this site. Students take part in creating the story characters and the plot. Students can compare/contrast their story maps.
Between the Lions: I would rate this an 8/10. It had great word work games. The two games that were of greatest interest to me and my students were the antonyms and synonyms game. In the game, Hopposites, students got to hear three words and then click on the word that was opposite the first word given. If the player did not know the meaning of a word, he/she could simply click on a flower beneath the word and it will state the meaning. What a great way to develop vocabulary. The words were great for third grade level readers. I will definitely share this site with my students on our next visit to the computer lab and encourage to hop around.
Syllables Factory: I would rate this a 7/10. This is a game that assesses students' ability to divide a given word into 1, 2, 3, or four syllables. A word appears on the the screen and is stated. Then students drag the word into the appropriately numbered bin. For each correct answer given the student powers his robot. My students had great difficulty with syllabication last year, and it is a highly tested skill in 3rd grade skill. I will share this with my collegues and students and give them time to explore it in class as well as in the computer lab. Slight drawbacks to the game are that you must get ALL the words correct to power your robot. This might be frustrating to students just learning the syllabication rule.
Attempt at adding link:
A favorite on line learning link: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Games/
Using your blog: Review & Rate (3) of the Web activities listed below. Have fun and play a couple games!
Discuss in your blog about the possible uses for these eLearning sites in relation to teaching. Might you use these sites in your classroom? Why or why not? How could you use them
This was fun!
The three activities I enjoyed most were:
The Children's Ditigital Library. I would rate it a 9/10. This is a fantastic learning tool for my students because most of them are learning English. The stories in English are interactive and engage the students by having them select and name the main characters. Also, students get a chance to hear the story being told and acted out. However, my favorite aspect of this Library is that it is bilingual. Many of my student speak Spanish but have no formal literacy education in their mother language. This is a great chance for students to practice reading and listening to a story in Spanish. Parents who are EL learners can also use this Web tool to have a shared story time with their children. I will use this site in my classroom to reenforce what we have been learning regarding parts of a story. It will be interesting to see students complete a story map of a story from this site. Students take part in creating the story characters and the plot. Students can compare/contrast their story maps.
Between the Lions: I would rate this an 8/10. It had great word work games. The two games that were of greatest interest to me and my students were the antonyms and synonyms game. In the game, Hopposites, students got to hear three words and then click on the word that was opposite the first word given. If the player did not know the meaning of a word, he/she could simply click on a flower beneath the word and it will state the meaning. What a great way to develop vocabulary. The words were great for third grade level readers. I will definitely share this site with my students on our next visit to the computer lab and encourage to hop around.
Syllables Factory: I would rate this a 7/10. This is a game that assesses students' ability to divide a given word into 1, 2, 3, or four syllables. A word appears on the the screen and is stated. Then students drag the word into the appropriately numbered bin. For each correct answer given the student powers his robot. My students had great difficulty with syllabication last year, and it is a highly tested skill in 3rd grade skill. I will share this with my collegues and students and give them time to explore it in class as well as in the computer lab. Slight drawbacks to the game are that you must get ALL the words correct to power your robot. This might be frustrating to students just learning the syllabication rule.
Attempt at adding link:
A favorite on line learning link: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Games/
Web Safety Sites
I was a lifeguard growing up. It was a great summer job. I believe I was once good at it because I took it seriously and I was aware of my responsibilities and what I needed to do to keep those entrusted to me safe.
After visiting these four websites on Web safety, I realize that my "lifeguarding" skills have waned. I have been encouraging my students to swim around and explore the web. Until today I did not consider that they were swimming in uncharted territory, without every being given the skills to help themselves should the waters become dangerous. In considering and answering the following questions I will become a more vigilant lifeguard.
1. How will you educate your students on Web Safety?
2. What are two strategies you found useful from the reading?
3. What are some roadblocks you foresee in Web safety in regards to how your school's Internet is set up?
4. What do you think is most important in Web safety for children?
First, I will open the lines of communication and have an open dialouge with my students. It may include a survey to gather data about how, why and when students are using the Web. This conversation will extend into identifying safe means of using the Web. Then I will add to what students already know by including a list of kid friendly sites. I found the article by Debbie Richmond very helpful in comparing regular sites to kid friendly sites. The summary of kid friendly sites is one I will share with students and families. A key element in this conversation is that students understand that they should trust their feelings and talk about them while surfing. I will encourage my students to share the exciting, fun information they find as well as any information that may give them doubts or uncomfortable feelings. I will do my best to let them know that they will not be judged. That if they happen upon some information that is inappropriate that they should discuss it with me or another adult. They should talk about why it is not appropriate and move on to a site that gives more useful information. Finally, I will try to learn more about what filters are used on our campus and what we as a staff feel they are adequate.
It is impossible to provide student safety on the Web without parent education. The lines of communication must be open across the board. Teaching parents how to be Web lifeguards at home is critical. I hope to have students and parents participate in the 4Kids Surftificate program on the 4Kids.Org website is a start. Providing parents with information filters and how to install them at home. It is also important to introduce issues their children are potentially facing as they surf like internet/video bullying. Share with parents the CIPA and COPPA laws that specifically require protection that "blocks or filters" access of harmful images to minor. Websites are hit with loss of Efunding should they not be in compliance here.
There are two forseeable roadblocks with regards to how my school's internet is set up. First, is shared information. There is a gap between the Tech Department and the staff that trickles down and has an impact on the students. The Tech Department is understaffed and overworked. Their ability to share information with staff is at the bottom of the list of items they must complete. I strongly feel that educating our staff on what tools and safegaurds are in place with our internet system is important in order to make safeguards effective. Second, is overall willingness to explore and learn about the internet as a staff. Here again the trickle down impact exists. There is an extremely wide spectrum of knowledge held by members of our staff. This could be overcome by staff development led by teachers who are more knowlegeable in this area.
Most important aspects of Web safety for my kids are centered around three areas: engaging in open communication, providing kid friendly useful resources, and introducing the importance of good citizenship as it applies to the Web. As I mentioned earlier, the role of communication between students, parents and teachers is critical to keeping our students safe. However, it is important to provide an infrastructure for students to navigate the Web safely. This can be done in many ways, but giving students clear access to kid friendly websites is a good beginning. Finally, instilling a feeling of responsibility on how to treat their fellow Web users is critical. It is a learned behavior in many ways and necessary in a world where we want our kids to treat others as they would like to be treated. That Golden Rule applies, even in the World of the Web.
It is my responsibility to make sure that when that Rule isn't applied, I have been the most vigilant possible lifeguard for my students.
After visiting these four websites on Web safety, I realize that my "lifeguarding" skills have waned. I have been encouraging my students to swim around and explore the web. Until today I did not consider that they were swimming in uncharted territory, without every being given the skills to help themselves should the waters become dangerous. In considering and answering the following questions I will become a more vigilant lifeguard.
1. How will you educate your students on Web Safety?
2. What are two strategies you found useful from the reading?
3. What are some roadblocks you foresee in Web safety in regards to how your school's Internet is set up?
4. What do you think is most important in Web safety for children?
First, I will open the lines of communication and have an open dialouge with my students. It may include a survey to gather data about how, why and when students are using the Web. This conversation will extend into identifying safe means of using the Web. Then I will add to what students already know by including a list of kid friendly sites. I found the article by Debbie Richmond very helpful in comparing regular sites to kid friendly sites. The summary of kid friendly sites is one I will share with students and families. A key element in this conversation is that students understand that they should trust their feelings and talk about them while surfing. I will encourage my students to share the exciting, fun information they find as well as any information that may give them doubts or uncomfortable feelings. I will do my best to let them know that they will not be judged. That if they happen upon some information that is inappropriate that they should discuss it with me or another adult. They should talk about why it is not appropriate and move on to a site that gives more useful information. Finally, I will try to learn more about what filters are used on our campus and what we as a staff feel they are adequate.
It is impossible to provide student safety on the Web without parent education. The lines of communication must be open across the board. Teaching parents how to be Web lifeguards at home is critical. I hope to have students and parents participate in the 4Kids Surftificate program on the 4Kids.Org website is a start. Providing parents with information filters and how to install them at home. It is also important to introduce issues their children are potentially facing as they surf like internet/video bullying. Share with parents the CIPA and COPPA laws that specifically require protection that "blocks or filters" access of harmful images to minor. Websites are hit with loss of Efunding should they not be in compliance here.
There are two forseeable roadblocks with regards to how my school's internet is set up. First, is shared information. There is a gap between the Tech Department and the staff that trickles down and has an impact on the students. The Tech Department is understaffed and overworked. Their ability to share information with staff is at the bottom of the list of items they must complete. I strongly feel that educating our staff on what tools and safegaurds are in place with our internet system is important in order to make safeguards effective. Second, is overall willingness to explore and learn about the internet as a staff. Here again the trickle down impact exists. There is an extremely wide spectrum of knowledge held by members of our staff. This could be overcome by staff development led by teachers who are more knowlegeable in this area.
Most important aspects of Web safety for my kids are centered around three areas: engaging in open communication, providing kid friendly useful resources, and introducing the importance of good citizenship as it applies to the Web. As I mentioned earlier, the role of communication between students, parents and teachers is critical to keeping our students safe. However, it is important to provide an infrastructure for students to navigate the Web safely. This can be done in many ways, but giving students clear access to kid friendly websites is a good beginning. Finally, instilling a feeling of responsibility on how to treat their fellow Web users is critical. It is a learned behavior in many ways and necessary in a world where we want our kids to treat others as they would like to be treated. That Golden Rule applies, even in the World of the Web.
It is my responsibility to make sure that when that Rule isn't applied, I have been the most vigilant possible lifeguard for my students.
Project Based Learning-Review
This article out lined the many different positive aspects PBLs can have when used in our classroom. The fact that PBLs are interdisciplinary in nature give students the opportunity to use multiple intelligences. The development of personal social responsibilities is an important component to PBLs because students are trying to solve a real life problem. These problems do not have right or wrong answer. Students' motivation often increase because they have choice in how to go about solving the problem. What I find most powerful is that this choice leads to an open minded approach to problem solving that can be applied to future problems student face in their futures.
There were the many different assessment tools for teachers and students to use. I found the grade level premade check list very user friendly. The language was easy for student to understand. The responsibilities were clearly outlined. I need to use these types of checklist more. Knowing they can be so easily created was an important to remember.
I was very excited to see that these checklist were also available in Spanish!
The most valuable idea I walked away with after reading over this information and using these tools, was that I can make checklist with my students. I am going to try this. I see how powerful it would be to create a checklist with my students and create learning objectives with them.
There were the many different assessment tools for teachers and students to use. I found the grade level premade check list very user friendly. The language was easy for student to understand. The responsibilities were clearly outlined. I need to use these types of checklist more. Knowing they can be so easily created was an important to remember.
I was very excited to see that these checklist were also available in Spanish!
The most valuable idea I walked away with after reading over this information and using these tools, was that I can make checklist with my students. I am going to try this. I see how powerful it would be to create a checklist with my students and create learning objectives with them.
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