This semester I have learned a lot of strategies that I can use in the my future classroom for science instruction. I particularly like the concepts of pathways. Pathways allow for differentiated instruction and allow students to move at their own pace. I think this will be great to use in my future classroom during centers time. I think that through the use of pathways, I can meet my work goal of having successful centers in my classroom.
Another thing I learned about this semester was science notebooking. Through this process you give students notes and interactive sheets to go on the left page of your notebook. On the other side students are allowed to do something, usually of their own creation. This is helpful because it gives students a source that they can keep and use at home. I think this will help me meet the academic goal of giving my students science resources that they are able to use to retain the information they are using in science.
I have also learned about online apps, game, and sites. Technology integration is very important along with the use of STEM or STEAM. Technology integration allows students to be prepared for the technological society that these students will grow up in. It helps them be interested in their learning and be more engaged in it. I think this will help with my future work goal of making my students interested in their learning and ready for the world that they will grow up in. These students can use this technology integration can help students be ready for future success.
The lesson planning process was difficult. The second grade standards were ones I do not have a lot of knowledge on. I used my strengths of integrating technology to help make this lesson exciting for the students. I included online sites and games as well as videos to have a technology aspect to the lesson plans. I also used my strength of science notebooking. I think this is a really successful way for students to take notes and give them a source at home. My biggest weakness was finding hands on activities for students within the animal life cycle category. I was able to overcome this through the use of playlists with are super helpful in the classroom and lead to a lot of learning taking place. Overall, I enjoyed getting to create these lesson plans because it allowed me to learn to teach the second grade science standards which I was struggling with.
Friday, December 7, 2018
Sunday, November 11, 2018
Pathways
Digital learning competencies are ways for teachers to integrate skills into their classroom that creates a digital learning environment. My favorite way to integrate digital learning competencies into science lessons is to use project based learning. It would be cool to allow students to use tour builder to explore the coral reef. I also like using games like kahoot to review materials. This could be used in a classroom and help with integrating DLC.
Charlotte Mecklenberg schools pathways are done based on the type of learner they are. They get to choose based on visual, tactile or auditory learner. The Newton-Conover pathways are done with differentiation and they follow the pathway that they need. I like the Charlotte-Mecklenberg way because it makes the students be more self aware about what kind of learner they are. However, I think I would end up using the Newton-Conover way in my classroom. I love the idea of differentiating based on what students need. This was everyone is getting what they need and the students are not able to pick that they just want to do something because their friends are. I think this would overall work better in my classroom.
I think the most important part is choice inside pathways. The students need that freedom in order to feel like they have responsibility for their own learning. I also think the students working at their own pace is important because no one feels rushed and they are able to get the most out of their learning. I think this pathway model is amazing and I would love to use it in my future classroom.
Flexible learning environment is more than just having flexible seating. It also includes flexible time. This can be done by having a block where you have to get core subjects done. With flexible learning time, teachers can choose what they feel students will learn most from at that time. If students come in and they are super interested in something they learned yesterday in math, it might be best to start with math today. If they struggled with reading yesterday, you may want to cushion that in between some areas they will be more successful in so they can feel that accomplishment before getting back to hard tasks.
Flexible learning environments can also feature flexible grouping of students. At my cooperating teacher's school they use flexible group. During a one hour reading block, the second grade team organizes students based on reading level. They go to these groups and get what they need. Students are able to move around these classrooms as their needs change throughout the year. I think this works well because they are being able to constantly change the people they are learning with. I think this helps them learn better overall.
Citation:
Distance Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.emaze.com/@AOLWQTWTI
Why Flexible Learning Environments? (2018, August 09). Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.gettingsmart.com/2018/08/why-flexible-learning-environments/
Charlotte Mecklenberg schools pathways are done based on the type of learner they are. They get to choose based on visual, tactile or auditory learner. The Newton-Conover pathways are done with differentiation and they follow the pathway that they need. I like the Charlotte-Mecklenberg way because it makes the students be more self aware about what kind of learner they are. However, I think I would end up using the Newton-Conover way in my classroom. I love the idea of differentiating based on what students need. This was everyone is getting what they need and the students are not able to pick that they just want to do something because their friends are. I think this would overall work better in my classroom.
I think the most important part is choice inside pathways. The students need that freedom in order to feel like they have responsibility for their own learning. I also think the students working at their own pace is important because no one feels rushed and they are able to get the most out of their learning. I think this pathway model is amazing and I would love to use it in my future classroom.
Flexible learning environment is more than just having flexible seating. It also includes flexible time. This can be done by having a block where you have to get core subjects done. With flexible learning time, teachers can choose what they feel students will learn most from at that time. If students come in and they are super interested in something they learned yesterday in math, it might be best to start with math today. If they struggled with reading yesterday, you may want to cushion that in between some areas they will be more successful in so they can feel that accomplishment before getting back to hard tasks.
Flexible learning environments can also feature flexible grouping of students. At my cooperating teacher's school they use flexible group. During a one hour reading block, the second grade team organizes students based on reading level. They go to these groups and get what they need. Students are able to move around these classrooms as their needs change throughout the year. I think this works well because they are being able to constantly change the people they are learning with. I think this helps them learn better overall.
Citation:
Distance Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.emaze.com/@AOLWQTWTI
Why Flexible Learning Environments? (2018, August 09). Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.gettingsmart.com/2018/08/why-flexible-learning-environments/
Sunday, October 14, 2018
Integrating Online Sites and Apps
I think online resources can help enhance the science experience. My teacher uses Youtubekids videos for everything. She will sometimes use them for science to help explain a concept. She also uses computer games for mathematics in her classroom.
I think the science experiments could not be duplicated on the computer. You could watch a video of the science experiment, you could even do an online version of the science experiment, however you cannot get the genuine experiment of being able to walk through the experiment process.
I think something that can be done with the computer is you could go on virtual field trips that you would never be able to take your students on in real life due to money or distance from you. For instance, on a unit on space you could have a virtual field trip where students explore NASA and watch a rocket launch.
I also think the computer could be used to replicate some experiments. For instance, a lot of students get squirmy at the thought of dissection. Dissection is also expensive for schools. Therefore, you could have students perform a frog dissection on the computer.
Students could be given time to play science games which could help them study for upcoming tests. It could also enhance what they are already learning.
I think the computer is a great resource to be used when it comes to enhancing learning. It can enhance learning and help give students new experiences they would otherwise not get to have.
Picture from:
Wall, M. (2018, March 23). SpaceX Rocket Launch Created Shock Wave 4 Times Larger Than California. Retrieved October 14, 2018, from https://www.space.com/40063-spacex-rocket-launch-shock-wave.html
I think the science experiments could not be duplicated on the computer. You could watch a video of the science experiment, you could even do an online version of the science experiment, however you cannot get the genuine experiment of being able to walk through the experiment process.
I think something that can be done with the computer is you could go on virtual field trips that you would never be able to take your students on in real life due to money or distance from you. For instance, on a unit on space you could have a virtual field trip where students explore NASA and watch a rocket launch.
I also think the computer could be used to replicate some experiments. For instance, a lot of students get squirmy at the thought of dissection. Dissection is also expensive for schools. Therefore, you could have students perform a frog dissection on the computer.
Students could be given time to play science games which could help them study for upcoming tests. It could also enhance what they are already learning.
I think the computer is a great resource to be used when it comes to enhancing learning. It can enhance learning and help give students new experiences they would otherwise not get to have.
Picture from:
Wall, M. (2018, March 23). SpaceX Rocket Launch Created Shock Wave 4 Times Larger Than California. Retrieved October 14, 2018, from https://www.space.com/40063-spacex-rocket-launch-shock-wave.html
Content Vocabulary
My classroom has only done one science experiment while I have been there. During this lesson she did not cover vocabulary. She set up a science experiment and said they would come back to it. Therefore, I am going to talk about strategies she uses in Language Arts.
My teacher regularly uses matching pairs. She will regularly give them a sheet where they cut out the vocabulary terms that are from their book of the week and have to glue it down beside the vocabulary term. The students like doing this and try to race each other as to who can do it first. During these races, they usually end up doing the vocabulary correctly so it does feel like they are learning using this method.
My teacher also regularly uses word of the day. Each day, the students learn a new vocabulary term. The teacher leads them through figuring it out based on the words pieces. They put these terms into their word journal which they can regularly look at if they forget a definition.
My teacher needs to be more consistent in using different models. The students will just write down one word in their journal that can be used as a definition of the word. I think it would be more beneficial if they were using a frayer model. I think this would help the students better understand the word because you can tell that the students are sometimes still confused about the words that they are learning for word of the day. I think a frayer model would work better because they have to do the definition and do examples and non-examples.
I think Realia would also be nice for my teacher to use because she has many English Language Learners and this is supposed to be very helpful for English Language Learners. It would be cool for her to incorporate this strategy into her lesson.
My teacher regularly uses matching pairs. She will regularly give them a sheet where they cut out the vocabulary terms that are from their book of the week and have to glue it down beside the vocabulary term. The students like doing this and try to race each other as to who can do it first. During these races, they usually end up doing the vocabulary correctly so it does feel like they are learning using this method.
My teacher also regularly uses word of the day. Each day, the students learn a new vocabulary term. The teacher leads them through figuring it out based on the words pieces. They put these terms into their word journal which they can regularly look at if they forget a definition.
My teacher needs to be more consistent in using different models. The students will just write down one word in their journal that can be used as a definition of the word. I think it would be more beneficial if they were using a frayer model. I think this would help the students better understand the word because you can tell that the students are sometimes still confused about the words that they are learning for word of the day. I think a frayer model would work better because they have to do the definition and do examples and non-examples.
I think Realia would also be nice for my teacher to use because she has many English Language Learners and this is supposed to be very helpful for English Language Learners. It would be cool for her to incorporate this strategy into her lesson.
Saturday, September 29, 2018
Anchor Charts
Anchor charts are a tool used for whole group instruction. They are made during a lesson to create a visual representation of what is being taught during the lesson. These charts are then left out so that students can regularly reference them.
Anchor charts allow students to help join in the lesson. Students are allowed to interact with the teacher as they move through a lesson. Students help the teacher create the chart. Anchor charts are very helpful because they allow students to understand the vocabulary and be able to use it, it allows students to have a visual that they can regularly reference in the classroom and it helps students in being able to synthesize the vast amounts of information they have learned. This can be useful for science because a lot of times students will read about something but not be able to explain it. Through the use of anchor charts students can demonstrate to the teacher that they do know what they are talking about when it comes to a science concept. The creation of this chart can help them better understand the concept because they are building the chart with the teacher. They have to consolidate their thinking into a chart and when they get stuck the teacher can guide them along since she knows the content well. They are also left on the wall as a visual. Science concepts can involve many parts, for example parts of the cell or the water system. Through the use of an anchor chart left on the wall, students could have regular exposure to the material. This can help them better retain the information.
I will use anchor charts in my science instruction. I think they are a valuable tool. The students get to help you build the visual cues that they need. They are then in a place that the students can see everyday. I think they have many valuable positives that outweigh any negatives. I feel I will most often use anchor charts in science and math. In science I think they will be super helpful when it comes to bigger science concepts with many parts. I wish my biology teacher would have made one of these when we were learning about how cells make energy. This would have been very helpful. I will definitely be using anchor charts in my future classroom.
I will use anchor charts in my science instruction. I think they are a valuable tool. The students get to help you build the visual cues that they need. They are then in a place that the students can see everyday. I think they have many valuable positives that outweigh any negatives. I feel I will most often use anchor charts in science and math. In science I think they will be super helpful when it comes to bigger science concepts with many parts. I wish my biology teacher would have made one of these when we were learning about how cells make energy. This would have been very helpful. I will definitely be using anchor charts in my future classroom.
Work Cited:
M. (2015, August 18). THE BEST ANCHOR CHART PAPER EVER & A GIVEAWAY! [Web log post]. Retrieved September 29, 2018, from http://www.teachingwithamountainview.com/2015/08/the-best-anchor-chart-paper-ever.html
Moses, E., & Lee, H. (2014). Imitate and Innovate Anchor Charts. International Reading Associations Essentials,1-15. Retrieved September 30, 2018, from http://www.literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/member-benefits/e-ssentials/ila-e-ssentials-8065.pdf
States of matter science anchor chart for kindergarten. (n.d.). Retrieved September 29, 2018, from http://indulgy.com/post/2gzbEKp4b2/states-of-matter-science-anchor-chart-fo
Moses, E., & Lee, H. (2014). Imitate and Innovate Anchor Charts. International Reading Associations Essentials,1-15. Retrieved September 30, 2018, from http://www.literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/member-benefits/e-ssentials/ila-e-ssentials-8065.pdf
States of matter science anchor chart for kindergarten. (n.d.). Retrieved September 29, 2018, from http://indulgy.com/post/2gzbEKp4b2/states-of-matter-science-anchor-chart-fo
Friday, September 14, 2018
Scientific Method vs Engineering Design Process
The scientific method is a time tested way of learning to do experiments in the classroom. The engineering design process is a different method that I had never heard of before today.
The scientific method is a series of steps that can be followed to answer a question. This process begins with a question. The user researches the question and comes up with a hypothesis. The user then experiments to test their hypothesis. The user than analyzes that data to come up with conclusions.
In the engineering design process, the user is striving to solve a problem. They research that problem, and they along with their team, come up with all possible solutions to that problem. It is then narrowed to the best solution. A prototype is then built and tested. The user than works to improve the prototype until they feel they have the best possible solution.
In the classroom, the scientific method is most often used. Students are given the experiment by their teacher, told to come up with a hypothesis. They then follow the steps of the scientific method until they come up with a conclusion. This is very teacher led and the students are more or less following a template. I imagine that in the classroom, you would begin the engineering design process by putting the students into groups. You would then present them with a problem and the students would follow the engineering design process until they came up with the best prototype. They would then build that prototype and keep working on it until they have almost perfected it. In this classroom, the teacher is playing more of a boss role and the students are playing engineers. The teacher assigns them a task that she needs done and ultimately it is up with the students and their creativity to solve the problem.
I think teachers should use the engineering design process. I remember in middle school I had one teacher, in a robotics class, who used the engineering design process. I, at the time did not know this was what he was using. However, he told us we needed to build something that could move our pencil from our side of the table to the other side of the table We then were broken up into groups and had to come up with something. My group ultimately built a robot. When it failed to get the pencil to the other side of the table we kept working until it could. I remember this being so fun and unlike anything else I had ever done before. Our teacher did not give us solid help. He would ask questions that guided our thought, but he would not give us any hints. We learned a lot that day. I feel I learned more that day then I have in any science class following the scientific method. That is why I believe the engineering design process is the way to go in our classrooms.
The scientific method has its strengths. For instance, it helps students follow the process and ultimately get the experiment done. It was never a big deal if your hypothesis turned out incorrect, you could just make a new one and try the experiment again. This gets students into the science process and helps them become actively engaged in it. I think a weakness is that it is very teacher led. The teacher is still doing a lot of the leading. Often times the teacher will show them the experiment that they have to do. It takes away a lot of creativity.
The engineering design process has a strength of letting the children's imagination run wild. They ultimately have to constrain themselves to work with the resources that they have. A weakness of the engineering design process is that it could require more resources than the scientific method because students have to be able to build their prototype that they feel will best solve the problem. It can also be more time consuming because they have to spend a lot of time thinking about what prototype will work best before building it instead of following a previously designed experiment.
Overall, I feel that both the scientific method and the engineering design process have their place in today's classrooms. However, if you have the resources and the extra time, I feel the engineering design process is the way to go.
Citations:
[Jessica Maxwell]. (2016, August 25). Design Process vs. Scientific Method [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrlswrq5aIs
The Scientific Method. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.bscsd.org/Page/991
TeachEngineering. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.teachengineering.org/k12engineering/designprocess
The scientific method is a series of steps that can be followed to answer a question. This process begins with a question. The user researches the question and comes up with a hypothesis. The user then experiments to test their hypothesis. The user than analyzes that data to come up with conclusions.
In the engineering design process, the user is striving to solve a problem. They research that problem, and they along with their team, come up with all possible solutions to that problem. It is then narrowed to the best solution. A prototype is then built and tested. The user than works to improve the prototype until they feel they have the best possible solution.
In the classroom, the scientific method is most often used. Students are given the experiment by their teacher, told to come up with a hypothesis. They then follow the steps of the scientific method until they come up with a conclusion. This is very teacher led and the students are more or less following a template. I imagine that in the classroom, you would begin the engineering design process by putting the students into groups. You would then present them with a problem and the students would follow the engineering design process until they came up with the best prototype. They would then build that prototype and keep working on it until they have almost perfected it. In this classroom, the teacher is playing more of a boss role and the students are playing engineers. The teacher assigns them a task that she needs done and ultimately it is up with the students and their creativity to solve the problem.
I think teachers should use the engineering design process. I remember in middle school I had one teacher, in a robotics class, who used the engineering design process. I, at the time did not know this was what he was using. However, he told us we needed to build something that could move our pencil from our side of the table to the other side of the table We then were broken up into groups and had to come up with something. My group ultimately built a robot. When it failed to get the pencil to the other side of the table we kept working until it could. I remember this being so fun and unlike anything else I had ever done before. Our teacher did not give us solid help. He would ask questions that guided our thought, but he would not give us any hints. We learned a lot that day. I feel I learned more that day then I have in any science class following the scientific method. That is why I believe the engineering design process is the way to go in our classrooms.
The scientific method has its strengths. For instance, it helps students follow the process and ultimately get the experiment done. It was never a big deal if your hypothesis turned out incorrect, you could just make a new one and try the experiment again. This gets students into the science process and helps them become actively engaged in it. I think a weakness is that it is very teacher led. The teacher is still doing a lot of the leading. Often times the teacher will show them the experiment that they have to do. It takes away a lot of creativity.
The engineering design process has a strength of letting the children's imagination run wild. They ultimately have to constrain themselves to work with the resources that they have. A weakness of the engineering design process is that it could require more resources than the scientific method because students have to be able to build their prototype that they feel will best solve the problem. It can also be more time consuming because they have to spend a lot of time thinking about what prototype will work best before building it instead of following a previously designed experiment.
Overall, I feel that both the scientific method and the engineering design process have their place in today's classrooms. However, if you have the resources and the extra time, I feel the engineering design process is the way to go.
Citations:
[Jessica Maxwell]. (2016, August 25). Design Process vs. Scientific Method [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrlswrq5aIs
The Scientific Method. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.bscsd.org/Page/991
TeachEngineering. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.teachengineering.org/k12engineering/designprocess
Tuesday, April 24, 2018
Final Reflection
When I started out this semester I was knew that technology needed to be integrated into my classroom. In the current world we live in everything is changing so fast and students need to have advanced computer skills in order to succeed in the classroom and beyond the classroom in life. I knew that it was my job, as the teacher, to help them develop these skills. However, I had no idea on how to integrate technology into my classroom.
I learned a lot of valuable things that I think will make me a better classroom teacher because I will be able to integrate these resources into my classroom. One thing that I found extremely helpful was the SAMR model. I like this model because it carefully details the ways in which to integrate technology into your classroom. Through the use of this model I now understand the ways in which to incorporate technology into my classroom.
I also learned about digital citizenship. I think this is important for us to know as teachers. I think we can use this knowledge in our own life to make sure we have a clean digital citizenship. I also think it is important that we teach this knowledge to our students so that they too can have a good digital citizenship.
In the future I will look for more, exciting apps that I can use in my classroom. This can make learning fun, therefore making my students more excited about learning. It is also good resources for integrating technology into the classroom. I will continue to stay up to date on the latest software that is coming out. I will try to integrate technology into my classroom to the best of my abilities. I now know how to do it and I have always understood the importance of it. Overall this class has provided me with the tools to help my students be more advanced learners that use technological resources. I think this will come in handy during my time in my future classroom.
Learn more about what I've learned!
Sources:
http://hallr.com/benefits-of-technology-in-the-classroom/
I also learned about digital citizenship. I think this is important for us to know as teachers. I think we can use this knowledge in our own life to make sure we have a clean digital citizenship. I also think it is important that we teach this knowledge to our students so that they too can have a good digital citizenship.
In the future I will look for more, exciting apps that I can use in my classroom. This can make learning fun, therefore making my students more excited about learning. It is also good resources for integrating technology into the classroom. I will continue to stay up to date on the latest software that is coming out. I will try to integrate technology into my classroom to the best of my abilities. I now know how to do it and I have always understood the importance of it. Overall this class has provided me with the tools to help my students be more advanced learners that use technological resources. I think this will come in handy during my time in my future classroom.
Learn more about what I've learned!
Sources:
http://hallr.com/benefits-of-technology-in-the-classroom/
Real or Fake?
For this assignment, I had to look at a photograph, two hotel reviews, and quotes by Thomas Jefferson and determine if they were real or fake. This was an interesting task. For the first task this photograph was shown:
This photograph is obviously fake. The plane looks much to big to be really present in this photo. It also looks very obviously photo shopped. It is almost as bad as the fairy picture that was used as an example of early fake photography.
Next I had to determine real vs. fake hotel reviews. This was actually a lot harder and it took me a bit longer to figure it out. Both reviews seemed real, however, I believe the first one is real because it provided insignificant details that would only be added if someone really had attended a trip and stayed at a hotel. I have read a lot of hotel reviews and I know that people usually like to provide random information about their trip. This is the main reason that I believe this one is real. I am unsure about the second one. I could easily see it being either real or fake. However, if it is fake I believe someone that works at the hotel probably wrote it to try to get people to stay there. This learning experience could be very helpful in the future. I read hotel reviews a lot and this one will help me in determining if a hotel review can be trusted.
The last challenge was to figure out if quotes were real. This was the easiest because you could google search to see if they were real or not. For the quote, "Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you." I learned that there is no evidence that Thomas Jefferson actually said that. The second quote, "That the obliquity of the ecliptic, when these elephants lived, was so great as to include with the tropics all those reasons in which the bones are found," is a real quote. The third quote, “Gun control works great for the people who are law-abiding citizens and it does nothing for the criminals, and all it does is put the people at risk," is a fake quote.
My Reflection on this Assignment:
Doing this assignment was helpful in learning skills to determine if something is real or fake. It is important that I am able to do this in my future professional life. You need to be able to do this to determine if a source is real or fake. The helpful tips, such as looking for light lines and paying close attention to details can come in handy in the future. I will no longer be tricked by those fake news articles on Facebook that try to freak you out about a war that is soon to come or a disease that will wipe out everyone. With these tools I will be able to tell that those are just fake articles without needing to click on them. I will teach my students these skills by perhaps having them do a similar activity. I like the idea of letting them try to figure out which ones are real without giving them the answers until the end. I think this forces them to think critically and really learn what I am trying to teach them. I will definitely be incorporating this lesson into my classroom. It can help my students with smart internet browsing.
This photograph is obviously fake. The plane looks much to big to be really present in this photo. It also looks very obviously photo shopped. It is almost as bad as the fairy picture that was used as an example of early fake photography.
Next I had to determine real vs. fake hotel reviews. This was actually a lot harder and it took me a bit longer to figure it out. Both reviews seemed real, however, I believe the first one is real because it provided insignificant details that would only be added if someone really had attended a trip and stayed at a hotel. I have read a lot of hotel reviews and I know that people usually like to provide random information about their trip. This is the main reason that I believe this one is real. I am unsure about the second one. I could easily see it being either real or fake. However, if it is fake I believe someone that works at the hotel probably wrote it to try to get people to stay there. This learning experience could be very helpful in the future. I read hotel reviews a lot and this one will help me in determining if a hotel review can be trusted.
The last challenge was to figure out if quotes were real. This was the easiest because you could google search to see if they were real or not. For the quote, "Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you." I learned that there is no evidence that Thomas Jefferson actually said that. The second quote, "That the obliquity of the ecliptic, when these elephants lived, was so great as to include with the tropics all those reasons in which the bones are found," is a real quote. The third quote, “Gun control works great for the people who are law-abiding citizens and it does nothing for the criminals, and all it does is put the people at risk," is a fake quote.
My Reflection on this Assignment:
Doing this assignment was helpful in learning skills to determine if something is real or fake. It is important that I am able to do this in my future professional life. You need to be able to do this to determine if a source is real or fake. The helpful tips, such as looking for light lines and paying close attention to details can come in handy in the future. I will no longer be tricked by those fake news articles on Facebook that try to freak you out about a war that is soon to come or a disease that will wipe out everyone. With these tools I will be able to tell that those are just fake articles without needing to click on them. I will teach my students these skills by perhaps having them do a similar activity. I like the idea of letting them try to figure out which ones are real without giving them the answers until the end. I think this forces them to think critically and really learn what I am trying to teach them. I will definitely be incorporating this lesson into my classroom. It can help my students with smart internet browsing.
Reflection on Sugata Mitra's 2013 Ted Talk
In this blog post I will be reflecting on Sugata Mitra's 2013 Ted Talk. Here is the video so that you can watch the video before reading my reflection.
In Mitra's Ted Talk he talks about how Britain created the school system to help build people into people that could be apart of the Bureaucratic Administrative Machine. In order to do this they must be identical to each other. They must know: good handwriting, the ability to read, and able to do multiplication, division, mathematics, and subtraction in their heads. Today, school systems still use this same design. In Mitra's eyes the school system is making identical people for this machine that no longer exists. In his opinion the school system is obsolete.
The jobs of the future are not invented today. We do not know the skills that they will need. The school system is not preparing them for these future work forces because they are using the same system they have always used. I think this is very true. Some of the jobs today were not even invented when I started school back in 2001. Therefore, it is a completely sane concept to me that the children that are entering kindergarten today will have jobs that have not even been thought about yet by the time they graduate college. This is where I think the school system is failing to help these kids. Why do kids need to be able to do math in their head if we can reach in our pockets and pull out a calculator in everyday situations? While I think these things are important, I feel we are wasting too much precious time trying to insert them into children's educations. These children need to be better educated in the things that are actually going to help them in their future jobs. Therefore, I believe we need to be teaching them skills, such as technology integration, that are going to help them in their future careers. This would lead to less asking of the question, "When am I ever going to use this in real life?" and kids will begin to see that their education is valuable to them long after they leave the classroom.
Mitra's decided to leave computers in places where kids that would normally not have access to computers would be able to use it. The children were able to teach each other how to use a computer despite not being exposed to one before. I think this is important because it teaches us that these children are wired to be able to use these computers. They are very adaptive and ready to learn how to use this technology. This curiosity can help them be interested in their learning and learn much quicker.
Overall I felt this speaker was interesting and taught me the importance of technology in our present day students learning environment.
Monday, April 23, 2018
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Puzzle Pirates: A Resource for the Classroom?
For this assignment, my boyfriend and I ended up playing puzzle pirates. This is a computer game where you join a group of pirates. You then go around and solve puzzles in order to earn money to purchase items in the game. I chose this game because it was my boyfriend's first multiplayer game that he played as a child. This game was a lot of fun, and even as an adult I enjoyed playing it. I could see elements of this game being helpful in the classroom. For instance, when playing the game you want to solve all of the puzzles so that you can earn the cash to buy things in the game. I could see this being useful because you could replace the puzzles with questions about the information you wanted the students to learn. You could also possibly replace the puzzles with different puzzles that would help the students learn mathematics.
Gaming is effective in the classroom because it helps students learn not only the information they want to learn. It also helps them learn important life skills. During game play, children learn the skill of cooperation. During video games you have a heightened sense of accomplishment. You are asked to problem solve and work together. If you do this successfully, it leaves you feeling good. This can effect my future learning environment, because by playing these types of games in my classroom, my students could learn the importance of working together. This cooperative gaming could lead to them being better cooperative learners. Once they successfully learn to work together in games they can learn how to work together in classrooms as well.
I think gaming can be beneficial to learning environments. It teaches students life skills that they can use in their everyday life. It also can be altered to have actual in game learning abilities. I think cooperative games could add a fun learning resource in the classroom.
Gaming is effective in the classroom because it helps students learn not only the information they want to learn. It also helps them learn important life skills. During game play, children learn the skill of cooperation. During video games you have a heightened sense of accomplishment. You are asked to problem solve and work together. If you do this successfully, it leaves you feeling good. This can effect my future learning environment, because by playing these types of games in my classroom, my students could learn the importance of working together. This cooperative gaming could lead to them being better cooperative learners. Once they successfully learn to work together in games they can learn how to work together in classrooms as well.
I think gaming can be beneficial to learning environments. It teaches students life skills that they can use in their everyday life. It also can be altered to have actual in game learning abilities. I think cooperative games could add a fun learning resource in the classroom.
Friday, February 23, 2018
If its Online It is Forever: Your Digital Citizenship
A digital citizenship is similar to the traditional idea of citizenship because in both cases you are known by how you are coming across. In real life, if you always show up not your best self you will begin to be seen as not a great person to be around. This is similar to online, where if you are constantly posting yourself doing things that are considered poor choices people are going to begin to see you as the type of person that makes poor choices. This can effect if you get hired, who wants to hang out with you and many other aspects of your life. However, unlike a traditional citizenship where you can move away from your problems or change your image, you cannot do this with a digital citizenship. This information will always be there, easily accessible online. This is what makes a digital citizenship more difficult, what you say and do online is permanent. Therefore, you need to be very careful about creating and maintaining a good digital citizenship. Here is a short video describing our digital footprint:
In life, you always want to put your best foot forward when dealing with other people. This helps you get where you want to be in life and make connections that you want to make with other people. It is important that we teach students the importance of presenting yourself in the best light at all times, including when you are online. This is important because we want our students to be able to make their digital footprint the best one they can have. We also want to teach our students the importance of copyright and giving a creator credit for their own work. In real life we would never get up in front of a room of people and say someone else's words, word for word, without giving them credit for it. Why does this happen online? We must teach our students that this is not acceptable behavior and they must always give a creator the credit for their own work.
The teacher should teach the students the importance of copyright and giving credit where credit is due. They also must protect the students from the dangers of the internet by teaching them to be cautious when they are on the internet. I also think teachers should educate students on the dangers of cyber bullying. This is an act that can be extremely damaging for students and leave severe, lifelong consequences. The teacher also must protect the students by making sure they stay on the website and content they are allowed to access, through both blockers and monitoring of computer use when it is being used in the classroom. This will help keep our students safe.
Always remember to take care of your digital footprint and be careful with what you put online. Teachers please teach your students that they need to take care of their digital citizenship. Here is a link to an infographic which will tell you about the laws that surround your students' internet usage. The internet is a powerful tool that can do a lot of good if people remember that once it is on the internet it does not go away.
Citations:
Bray, Ollie. "We All Have a Digital Footprint" Comic. March 20, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2018 from https://www.flickr.com/photos/olliebray/5542813754/in/photostream/.
GDST."Live My Digital for students: Digital Footprint". Online Video Clip. Youtube. 1 July 2016. Web. 23 February 2018.
In life, you always want to put your best foot forward when dealing with other people. This helps you get where you want to be in life and make connections that you want to make with other people. It is important that we teach students the importance of presenting yourself in the best light at all times, including when you are online. This is important because we want our students to be able to make their digital footprint the best one they can have. We also want to teach our students the importance of copyright and giving a creator credit for their own work. In real life we would never get up in front of a room of people and say someone else's words, word for word, without giving them credit for it. Why does this happen online? We must teach our students that this is not acceptable behavior and they must always give a creator the credit for their own work.
The teacher should teach the students the importance of copyright and giving credit where credit is due. They also must protect the students from the dangers of the internet by teaching them to be cautious when they are on the internet. I also think teachers should educate students on the dangers of cyber bullying. This is an act that can be extremely damaging for students and leave severe, lifelong consequences. The teacher also must protect the students by making sure they stay on the website and content they are allowed to access, through both blockers and monitoring of computer use when it is being used in the classroom. This will help keep our students safe.
Always remember to take care of your digital footprint and be careful with what you put online. Teachers please teach your students that they need to take care of their digital citizenship. Here is a link to an infographic which will tell you about the laws that surround your students' internet usage. The internet is a powerful tool that can do a lot of good if people remember that once it is on the internet it does not go away.
Citations:
Bray, Ollie. "We All Have a Digital Footprint" Comic. March 20, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2018 from https://www.flickr.com/photos/olliebray/5542813754/in/photostream/.
GDST."Live My Digital for students: Digital Footprint". Online Video Clip. Youtube. 1 July 2016. Web. 23 February 2018.
Sunday, February 11, 2018
Welcome to the Twitterverse
I have had a twitter for sometime, but I never use it. I ended up creating a new twitter for this class because I felt that I needed a college twitter because my high school one involved a lot of people and organizations that I was no longer interested in following.
For this process I was trying to find a personal learning network that fit my life right now and what I needed to know the most about. I recently started a new position within my sorority where I am in charge of educating the new members on our chapter. I recently went to a leadership conference. However, I felt I did not come home with the ideas that I wanted. Therefore, in searching through twitter to find my personal learning network I looked for Sigma Kappa's, but more specifically, Sigma Kappa chapters as well as other Sigma Kappas with the same position as me.
The topic I searched to find my twitter pages to follow was "Sigma Kappa New Member Education"
This opened me up to getting to see the other New Member Educators. Therefore, I was able to follow them. I did this last semester on instagram with my old position and I got a ton of ideas from just one girl. So I imagine that with these twenty new people and Sigma Kappa chapters that I followed I will be able to get a lot of new ideas.
I plan to sustain this learning environment by regularly checking on it and asking for ideas. I think this will help grow my skills in this area and allow me to pass them down to the officer that takes this position from me. This will also allow me to share my ideas that I think we are doing really well.
Friday, January 26, 2018
SAMR Model: Integrating Technology into the Classroom
The SAMR model is a model that helps teachers observe technology integration in their classroom. The first level is substitution which is where the technology is a direct replacement for the original assignment method with no added functions. The next level is augmentation. This is where students are using technology to complete the same task, however, in augmentation there is some kind of added functionality. The next level is modification. Here the technology completely redesigns pieces of the task. The last level is redefinition. In this one new tasks are created that were once unimaginable. This following video helps show you what this looks like in the classroom:
I think this model is a good one to use because it helps a teacher critique how they are using technology in their classroom. I feel that too often teachers will just hand their students an iPad and expect magic to take place. When I was in high school, we were often asked to take a written response test on a computer. This was frustrating to me because it did not improve the test time at all. We still had to wait just as long to receive our test grades back. Often time there was less feedback given back because the teacher did not want to give us time to access it on the school computers and review what she said.
This model allows for teachers to know how they integrating the technology. Therefore, I think this will allow them to see if it is working. If they find that they are always using substitution maybe they should switch it up and occasionally try to use augmentation or modification. If the students learning begins to approve, they then know that they can aim to use more of those types of technology.
I think this model works and can give teachers a lot of insight as to how to integrate technology into their classroom. It also allows them to observe what is working. However, I think the teacher must be active in discovering what technology is working for their class. Technology can do amazing things in the classroom, but it only adds to the classroom when you are integrating it in an effective way.
Sources:
(2017, June 11). The 4 Stages of EdTech – The SAMR Model for Technology Integration. Retrieved January 26, 2018, from http://lingomedia.com/stages-of-edtech-the-samr-model-for-technology-integration/
Spencer, J. [John Spencer] (2015, November 3) What is the SAMR Model and what does it look like in schools? [Video File] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC5ARwUkVQg
This model allows for teachers to know how they integrating the technology. Therefore, I think this will allow them to see if it is working. If they find that they are always using substitution maybe they should switch it up and occasionally try to use augmentation or modification. If the students learning begins to approve, they then know that they can aim to use more of those types of technology.
I think this model works and can give teachers a lot of insight as to how to integrate technology into their classroom. It also allows them to observe what is working. However, I think the teacher must be active in discovering what technology is working for their class. Technology can do amazing things in the classroom, but it only adds to the classroom when you are integrating it in an effective way.
Sources:
(2017, June 11). The 4 Stages of EdTech – The SAMR Model for Technology Integration. Retrieved January 26, 2018, from http://lingomedia.com/stages-of-edtech-the-samr-model-for-technology-integration/
Spencer, J. [John Spencer] (2015, November 3) What is the SAMR Model and what does it look like in schools? [Video File] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC5ARwUkVQg
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