Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Week 9: Educational Topic
The educational topic I choose to write about is home schooling. Most of us, as teachers don't really think about homeschooling because its something we will not have to face. I got started thinking about homeschooling because of a TV that I was watching. A sophomore in high school was not social, and wanted to be at home instead of in the normal social setting of a school. For the young girl homeschooling at first was a way to be isolated, which she enjoyed. She started asking her family for help on her assignments and when they were not willing to help her out (because they disagreed with the homeschooling situation) she began to relate her science project to her own personal life. It was evident that she read the material she needed to in order to complete the task and made it relevant to her life. I know this was just an episode from a TV show but it actually opened my eyes to the positive sides of homeschooling. I think it really can be beneficial for students who don't feel welcome in the social settings of the classroom. It can also make the material feel more relevant if they can connect it to their home/personal life. I think homeschooling could be beneficially for students who are consistently being bullied in school. Although I don't think homeschooling is all positive, the show made me see the good side to it, and made me feel more open to those who believe it is the best choice for them.
Monday, April 11, 2011
1 to 1 computing
I found this article very interesting and a little bit surprising. I have grown up with laptops being accessible in my classroom, and never found it to be a big deal. In high school we had several rooms with computers and of course the basic computer labs we could go to, but we also had laptops for the entire class that was delivered on the day that our teacher checked them out. I found the laptops to be useful; however this was at least six years ago so the technology wasn’t as great, or as fast. We did have problems with them but I think that was just because the concept was new. I’m sure they are more efficient now. The article stated that the study found “improvements on student engagement; however I am not fully sure I would agree with this statement. Yes, students are able to connect more with the material, but I also think having laptops can cause some students to become off topic while surfing around on the internet. Giving students laptops and more advanced technologies comes with both positives and negative aspects. It gives active learners a chance to become active while learning, but it can also distract those students who have trouble staying on task. Another important piece of the article that I really liked was that it said simply adding technologies and laptops into a classroom won’t do all the work; the way of instructing has to correlate with the technology in order for 1 to 1 computing to work to its full potential. I think 1 to 1 computing can work great in certain aspects, like research projects as they discussed in the article; however, I think it can also hinder different learning styles. I know personally I don’t learn as well from a computer, I need to hand write the material in order to soak it in. I have never brought my laptop to class to take notes on. It just doesn’t do anything for me. So if I had this program in my school all day, every day, it would not be beneficial for my learning. I would have to do more work outside of class to simple catch up to the day’s work that was done on the computer. I think laptops should be provided for those students who want them, but I don’t think it needs to be integrated into every subject, or project in the classroom. And I don’t believe it should be a mandatory program for schools. Furthermore, I think if schools want to incorporate 1 to 1 computing into their classrooms there needs to be a class or instructional course for teachers to learn how to properly design lessons around the technologies to get the most out of their lesson. I think having this program could cause some instructors to become lazy and think the students will teach themselves with the computers. This idea is something I fully disagree with. I think computers are a great tool, but don’t think they are a teacher, nor should be.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Google Doc
This week we had to create a google doc and create a resume for our peers to review. This task was easily for me because I already had my resume for the college of education saved on my computer so I was easily able to copy and past it into my google doc. (with of course some editing) Google docs are a great resource and allows several people to work on a document at the same time, allowing easy access for everyone involved. I thought creating the doc. was simply enough however I am still having trouble figuring out how to edit and see other peoples docs. I just posted my resume and have yet to get feedback on it, so once my peers start commenting I am sure I will be able to figure it out and it will begin to come easy. I really love the idea behind Google docs, its a great tool to have as a teacher. I think it would work great if teachers in the same school posted lesson plans and had fellow teachers comment and make changes to create an even better lesson plan. It would be a great place to also create a portfolio of lesson plans that other teachers (ones that you give access to) to see them as well. Google docs also work great from the student perspective; group projects will become easier to manage. Not everyone will have to get together in order to work on the project. Its all online for everything to see and make progress on!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
New technology
The new technology I decided to research and learn more about is the online work page, Prezi. I have never heard of it until I was in class last week when a friend told me about this new online presentation board that someone used in another one of her classes. The way she described the website sparked my interest and I knew I wanted to learn more about it. When I went to the website www.prezi.com I was a little confused about what to actually do, or even what a prezi really was. As it turns out, after you sign up by giving your name and email address a video clip pop ups and explains how to work prezi. I really loved this idea, because it can be a confusing online site to follow and use. Whats great about prezi is that it is actually fun to design and put things on the website in a creative manner. Unlike power point, where you can only manipulate the words and pictures in so many ways, prezi allows you total control of the visual appeal.
The idea of prezi is hard to put into words, but it is an online presentation tool that can be used for all types of presentations. This new, or at least new to me, technology allows total control for designers. There are different levels to prezi, one in which is free. This is the one I explored. The board, or work space you have is infinite, which allows you to put as much, or as little information on the page as you would like. It is so versatile; moms can use it to keep recipes on and share with their friends, along with business professionals for introducing new ideas to a company. There are tools on the page that allow you to easily move, size, rotate, and change fonts and color. It has so many tools that allow users to create the image they are looking for. The only thing that I find troublesome with prezi is that it is not very organized or structured. I could see students who were learning from a prezi may get lost, or distracted. However, I think it is a very fun and new way of presenting information and students would respond to it.
In case any of you were interested in looking at a prezi, here is a the link to it!
http://prezi.com/
The idea of prezi is hard to put into words, but it is an online presentation tool that can be used for all types of presentations. This new, or at least new to me, technology allows total control for designers. There are different levels to prezi, one in which is free. This is the one I explored. The board, or work space you have is infinite, which allows you to put as much, or as little information on the page as you would like. It is so versatile; moms can use it to keep recipes on and share with their friends, along with business professionals for introducing new ideas to a company. There are tools on the page that allow you to easily move, size, rotate, and change fonts and color. It has so many tools that allow users to create the image they are looking for. The only thing that I find troublesome with prezi is that it is not very organized or structured. I could see students who were learning from a prezi may get lost, or distracted. However, I think it is a very fun and new way of presenting information and students would respond to it.
In case any of you were interested in looking at a prezi, here is a the link to it!
http://prezi.com/
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Lesson Plan
Grade: Kindergarten
Topic: Social Studies
Title: Sequences of Life Stages
Lesson Objectives: Students will demonstrate the knowledge skills they learned through the lesson by creating a time line of their family members by identifying who is the oldest and youngest.
Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCEs): K-H2.0.2 Create a timeline using events from their own lives (e.g., birth, crawling, walking, loss of first tooth, first day of school).
Rationale: I’m teaching this lesson because it’s important for students to be able to think critically about order and sequence of events. As these students move up in the educational system they will be expected to understand why and how things fall in a chronological order. For example if students do not have the tools they need to mentally put things in order, exampling history and reading novels will be extremely difficult for them. It’s more important for them to practice seeing things and understanding why and how things fall in a sequence order.
Timelines in one way or another are used in every subject matter, and it’s vital for students to recognize the clues presented in order to mentally put things in order. Learning how to put images into a chronological order is an important skill to have, and vital for later learning. Students will be asked to put and draw images of humans into a chronological order starting from the past, and working to what future images will look like. Students will be learning how to make the connection between images and the timeline of events.
Materials:
• Life Stages worksheet
• Scissors
• Glue
• Crayons/markers
• 5x7 note cards
• Construction paper
• The children’s book When I Grow Up by Merce Mayer.
Lesson Procedures:
Introduction
(5 minutes)
I will ask students to sit in a circle at the rug in the back of the room.
After they are situated I will tell them what they are going to learn about. “Today we are going to talk about putting things in a certain order. Can anyone explain what the word “order” means?” (wait for a response and go from there)
Students will move from the tables to the back of the room and sit on the big rug. The rug has every letter of the alphabet on it, and each student is assigned to a letter and they always sit on that particular letter during rug time.
Activity 1: Reading a book
(7 minutes)
After students talk about what order means I will explain that we put people in order according to their age, and ask for them to give me examples.
I will then read When I Grow Up by Merce Mayer. This is a way to introduce to topic of present and future in a way that is engaging to students.
Students will be sitting on their letters while listening to me read the story.
Activity 2: Discuss
(5 minutes)
I will then explain that this book shows examples of the present and future and discuss with the class what these words mean. “The present means that something is happening right now, for example you guys are in kindergarten right now therefore that would be an example of something that is happening in the present. The future means it hasn’t happened yet, but will happen later on. Just like in the story, the little girl was unable to do some things right now, which is the present, but one day will be able to do it, that’s the future!” I will then ask the class if anyone knows what the opposite of the future is. Depending on students responses I will then go into detail about what the past means “it’s something that has already happened. For example, your third birthday happened a long time ago, that means it happened in the past.” I will allow students to ask questions for clarification.
As I go over the new vocabulary I will write them on the board so they can visually see what these words look like. Although they will not be expected to remember the spelling or learn to read them, exposure to new words is always beneficial.
Activity 3: Worksheet
(5 minutes)
To get students attention back on me I will use an attention grabber that my CT uses “1, 2, 3, eyes on me (students respond) 1, 2, eyes on you.”
After I have their attention, worksheets will be handed out to students, and will be explained. I will have a similar worksheet, same concept just with different pictures to give students an idea of what they will be doing.
After showing my worksheet to the students and explain what to do for their “you have to put the pictures in order from youngest to oldest. Use the clues we talked about to figure out which one is the youngest, and which one is the oldest.”
I will then ask students if they have any other questions and allow them to get to work.
This activity involves using scissors and glue; something students need more practice using. I will ask the class “how do we handle scissors” and let them talk about the do’s and don’ts when working with scissors. (This could prevent any injuries form occurring.)
Activity four: Incorporating Technology
After students show me they understand the concepts of life sequence, I ask them to use Google and find images of animals that also show life sequences. After they find images of animals, they will need to print them out and put them in order like they did on the worksheet. Then as a class we will discuss the animals as a class we will pick a few animals to explore future. With the animals we pick we will use Google Earth to see what their habitats look like. This will introduce students to Google Earth.
Topic: Social Studies
Title: Sequences of Life Stages
Lesson Objectives: Students will demonstrate the knowledge skills they learned through the lesson by creating a time line of their family members by identifying who is the oldest and youngest.
Grade Level Content Expectations (GLCEs): K-H2.0.2 Create a timeline using events from their own lives (e.g., birth, crawling, walking, loss of first tooth, first day of school).
Rationale: I’m teaching this lesson because it’s important for students to be able to think critically about order and sequence of events. As these students move up in the educational system they will be expected to understand why and how things fall in a chronological order. For example if students do not have the tools they need to mentally put things in order, exampling history and reading novels will be extremely difficult for them. It’s more important for them to practice seeing things and understanding why and how things fall in a sequence order.
Timelines in one way or another are used in every subject matter, and it’s vital for students to recognize the clues presented in order to mentally put things in order. Learning how to put images into a chronological order is an important skill to have, and vital for later learning. Students will be asked to put and draw images of humans into a chronological order starting from the past, and working to what future images will look like. Students will be learning how to make the connection between images and the timeline of events.
Materials:
• Life Stages worksheet
• Scissors
• Glue
• Crayons/markers
• 5x7 note cards
• Construction paper
• The children’s book When I Grow Up by Merce Mayer.
Lesson Procedures:
Introduction
(5 minutes)
I will ask students to sit in a circle at the rug in the back of the room.
After they are situated I will tell them what they are going to learn about. “Today we are going to talk about putting things in a certain order. Can anyone explain what the word “order” means?” (wait for a response and go from there)
Students will move from the tables to the back of the room and sit on the big rug. The rug has every letter of the alphabet on it, and each student is assigned to a letter and they always sit on that particular letter during rug time.
Activity 1: Reading a book
(7 minutes)
After students talk about what order means I will explain that we put people in order according to their age, and ask for them to give me examples.
I will then read When I Grow Up by Merce Mayer. This is a way to introduce to topic of present and future in a way that is engaging to students.
Students will be sitting on their letters while listening to me read the story.
Activity 2: Discuss
(5 minutes)
I will then explain that this book shows examples of the present and future and discuss with the class what these words mean. “The present means that something is happening right now, for example you guys are in kindergarten right now therefore that would be an example of something that is happening in the present. The future means it hasn’t happened yet, but will happen later on. Just like in the story, the little girl was unable to do some things right now, which is the present, but one day will be able to do it, that’s the future!” I will then ask the class if anyone knows what the opposite of the future is. Depending on students responses I will then go into detail about what the past means “it’s something that has already happened. For example, your third birthday happened a long time ago, that means it happened in the past.” I will allow students to ask questions for clarification.
As I go over the new vocabulary I will write them on the board so they can visually see what these words look like. Although they will not be expected to remember the spelling or learn to read them, exposure to new words is always beneficial.
Activity 3: Worksheet
(5 minutes)
To get students attention back on me I will use an attention grabber that my CT uses “1, 2, 3, eyes on me (students respond) 1, 2, eyes on you.”
After I have their attention, worksheets will be handed out to students, and will be explained. I will have a similar worksheet, same concept just with different pictures to give students an idea of what they will be doing.
After showing my worksheet to the students and explain what to do for their “you have to put the pictures in order from youngest to oldest. Use the clues we talked about to figure out which one is the youngest, and which one is the oldest.”
I will then ask students if they have any other questions and allow them to get to work.
This activity involves using scissors and glue; something students need more practice using. I will ask the class “how do we handle scissors” and let them talk about the do’s and don’ts when working with scissors. (This could prevent any injuries form occurring.)
Activity four: Incorporating Technology
After students show me they understand the concepts of life sequence, I ask them to use Google and find images of animals that also show life sequences. After they find images of animals, they will need to print them out and put them in order like they did on the worksheet. Then as a class we will discuss the animals as a class we will pick a few animals to explore future. With the animals we pick we will use Google Earth to see what their habitats look like. This will introduce students to Google Earth.
Digital Story Explanation
For my digital storytelling I decided to tell a story about myself with images of me that have helped define my college career. While some of the images do not pertain to my life here at MSU, every image in the storyboard was taken while I was a student here. Every image has a special memory attached to it, which is why I choice these particular images. My life here at MSU has really helped define who I am as a person, and I feel as though I am ready to go out into the world on my own and make a name for myself, and these pictures give you a glimpse into this life changing experiences I have had here. I think this would be a good tool to use in the classroom to help students and or parents get to know me and where I am coming from. Building a sound classroom community it vital for learners, and I believe if teachers open up and show students they are like them students will be better able to relate to them and feel more comfortable in the classroom.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)