Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Multimedia Lesson Plan URL
http://ssblas.doodlekit.com
Going Digital
When I first heard about having to make a multimedia lesson plan, I had one idea that I just couldn’t get out of my head; stories being told using Microsoft PowerPoint. I have used this method to tell stories in the past because I would have a big group of student and such a small book. I asked myself “How could they possibly see the pictures in the book?” I know for a fact that one of best parts of a book for children are the pictures and that sometimes the words do not make so much sense without them. I decided that I needed to be able to find a way to enable all the children to see the pictures; scan the book, put it onto a PowerPoint, use a projector as a visual, and I had just created a digital story book.
As defined by Dictionary.com Multimedia is “… relating to the combined use of several media” (Dictionary…). That would mean I’d have to use more than two types of media. I had originally planned on having students create pictures using the Microsoft Paint, but then I realized that it would be difficult to do as a group assignment and that I needed another type of media besides the computer and the projector. I decided to have them take pictures of themselves using digital cameras to use as pictures for the story; they could have fun with it and all group members will be involved. Plus, that would be one more media tool that they will learn to use and operate.
To be honest, I had the idea ready to go in my head, the lesson plan was there, but the scary part for me was creating a web page to showcase my work. I have never made one before so this would be the first. I tried to incorporate as much tools as I could; authorstream.com and a tool that I have just newly discovered called scribd.com. I love this new tool that I have discovered because it enables me to upload Word documents and embed them online. It saved me because the web creator I used, doodlekit, would only allow me to create four pages, not enough for A-S-S-U-R-E, so I had to find a way to post my whole lesson plan on one page and Scribd worked out awesomely.
The National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) for Teachers standard 1A is to “promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness” (International Society…) and through the lesson plan I created, I am doing just that. I am promoting student learning through integrating other subject areas into computer science. I am supporting students in their efforts to work cooperatively and learn as a group. I am modeling creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness by exposing students to different forms of media and enabling them to explore and use these tools to create projects.
I would have never thought that using media in the classroom could sound like so much fun. I am not very computer savvy, but I feel that I have learned a lot in this course and that I could be going digital and soon I will be able to share some knowledge with others, especially my future students. If there is one thing that I have learned through creating this particular lesson plan is that it is very important to discover tools online. I did it and I’m glad that I did, otherwise I would have had a much more difficult time completing this assignment.
Sources Cited:
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). NETS for Teacher 2008. Standard 1A. Retrieved April12, 2009. From International Society for Technology in Education. Website: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm
Dictionary.com. (2009). Dictionary.com. Multimedia. Retrieved April 12, 2009. From Dictionary.com. Website: http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=multimedia
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Group 3: Internet Issues Presentation: Cyber Bullying
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
The Gift of Assistive Technology: Importance of Inclusion
After watching this clip, I realized that I may have one or more students who will be using these types of technology. What will I do? What can I do to help them? I started to ask myself many questions and began to come up with answers. First of all, I need to familiarize myself with different types of disabilities and the kinds of assistive technology that could be used to help them.
Second, I would need to make accommodations for these students and help them to feel that they can be just as independent as their classmates. Just as lesson plans are revised to accommodate all different types of learners, e.g. audio, kinesthetic, visual, they should also be revised to include disabled students. I want to be able to have all my students participate in group activities so that they learn about diversity and that everyone is special in their own way. Inclusion is also very important so that students learn to care and help others.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Stepping Out of the Arts and Crafts Box and into the Computer
I needed to get creative and think harder. I asked myself “What could elementary students count and collect data in which they could input on a digital spreadsheet. I finally came up with the idea of counting money, but then I thought 5th grade students, the grade that I had already decided to base my lesson on, must already know how to count money. Then I realized that I could use their prior knowledge of counting money to teach them something related to money such as budgets. I began to write my lesson with the objectives being the hardest part to complete because I knew that we were going to share our work with the class. I just remembered that objectives should include demonstrative verbs so I researched further on how to make objectives. I came across a site that was very helpful and the line that helped me the most was “Objectives should also be directly measurable.” (Lesson Plans Page) How else would you assess the child if the objective is not measurable?
I was glad to have gotten my head out of the arts and craft box and story books and into the computer instead. The National Educational Technology Standards (NETS•T) for Teachers standard 2A is to “design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity” (International Society…). I finally realized that I will have to learn to create activities that incorporate technology into lessons during this technological time. I am a firm believer of creative arts and I am now a believer that students can be as creative with a computer as they are with crayons, markers, and paint.
Sources Cited:
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). NETS for Teacher 2008. Standard 2A. Retrieved February 15, 2009. From International Society for Technology in Education. Website: http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_for_Teachers_2008.htm
Lesson Plans Page. (February 12, 2009). 10 Steps To Developing A Quality Lesson Plan. Retrieved February 15, 2009. From lessonplanspage.com. Website: http://www.lessonplanspage.com/WriteLessonPlan.htm
