Blog Post # 11

 

Little Kids...Big Potential By: Ms. Cassidy

In this video, Ms. Cassidy's first grade class is talking about their personal blogs and their class website. The kids tell the people watching about all of the technological tools they use in their classroom. They made videos about the alphabet and put them on Wiki. They also watched videos on the alphabet that other students had done. These kids also got to Skype with kids from other classrooms. It is amazing how much the kids knew about every technological source they used during class and they enjoyed all of them. I like how Ms. Cassidy allows the kids to speak in the video. It really lets the people who are watching realize everything that the kids are learning.

Skype Interview with Ms. Cassidy Part 1, 2, and 3

I really like Ms. Cassidy's technological approach in her first grade classroom. I agree with her answer to Dr. Strange's question about technology going away. She said that technology is definitely not going away and things that worked in the classroom twenty years ago do not work anymore. We as teachers have so many more opportunities for learning about technology now than we used to. The internet has everything.
Ms. Cassidy also said that being in college is the best time to learn about technology and how you want to teach it in your future classroom. I do agree with this because when we start teaching we will need to know how and what we are going to teach.
Ms. Cassidy believes that blogs are great because kids will have an audience other than her. I completely agree with her statement. In my future classroom blogs will be one of the first things I try to set up for this reason. The kids will enjoy getting feedback from people all over the world instead of just me.
The one thing that I saw that would be different between what Ms. Cassidy's approach to technology is and what mine will be is her not having much technology in her personal life. I plan to have technology in my personal life and in my classroom. I will just have to separate the two. The world is advancing too quickly not to incorporate technology in every aspect of your life.
The benefits of Ms. Cassidy's approach to technology are endless. She allows her students so many learning opportunities. She has taught me in just three videos how important using technology with elementary students, or any students for that matter, is. Here is the link to her class website:Ms. Cassidy's Classroom Blog

October's C4K Assignment

C4K # 1

The kid I had was Elisa from Mr. Gwaltney's class at an online high school for girls. Her blog post was titled "The First "C"." Her online school uses three C's that build the philosophy of educating young women. The three C's are: Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity. The "C" that Elisa focused on in this blog post was Communication. She talked about how much she enjoyed blogging and the advantages and disadvantages it has. Then she gave some recommendations to teachers who would like to start a class blog. I commented and told her that blogging has opened up a whole new internet world for me and I like it. I also let her know how good her recommendations were for me as a future teacher.

C4K # 2

The kid I had this week was Mari from Mrs. Hartoon's Science class. Mari's blog post title was "Pop! (Minus the snap 'n crackle plus a scream)" She talked about one of her favorite days in Science class when they had popcorn and her and one of her friends got embarrassed because an unexpected popcorn kernel popped and they screamed. I commented on her post and told her that everyone has embarrassing moments. I also told her I wished my Science teacher would let us have popcorn, but that is probably not going to happen since I am a college student!

C4K # 3

The kid I had this week was Dhillon from Mr. So's 2nd grade class in Canada. His blog post was titled "Family Tree Story." He created a paragraph telling his family tree. Dhillon listed all of the relatives he knows right now including his grandparents. I told him that I was impressed with how much he knew about his family and that I really enjoyed all of his information.

C4K # 4
This week I had a girl named Giselle from Mrs. Geldes's class in Nebraska. Her blog post was titled "Jackal Lanterns." She told the story of how Jack O Lanterns got their name. She said when you put them outside your door they are supposed to keep bad spirits away. She asked what kind of pumpkins her readers had carved and told of some that she had carved. I commented and told her that I did not know the story of how Jack O Lanterns got their name until reading her blog post. I also told her about what some of the pumpkins I have carved looked like!

C4T Number Three

Comment # 1

This week I had Edna Sackson and the title of her blog was " Planning in Response to Learning." In this post, Edna talked about different ways to ask questions or inquire in your classroom as a teacher. Edna visited some classrooms and gave examples on how different teachers use inquiry in their classrooms. Something that Edna said that really stuck with me was, "We're constantly trying to improve at listening to learning-observing and recording students' thinking. then planning responsively from there...like the kinder teachers do." I commented and let her know how informative this blog post was for me and how much I really enjoyed it altogether.

Comment # 2
Edna's blog post this week was titled "In the Picture..." One of her colleagues sent her an image of kids learning for her to incorporate into a presentation she is doing for parents. She listed practices in teaching and learning which she felt this picture showed. My favorite practice that Edna felt this picture showed was " We learn in different ways, depending on abilities, preferences, and interests." I commented and told her that I knew her presentation would turn out great because she had so many good parts to her blog post. I also told her what my favorite practice she mentioned was.

Project # 14

BLog Post # 10

What can we learn about teaching and learning from Randy Pausch?

I believe that I really learned how to enable the learning of my future students from Randy Pausch. I learned that it is okay to have a dream that you are working towards and not accomplish it. This is a topic I will have to cover while teaching my class. For example, little Johnny from second grade may want to be a NASCAR driver when he grows up. I would encourage him that although that is a wonderful goal to have, NASCAR has so many other things that you can do other than just be a driver. This will allow students not to be so disappointed if they do not reach the exact goal that they have. Randy gave many examples of goals that he did not and did accomplish. He grew from his goals whether he accomplished them or not and I feel like this would be something good to teach students. If you give them an assignment and they do not reach the exact goal that you have for them, let them know that is okay because this is a learning process.
I was also very into Randy's classroom exhibition. It was so interesting to me how people made all of these animated things move around and speak. Students were able to create their own world and I know that this really encouraged them in their high technology course. This enabled them to bond and work together to create something wonderful. I will definitely be incorporating this mind set into my elementary school classroom. All of the subjects that I cover will allow the students to work together, learn, and have fun.
I loved Randy's whole lecture. It is amazing to me how uplifting he is considering his condition. Here is the video and I encourage you to watch it and be as inspired as I was:


Blog Post By: Malary Booker

Blog Post # 9

Collaborative Blog Post # 9 By: Malary Booker, Sarah Barnett, and Lauren Bradley



1. Video Titled: “Back to the Future” by Brian Crosby

Mr. Brian Crosby’s class is made up mostly of poor kids. He showed us in his video that no matter where you come from you will learn something if taught the right way. Mr. Crosby did a lot of projects with his fourth grade class. Each project was videoed and embedded into each of the students’ blogs. Then the students would write a summary of how each project was accomplished on their blog page. One project they did was to send a giant balloon up into the air . This was Science project, but Mr. Crosby incorporated History into it as well by studying the history of ballooning with his class. The class then had a 25 question multiple choice test on the project from everything they had learned.
Mr. Crosby also incorporated Language Arts into this project by telling the students to write a story from beginning to end in the balloon’s point of view and tell where the balloon went, what the balloon did, and where the balloon landed. We really like how Mr. Crosby used one project and incorporated it into every subject. This is definitely something we all agree would be good to do in our future classrooms. We think that using projects to teach kids different subjects is a great way to get them to fully understand what you need them to learn. Mr. Crosby is a great teacher and future teachers can really learn something from him.

2. Video Titled: “Blended Learning Cycle” by Paul Henderson

Paul Henderson is a AP science teacher and a “learning through technology” enthusiast. In this video he explains his version of blended learning; then explains how successful it has been in his classroom. When Mr. Henderson created this version of the blended learning cycle, he simply combined two models; one being Blended learning and two being the learning cycle. He used a venn diagram to illustrate blended learning. It consisted of 1.) Online, 2.) Classroom and 3.) Mobile; when you combine each piece you then get blended learning. Now the cycle in blended learning cycle comes from the learning cycle model.


The learning cycle model consist of five E’s. First you Engage your students with a question. From there your students will be able to explore the said question, explain it, expand upon it, then evaluate what they have learned. Engage, explore, explain, expand and evaluate. This learning cycle is a great way to present material with your class.

Now when you mix the two together you get the Blended Learning Cycle. The Blending Learning Cycle consist of all the components or Blended Learning and the Learning Cycle.



Now we are going to elaborate on the Blended Learning Cycle. Mr. Henderson uses an acronym for remembering the steps of the Blended Learning Cycle and it goes by QU.I.V.E.R.S. The QU stands for question. Start with a question that the students are able to make predictions about and gets their interest (Also called the “Hook”). Next you want the students to investigate, experiment and inquire more about the question. Then you use a video or video podcast to make lessons. This way instead of lecturing your students you can upload the video and make it available to students at any time.
Next we have elaboration. This is the part where you encourage finding more information to support your answer, using any tools imaginable. Share with the students why this information is important and relevant to their everyday lives. When they are done with that they move on to the review. For Mr. Hendersons review, he breaks the class up into groups and asks questions and reinforce learning, check their understanding. They cannot move onto the next step until he is sure they know what they are talking about. Last but not least is the Summary Quiz. If they do not understand the material you must take steps backs. After they have completed the learning cycle about 5-10 times there is a good old fashion hand written exam where they have to show what they have learned.
When you are using quivers you are starting from a question and breaking down the learning process. Mr. Henderson said this blended learning cycle is working excellent so far, that he feels more involved in the classroom and returned to some old roots of starting with really good questions. So here we see just another example of blended learning and how it can improve the learning experience. This video just goes to show that you can create any type of learning cycle you want, and customized and personalize it to your classroom.

3. Video titled: “Making Thinking Visible” By: Mark Church



Mr. Church got his students to work in small groups based on the topic “early human beginnings of early origin of society”, they had been discussing about their ancestors and backgrounds. The students were to then discuss and decide on a headline that explains what the topic is all about. Once, they figured their headline out; Mr. Church gave them a paper to write it on. The students were to discuss and analyze; in the phrase they were to explain the question “How?”. The next step was to share their headline with class and explain in three words why they chose it. Mr. Church would then take all the papers up and place on a bulletin board for all students to see. The students will do this same assignment in 2 weeks and then explain how their headline has changed in a 2 week period.
We all loved this video and thought Mr. Church did a wonderful job explaining the lesson. The children seemed to be very engaged in the assignment. They also looked like they were having fun too. We feel that we learned some valuable information from Mr. Church and we will definitely use it when we all becomes teachers.

C4T # 2

C4T # 2, Comment # 1

The teacher I had was John Burke. The title of his blog post was " CVPM Buggy Lab with Computational Modeling." I am really not into any of this stuff, but I did find his post to be very informative if it were to be something that I enjoy. He talked about a buggy lab experiment that incorporated the use of Physics. I commented and told him that Physics is really not my strong point, but his post was very informative if I enjoyed Physics and projects involving Physics.

C4T # 2, Comment # 2

John Burke had no new blog posts since the last one I commented on. I looked back on one he wrote titled "Profile of a Visionary First Faculty Day." This post was pretty much a shout out to Mt. Vernon Presbyterian School for how they welcomed his fellow teacher friend. The school has an opening day for faculty members that is unreal. He showed pictures of the room where they met and there was neon lights and a big screen TV. They gave the teachers a list of goals and expectations that they hope to reach for that school year. It was very impressive. I commented and told him I hope the school that I teach at one day is as awesome and organized as this one is.

Blog Post # 8

21st Century Learning and Communicating Tools - Collaborative Post By: Malary Booker, Sarah Barnett, and Lauren Bradley

As educators and even individuals we are consistently finding and inventing new ways to make things run a little more effective. I had a teacher once tell me that every invention was made to make something easier. Think about how far inventions have come; starting with the creation of the first ever “wheel” to where they are now. Or even consider the technology that were in use during the 1980’s compared to today’s present technology. If we can learn anything from these examples it’s that technology and innovation are moving fast. It is no longer an argument that students in the 21st century classroom have no choice whether they want to be exposed to technology or not; they simply are born into this society.
So now we are left with little or no choice but to give into the ever changing demands of modern technology and manipulate it in a way to our advantage...which has simply become known as the 21st century classroom. But what about being in the 2000’s that makes a classroom “21st century worthy”? Is it simply the use of technology in the classroom? Or is because the students are technologically literate? Or could it even be both or more? Our group, as well as Dr. Strange, have searched and found you guys some 21st century learning and communication tools using technology that makes way for modern effective instruction and a more technology friendly classroom..
I’m sure you have all heard about iCurio through our EDM 310 blogs as well as some other sites that promote learning through an online or technological source. So we are here today to tell you about some new tools we have found to add to your students 21st century classroom experience.

The first site we are here to tell you about is www.edmodo.com. Edmodo is a social network learning website for teachers, students, and also parents that enables learners to connect with the people, resources, and information needed to reach their full potential. It is thought of as an online commonly (ex. Facebook.com) of schools, as called by students, teachers and parents alike. Where better than to start than an social network site dedicated fully to learning?! With edmodo reaching information is painless and you can easily search through educators to find learning experiences personalized to you and your classroom.
Another awesome feature about edmodo.com, is you are able to track student progress All grades, assignment, and activities are awarded through Edmodo are stored within the website and can be easily accessed. Teachers can get the status of their classrooms by the students reactions to quizzes, assignments, discussions, activities and posts that demonstrate understanding, confusion, or fallacies.
Edmodo is also equipped with hundreds of educational apps. You and your students can pick and choose the apps you want for your own page and personalize those as you choose and use them for interactive lessons or activities in your classroom. The only fallacy I can find so far about this website is just a minor speed bump. You as a teacher, your school, or your classroom must acquire an activation code before you can create an account. Otherwise you are on your way to quick and easy learning, sharing, and researching with thousands of other educators or fellow students.


Above are some snapshot from the Edmodo website that give you some insight on how it is set up.

Use Edmodo.com as a way to stay connected with your students. Edmodo.com is a great way to give your students a jumpstart to usung research and tasks through technology. Use it to connect with other educators or classroom around the world to learn about different cultures and different ways to approach teaching and learning. Use it to create a diverse idea of interactive and engaging lesson plans. Remember, think of it as a Facebook, only dedicated to learning; just imagine the possibilities!




The second tool we want to discuss is #PTchat, or Parent-Teacher chat. Parent-Teacher Chat is a weekly Twitter chat where parents and teachers around the world come together using hashtag #PTchat. This chat helps parents and teachers become open as a group to questions and concerns they may have. The chat starts every Wednesday around 9pm EDT. A topic is chosen every week and parents, teachers, and school leaders are able to give their opinion on each topic .
We believe that this is such a helpful tool for teachers as well as parents. Teachers will be able to extend they PLN, or Personal Learning Network. Parents will be able to show their support and raise questions to teachers all over the world. As a future teacher or parent, please use this tool to your advantage. It will help you grow both individually and professionally.





The third tool is ABC Teach. ABC Teach is a website with a ton of free course materials and documents. There are over 5,000 different activities for students. We thought this website would be perfect for teachers new and old. All you do is find a subject/category that you want; then look for more specific categories within the main category list. We all feel that this resource is very useful and that all teachers should use this at some point in their career. I hope you all find it as interesting as us and will use this awesome tool.

Podcast Project # 9

Collaborative Podcast Project
By: Sarah Barnett, Malary Booker, and Lauren Bradley

Project # 2 Progress Report

My Personal Learning Network Progress Report By: Malary Booker

Creating my own PLN, or Personal Learning Network, was easier than I imagined it would be. I used the tool called Symbaloo. All you do is plug in all of your favorite tools and resources that you feel will be helpful to you as a teacher. A couple of websites that I chose are "The Teaching Channel" and "You Tube." The Teaching Channel is a website where teachers post different things and resources that may be helpful to future or fellow teachers. You Tube is where I will be getting most of the videos to help me with my lesson plans for my future classroom. I believe I am creating a nice little PLN now. I will continue to add to it and it will be an awesome tool that I will use as a second grade teacher!

Blog Post # 7

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Collaborative Group Assignment By: Malary Booker, Sarah Barnett, and Lauren Bradley

VIDEO 1:

One of the things that Anthony Capps really put into perspective was exactly what project based learning is all about. In his first video Capps told us that when carrying out the processes of project based learning students are creating something as they discover knowledge. The goal is to create a project with the content needed for learning within and throughout the project. Project based learning should relate to the real world and be relevant to students lives.
A great example of project based learning comes from one of Anthony Capps third grade classes. He and his students were learning about how women are now allowed to fight in combat. The students were to write a letter to the Congressmen Joe Bonner about their opinions on this subject. But, not before they got involved and formed opinions of their own through a project.
The students were to research using anything from iCurio to a book. They were to find a female or minority history figure that demonstrated success and that rose above challenges; such as the first female astronaut. They could also interview a family member or friend who served in war. Then they can go and use the information and decide whether they think it is appropriate. Then reflect on each others letters. While students are performing PBL they are also also meeting many social studies, writing, and reading standards.

VIDEO 2: In the second video with Anthony Capp’s, he discussed with us one of his favorite, effective PBL activities yet. His class was studying culture, specifically the culture in Afghanistan. His class was to search using iCurio for text, images, movies, activities and create an educational video of their own. Some students focused on food, some fashion, religion, warfare, or a blend of all. Third graders were using iMovie like a pro!!
The outcome of passion from this project was phenomenal. He discussed with us the reactions of his students, his colleagues, his principal and all his other “bosses”. He says students love project based learning. They are invested and engaged in their projects; and when they are engaged, they are learning. The only times the project receives negative feedback is when there is an fallace in collaboration. Principals, teachers and parents are enthralled with high approval ratings. With project based learning you are going to get more than you expect. Dont limit your students, create an opportunity for them to go beyond your expectations.

VIDEO 3:

In this video Capp’s discusses with us iCurio and why it is so effective in the classroom. iCurio allows students to safely search the web. iCurio has been curated through professionals and through educators and has been created for educational uses only. Another part of iCurio that is effective for classrooms is it allows students to search not only text, but videos, audio, images, you name it...even the standards at any grade level! Students are becoming more engaged and given more than one aspect of learning. Another thing iCruio contributes to the classroom is practicing organization, not only in the real world but organizing through technology or virtual organization.



By: Malary Booker“Don’t Teach Tech-Use It”: by Anthony Capps and Dr. Strange

I agree with what Anthony Capps says about technology. The world is advancing in technology every day and it must be incorporated into our curriculum when we start teaching. Dr. Strange was correct when he said that it probably takes less time for third graders to learn how to use iMovie then it does for his EDM 310 students. Children are able to learn so much faster at such a young age now. Anthony chooses one technology at a time to use in his class week by week so that the students are not overwhelmed with a lot at one time. I believe that this really is a great teaching strategy. Students will be using technology for the rest of their lives, so it is important for them to learn how to use it and incorporate into their daily lives while they are young.



BLOG POST BY: MALARY BOOKER

Project # 13

Lesson Plan for Second Grade English and Language Arts
By: Malary Booker, Sarah Barnett, and Lauren Bradley

This lesson plan is for second grade teachers who need a project to do for the English/Language Arts portion of their class. The kids will create their own Google Presentation of whatever book you choose. For our lesson plan we chose the book by Arnold Lobel titled:"Frog and Toad Together." We hope you enjoy this helpful tool!

Here is the link to our website which has our lesson plan overview, calendar, and rubric: EDM310 Group Site