Sunday, October 31, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Technology at my field placement
Today when I was at my field placement I helped a boy use spellingcity.com. Every week the students in the classroom have spelling words that they need to put into spell city. Spell city will help them learn the word by making sentences and playing games. It also helps the students find the meaning of the word, and then test the students on the words. I think it is a really good program for children, especially special education students, because they love working on the computers. It is something that they really enjoy doing and they are learning at the same time.
If you want to check it out click here
If you want to check it out click here
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Lesson Plan
Today and tomorrow I am going to go to class thinking about what kind of lesson plan I want to do. Today I learned how to use Prezi and I realized that it is something that might be a fun way for students to learn. I could develop a history lesson or a language arts lesson on Prezi.
I was thinking about teaching special education students about sound letter knowledge. Something I have learned from my field placement is that many students know all of their letters, but they don't understand that a each letter has at least one sound. I might make a prezi or any video with all of the sounds that we have in English. For example, I would put CH and then have the sound that CH makes playing.
This is something that could be simply done with flash cards and a teacher saying the sounds, but it might be a more fun way for the students to learn. Children now a days LOVE technology and I think this way will help them stay engaged. This is just an idea in my head. I may not use this because when I am given an assignment I like to think for a few days on what I really want to do.
I was thinking about teaching special education students about sound letter knowledge. Something I have learned from my field placement is that many students know all of their letters, but they don't understand that a each letter has at least one sound. I might make a prezi or any video with all of the sounds that we have in English. For example, I would put CH and then have the sound that CH makes playing.
This is something that could be simply done with flash cards and a teacher saying the sounds, but it might be a more fun way for the students to learn. Children now a days LOVE technology and I think this way will help them stay engaged. This is just an idea in my head. I may not use this because when I am given an assignment I like to think for a few days on what I really want to do.
PREZI
I picked to do a video on Chicago because learning about the arcitecture in the city is something I really enjoyed learning about and it is something that i think is useful for my students to learn about. I could contribute my story into a geography lesson or even a lesson on buildings in the United States, being sure to include the event of September 11th.
I really like Prezi because the layout is really cool. It is a modern looking layout and I think a lot of students would enjoy learning from a layout like that. It was my first time using Prezi and it was very easy to use. They had videos on the website that I watched that really helped me understand Prezi more.
Some disadvantages to Prezi are that I could not tell if I was saving my story or not. I would click save then would exit the page and my pictures would not be there. Another thing I did not like about it was that it was a new technology to me, so it was something I had to get used to. I had to get used to uploading the picture and being able to resize it and move it around.
I really like Prezi because the layout is really cool. It is a modern looking layout and I think a lot of students would enjoy learning from a layout like that. It was my first time using Prezi and it was very easy to use. They had videos on the website that I watched that really helped me understand Prezi more.
Some disadvantages to Prezi are that I could not tell if I was saving my story or not. I would click save then would exit the page and my pictures would not be there. Another thing I did not like about it was that it was a new technology to me, so it was something I had to get used to. I had to get used to uploading the picture and being able to resize it and move it around.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
JOB CARDS in my field placement
Every week during my field placement the class I am in does job cards. The teacher makes a job card specific to all of her students. There are several jobs on that card for example: read aloud, read silent, sound cards, word cards, vocabulary words, journal entry, and several more jobs. Each student’s card is different because each student is at different reading and writing levels. These students love doing theses job cards and are really motivated to get the jobs done. On the day that I go when they finish 10 jobs they are able to go to gym. If they do not finish 10 jobs, then they have to stay back and keep working. At first it seemed weird to me because maybe these students are not trying hard on their jobs and just wanting to get them done, but as I keep observing the class I am seeing how these job cards are helping these students reading, writing, math, and basic skills.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Exploring iclickers at the ELEMENTARY LEVEL
I had never used iclickers until I came to Michigan State and when I first started using them I wondered why I had never used them before. I really enjoyed iclickers because they were a fun way to stay engaged. I think that many elementary school students love using technology and I think this is a technology that will keep students focused on the material. Some advantages to iclickers are that it is a good way to show me how my students are doing without the added stress of a quiz or even a pop quiz. It will show me what I need to work on teaching better and what the students know. Another advantage is that it is good partipitation points for the students. It is a really good way for my students to get some easy points and I can even make up some type of extra credit questions to boost their grades a little.
When I was researching iclickers I came up with a few disadvantages for myself and for the students. One disadvantage that I might come across would be the unpredictable technology. Maybe one day one of the iclickers does not work, how would I give that student their points. It also might be difficult for the students to register their iclicker and it would be time consuming for me to register all of them. Another disadvantage would be the cost of the iclickers. Most likely every student would have to pay for their own and what if that student doesn't have the money to do that. In college, I know of people who would plan to skip class, hand their iclicker to another student, and still get the participation points. I don't think this would happen in a smaller class, but I think it is still something to worry about.
I think iclickers would be a good way to learn at the elementary level because you can use it in any subject. After I teach a lesson (doesn't matter what subject) I could ask my students five multiple choice questions to see who comprehended the lesson and who was paying attention. I really like that you can use iclickers in any subject, but I understand that the question cannot be that specific. I think that is a disadvantage to iclickers because you cannot ask open ended questions. It would be hard to really understand how they figured out a math problem because the work would not be shown. That's why I would make my iclicker questions participation points and then the real tests would show me more open ended answers. Using iclickers in the classroom is a really good way to use technology in teaching.
When I was researching iclickers I came up with a few disadvantages for myself and for the students. One disadvantage that I might come across would be the unpredictable technology. Maybe one day one of the iclickers does not work, how would I give that student their points. It also might be difficult for the students to register their iclicker and it would be time consuming for me to register all of them. Another disadvantage would be the cost of the iclickers. Most likely every student would have to pay for their own and what if that student doesn't have the money to do that. In college, I know of people who would plan to skip class, hand their iclicker to another student, and still get the participation points. I don't think this would happen in a smaller class, but I think it is still something to worry about.
I think iclickers would be a good way to learn at the elementary level because you can use it in any subject. After I teach a lesson (doesn't matter what subject) I could ask my students five multiple choice questions to see who comprehended the lesson and who was paying attention. I really like that you can use iclickers in any subject, but I understand that the question cannot be that specific. I think that is a disadvantage to iclickers because you cannot ask open ended questions. It would be hard to really understand how they figured out a math problem because the work would not be shown. That's why I would make my iclicker questions participation points and then the real tests would show me more open ended answers. Using iclickers in the classroom is a really good way to use technology in teaching.
Monday, October 4, 2010
IEP meeting
Today I attended my first IEP meeting and I really enjoyed it. It was great seeing an individuals learning needs being met. They really focused on that child, what is best for him, and what the teachers can do to help him improve. I learned that IEP meetings with this family were not always easy. That the teachers needed to build the moms trust and now the mom is a partner in her child’s education. I really got a good look at the child’s progress from his first IEP meeting to this IEP meeting. As teachers we really need to build parents trust.
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