In checking out the web 2.0 tools researched by my classmates, I've started to develop a list of ready to use activities for my classroom. Here are a couple that I've added to the list:
Polling Tools
Sites such as SurveyMonkey allow teachers to easily poll students, parents, or even colleagues. I see surveys like this in my email all the time from administration asking for feedback on issues ranging from scheduling to inservices. I developed a survey to send out to my students, asking for feedback on a new unit that my team and I just developed. It was very easy to see and interpret the results. Students were very excited to give feedback in a digital format. I think as I continue to practice using these sites, I will learn strategies for asking more effective questions - there were a few that I would have liked to have reworded in retrospect.
Online Photo/Video Sharing
I was really surprised at how easy it was to use Flickr. I was able to easily upload pictures and create a slideshow with them. This would be a great way to bring pictures into my classroom without having to use up all my desktop space! Here is one photo that I uploaded... Spring is coming!
Also, Youtube has become one of my favorite tools in Social Studies. It's amazing to browse through the videos that are available on that site. This is one of my Favorites... Learn the 50 States & Capitals
Social Networking
I'm already on Facebook personally (and spend a ridiculous amount of time on it), but I think I'm going to start using it professionally by creating a page for my classroom. While my students are still a bit young for Facebook (I would estimate that only about half of them are allowed to have an account), I think I could create a page that would help to keep them informed and give them lots of opportunity to interact with prompts and each other in a supervised environment. As Andrew pointed out, I'd have quite a few students who don't utilize the site, but it could present as an effective extra-curricular information portal. Plus, I think a lot of parents would like the accessibility of a classroom page.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Twinteresting...
Gotta admit... I'm a big fan of technology, but Twitter is not my favorite web 2.0 tool. I'm finding it a bit overrated. My frustrations stem from the fact that I'm starting to see a lot of repetition among web 2.0 tools. I am struggling to find a use for Twitter that I don't already have in Facebook... I can post status updates to let my friends know what I'm up to, easily find updates from the friends/interests that I follow, and check out links that others have posted. It also seems like more and more news sources, businesses, celebrities, etc are joining Facebook and posting updates much like they would on Twitter.
In terms of the classroom, I also see a lot of overlap between the two tools. I could definitely use either site to keep parents updated on what's happening in my classroom, provide links to homework or study resources, and ask for feedback or answer questions from students. Truth be told, I like the visual layout of Facebook better and would opt towards using it as a classroom tool.
Although, I did think the "30 Interesting Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom" had some cool ideas. We started out Language Arts this year by doing an activity called "The Great Mail Race" in which our students mailed a letter to all 50 states asking 5th grade students at a randomly selected school to fill out a survey and return it to us. When the responses arrive, we chart them on a map and read what they've written us. It seems like this could be turned into a digital activity via Twitter. Students could contact people from different parts of the country (or world for that matter) and plot their responses on a map. In fact, the responses could be located by using Google Earth for further technology integration.
I also liked the idea of using Twitter as a way to have students practice summarizing material. Because there is a word limit placed on posts, it would be a good opportunity to practice word choice.
In terms of the classroom, I also see a lot of overlap between the two tools. I could definitely use either site to keep parents updated on what's happening in my classroom, provide links to homework or study resources, and ask for feedback or answer questions from students. Truth be told, I like the visual layout of Facebook better and would opt towards using it as a classroom tool.
Although, I did think the "30 Interesting Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom" had some cool ideas. We started out Language Arts this year by doing an activity called "The Great Mail Race" in which our students mailed a letter to all 50 states asking 5th grade students at a randomly selected school to fill out a survey and return it to us. When the responses arrive, we chart them on a map and read what they've written us. It seems like this could be turned into a digital activity via Twitter. Students could contact people from different parts of the country (or world for that matter) and plot their responses on a map. In fact, the responses could be located by using Google Earth for further technology integration.
I also liked the idea of using Twitter as a way to have students practice summarizing material. Because there is a word limit placed on posts, it would be a good opportunity to practice word choice.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Technology Transforms Learning
In David Warlick's article about technology transforming learning environments, he talks about the influence that technology has had in the lives of our students. One of the first things he mentions is that students have become more internally motivated to answer their own questions. I think this is incredibly important in the lives of our students. If we can develop lifelong learners who constantly seek the answers to their own questions, I think we will see a population emerge that is more open to change and growth. When students learn the power in answering their own questions, they begin to question more about their surrounding environments and develop their own opinions and values rather than following blindly.
I think one unit that I already have implemented in my classroom that supports Warlick's thought is during our studies of the Civil War. Another teacher and I have developed a unit that is completely student-driven in which they are able to answer their own questions about the Civil War. We provide some background information on the Civil War, and then completely leave it up to the students to decide what and how they're going to study relating to the war. Students pick any topic of interest - ranging from famous war photographers to a specific battle to medical care of the era. They become an "expert" on that topic and then choose how they will present the information to the class. It's a great example of how students can develop their own questions and learning, instead of those questions being handed down by a teacher or a textbook.
I think one unit that I already have implemented in my classroom that supports Warlick's thought is during our studies of the Civil War. Another teacher and I have developed a unit that is completely student-driven in which they are able to answer their own questions about the Civil War. We provide some background information on the Civil War, and then completely leave it up to the students to decide what and how they're going to study relating to the war. Students pick any topic of interest - ranging from famous war photographers to a specific battle to medical care of the era. They become an "expert" on that topic and then choose how they will present the information to the class. It's a great example of how students can develop their own questions and learning, instead of those questions being handed down by a teacher or a textbook.
4 Important Digital SKills
Alan November's article on "4 things every student should learn... but not every school is teaching" identified four non-academic standards that are crucially important to student success, but not necessarily taught in schools. His four standards were:
1. Global empathy (understanding and appreciating others' views)
2. Social and ethical responsibility on the web (avoiding things like cyber bullying and sexting)
3. The permanence of information posted online (students don't realize the web is archived every couple of days)
4. Critical thinking about the information found online (not everything on the web is true! ... gasp!)
I believe November makes very valid points. While I realize the world is moving more to a digital format, I don't want to forget that there are already non-academic standards that we're teaching our students relating more to face-to-face interactions. We already teach our students the importance of teamwork, cooperation, respect, and communication, and I hope we don't lose sight of the fact that face-to-face skills are as important as digital skills.
What really struck a cord with me was reading November's 4th point regarding critical thinking. I can't even count how many of my 5th graders have at one point reported back bogus information when researching on the web. I think it's incredibly important to equip students with the skills they need to be able to determine what makes a website credible. I also think that encouraging higher level thinking skills helps us teach students about plagiarism and the importance of being able to summarize information and put it into their own words. I usually tackle these huge issues by providing "mini-lessons" throughout a project that involves research on the web. I don't really have any time built into my schedule/curriculum that would allow me to focus on it solely, so it becomes necessary to overlap.
I think I'd like to focus more on his point about developing empathy in our students next year. Understanding and appreciating different viewpoints is a lifelong skill that can only benefit students.
1. Global empathy (understanding and appreciating others' views)
2. Social and ethical responsibility on the web (avoiding things like cyber bullying and sexting)
3. The permanence of information posted online (students don't realize the web is archived every couple of days)
4. Critical thinking about the information found online (not everything on the web is true! ... gasp!)
I believe November makes very valid points. While I realize the world is moving more to a digital format, I don't want to forget that there are already non-academic standards that we're teaching our students relating more to face-to-face interactions. We already teach our students the importance of teamwork, cooperation, respect, and communication, and I hope we don't lose sight of the fact that face-to-face skills are as important as digital skills.
What really struck a cord with me was reading November's 4th point regarding critical thinking. I can't even count how many of my 5th graders have at one point reported back bogus information when researching on the web. I think it's incredibly important to equip students with the skills they need to be able to determine what makes a website credible. I also think that encouraging higher level thinking skills helps us teach students about plagiarism and the importance of being able to summarize information and put it into their own words. I usually tackle these huge issues by providing "mini-lessons" throughout a project that involves research on the web. I don't really have any time built into my schedule/curriculum that would allow me to focus on it solely, so it becomes necessary to overlap.
I think I'd like to focus more on his point about developing empathy in our students next year. Understanding and appreciating different viewpoints is a lifelong skill that can only benefit students.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Guess I should stop calling it "dingo"
After I signed up for a delicious account, I looked into how it compared to "diigo" (not to be confused with an animal that "ate my baby"... apparently the confusion comes from reading through things too quickly). Both sites allow you to bookmark sites and have easy access to their updates.
I liked how diigo allowed you to highlight specific sections of a website and add comments about it. I thought this would be really helpful in the classroom when students are assigned to read an article online. The teacher could put in comments with prompts for responses or clarification. The sidebar also allows you to see the comments that other people have put into the article - so students' responses/comments/questions could be easily viewed by the teacher.
Both websites allowed for easy access of sites by tagging. It seems to me like this could take the place of my "favorites" tab on my browser... which I'm pretty sure eats up more space on your computer? I could be wrong. Either way, it's far more organized than my favorites tab.
I also thought that it was interesting that you could use diigo to play sites as a slideshow... I'm not exactly sure how that could be utilized in the classroom, I'd have to play around with the features.
I think delicious would come in very handy if there were a collection of websites that I would want to share with my students. For example, during our unit on the Civil War - students each pick a topic about the Civil War and use the internet to research more about that topic. Using delicious, I could bookmark sites that are reputable and useful so that students would be able to access them for the project. They could also tag sites that they found useful, so I could add to the collection.
I liked how diigo allowed you to highlight specific sections of a website and add comments about it. I thought this would be really helpful in the classroom when students are assigned to read an article online. The teacher could put in comments with prompts for responses or clarification. The sidebar also allows you to see the comments that other people have put into the article - so students' responses/comments/questions could be easily viewed by the teacher.
Both websites allowed for easy access of sites by tagging. It seems to me like this could take the place of my "favorites" tab on my browser... which I'm pretty sure eats up more space on your computer? I could be wrong. Either way, it's far more organized than my favorites tab.
I also thought that it was interesting that you could use diigo to play sites as a slideshow... I'm not exactly sure how that could be utilized in the classroom, I'd have to play around with the features.
I think delicious would come in very handy if there were a collection of websites that I would want to share with my students. For example, during our unit on the Civil War - students each pick a topic about the Civil War and use the internet to research more about that topic. Using delicious, I could bookmark sites that are reputable and useful so that students would be able to access them for the project. They could also tag sites that they found useful, so I could add to the collection.
Friday, February 4, 2011
The Wonderful World of Wikis
I guess I'm still not as excited about Wikis as I am Blogs... in terms of what I think I will use in my classroom. Blogs seem a little more user-friendly, and more concrete for little 5th grade minds that struggle with anything abstract.
However, I did find some really cool wiki's that I could use for my own benefit. The first was the Eduwiki.us Project which is essentially a giant collaboration of teachers sharing ideas. There's even a page specifically for 5th grade teachers. I like it because it's really straight-forward and practical.
Another wiki that caught my eye was Kids-Book-Club which provides an online forum for students to write book reports on the books they're reading. I actually thought this wiki was a great concept, but not fully executed/useful. The books that are listed are a bit below the reading levels of my students, and there isn't a large selection of them. However, I really like this idea to "borrow" and may try to set up a wiki of my own for the same type of idea!
I think these wikis, much like the blogs I added to my PLN, are both very practical and could benefit my classroom.
However, I did find some really cool wiki's that I could use for my own benefit. The first was the Eduwiki.us Project which is essentially a giant collaboration of teachers sharing ideas. There's even a page specifically for 5th grade teachers. I like it because it's really straight-forward and practical.
Another wiki that caught my eye was Kids-Book-Club which provides an online forum for students to write book reports on the books they're reading. I actually thought this wiki was a great concept, but not fully executed/useful. The books that are listed are a bit below the reading levels of my students, and there isn't a large selection of them. However, I really like this idea to "borrow" and may try to set up a wiki of my own for the same type of idea!
I think these wikis, much like the blogs I added to my PLN, are both very practical and could benefit my classroom.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)