Pixie is fun program that allows students to creatively use their imaginations! Pixie is a program that students can use to create unique pictures or they can create projects choosing from several templates. This program offers teachers connections to the Common Core by providing suggestions for each grade level and links to projects that have been already been created. Pixie also allows students to add music and voice to their projects and to turn their projects into movies. We had a fun time exploring the variety of features Pixie has to offer and look forward to helping teachers and students learn through creativity!
Lanschool is powerful tool installed on the teacher computer in all Elementary Creativity Labs. This video will explain briefly how all teachers can find and use this tool to enhance instruction, manage and observe computeres. Teachers begin by logging into the computer using their Active Directory credentials. Last spring, at the UCET conference, I visited a student showcase and was introduced to Animoto. Animoto is an online program that allows you to create a video using photos and video clips. It’s fast and very easy to use. The students I talked to said they have created many Animoto presentations for their classes. They said it was easy and fun to use. Creating an Animoto account is free. With the free account you are limited to creating 30 second videos. However, educators can upgrade their subscription to the Plus package for free. Check out an example of a presentation created in Animoto. We’re learning more about Reading Street and what resources are available. The elementary schools are using this new language arts program which utilizes a heavy online component. The online components also allow students to access their materials online outside of the classroom. Many teachers have used this with the established Pearson Envision math program, but now these tools extend to language arts. I look forward to seeing the gains students make in the district this year with each classroom using common language arts assessments and curriculum! Here is a snapshot of a few of these new resources! There have been a couple of changes to the interface as teachers log in to Pearson Successnet. Don’t worry, no products have disappeared, in fact many have been added. The teachers can display a digital version of the student textbook and model reading strategies for the students. With the Mac OS X Lion, they can even make the display full screen! Teachers will assign online tests as common assessments at the end of each week and unit! This is where teachers can access and assign those tests. Be sure and ask your Ed. Tech if you would like to know more about any of these or other valuable Pearson resources for the elementary classroom. I know we have really enjoyed learning how to help teachers increase the digital presence in their classrooms and align their instruction to Common Core Standards. Having such a common curriculum and assessment resources will really help us to ensure our district practices of instruction are the most effective for all students. Make sure and explore this website and become familiar: Pearson Successnet. If you do not know your login, please contact your Ed. Tech as soon as possible!
On August 21, I had the opportunity to address the Board briefly about the changes that have taken place in our Department in recent months. During that time, I discussed the benefits of teacher coaching, and the priorities we hoped to address in working with teachers throughout our District.
I also shared with the Board a list of our current school assignments, projects, and planned staff development offerings for the 2012-13 school year. All in all, I thought the brief presentation went well. I'm so grateful to our District Administration and Board of Education for the support they've given to our Department and teachers through the years! We have a very strong technology program in our District, and I know our teachers are thankful for the help that they regularly receive. Last week, teachers in our technology endorsement class learned various tools and applications and how to create digital stories in our Digital Storytelling class. The first day of class, groups created a movie using pipe cleaners as their medium and the tools used for creating their movie was their iPad's camera to take still shots, their iPads, and the iMovie app. The teachers created their movies in the iMovie app where they added music and titles to their video. I have linked two movies that were created during the class. I was amazed how much these teachers learned in a week. They took what they learned and created amazing and touching digital storytelling movies about themselves. ISTE 2012 --Annette Lamb, alamb@eduscapes.com Workshop Resources: http://eduscapes.com/sessions/emergency This summer at the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) conference, I attended a three-hour workshop focused on activating students of the "high-tech/couch potato generation." I think a lot of parents and teachers worry about our tech-savvy students doing nothing but sitting and staring at their computers or other electronic devices all day rather than getting up, getting active, and getting involved. This workshop proved to me that using technology does not mean merely sitting. Teachers can and should plan technology-enhanced lessons that get students more active, more involved, more excited about learning, and more in touch with the world. VARK (Visual, Auditory, Reading Kinesthetic) and Video - Mix Modalities Active Senses + Content with Context + Relevant Technology In any technology-enhanced lesson, teachers can give their students a variety of learning experiences, including kinesthetic experiences. The combination of visual, auditory, reading, and kinesthetic learning experiences increases the number of exposures students have to content and allows them to process and repeat it in a variety of ways. For example, when choosing to show a video to introduce new content, a teacher can do more than just have students watch the video. Students can view the video, then re-view the video with specific questions or ideas to focus on, then get up and try what was taught or demonstrated in the video. Try having students use video along with manipulatives and off-computer activities that allow them to demonstrate their understanding. Have students participate in active thinking assignments before, during, and after viewing a video clip to make what they are learning from the clip more relevant, and more clear. There are a many great websites that provide free online videos that are perfect for instructing and activating students. Here are a few you might like to check out:
Physical & Virtual Experiences "Computers are no long just screens and keyboards." Computers are interactive devices now, and they can be used to access information in a variety of ways that activate students. Following are some examples of ways your students can use technology to learn and activate their senses:
Physical & Virtual Connections Another way to connect students' technology use to active engagement is to help them make connections between the virtual world and the real world. One way to help them make these connections is by using creative work examples found online and created by others for inspiration, then having students create their own product. Following are some ideas of how online examples can be used as inspiration for student creations:
Technology & Tactile Learning "Our young people risk losing an essential connection with physical reality." - Thomas Elpel Teachers can help stop students' disconnect with physical reality by providing a balance between hands-on, tactile experiences and technology-enhanced experiences. Practical, tactile experiences are important for learning and life. Technology can aid teachers and students in the creation of practical, tactile experiences and help make these experiences more rich. For example:
Generate, Motivate, Innovate, Activate Generate - When students use technology to "create a tactile story," it can help them explore stories, relationships, and patterns. Following are some resources that can help students generate more tangible experiences and products using virtual tools:
Thanks to Annette Lamb for her great ideas and for reinforcing for me that technology tools are all about activation and creation. For more ideas, check out Annette's Engagement Emergencies Website! http://eduscapes.com/sessions/emergency/index.htm --Katie Blunt This year at the ISTE conference I went to a few classes that concentrated on The Flipped Classroom model. This is a model I had heard about, but never really understood what it really was. To be honest, I am still trying to figure it all out. It is an interesting idea, and one that I wonder if I should start using or at least try.
The flipped classroom is a “reversed teaching model that delivers instruction at home through interactive, teacher-created videos and moves “homework” to the classroom.” ("Flipped Classroom." TechSmith - Screen Capture and Recording Software . N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Aug. 2012. http://www.techsmith.com/flipped-classroom.html) It’s a way to use video as an instructional tool outside and inside the classroom. Teachers can use the video as a launching point to get to higher thinking. Students can even use the videos to help them catch up on concepts they don’t understand, or they can use the videos to move ahead. It can allow students to move at their own pace. Flipping the classroom can be a way to make learning come alive for students. It can be a way for students to start controlling their learning. Flipping the classroom seems to be a lot of extra work for teachers. However, teachers who have applied this model in their classrooms have seen questions from outside the classroom start to come into the classroom. They have provided videos as a way of front loading. For example, the video will explain how to use certain tools that will be used in the classroom. This eliminates the need to spend time in class covering how to use the tools. Some teachers at the ISTE conference who are currently flipping their classrooms admitted that there is extra work on their part, but they can reuse the videos from year to year. This video will show you how Aaron Sams, a science teacher at Woodland Park High School, uses the Flipped Classroom model. So, is this an instructional model we can apply in our district? Many teachers have voiced concerns about trying to fit the new math and reading programs (Pearson SuccessNet and Reading Street) into their classrooms. Could they use the instructional videos found on those sites as a way to flip their classrooms? Cyber-Bullying tends to be the buzz word right now. With stories such as the Megan Meier tragedy, it is critical that we teach students how to be responsible, and most importantly, safe, in the digital world. The participants in the Technology Endorsement class just posted some very thought-provoking feedback regarding the importance of teaching about cyber-bullying , starting at a very young age. Most of the participants in the class have recommended that we begin teaching about cyber-bullying as early as kindergarten. Sallie Warnecke Twitter: @salliewarnecke Teachers participating in the technology endorsement had the opportunity to learn and develop a PLN (personal learning network) and how to use Web 2.0, Social Media, and other technology tools in their professional life. Each teacher created a presentation using a Web 2.0 tool of their choice that represented their understand of what a PLN is and how they plan to continue to expand their PLN to help them learn and grow as educators. Below are links to a few of the presentations that were created.
Glog created by Debbie Owens StoryJumper created by Cynthia Lloyd Animoto created by Dustin Worm Glog created by Wendy Hamann Glog created by Jennifer Griffin |
What We're LearningThere's a lot going on out there! These posts highlight a few things we're picking up along the way. Archives
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