Saturday, August 2, 2014

Thing 13

My head is swimming with new information!  I would love to have access of ipads at a moments notice, but I know that is not the case.  I can see there will be learning curves and lessons need to be planned out carefully to incorporate the ipads - especially since we will have to go into the library for use.

I think my favorite thing is Educreations.  I  am thinking of ways to get information to students who need to see it again and again and possibly helping parents understand what is being learned in class.

Although I am familiar with copyright laws, it was a good reminder that it not only applies to writing reports, but things we create. I have to remember to keep this in the front of my mind.

I have to say that this class was one of the more involved online classes I have taken.  I really needs to be more credit than just 7 hours.  You have to process so much information about many different programs.  I couldn't finish it in one day - too much to think about and time is needed to really see how things work.  Unfortunately some of the links did not connect, so I probably missed some info.

Lesson for Ipad

Poetry
TEKS:  2.30 Teamwork, 2.7 Poetry

Materials:  a large selection of different genres of books from library and/or classroom collection.
Ipad



  • Students will work in groups of 3-4
  • Students will gather 3 - 5 books together and stack.
  • Students will read the spines of the books to see what kind of poetry they have written.
  • Once satisfied they will take a photo of the spines.
  • Students must create minimum of 8 poems and no more than 12.
  • Students will edit their photos as to eliminate any  unnecessary background around spines of books
  • Students will create a presentation utilizing Keynote and the photo portfolio lay out.
  • Students email their final copy to me.
  • Students will view others presentations ( I will have access for them in the class and through the student drive)
  • Students will enter a discussion and question session in Edmodo about the lesson.  Students will share their favorite poems and why they liked them.  Did the poems have a theme?  Does it matter if you have 3 book or is more needed to complete your poem?

Thing 10 - Copyright part 1 and part 2

I have been teaching my students about copyright and how to give credit by citing their sources. The use of Creative Commons is new to me.  This could be useful when posting lessons on You Tube or Itunes U.   Students can share their work and use creative commons, this might help them understand copyrights better.

Part 2

I like the way the teacher presented the information to the student.  there was a lot of student conversation to reinforce their learning.

The fact that the teacher used examples that students could relate to by using popular artist made it a real connection for the students.  The teacher reinforced the use of evidence to support thinking, just like we teach our kids to use their text evidence.  This use of evidence took out the opinion factor and kept it related to factual information.

To implement a lesson like this on campus I would involve my tech specialist and librarian.  These two people are great sources of information that could help me think of things that I know I would forget.  I created a simple fair use and online safety lesson for my second graders using Edmodo.  I had short videos linked so they could watch them and then we had a discussion and followed by signing a users oath.

Thing 9

The Skype link was not working, so based off of what I know about Skype this could be a fun way to communicate with other schools within our own district as well as around the world.  I think any subject or any topic could apply.  The conversation between different opinions could be really cool.

Padlet - this is a very creative way to communicate.  I have seen where it can get a  little messy as post pile up.  I feel that any application used has to be learned - and the kids can probably teach me faster than I could learn on my own.  No matter what is used, all is good if the student is engaged.

Thing 8 Research

I feel the Google custom research would be the most beneficial tool for me.  This would allow for quicker search for students by eliminating the possibility of getting into an area of danger on the web.  By creating a custom search you are guiding your students to the pertinent information, but they still have to weed through and decide which information is best for them.  This will require some time and effort by the teacher, but once is it created your work is done.

Thing 7 Garage Band

I see Garage Band being used by both teacher and student.  The teacher can create mp3's for students to go back and review lesson material. This can be especially helpful for the new math curriculum that is very fast paced.  Students would have a way to review daily lessons for homework or if they were absent.

I could see this being used by the students as an evaluation piece.  Students could create a recording explaining answers to questions or processes about something in science.

The biggest difference I see between garage band and Educreations is that Garage band is audio only.   Both have learning curves.  Again, gaining access might be the difficult piece, although Garage Band can be posted to Facebook.  A teacher could create a Facebook for her class, but I think Youtube would be easiest.

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Thing 6 - Educreations



I chose a math lesson.  This lesson is not fancy but does the job of showing the differences between area and perimeter.  I know this is something that is often confused.  I could use this as an introduction, a review and a place for students to go to when they get confused.  It would be an ongoing resource.


Area and Perimeter

Thing 6 part 2

I created a educreation on angles.  I think this is something that can be used in class.  Having the visual is a great way for review and reference for the students.

I think students will not have difficulty accessing the site for videos.  Most have access to some sort of smart phone or device that connects to the internet.  I see it as a problem for them to try and create their own outside of school.  When making assignments I think we always need to be cognizant of the access to computers for our students.  If I were to assign this as a "make your own" lesson, I would be sure to allow time in school for completion.

Here is my sample lesson.  It needs work - but I'm tired and do not feel like redoing it.

Mastering Angles

http://www.educreations.com/lesson/view/mastering-angles/23011316/?s=6GAg3z&ref=appemail