Project #15 Lesson Plan

Synonyms and Antonyms

This is a two week project meant to help students increase their understanding and application of synonyms and antonyms. The driving question is, can you recognize and apply synonyms and antonyms in everyday writing? The students will be required to make two blog posts applying their understanding of synonyms and antonyms. They will also use online educational games to help review the material.

Blog Post 10

Bring on the Education Revolution

According to Sir Ken Robinson, there is a climate crisis of human concern. This crisis has occurred because the human race makes poor use of its talents. Robinson believes the world is divided into two categories: those who endure their life and what they do and those who enjoy what they do because what they do is who they are. Education systems are being reformed, but that is not enough because it is simply fixing a broken tool. Education needs a transformation, a revolution, into a new tool. The way to transform education is to innovate fundamentally. This means challenge the things we take for granted. Understand that life is not linear, it is organic and we create it as we go along. The heart of a challenge is to reconstitute the ability of our talents. Robinson believes this is important because communities rely on the diversity of our talents. Education systems have been built on conformity- the idea of fast food, where everything is customized into a standardized way. People are often good at things they don't really care for, but if they are good at things they love, time is a different thing entirely. People are dropping out of education because it does not feed their interests or spirits. We have to go from an industrial model of education to a model based on agriculture. In order for the human race to flourish we must transform from a mechanical process to an agricultural process. The outcome can not be predicted but the conditions under which the race will flourish can be created. The crisis will be solved once a movement in education that is based on people developing their on solutions with the help of external support is formed.

Project #10 Interview

Smartboard Project #12 Part B

Smartboard Project #12 Part A

Blog Post 9

First Graders in Ms. Cassidy's Class

Ms. Cassidy uses this video to show the children's perspective on the use of technology. They use computers, headsets, and a projector screen throughout the classroom in order to complete various assignments. The students enjoy using blogs to produce their writing because they are proud to post their work and they feel it pushes them to become better writers. They also anticipate the comments left on their blog posts. Ms. Cassidy uses a webpage as a guided search engine for her students during center time. They also use Wiki to research needed information. Skype is used, in the class, to talk with other classrooms and various teachers. To help with problem solving and sharing, Ms. Cassidy has her students play the Nintendo DS.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 1

Ms. Cassidy uses technology to enhance the education of her students. She protects the students' identity by using first names only and posting pictures but not matching the pictures with the names. She uses blogs as an online portfolio for the students' work. Ms. Cassidy admires blogs because blogs have an audience. She uses a specific blog site that records the amount of times the page has been visited. I think this is an interesting additive because it can be a positive and negative thing for young students. Young students are competitive, so what happens when one page gets more views than another? What are the children's reactions to this? Ms. Cassidy emphasizes the importance in keeping up with technology and allowing the students to develop their own online network.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 2

Ms. Cassidy explained that the best place to start is where your interests lay. For example, if you enjoy pictures and videos then start with a media that requires the use of pictures and videos. Flicker is a resource that can be used to network photography, whereas Blogger can be used to network writing. Dr. Strange and Ms. Cassidy then further explained the advantages of Twitter. Twitter can be very useful in building a PLN, especially for future educators.

Interview with Kathy Cassidy Part 3

The amount of time dedicated to blogging can be flexible. It is based on the amount of students in the class, the number of adults assisting the class, and the allotted time given to each subject matter. Ms. Cassidy suggests that the best way to eliminate cheating is to reconstruct the assignments in a way that makes it difficult for a student to copy a previous assignment. The reconstruction can be similar enough that collaboration with a previous assignment is involved, but different enough that copying verbatim is not possible. One way Ms. Cassidy protects her students is by using her curated webpage. This allows the students to go to a single site and follow specific links to material relevant to them. She also educates her students on the importance of staying within her given links and the dangers of wandering.

After watching all the videos, I believe my favorite of Ms. Cassidy's approaches is the use of Skype. I believe incorporating the one-on-one interaction and involving other teachers and classrooms can be very beneficial for the students. There is so much information that other people can give and different questions they can challenge the students with. It is also an opportunity for the students to hear another voice besides their main teacher. It is a challenging tool because the face to face aspect requires the students to engage in what is being said. I think it is important to develop a strong PLN in order to make the use of Skype truly successful.

Project #14 Lesson Plan

Vocabulary Group Projects

EQT's are around the corner and it is time to study in a different way. Some vocabulary words might have gotten lost in the mix but we are going to refresh memories. This lesson plan will require students to create a story, on iMovie, incorporating vocabulary words. By the end of the week, students are expected to be more familiar and knowledgeable of all the words that have been discussed this quarter.

Blog Post 8

10 Social Media Tips for Reaching World Language Learners

My dream career would be teaching Hispanic students, at the elementary level, English. The more I look into ESL the more I realize how difficult this could be, and I enjoy finding resources that would be helpful. I follow Edutopia on Twitter and they post links to numerous insightful articles. This specific article explains how educators can use social media as a way to reach ESL students. The article explains the social networks EDM has familiarized me with, such as blogging, Twitter, Google Drive and YouTube. However, it introduces some new ideas and sources. Instagram is a popular social media, but I have never thought to use it for educational purposes. According to Edutopia, using Instagram is an engaging way to teach vocabulary words. The teacher can post daily pictures of things that would not usually be seen on a vocabulary list and require the students to stay updated with the posts. Another source teachers can use is called SlideShare. SlideShare is similar to YouTube except it is strictly presentations. This site allows students to search, create and post presentations among the world. Edutopia also suggests using Facebook as a way to post questions for debate. The teacher would make a page and the students like it. A new source Edutopia introduces is called Duolingo. This is an educational gaming site that allows teachers to reinforce grammatical structures and allow the students to compete against each other. The final idea Edutopia introduces was the use of polling sites, such as SurveyMonkey. Teachers can make a survey regarding a specific theme they are studying and have the students respond to the survey. This is a way to initiate speaking practice in class. Even though I am familiar with many of the networks mentioned, the ideas presented are new. The combination of the new ideas and the few new sources made this article valuable.

C4T #2

Fun Activities with Conditionals

Mrs. Buyuksimkesyan gave a list of different activities to do with conditionals. One activity is to write a chain story or poem. If you do this activity, it is best to give the students an example to follow. Another activity includes preparing conversation cards with either cards, PowerPoint, or Google presentation. You could also construct two sets of cards, one set for the If clause and the other set for the Result clause, and have the students play tic-tac-toe or match the halves. The fifth activity she mentioned was using songs to teach or revise conditionals. She gave a list of some songs that are good to use. You could also have the students stand up and form a circle. As the teacher, you shout half a conditional sentence then throw a ball to a student and have him finish the sentence. My favorite activity she explained was the snowball activity. In this activity students write five half conditional sentences on scrap paper then have a snowball fight. After a short period of time, the snowball fight stops, the children pick up the closest snowball, and then finish the sentence. I think this would be the most interactive and interesting activity. Her final activity idea was to have the students find superstitions from different countries and their own then prepare a quiz or a poster. I think all of these ideas are unique and engaging for the students. I am glad I read this post and I will definitely keep these ideas in mind for future reference.

A Cool Tool for #Flipped Literature Classes

Mrs. Buyuksimkesyan introduced a new source called Curriculet for language classes. She explained that Curriculet is an online reading platform meant to enhance literature. The site allows teachers to create specific reading classes, assign questions, and post videos that their students will have access to. Mrs. Buyuksimkesyan emphasized that it is a free site and tempting to use. I enjoy reading her posts because they are full of new ideas and resources.