Final Project #16

C4K #3

This C4K assignment first took me to Sarona's blog. Sarona wrote a story for her blog post. It was very scary in the beginning but it had a great, happy ending! She broke her story into 7 paragraphs. It was a good story that held my attention. I commented telling her where I was from and why I was there. I told her how great her story was and that I was sure she had a future in writing!

My next assignment took me to Ritua's Blog. I looked at her weekly reflection and her haiku about rain. It was very good and I was so impressed! I told her my name and where I was from. She has great weekly reflections and could also have a future in writing! In her reflection she said she would like to add more art to her week. Art is such a great way to express yourself and it is so much fun! Blog comments were restricted so it was not posted.

My final assignment took me to Kyron's Blog! He had posted pictures from Purple Cake Day on friday saying they had a fun time. I did some research on Purple Cake Day and found out from purplecakeday.org it is "a charity event that supports children worldwide to receive the education they need to break the poverty cycle and create a better future for themselves, their families, and their communities". I told him I had never heard of Purple Cake Day and it sounds like a lot of fun for a great cause. By the looks of his pictures they really enjoyed themselves.

C4T #4

For my last C4T Assignment I read and commented on Daniel Edwards' blog, Learning and Innovation. Daniel is the Director of Digital Strategy at the Stephen Perse Foundation schools. The first blog post I read and commented on was Pedagogy First- Technology.... This blog post points out how increasingly important technology is today. Before we jump into a world of technology we must learn to teach with technology. If not used correctly we will only hinder our students with technology. I commented telling him who I was and why I was there. I agreed with him saying that now is such an exciting time in education. Teachers might have a hard time switching from pen and paper to a tablet. This is why it is so important that educators be educated on how to teach with technology. It is time that educators learn how to effectively use technology and learning will be amplified!

The next post I read and commented on was Top 10 Apps in an Established 1:1 iPad School. He listed the top 10 apps that will benefit students and teachers alike. One app he mentioned was Explain Everything. It is a digital whiteboard and screen casting tool. You can annotate pictures, animate, and narrate presentations. He says it is a "must have" app. Another one that stuck out to me was iMovie. We use it so much in this class and it is so great to see that other think it is super important as well! I commented telling him about the apps that stuck out most to me.

Blog Post #13

How can you integrate technology and art into your classroom?

Read Integrating the Arts with Technology: Inspiring Creativity and present your findings from this article. Then give your thoughts about technology and art and provide any websites you find.

Including the arts into your classroom daily can be hard to do but the reward is outstanding! It benefits everyone in the classroom and raises class morale. The arts provide an opportunity for self expression and personal reflection. Children with disabilities can use art as a way to get away from their disability and be creative. Art can sometimes become boring to students. Integrating technology into art is a fun way to get students involved and motivated. With technology it is easy to bring artists to life and make them fun to learn about. Students with learning disabilities can try out different learning methods through computers with graphics that are eye-catching and memorable. Art websites create a new world for creativity and learning. Combining art and technology can break down barriers and jump-start learning.

As with all teaching techniques, it is important to be well versed in the technology you are using. Most websites have tutorials to help you out. Make sure to browse through the entire site and learn ways to accommodate for disabled students. Search for helpful websites with new ideas. Websites like JamStudio, ArtWeaver, and Art Partners were suggested by this article.

I think that art is very important in a classroom, especially in elementary where I am wanting to teach. With children growing up in an age of technology it only makes sense to combine art and technology to expand their learning. I hope to have iPads and a SmartBoard in my classroom. The possibilities would be endless! I believe art should be hands-on but integrating technology could open a new world for all students. One great site for both learning about an artist and creating art is JacksonPollock.org.

Blog Post #12

I guess I had not really thought much about teaching vision and hearing impaired children. Once I watched Assistive Technologies for Vision and Hearing Impaired Children my eyes were opened to all of the hardships and possibilities. This video shows how students with disabilities can overcome obstacles to help them learn. We have the technology to push boundaries and open a new world to these students. The video asks if we as educators will knock down walls and build others that ALL students can climb. The answer is YES!

Another video I watched was iPad Usage For The Blind. As they run their finger across the screen, the iPad reads the names aloud. They can double click on the place they want to go. It can read books to them and describes the pictures in detail. This video got me ready to learn all of the ways we can teach our vision and hearing impaired children.

I started searching for assistive technologies and I found a great article at Great Schools. The article mostly explains what assistive technology is but the best part is the links that it provides to other websites. One link leads you to electronic math worksheets. Another leads to a program with talking calculators. This article also provides assistive technology tools to help with listening, math, memory, reading, and writing.

With the help of assistive technology, the sky is the limit for learning. All students can now have the opportunity to learn. We can enhance learning and success with new technology. I hope that the knowledge we have only continues to grow so that hearing and vision impaired students can learn like never before.

C4K #2

The first blog I commented on for C4K was Meliana's . She talked about her fitness story. She also got to draw a picture to go along with her blog post. I told her how I like to work out and to keep up her healthy lifetstyle!

My next C4K assignment took me to Johnathon's Blog. Johnathon gave safety tips to help someone ride a bike. He also provided a picture that labels parts of the bike. I commented telling him how great his post was. I also asked him how old he was when he learned to ride a bike.

C4T #3

For my third C4T assignment, I was assigned to Michael Kaechele's blog. Michael is an artist transformed into a teacher. He strongly believes in learning by doing.

The first blog post I read and commented on was titled, "I'm an extroverted introvert". He considered himself completely an introvert until people asked him why he thought that. Once he thought about it, he also considered himself an extrovert. Sometimes he likes to be alone and sometimes he likes to be surrounded by people. The whole point of his post was to help people realize that students are all different. As educators, we should make sure that our classroom accommodates both kinds of students. I commented telling him where I was from and why I was there. I told him that I also considered myself an extroverted introvert. I usually love being around people, but sometimes you just need to be alone. His post made me realize how I should be conscious of how I approach a student. The more aware I am of their personality, the better relationship I can have with my student.

The next post of Michael's I commented on was, "Why you shouldn’t attend conference sessions". Just by the name you can tell he is not a fan of conferences. Although, he still likes attending them. Why? Because of the people he meets there! The most information he gets from conferences is from interactions in the hallways. He recommends following the hashtag #Miched to learn from some of the best educators! I commented telling him how the title really caught my attention. I have been excited to attend any kind of education conference since I have heard Dr. Vitulli talk about the art conference she was attending. I will remember this post for the future and know the sessions are not the only place I can learn from!

Blog Post #11

By:Holly Shaw

Brian Crosby is an innovative, exciting fourth grade teacher who does not take the easy route in teaching his students. While most teachers are satisfied with high test scores and multiple choice tests, Crosby is not. In this video, he talks about a particular project dealing with atmospheric pressure and the levels of the atmosphere. Rather than just teaching his students verbatim what their textbook claims, Crosby used the book, charts and had the students complete various exciting activities. The students videoed their experiments and embed them to their personal blogs. In Crosby’s class, the students are doing more than learning meaningless facts, they are getting hands-on experience. By the students blogging they are getting to reinforce what they learn. The students are also exposed to flicker, wikipages, and other 21st century tools.

The most rewarding part of Crosby’s class is that his students are getting more out each lesson rather than just a simple science lesson. Students are learning to read and write to learn content, to write for the purpose of clarifying and sharing, and to give an receive feedback along with many other language intense skills. Brian Crosby believes in active learning where students are being empowered to learn and to learn on their own using 21st century tools. Students are also encouraged to collaborate in and outside the classroom. Students are motivated because they are able to connect with people all over the world.

By: Caitlyn Barton

Paul Anderson teaches AP Biology in Bozeman, Montana. This past year he turned his classroom into a video game. He thought it was a great year but a little too different. So this year he wanted to do a blended classroom. He talks about it in this video. His idea for blended learning is combining mobile, online, and classroom learning. For biology, he teaches his students by using the 5 E's: engage, explore, explain, expand, and evaluate. His idea of blended learning combined with the 5 E's makes his blended learning cycle. Mr. Anderson likes to start a lesson with a big question that catches the students' attention. Next, he lets the student investigate to try and answer the questions they all have. Once his students have more answers, they get to watch a video that goes along with the topic. He ends his lesson with a review and testing. I think his way of teaching is something that every teacher should try in their classroom. The class does not all move along at one time. He makes sure each student is ready to move on to the next part of his blended learning cycle. Mr. Anderson says all of his students have responded positively to this method of teaching!

March Church's Making Thinking Visible video gives us a look into his classroom. Mr. Church likes to break his students into small groups. While in their groups he gives them questions to elaborate on with the other members of the group. Each group comes up with a headline that captures the essence of their topic. He then asks the groups to present their headline and explain why they chose it. To finish the project all of the headlines are joined together to make a bulletin board!

By: Ashley Howell

In the video, Super Digital Citizen, Mr. Pane, who is a fourth grade teacher, teaches his students about Internet safety. I feel like in today’s society kids are constantly learning how to use the Internet and technology, but they don’t really learn much about how to be safe. Mr. Pane wanted his students to learn how to be good digital citizens, which meant knowing how to act safely, respectfully, and responsibly on the Internet. He decided to teach his kids about Internet safety in a really neat, fun way. He had his students use a website to create their own Digital Superhero, as well as their own imagined situation in which the superhero would save the day when it came to Internet safety. The students basically wrote their own narrative, like a comic. Not only were the students learning about how to use technology and Internet safety, but they were also learning more about their English and writing skills. You could tell by the video just how much fun these students were having with this project. In the video, Mr. Pane mentions how it’s important to create some projects that are about the students because it makes them more meaningful. As teachers, it’s important to remember that the students are exposed to so much online and they need to know how to make good choices.

We have been learning a lot lately about Project Based Learning and how great it really is. In the Youtube video titled, Project Based Learning, we learn how three teachers in Canada restructured their day to use Project Based Learning. In this particular classroom, students don’t learn in segmented subjects. Instead, the teachers integrate subjects like History and English coupled with technology. In the video, we learn that research shows that integrated learning through projects allows the students to be more engaged and provides an opportunity for deeper understanding. The three teachers in this video realized how beneficial Project Based Learning can be, but all they needed was more time. The teachers decided to restructure their day to make time to blend ideas and content, go deeper into learning, and provide feedback. It’s hard to do a good, thorough project when the students are limited. With Project Based Learning, teachers are allowed to teach things beyond the curriculum. It gives the students a chance to create something great on their own and be proud of the process, as well as the outcome. Brian Crosby-Back To the Future

By: Sarah Carl

The video of Roosevelt Elementary School's PBL program is proof of how project-based learning is so great for students. The Roosevelt teachers teach their students skills necessary for the real world such as public speaking. So many adults go through school and enter the real world never being able to properly give a speech or how to interview and that is a major reason why our society is the way it is today. Project-based learning not only teaches the students public speaking skills at an early age, it also teaches them self-motivation. They need to know that sometimes the only way to keep moving forward in life is to be able to motivate yourself to do things because they will not always have someone to hold their hand through everything. The students learn to work independently and cooperatively. By working together in PBL, the students practice social skills and how to work together which is also very necessary for the real world. Project-based learning does not use just one way of learning, it incorporates multiple intelligences so each child receives the most information from each lesson. By using multiple intelligences, it makes the students much more engaged and interactive. It makes them curious and wanting to learn. As the teacher's at Roosevelt Elementary School said "It's not easy. It's a lot of work for teachers." But I think to see the students so engaged and excited about learning makes it completely worth it.

Project #10 Interview

Project 12B