TPACK

Here is a link to my presentation, which will be tuned for class next week!

Week 12

I read Early Connections: Technology in Early Childhood Classrooms.

Notes from Class

- Digital cameras help keep children engaged; not beyond their capabilities of use

- Create concrete knowledge before doing things on computers so they have the background knowledge

- Set your computer up so that it can be collaborative (students working together)

- Students are using the technology too!

- Students are more engaged when they are using the technology

Week 11- Lesson Plans

Here are the link to my three lesson plans: here

Language Arts: Kindergarten Core Standard 4, Objective 1
Math: Standard 2, Objective 2
Science: Animals

Week 11

I watched the posting for the week!

Week 10

Watching the three video clips, one thing that stood out to me was how you can use the same technology in multiple ways to aid to the individual levels and needs of students. Reading over the lesson plans of the teachers, they all noted that students were able to experiment and utilizing the technology to their levels. Some students discovered different stamps and options on Kid Pix while some just use what they already knew. This was interesting to me because I am constantly thinking of how I can accommodate the different needs of my students. Knowing that I can use the same technology and use it in different ways is comforting. It highlighted to me that when I plan lessons and implement technology, I should pick technology that is versatile and can be altered to adhere to the needs and objectives of my lessons.

Technology Inventory

For this assignment, I chose to interview a private school teacher I worked with over the summer in Foster City, California. I have been considering working in a private school and was interested in the kinds of technologies and resources available compared to public schools. Mrs. Barbie is a 2nd grade teacher with 18 students in her classroom. I asked her to make a list of the all the technology resources she had and used in her classroom. She explained they had 9 computers, 4 digital camera, a projector, a projector screen, a smart board, calculators, access to a tv and vcr/dvd player, a radio, cd, tape player, and numerous educative computer games.
Miss Barbie uses the computers daily and said her students love to use them to enhance their activities. Her students send e-mails to other students in different schools, allowing them to practice their typing and composition skills. She also has various games set up on the computers that allow students to practice spelling, math, and grammar. She said these games are typically for early finishers, but also offers them to students who arrive early each day. Although the smart board is fairly new to the classroom and she admits she has yet to figure out all it can do, she says it is a great interactive tool. She says the children are fascinated by it and love to look at geometric shapes using software. She explained it is a great way to introduce new ideas, especially in math and science, and actually demonstrate the task for her students. This way the children see it modeled before they are expected to perform the task themselves.
When I asked her what technology she wished she had in her classroom, she surprisingly said more books on tape. She said she has one tape player, but wished she had more tape players should could let students use to read more challenging books. She said even at 2nd grade, students enjoy being read to, even chapter books. She also expressed interest in movie making software. She said her students are very creative and she could see such resources enhancing their learning process. As I discussed information about technology and what I have learned in this class, I suggested features like Voice Thread and some of the movie making software we used in class. She was thrilled with the new possibilities for her classroom and hoped to implement them soon.
It was interesting to hear about all the great resources she has in her classroom and how she used them. I found it interesting, however, that the things she "wished" she had were simple tools found in many classrooms. It showed me that some expensive technology is great, but teachers can make use of basic technology to make fun, enriching, and contextual activities.