In the article "How to Use Comic Life in the Classroom," Charles Thacker presents many ways that teachers and students can use comics in the classroom. The article touches on the fact that many in the field of academics see comics as being an inferior mode of literature. However, Thacker goes on to explain that "comics have some great uses in the classroom and in a variety of curricula" (2007).
Thacker gives specific examples of how students at different levels can benefit from the use of comics in the classroom. From the non-reader using comics as a way to "help provide practice with sequencing as well as concrete to abstract transitions using illustrations instead of written words" to the older more advanced student using them as "a stepping-stone to more complex and traditional written work" (Thacker, 2007). One major benefit of the comic is the ability to consolidate a lot of written text into a single comic cell. This can be a great resource for the reluctant or poor reader.
The staff that Thacker works with have been using Comic Life as a means of "facilitat[ing] student participation in assignments that traditionally would have been written assignments with little to no imagery included" (Thacker, 2007). He further explains that they use Comic Life as an alternative assignment to the book report. This gets students much more excited about and involved with the literature. He also includes several other options for the use of Comic Life in the classroom, including "timelines, historical figures, instructions, dialogue punctuation, character [or] plot analysis, storytelling, [and] teaching onomatopoeia" (Thacker, 2007).
The article is concluded with an in-depth explanation of Comic Life and how to create your own comic using the software. He provides the reader with step-by-step instructions on each of the features of Comic Life: the layout, the speech bubbles, the effects, and more. Even though I'd completed my own Comic Life, I learned more on how to use the features within the program. This section of the article makes Comic Life even more user-friendly than it already is.
Thacker, C. (2007, March 8). How to use comic life in the classroom. TechEd: Technology in Education. Retrieved from http://www.macinstruct.com/node/69 on September 25, 2009.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Blog 5 - Comic Life
I loved using Comic Life, and even more, loved looking at the different Comic Lifes that people have created! This software was so simple to use and not at all intimidating. I started out creating a comic that documented the day my son was born. It was super fun to use!! I then created my comic about finding the length of the hypotenuse - using a peanut field as the connection to Georgia. I enjoyed looking through my own pictures and finding those online when needed to add interest and fun to the comic. One thing that I did find difficult was trying to import things from Word - text for math or images. I was able to get around this by writing the math down, then taking a picture of it with my laptop camera. Overall, the program was very easy to use, and I enjoyed creating my Comic Life presentation.
I think that this would be an awesome software for students to use to create projects for class. It is also a program that yields a finished project in very little time. In my classroom, I could show the students how the program works or create a group comic on the Promethean Board. We could then go to the computer lab to have students create their own. It would be so awesome!
My Georgia Themed Comic Life:
My "just for fun" Comic Life about the birth of my son:
I think that this would be an awesome software for students to use to create projects for class. It is also a program that yields a finished project in very little time. In my classroom, I could show the students how the program works or create a group comic on the Promethean Board. We could then go to the computer lab to have students create their own. It would be so awesome!
My Georgia Themed Comic Life:
My "just for fun" Comic Life about the birth of my son:
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Blog 4 - Emerging Technology that Supports Communication and Collaboration
I have always struggled with how to implement effective communication and collaborative tasks (aka group work) into my classroom. This chapter provided a lot of great information - albeit dense - on how to effectively plan, develop, and analyze the tasks.
One thing that I especially liked was the information given on planning effective projects. Since "the planning stage is the most crucial for creating a successful project," I think that this is the area that teachers should spend a considerable amount of time addressing (Egbert, 2009). Within the chapter, Egbert provides a table in which she outlines the steps for planning, developing, and analyzing"technology-supported communication" (Egbert, 2009).
During the planning stage, Egbert states that "teachers should make sure that the process and outcomes are specific, relevant, and based on goals" (2009). I think that sometimes teachers get wrapped up in creating a project, merely for the sake of doing something different from the normal routine. It's so important that we, first of all, look at the goal/objectives that we hope to address through the instruction. Then we look at creating assignments that meet these goals. Without the goal, the assignment is pointless.
When developing a project, we should "observe students and make change in the project as necessary to meet student needs and curricular goals" (Egbert, 2009). Sometimes, when a teacher has spent ample time creating a project, he/she has a blind eye to the weaknesses of the assignment. It's critical that we are able to view the project from an outsider's perspective and make changes as needed from day-to-day or even from segment-to-segment. I know that I have had to alter an assignment from one segment to the next, and I imagine that I'm not alone in this.
Finally, a point that I felt was so critical to the successful implementation of a project, is that "analysis ... should be conducted by all participants. Participants should also take part in evaluation" (Egbert, 2009). This is a critical way to give the students ownership of the assignment and their role in it. Egbert goes on to encourage teachers to wrap up the assignment through "appropriate closure" activities (2009). The closure is so often neglected once the assignment is complete. I think that putting the materials away is the idea of closure for some teachers, but it's important that we provide a summation of the activity so that our students know the "why" behind the assignment.
Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology: essentials of classroom practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
One thing that I especially liked was the information given on planning effective projects. Since "the planning stage is the most crucial for creating a successful project," I think that this is the area that teachers should spend a considerable amount of time addressing (Egbert, 2009). Within the chapter, Egbert provides a table in which she outlines the steps for planning, developing, and analyzing"technology-supported communication" (Egbert, 2009).
During the planning stage, Egbert states that "teachers should make sure that the process and outcomes are specific, relevant, and based on goals" (2009). I think that sometimes teachers get wrapped up in creating a project, merely for the sake of doing something different from the normal routine. It's so important that we, first of all, look at the goal/objectives that we hope to address through the instruction. Then we look at creating assignments that meet these goals. Without the goal, the assignment is pointless.
When developing a project, we should "observe students and make change in the project as necessary to meet student needs and curricular goals" (Egbert, 2009). Sometimes, when a teacher has spent ample time creating a project, he/she has a blind eye to the weaknesses of the assignment. It's critical that we are able to view the project from an outsider's perspective and make changes as needed from day-to-day or even from segment-to-segment. I know that I have had to alter an assignment from one segment to the next, and I imagine that I'm not alone in this.
Finally, a point that I felt was so critical to the successful implementation of a project, is that "analysis ... should be conducted by all participants. Participants should also take part in evaluation" (Egbert, 2009). This is a critical way to give the students ownership of the assignment and their role in it. Egbert goes on to encourage teachers to wrap up the assignment through "appropriate closure" activities (2009). The closure is so often neglected once the assignment is complete. I think that putting the materials away is the idea of closure for some teachers, but it's important that we provide a summation of the activity so that our students know the "why" behind the assignment.
Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology: essentials of classroom practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
"VoiceThread Extends the Classroom with Interactive Multimedia Albums"
I read the article "VoiceThread Extends the Classroom with Interactive Multimedia Albums," taken from Edutopia, to learn more about VoiceThread and how it can be further used in the classroom. The author, Laila Weir, focuses on Bill Ferriter, a sixth grade teacher in North Carolina, and his experiences using VoiceThead in his language arts and social studies classrooms.
Our students spend a lot of their free time online - from email to My Space to gaming. Bill Ferriter chose to tap into something that the students already like to do and began using VoiceThread as a way to "steal some of their online minutes" (Weir, 2008). He began by posting VoiceThreads and having his students comment on them. They were not required to comment; commenting was entirely voluntary. Ferriter noticed that on some of the slides he would have dozens of comments, and he would have hundreds on others. These comments created a dialogue between his students that branched into moral and ethical conversations surrounding these issues.
One thing that Ferriter noticed was that the students from class who are generally timid really shed their shells on VoiceThread. They were able to really think about their comments and have a chance to express them without being overshadowed by those students who always speak out in class. Another benefit to the VoiceThread conversations that Ferriter experienced is that "multiple conversations [can be] going on at once" (Weir, 2008). Whereas the classroom conversation is directed by the teacher and linear, the conversations online can be free to take off into many different directions, as the students decide what they'd like to say. In addition, he brings up a comment in class each day, and he and the students evaluate what "makes for a good or bad comment" (Weir, 2008).
The VoiceThreads that Ferriter uses not only reinforce classroom topics, they also reinforce writing skills as the students are given a chance to free-write their thoughts on these topics. As Ferriter states, asking students to get out paper and pencil and write can really isolate students, but having them express their thoughts in a dialogue engages many more students in excellent conversation.
Weir, L. (2008). VoiceThread extends the classroom with interactive multimedia albums. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/voicethread-interactive-multimedia-albums on September 21, 2009.
Our students spend a lot of their free time online - from email to My Space to gaming. Bill Ferriter chose to tap into something that the students already like to do and began using VoiceThread as a way to "steal some of their online minutes" (Weir, 2008). He began by posting VoiceThreads and having his students comment on them. They were not required to comment; commenting was entirely voluntary. Ferriter noticed that on some of the slides he would have dozens of comments, and he would have hundreds on others. These comments created a dialogue between his students that branched into moral and ethical conversations surrounding these issues.
One thing that Ferriter noticed was that the students from class who are generally timid really shed their shells on VoiceThread. They were able to really think about their comments and have a chance to express them without being overshadowed by those students who always speak out in class. Another benefit to the VoiceThread conversations that Ferriter experienced is that "multiple conversations [can be] going on at once" (Weir, 2008). Whereas the classroom conversation is directed by the teacher and linear, the conversations online can be free to take off into many different directions, as the students decide what they'd like to say. In addition, he brings up a comment in class each day, and he and the students evaluate what "makes for a good or bad comment" (Weir, 2008).
The VoiceThreads that Ferriter uses not only reinforce classroom topics, they also reinforce writing skills as the students are given a chance to free-write their thoughts on these topics. As Ferriter states, asking students to get out paper and pencil and write can really isolate students, but having them express their thoughts in a dialogue engages many more students in excellent conversation.
Weir, L. (2008). VoiceThread extends the classroom with interactive multimedia albums. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/voicethread-interactive-multimedia-albums on September 21, 2009.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Blog 3 - VoiceThread Project
I chose to complete my VoiceThread as a way to provide practice problems where students would be finding the area of polygons. I created two word problems which would require students to use a variety of skills. In my first problem, students will have to recall the area formula for rectangles in order to calculate the area of the bedroom floor. This problem could easily be extended by having students calculate the cost of carpet.
The second problem is a slightly higher skill level than the first. Rather than simply calculating the area of the triangle, the student has to call on their reading skills to ensure that they find the area of the five triangles that the spirit squad is going to make.
When beginning this project, I was nervous to try out a program that I'd never seen before. Based on the clip shown in class, the program looked as though it would be complex to use and require a lot of computer skill in order to comment on the VoiceThread. I thought to myself, this would be too complex for students to use and would require a lot of training for the student. However, once I opened the program to view and comment on a classmate's VoiceThread, I found that it was super simple to use. I was able to easily create my problems in Word and paste them into VoiceThread.
In addition to utilizing the VoiceThread technology for the first time, I also used my laptop's camera and microphone for the first time. Who knew how simple it was to utilize the cam and mic! (My husband has been having fun with them - and all of the camera tools - since discovering their simplicity!)
As I was creating my own VoiceThread and viewing the VoiceThreads of my peers, my own mind was racing with ways that I could utilize this in my own classroom. I teach two content areas - math and language arts/reading - and I was imagining ways to use VoiceThread in both of these areas. In my math class, I would love to use this as a way to reiterate the lesson given in class or as a way to post examples worked in class and as another option for paper and pencil homework assignments. By posting a problem for students to work and post their responses to, they would still have to practice the skills but in a cool and new way.
In my language arts/reading class, I could see using this tool as a way to work on student writing and adding details by having students call/type/record their thoughts on a VoiceThread. I could also see my students creating their own VoiceThreads as an alternative to traditional book reports. How cool would it be to have students create a VoiceThread as a response to reading The Outsiders or The Giver? They could take their own photos, record their own thoughts, summarize the story elements, and pull elements from the internet as a way to approach a book report from a whole new perspective.
I consider myself to be fairly technologically savvy; however, my specific area of "savviness" is not in automatically knowing how to do things, but in my ability to navigate and my willingness to try new programs. In creating my VoiceThread, I found that these skills came into play.
The second problem is a slightly higher skill level than the first. Rather than simply calculating the area of the triangle, the student has to call on their reading skills to ensure that they find the area of the five triangles that the spirit squad is going to make.
When beginning this project, I was nervous to try out a program that I'd never seen before. Based on the clip shown in class, the program looked as though it would be complex to use and require a lot of computer skill in order to comment on the VoiceThread. I thought to myself, this would be too complex for students to use and would require a lot of training for the student. However, once I opened the program to view and comment on a classmate's VoiceThread, I found that it was super simple to use. I was able to easily create my problems in Word and paste them into VoiceThread.
In addition to utilizing the VoiceThread technology for the first time, I also used my laptop's camera and microphone for the first time. Who knew how simple it was to utilize the cam and mic! (My husband has been having fun with them - and all of the camera tools - since discovering their simplicity!)
As I was creating my own VoiceThread and viewing the VoiceThreads of my peers, my own mind was racing with ways that I could utilize this in my own classroom. I teach two content areas - math and language arts/reading - and I was imagining ways to use VoiceThread in both of these areas. In my math class, I would love to use this as a way to reiterate the lesson given in class or as a way to post examples worked in class and as another option for paper and pencil homework assignments. By posting a problem for students to work and post their responses to, they would still have to practice the skills but in a cool and new way.
In my language arts/reading class, I could see using this tool as a way to work on student writing and adding details by having students call/type/record their thoughts on a VoiceThread. I could also see my students creating their own VoiceThreads as an alternative to traditional book reports. How cool would it be to have students create a VoiceThread as a response to reading The Outsiders or The Giver? They could take their own photos, record their own thoughts, summarize the story elements, and pull elements from the internet as a way to approach a book report from a whole new perspective.
I consider myself to be fairly technologically savvy; however, my specific area of "savviness" is not in automatically knowing how to do things, but in my ability to navigate and my willingness to try new programs. In creating my VoiceThread, I found that these skills came into play.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Blog 2 - Emerging Technology that Supports Content Learning
In the beginning of the chapter, I really appreciated reading about the three types of knowledge outlined for the reader: declarative, structural, and procedural. The way that Egbert described the ways in which these types of learning relate to each other and meld together made me evaluate my own teaching. I tried to focus and reflect on my own teaching to evaluate the type of knowledge that I'm helping to impart on my students.
One statement that stood out to me in the reading was that "different ways to learn and teach content might be necessary across disciplines" (Egbert, 2009). As a teacher of two contents - math and language arts - I thought about my own teaching and how I approach these very different areas in different ways. The way that I present the material in the math class is much more straightforward and procedural; however, in my language arts classroom, I tend to approach the material in a way that allows the students an opportunity to be more creative. This allows them the chance to develop their own learning through their writing and the delving into the literature. It made me realize that I should create more opportunities in my math classes for students to develop their own learning and knowledge.
After reflecting on my own teaching and the information presented in this chapter, one of the biggest ideas that I will take from the chapter is to create meaningful knowledge through the use of more advanced ways of learning rather than through lots of memorization and other means of declarative knowledge. As Egbert expressed, "instead of content knowledge being only the forebear of other types of thinking, gains in content knowledge are a result of those types of thinking" (2009).
Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology: essentials of classroom practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
One statement that stood out to me in the reading was that "different ways to learn and teach content might be necessary across disciplines" (Egbert, 2009). As a teacher of two contents - math and language arts - I thought about my own teaching and how I approach these very different areas in different ways. The way that I present the material in the math class is much more straightforward and procedural; however, in my language arts classroom, I tend to approach the material in a way that allows the students an opportunity to be more creative. This allows them the chance to develop their own learning through their writing and the delving into the literature. It made me realize that I should create more opportunities in my math classes for students to develop their own learning and knowledge.
After reflecting on my own teaching and the information presented in this chapter, one of the biggest ideas that I will take from the chapter is to create meaningful knowledge through the use of more advanced ways of learning rather than through lots of memorization and other means of declarative knowledge. As Egbert expressed, "instead of content knowledge being only the forebear of other types of thinking, gains in content knowledge are a result of those types of thinking" (2009).
Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology: essentials of classroom practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Technology Implementation Programs
Fox, C. (2009). More than machines. T.H.E. Journal, 36(6), 23-26. Retrieved from EBSCO on September 8, 2009.
This article describes how two school systems utilized federal, state, and local funding to implement technology initiatives. Both school systems experienced positive results for their students and have expanded their programs to additional grade levels.
Chesterfield County Schools in South Carolina initially implemented the STEP (Student Technology and Education Proficiency) Initiative sixth grade classrooms at Plainview Elementary School and McBee Elementary School and seventh grade classrooms at McBee High School. These students were issued laptops. Students with financial needs were also provided with free installation and a special $5 monthly Internet plan at their homes. In addition to the laptops, classrooms were equipped with many digital components: cameras, interactive whiteboards, projectors, among additional resources.
The high school in Pennsylvania's Southern Columbia Area School District utilized funds through the CFF (Classrooms for the Future) Program, starting in 2006. In this program, state funds provide the school with various technologies including interactive whiteboards, laptops, printers, etc. Each math, science, social studies, and language arts classroom is provided with a laptop cart. The school chose to use their own funds to provide each special education classroom and the media center with a laptop cart to expand on the CFF program.
More importantly, both programs provided technology coaches to help them with the implementation of the technolgoy and provided resources. This seems to be the common denominator among programs that are not successful in the classroom. When they are dumped into a sea of technology, the training acts as the raft for teachers to cling to until they get the hang of it! Without this training, the technology remains unused and teachers become frustrated.
Both Chesterfield County and Southern Columbia Area's school systems saw an increase in student achievement, learning, and test scores. Chesterfield County also reported a decrease in discipline referrals. After this success, Chesterfield was issued a federal grant and the program was increased to include eighth grade students at McBee High School last year and includes all sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students in the county this school year (09-10). Southern Columbia Area has expanded their program to include seventh and eighth grade students at the middle school this year.
Through utilization of state funds and cooperation with AT&T, Chesterfield County was able further expand their program to install LCD monitors and WIFI service on all of the school busses. They use these in order to enhance field trips and also to show short videos that enhance classroom instruction and deal with issues from bullying to study skills to environmental issues. They also will be able to use the internet on their laptops while on the school bus with the WIFI capability.
One student in particular is profiled from the Chesterfield County School System - a fourth grade student with cancer who spends much of his school year in a homebound educational setting. Through the STEP program, the county was able to provide him with a digital camera and laptop. He is then able to interact with the class, follow along with his teacher's lesson in the classroom, and feel as though he is in the classroom with the other students. What a great way to utilize the technology to really help this child excell in the classroom! :-)
One struggle that both school systems are facing in the continuation of these programs is the funding. Many of the initial grants and funds have expired, and the schools are having to find the money in other places. However, they have both committed to finding additional grants and stretching the money that they do have in order to keep the programs going.
This article describes how two school systems utilized federal, state, and local funding to implement technology initiatives. Both school systems experienced positive results for their students and have expanded their programs to additional grade levels.
Chesterfield County Schools in South Carolina initially implemented the STEP (Student Technology and Education Proficiency) Initiative sixth grade classrooms at Plainview Elementary School and McBee Elementary School and seventh grade classrooms at McBee High School. These students were issued laptops. Students with financial needs were also provided with free installation and a special $5 monthly Internet plan at their homes. In addition to the laptops, classrooms were equipped with many digital components: cameras, interactive whiteboards, projectors, among additional resources.
The high school in Pennsylvania's Southern Columbia Area School District utilized funds through the CFF (Classrooms for the Future) Program, starting in 2006. In this program, state funds provide the school with various technologies including interactive whiteboards, laptops, printers, etc. Each math, science, social studies, and language arts classroom is provided with a laptop cart. The school chose to use their own funds to provide each special education classroom and the media center with a laptop cart to expand on the CFF program.
More importantly, both programs provided technology coaches to help them with the implementation of the technolgoy and provided resources. This seems to be the common denominator among programs that are not successful in the classroom. When they are dumped into a sea of technology, the training acts as the raft for teachers to cling to until they get the hang of it! Without this training, the technology remains unused and teachers become frustrated.
Both Chesterfield County and Southern Columbia Area's school systems saw an increase in student achievement, learning, and test scores. Chesterfield County also reported a decrease in discipline referrals. After this success, Chesterfield was issued a federal grant and the program was increased to include eighth grade students at McBee High School last year and includes all sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students in the county this school year (09-10). Southern Columbia Area has expanded their program to include seventh and eighth grade students at the middle school this year.
Through utilization of state funds and cooperation with AT&T, Chesterfield County was able further expand their program to install LCD monitors and WIFI service on all of the school busses. They use these in order to enhance field trips and also to show short videos that enhance classroom instruction and deal with issues from bullying to study skills to environmental issues. They also will be able to use the internet on their laptops while on the school bus with the WIFI capability.
One student in particular is profiled from the Chesterfield County School System - a fourth grade student with cancer who spends much of his school year in a homebound educational setting. Through the STEP program, the county was able to provide him with a digital camera and laptop. He is then able to interact with the class, follow along with his teacher's lesson in the classroom, and feel as though he is in the classroom with the other students. What a great way to utilize the technology to really help this child excell in the classroom! :-)
One struggle that both school systems are facing in the continuation of these programs is the funding. Many of the initial grants and funds have expired, and the schools are having to find the money in other places. However, they have both committed to finding additional grants and stretching the money that they do have in order to keep the programs going.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Welcome: Goal and Purpose
Welcome to the world of technology in an 8th grade classroom.
I have created this blog as a resource for my MEDT 7464 class. I have previously created blogs as a means of documenting various aspects of my personal life. Although these types of blogs serve a specific purpose, I am excited about the chance to use a blog in an academic setting. I am eager to utilize this as a documentation tool for my learning in how to implement technology into the classroom. I also look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with my peers regarding their uses of technology in their classrooms. I foresee using this blog, not only as a place to document my learning, but also as a place to discuss real application in my own classroom.
I have created this blog as a resource for my MEDT 7464 class. I have previously created blogs as a means of documenting various aspects of my personal life. Although these types of blogs serve a specific purpose, I am excited about the chance to use a blog in an academic setting. I am eager to utilize this as a documentation tool for my learning in how to implement technology into the classroom. I also look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with my peers regarding their uses of technology in their classrooms. I foresee using this blog, not only as a place to document my learning, but also as a place to discuss real application in my own classroom.
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