It's not about the bells and whistles.
It's not about the glitz.
It's not about impressing the community.
Technology.
It IS about the difference you can make in the life of a learner:
- Who struggles with reading or writing or communicating or spelling or studying or participating in class or organizing their paper work or....
- Who wants their school experience to reflect the world around them using the tools they have readily available
- Who sees you are willing to model lifelong learning when you incorporate technology that engages and provides alternative instructional methods
8 comments:
Karen-- I'll add to your thought. It is not about the technology. It is about the learning and the teaching and tools (including technology) that support that learning.
I always say it is about using "tools" to get a positive end result.
About to try and use Diigo to help my students do a research project.
Use individual student Toolbelts (Glogs) with links to help students reach goals, every day! Great home, -school transfer!
THANKS FOR THE IDEA!
Hi Karen,
Our big, whole region effort at the moment is to get teachers happily engaging with technology. We have lots of digital immigrants with very heavy accents who are too scared to try. Web 2.0 tools are starting to make an impact and we have always used individual communications tools for our SEN students who need them.
We have a long way to go but it is a very exciting time.
Hi Karen
Got through via @irasocol.
Rant is good :-)
I'll respond & support with a video clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayZQ1C7Olks
Regards
Tomaz
Hello,
The good thing about your information is that it is explicit enough for students to grasp. Thanks for your efforts in spreading academic knowledge.
Custom Essays
As a teacher with 20 years experience, I have just begun to try to add more technology into my daily teaching. I agree that technology can add much to students who struggle to express themselves in more traditional ways and that it will give them tools necessary in the "real" world. I have also witnessed, first hand, how impressed my first graders are that I am learning along with them.
I have been using the smartboard and a variety of interactive websites across the curriculum and have had great success engaging all my learners in whole group activities. It is impressive that all the children were excited to orally engage with the information and activities presented. I have also used a variety of activities such as the venn diagram from kidspiration and some of the activities on the scholastic site with a group of three struggling readers with great success. Now my challenge is to attempt a whole group lesson with our school laptops. I am concerned with how much their lack of keyboarding skills may impede their progress.
As a teacher with 20 years experience, I have just begun to try to add more technology into my daily teaching. I agree that technology can add much to students who struggle to express themselves in more traditional ways and that it will give them tools necessary in the "real" world. I have also witnessed, first hand, how impressed my first graders are that I am learning along with them.
I have been using the smartboard and a variety of interactive websites across the curriculum and have had great success engaging all my learners in whole group activities. It is impressive that all the children were excited to orally engage with the information and activities presented. I have also used a variety of activities such as the venn diagram from kidspiration and some of the activities on the scholastic site with a group of three struggling readers with great success. Now my challenge is to attempt a whole group lesson with our school laptops. I am concerned with how much their lack of keyboarding skills may impede their progress.
I am currently teaching a Grade 1 class of 22 students. I am also participating in a university course working towards my Master’s. It is Learning and Teaching with Technology. I have begun trying several different technology tools or programs with my students.
The most successful one has been two individual listening centres with books on CD. This excited my students immediately and it has always involved a writing component that is shared with the entire class. My reluctant readers and writers are constantly lined up to listen to the new stories I put at these centres. They enjoy sharing their opinion of the book and often choose these centres when others are playing with Lego, trains, puzzles and art.
Another activity that I am going to try is using KidPix with my students to draw and write what they learned about frogs. I plan to work with two students at a time to complete this activity (I have a student teacher). I want to spend time teaching the students how to start the COWs (computer on wheels – laptop), how to login, the different components of the drawing program and the writing part.
Have you used this program with your first grade students? Any tips?
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