Spelling Changes- Response Blog #3

As a former elementary student, I struggled with our vocabulary lessons. In the primary grades, we had standard spelling tests that were based on memorizing the words. Beginning in fourth or fifth grade, we were given vocabulary books that had more “application” activities. There were synonyms, antonyms, analogies and sentence completion activities. It was very difficult for me from this point forward because I could not retain the words and apply them. My brain was automatically trained to simply memorize the information rather than actually understand.

So, this school year my goal is to create a different format from the traditional spelling test. I want my students to learn, not memorize and apply, not recall. Dr. Fritz suggested to look up Sitton Spelling. From my reading, it seems to be a wonderful phonics program that focuses on word skill-literacy as well as spelling. I am hopeful that my school district will one day adopt a similar program. I truly believe it would benefit the success of my students. Although without paid access, it was harder for me to use this site.

Through talking with Dr. Fritz and thinking about Jonassen’s readings based on concept maps, I created a concept map-based spelling test. There are 10 words each week and there is always one or two word patterns. As you can see, the student is responsible for writing it by the corresponding rhyming part or other word skill. The students were taken back at first by the format because they had not been exposed to it before. It went VERY well and am eager to try other formats but still use this idea too. I’m interested in seeing if I get any parent feedback once I pass the tests back this week.

Excel in First Grade- Response Blog #2

Spreadsheets in first grade? At first I thought, "What a bogus idea...". Reading "The Spreadsheet- Absolutely Elementary!" by Elizabeth Dudley Holmes opened my eyes to the fact that it can be done and used successfully with first graders. I have had a lot of exposure to MS Excel and consider myself pretty familiar with the layout and functions. My experiences using Excel mostly relate to business courses I had taken in my later years of high school and my early undergraduate work.

Thursday's class was beneficial for me because I was able to play around with the program and create a template that adapted to what I was teaching in the class on Friday. As my math lesson on Friday, I had the students taste applesauce, Red Delicious apples, and apple butter on a cracker. After sampling, I briefly explained to the students (in first grade jargon) the concept of MS Excel and a spreadsheet. Bringing up the "Apple" template on the SMART Board, I demonstrated how the students would come up to enter their own data with the interactive keyboard on the screen. We talked about what a pie graph looked like and how it would change as more data was being entered. The class absolutely loved it! They were able to explain to the pie chart and analyze the change/difference in pieces.

After the lesson, I used the SMART Board's Notebook 10 software to "take a picture" of the Excel sheet. I copied and pasted the "picture" into Paint and saved it as a JPEG file. I uploaded the file onto my class wiki to share with the parents.

I have since forwarded the template to three other teachers in my building that plan on using it this upcoming week. I am so excited and want to begin to think of more Excel opportunities that relate with our curriculum.

Awareness: Digital Technology- Response #1

Just as I think I’m getting “ahead” of the game…or at least beginning to “get a grip” I am fascinated by another digital theory, idea or tool. Marc Prensky’s keynote speech on “Learning in the 21^st Century” broadened my mind even more so. The statistics he remarked about blew me away, especially the figure that people under the age of 25 have read less than 5,000 hours of books. It is important now more than ever to generate engagement in our classrooms. This is becoming difficult for me because I am becoming more aware that the time for change is now, but simultaneously I am becoming overwhelmed. With limited resources and district support, it is hard to make all of the changes that I want to make at once. I suppose I need to keep in mind that one change at a time is better than no change at all.

Also, the keynote speech and assigned readings by Salmon and Brown sparked my own reflection of my undergraduate core classes. Although, it is important to understand the curriculum materials, which may include using paper/pencil and textbooks, I am disappointed that there was not an educational class dedicated to digital technology or digital learning. I do remember one experience as an undergraduate, we did experiment with the SMART Board for a few days and created a virtual tour for a specific unit. But these activities passed by very quickly and were not the main objective of the course.

Now, here I am, half way through my Master’s program (which I really enjoy) and I am just becoming more aware and analytical of the digital age. This is enlightening because I love the use of technology and want to make positive growth; but is quite frustrating because my undergraduate courses were three years ago and these topics were not emphasized as they should have been! I am hopeful that undergraduate education programs are reforming. The more educators that are exposed to this new thinking will (hopefully) lead to faster change in the classrooms!

Digital Goal

My digital goal for this class is to set up a classroom wikispace. Although, I do not know how much direct student involvement they will have with the wikispace. But I do want more parent interaction/feedback using the page.

The wiki will have uploaded worksheets, homework assignments, and spelling words. Also, I would like a link to Diigo with a short explanation in hopes to encourage my students' parents to join.

Another addition to the class wiki would be short JING presentations. The presentations would be mini lessons of my voice/computer recordings to guide the student that may be struggling at home with an assignment. In my short teaching experience thus far, I have encountered parents writing notes about how their student was in tears the night before because of an assignment. This is NOT what I want my students to experience! With JING I'll be able to "teach" them at home and hope to prevent their tears and frustration.

Final Thoughts

After the first night of this course, I went home feeling overwhelmed and hopeless. I could not imagine myself being able to take on all of this new information and utilize new tools that I knew nothing about. But now, as I sit here on our last night I feel much more comfortable and accomplished. I know I still will continue to struggle and learn each day, but I am not as fearful as I once was on the first night of class.

My networking capabilities before this class were restricted to email and Facebook. Now, I am able to network through using Diigo, the Ning, blogging, etc! I think my diversity of networking has skyrocketed in the past 8 weeks and I am so eager to use and become more comfortable with these tools. I am much more connected with other users than before. Connecting with professional bloggers was significant for me because I was not solely relying on connecting with people I have interacted with face to face.

This course has opened my eyes to the new wave of teaching styles. I always knew that integrating technology would enhance learning, but I never knew exactly how or why. Reading our textbook, articles, and others' points of views has really changed my own teaching values and perspectives. I have learned that it is imperative to identify the new skills that our students need to survive in the 21st century and to embrace connecting with peers and others from all over the world!

My only question leaving this class is "what new tool will 'they' come up with next?"

Thank you for all of your patience and guidance! I truly enjoyed this class and will be implementing my new findings very soon. :)