New School Year's Resolution
The podcast I listened to was about twenty-three minutes long, and was a KidCast: Learning and Teaching with Podcasts. Dan Schmit was the man speaking during the podcast. The podcast was from August 24, 2006, so it was the time that school would be starting. Schmit asked teachers to make a New School Year's Resolution to include podcasts in the curriculum. Schmit suggested just trying short, three to ten minute, podcasts in the classroom to see how students react, and to see if the podcasts are beneficial to the curriculum. Schmit also talked about using cell phone effectively in the classroom, so that the students can use something they love in the classroom. He suggested looking at http://odeo.com to look at how cell phones and other technology can be used in the classroom. He said that the man who helped make blogger.com was looking at how cell phones could be used in the classroom. At the end of the podcast Schmit answered a question about writing a grant to get ipods for the classroom. He told the woman how to write a grant, but also told her of other ways to get podcasts into the classroom that would be cheaper.
I think that podcasts could be used in classroom at the right time to be an effective tool to teach students. I think that if there was a podcast of a speech or about a topic the class was discussing then finding a podcast for the students to listen to would be beneficial. I think that podcasts would be more appropriate for older grades who would have more of an attention span to sit and listen to a podcast. When I was listening to the podcast I felt like I was listening to a lecture, so I think that would be hard for younger grades to sit through. If I could find a podcast in funny voices that was dialogue or something, then the younger grades might have fun listening to the podcast. I think the biggest problem with podcasts in the classroom is students getting bored while listening to them. I think having students make their own podcasts is a fun project for students to do. Students would have fun making a podcast then listening to themselves after and getting to have other people listen to the podcast. Podcasts could help instruct literacy instruction by listening to podcasts about a topic of literacy. It could be another reinforcement for the students, and anything that helps a teacher reinforce a lesson is helpful. Students could also create their own podcasts on a literacy topic that way the students have more experience with the literacy piece. Basically, podcasts are a great tool for reinforcement in the classroom that students could find a new and refreshing aspect in the classroom.
Podcasts in my Practicum Classroom:
1) I would have my students listen to a podcast about poetry or a podcast in which poems are read to help reinforce the poetry unit they are doing. Students could hear other examples, and could even publish their own works to be on a podcast or create a podcast of their poetry.
2) I would have my students create a podcast about preparing for their MEAs for the grades coming in that have to go through the standardize tests. The podcast can be fun and silly or serious as the students give advice and practice writing a podcast.
3) I would have my students make a podcast about the state of Maine as an advertisement to attract newcomers to the state. The podcast would cover what we have been talking about in class about the resources and places in Maine that are attractive.
4) I could have my students make a podcast in the Spanish they have learned. They could write a basic conversation or tell the public how to say basic phrases in Spanish.
5) I could have my students listen to a podcast about new children's books to check out. This way they are learning new books and how to talk about literature.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Monday, February 11, 2008
Options for language arts unit
Option 1: I will have students read Pinocchio, a play version, and we will perform the play. Students will be assigned parts and will have to try to remember as much as possible for the play. We will make cue cards just in case students have trouble memorizing their lines. Students will borrow costumes from the local theater program and we will perform the play on the school stage. Instead of performing for a large audience, we will be making an imovie of our version of the play. This way parents can view the play online, and students will be able to see their own masterpiece!
Option 2: Students will do a book report for a book they have previously read in class, Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. To help students learn the format of a report we will be using inspiration. They will be brainstorming three ideas each out of the book to write about, then will use the program to branch more ideas off of their three main points. Students will then be able to create an outline to write their paper by. If they get lost while writing their paper or have more ideas, they can return to inspiration to add more ideas to their diagram. Then when they hit outline they can see how the ideas can fit into their report.
Option 3: I will put my students in groups of four and will give each group a picture book to read. The picture book will be at the group's reading level, but I will make sure the book will be a challenging picture book they can work through together. The students will then make their own illustrations of the book with NO words. We will take digital pictures of the students drawings to post a youtube video using frames. The groups will read the story so while frames is playing the story is being read with the students own illustrations. The groups will share their frames production with the class so we will all learn a new picture book.
Option 4: Students will read Out of the Dust to introduce the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression and it will show them free verse poem. Students will have the choice of 10 poems from the book to translate into how we would write a journal today. Students do not have to be formal in the journal; the point of the unit is to show them how poems are translated so we can understand them. Students will keep a blog with their versions of the poems. At the end of the unit I will look at the blogs and put them in order of how they appear in the book. This way the class can read their own version of Out of the Dust.
Option 5: Students will learn to write dialogue in this unit. In groups of four they will write a short dialogue about being respectful to one another. I will give them different scenarios such as what to do when someone if being a bully, helping each other, having a polite conversation, and making sure everyone is included. They will be asked to make up a story where those scenarios would be happening or need to happen. The students will then create a podcast of their dialogue. The podcast will be played for the younger grades so they learn the school rules of being respectful.
Option 2: Students will do a book report for a book they have previously read in class, Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. To help students learn the format of a report we will be using inspiration. They will be brainstorming three ideas each out of the book to write about, then will use the program to branch more ideas off of their three main points. Students will then be able to create an outline to write their paper by. If they get lost while writing their paper or have more ideas, they can return to inspiration to add more ideas to their diagram. Then when they hit outline they can see how the ideas can fit into their report.
Option 3: I will put my students in groups of four and will give each group a picture book to read. The picture book will be at the group's reading level, but I will make sure the book will be a challenging picture book they can work through together. The students will then make their own illustrations of the book with NO words. We will take digital pictures of the students drawings to post a youtube video using frames. The groups will read the story so while frames is playing the story is being read with the students own illustrations. The groups will share their frames production with the class so we will all learn a new picture book.
Option 4: Students will read Out of the Dust to introduce the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression and it will show them free verse poem. Students will have the choice of 10 poems from the book to translate into how we would write a journal today. Students do not have to be formal in the journal; the point of the unit is to show them how poems are translated so we can understand them. Students will keep a blog with their versions of the poems. At the end of the unit I will look at the blogs and put them in order of how they appear in the book. This way the class can read their own version of Out of the Dust.
Option 5: Students will learn to write dialogue in this unit. In groups of four they will write a short dialogue about being respectful to one another. I will give them different scenarios such as what to do when someone if being a bully, helping each other, having a polite conversation, and making sure everyone is included. They will be asked to make up a story where those scenarios would be happening or need to happen. The students will then create a podcast of their dialogue. The podcast will be played for the younger grades so they learn the school rules of being respectful.
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