The Beauty of the SMARTBoard
The SMARTBoard is a wonderful example of how far technology has come and how it is impacting education. Through this tool teachers are able to create lessons on the board that are interactive and fun for the students. This is very different from the traditional lecture to the class. The students are getting up to the board and participating versus just sitting in their seat all class. SMARTBoards are fairly easy to figure out. If you are having trouble their are tutorials and screencast to guide you and help you discover the tools.
SMARTBoard Tools
The SMARTBoard notebook offers many useful tools inside of it. These are good resources for students to practice and test concepts that they have learned. For example, you can program a bag to only accept certain answers and reject wrong ones. This helps the students sort things in a fun and different way. Another tool is a balloon. You may write on the below or underneath it. So this may good tool to use if you want the students to guess before seeing the answer by popping the balloon. These are fun ways to get them excited about learning. Games and fun tools are things that they are interested in. This will make learning a positive process for them instead of boring.
My Opinion
In my opinion, I think the SMARTBoard is a great technological advancement that should be utilized in the classroom. It is a new way to present, practice, and test concepts that I find refreshing. I think this is also beneficial for students who may have certain learning needs. For example, this may be a great thing for a student with ADHD. They tend to have high activity levels so this will keep them moving and out of their seat. This will make them more engaged and interested in the material. I don't think that the SMARTBoard should be the only teaching method. However, it is definitely a great tool in the classroom that I plan to make use of when I am a teacher if given the opportunity to do so.
How to Create a good Learning Objective
Creating a lesson plan is an important part of a lesson. The learning objective is key part of the lesson plan. To create a well done objective it must have a few things. It should begin with the conditions (generally start with the word given). For example, given 10 multiple choice questions on safari animals. Next it should have a verb that is measurable. Some good verbs to use include the following: circle, answer, match. It should also include criteria. This specifies how well you would like the students to perform. For example, 80% accuracy.
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Module 3-Screencasts and Assistive Technology
What is a Screencast?
A screencast is a video of your computer screen with audio of your voice instructing the viewer. The screen should be properly fitted. A screencast can be done through Screencast-O-Matic or a similar application. Options like highlighting your cursor help make the the video very easy to follow. Screencasts allow you to record and stop whenever needed during the process of creating the screencast.
Uses of a Screencast
Screencasts are useful for many things when it comes to technology. It is often that people may find themselves unsure of how to do something and turn to YouTube for help. There are many times people don't know how to do something and a screencast has answered their question. It's a lot easier to figure something out when you actually see it, compared to just hearing it. Another helpful part of screencasts are that you can stop the video to complete the task on your own computer. This way you can do everything at your own pace and not feel rushed. It is nice that you can go back and rewind the video if there was something that went too fast or was misunderstood.
My Experience/Opinion
I use screencasts very often. I often can't figure out something on my computer or how something works, so I ask the internet. They are usually very clear and easy to follow. I think that screencasts are very valuable resources. It helps more people become more technologically savvy. It is also good for students like us to practice teaching others. I found the process of creating a screencast enjoyable and fun to instruct others. It is also great to add tips or commentary to help other teachers. I find screencasts to be a very beneficial tool.
Assistive Technology and Uses
Assistive technology is available for whoever needs it. It is technology that aids those who may not be able to do something or need help completing an action. For example, those who may need help with reading, the tool "Natural Reader" is available for them. They can copy or write a text and it will read it aloud to them. There are many tools for many different people in areas such as vision, hearing, dexterity and mobility, learning, language and communication, speech, and many more. It is truly amazing what technology can do and how it can help people in so many areas of life. These tools are useful to students with developmental, mental, and physical disorders as well. It is really cool how these tools can help them express themselves through ways like music that was mentioned in the article. I think it is truly amazing how far technology has come and all the advancements that are being made.
A screencast is a video of your computer screen with audio of your voice instructing the viewer. The screen should be properly fitted. A screencast can be done through Screencast-O-Matic or a similar application. Options like highlighting your cursor help make the the video very easy to follow. Screencasts allow you to record and stop whenever needed during the process of creating the screencast.
Uses of a Screencast
Screencasts are useful for many things when it comes to technology. It is often that people may find themselves unsure of how to do something and turn to YouTube for help. There are many times people don't know how to do something and a screencast has answered their question. It's a lot easier to figure something out when you actually see it, compared to just hearing it. Another helpful part of screencasts are that you can stop the video to complete the task on your own computer. This way you can do everything at your own pace and not feel rushed. It is nice that you can go back and rewind the video if there was something that went too fast or was misunderstood.
My Experience/Opinion
I use screencasts very often. I often can't figure out something on my computer or how something works, so I ask the internet. They are usually very clear and easy to follow. I think that screencasts are very valuable resources. It helps more people become more technologically savvy. It is also good for students like us to practice teaching others. I found the process of creating a screencast enjoyable and fun to instruct others. It is also great to add tips or commentary to help other teachers. I find screencasts to be a very beneficial tool.
Assistive Technology and Uses
Assistive technology is available for whoever needs it. It is technology that aids those who may not be able to do something or need help completing an action. For example, those who may need help with reading, the tool "Natural Reader" is available for them. They can copy or write a text and it will read it aloud to them. There are many tools for many different people in areas such as vision, hearing, dexterity and mobility, learning, language and communication, speech, and many more. It is truly amazing what technology can do and how it can help people in so many areas of life. These tools are useful to students with developmental, mental, and physical disorders as well. It is really cool how these tools can help them express themselves through ways like music that was mentioned in the article. I think it is truly amazing how far technology has come and all the advancements that are being made.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Module 2-Digital Story
What is A Digital Story
Storytelling is helpful in all aspects of life to help the listener make sense of information. It makes the information told mean something to us and makes us more likely to remember it. A digital story is a creative way to display knowledge versus just reciting the information. Pictures and other media add to the story by making the audience feel engaged. Storytelling has been around for a very long time and is a common way to communicate with people. It is not uncommon for someone to be interested to hear a story from someone. They grasp our attention. Therefore, it makes sense to use this technique to teach students.
Process of Making a Digital Story
To create a digital story, first you must come up with an idea or topic. Then you must learn more about this topic. Next, you write the script of what you are going to say about the topic. Following that you put together what you need for the video like the audio, images, and any other media needed. Finally, put it all together. Making a digital story allows the student to practice technology skills. The process requires you to be creative, think, practice your communication, and other skills. Digital storytelling requires the use of creativity through things such as pictures and music. The teller should use emotion to tell their story and really get the point across. The process is a fun way for students to explore their skills and build on them while being creative.
Use in the classroom
Storytelling is useful in more than just Language Arts. I think that a digital story can serve a purpose in many settings in the classroom. Many things in life are connected to things that we learn in school. This will be good for the students to see that in more than just Language Arts. This will cause them to have a deeper connection with a lesson if it is personal to them. I also think the use of media will grab the attention of students since they are growing up in a time period that is full of media usage. Therefore, I believe this would be a very beneficial tool to implement in the classroom.
My Opinion/Experience
At first I was a little hesitant about the idea of a Digital Story. After reading about them more, I realized the power behind them. It caused me to see that storytelling is a great way to teach someone something because personal connection is powerful. Also, the use of media has the tendency to draw people in. I really enjoyed the process of putting my digital story together. I liked seeing how a personal experience of mine related to a teaching standard. It was a positive experience for me and is a method I hope to incorporate in my future classroom someday.
Storytelling is helpful in all aspects of life to help the listener make sense of information. It makes the information told mean something to us and makes us more likely to remember it. A digital story is a creative way to display knowledge versus just reciting the information. Pictures and other media add to the story by making the audience feel engaged. Storytelling has been around for a very long time and is a common way to communicate with people. It is not uncommon for someone to be interested to hear a story from someone. They grasp our attention. Therefore, it makes sense to use this technique to teach students.
Process of Making a Digital Story
To create a digital story, first you must come up with an idea or topic. Then you must learn more about this topic. Next, you write the script of what you are going to say about the topic. Following that you put together what you need for the video like the audio, images, and any other media needed. Finally, put it all together. Making a digital story allows the student to practice technology skills. The process requires you to be creative, think, practice your communication, and other skills. Digital storytelling requires the use of creativity through things such as pictures and music. The teller should use emotion to tell their story and really get the point across. The process is a fun way for students to explore their skills and build on them while being creative.
Use in the classroom
Storytelling is useful in more than just Language Arts. I think that a digital story can serve a purpose in many settings in the classroom. Many things in life are connected to things that we learn in school. This will be good for the students to see that in more than just Language Arts. This will cause them to have a deeper connection with a lesson if it is personal to them. I also think the use of media will grab the attention of students since they are growing up in a time period that is full of media usage. Therefore, I believe this would be a very beneficial tool to implement in the classroom.
My Opinion/Experience
At first I was a little hesitant about the idea of a Digital Story. After reading about them more, I realized the power behind them. It caused me to see that storytelling is a great way to teach someone something because personal connection is powerful. Also, the use of media has the tendency to draw people in. I really enjoyed the process of putting my digital story together. I liked seeing how a personal experience of mine related to a teaching standard. It was a positive experience for me and is a method I hope to incorporate in my future classroom someday.
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