www.unc.edu/~ferng/LatinosinDurham
Story geared toward 6th graders (through adult) addressing the Population and Economic Impact of the exponential growth of Latino population in Durham, NC; including discussion on culture and community, community outreach and service, and the future. Full references for access to materials, unit lesson plans, assessment considerations and extension activities offered.
For use by schools, community agencies
and other interested community members.
based on Southern Oral History Project (SOHP)
at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
their DocSouth Classroom stories and Listening for a Change
forewarning: it's case sensitive!!!
See www.unc.edu/~ferng/LatinosinDurham
(make sure to capitalize the L and the D)
also NOTE:
On page 5 there is a link to other Working Films video clips that may be difficult to access due to website migration issues. Today, typing in the following URL with different final # brings up the actual clip. You can find the id# by mousing over the link on the video_clips page. Example...Many Faces of Latinos video clip that is still connecting with Firefox and Explorer.
http://www.workingfilms.org/article.php?id=121
To see the summaries of the other videos available, their links, and to find out the id #s of each go to http://www.workingfilms.org/newfaces/video_clips.html
Also NOTE: A resource mentioned for multi-lingual information and communication
http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/-/americas
Global Voices is a non-profit global citizens’ media project founded at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, a research think-tank focused on the Internet’s impact on society.
http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/-/americas
Also NOTE: Another resource to connect with another classroom anywhere in the world.
Scroll down to middle of homepage and search using various dropdowns.
http://www.epals.com/
Also check their other features down further on the page,
including mentor, epals, and many other possible classroom connections
http://www.epals.com/
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Parent U on Breeze Instr Design Project EDUC 652
Leaving room for introduction to Instructional Design Project
Basically, concept of Parent University used in New England for PTA trainings.
For most chance of success for students with ADHD ADD
Originally geared toward parents, but obviously also useful for teachers.
Adjusted from 40 minute version with voiced content
to a 5 minute quick version to read on one's own.
Go to Short version first, it links to the Read Aloud version
http://breeze.unc.edu/p69233574
Directly to Long version (Read Aloud)
http://breeze.unc.edu/p56049857
Provecho
Basically, concept of Parent University used in New England for PTA trainings.
For most chance of success for students with ADHD ADD
Originally geared toward parents, but obviously also useful for teachers.
Adjusted from 40 minute version with voiced content
to a 5 minute quick version to read on one's own.
Go to Short version first, it links to the Read Aloud version
http://breeze.unc.edu/p69233574
Directly to Long version (Read Aloud)
http://breeze.unc.edu/p56049857
Provecho
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Differentiation Project placeholder
Sequence and Description
Materials: Large paper, easel, colored markers, index cards, masking tape, pens, pencils, clock & timer, print resources. Snack items: hand soap, plastic sandwich bags, twist ties, paper plates, spoons, cups, napkins, pitcher of water
_____________________________________________________
Lesson 1 Unit Introduction (10 mins)
This Unit is called Eat Well, Keep Active.
Everyone can explore bookmarked games and have some fun with food and action during the next 9 weeks!
SHOW GAMES FOLDER opening 1 or 2 links www.ikeepbookmarks.com/eat_well,_keep_active
Over the next 9 weeks, I hope everyone learns more about their own food choices and their physical activity. Everyone will also have a chance to make something new, like a new game, a movie, a poster, a song, or a booklet, to help other students learn more about food and physical activity!
(15 mins) KWL
We’ll list some things you already KNOW about food and physical activity (5 mins). Give details
Examples: anyone know food categories? a really strange food? "empty foods"? types of physical activity?
What do you think you WANT to learn about food and physical activity(5 mins).
For example: How to make healthful snacks for your friends. track your food intake. be more active every day
Then by end of unit we’ll see how much you do LEARN about food and physical activity !!
(15 minutes): TIERED ACTIVITIES (by identified reading levels):
Basic: SORT food groups of physical set or picture examples brought in by teacher. (aide if needed)
If easily done: List ideas to use the above foods for a snack. (or tape if struggling writers)
Middle: preview Games on ikeepbookmarks
Upper: Use resource table or library to list some of the strangest fruits and vegetables you can find!
SIMPLE SNACK…APPLES
_________________________________________________________
Lesson 2 Pre-Assess (15 mins)
Hand out Pre-Assessment Printout of How To Learn
Raise hand for Aide or teacher re: language/meaning. (Comprehension adjustments by teacher/aide)
As students finish they go to computer GAMES FOLDER (expect highest reading level students only)
Teacher notes: Some will be able to complete independently. Those needing read-aloud have it on tape. Bilingual volunteers, translations in print, taped response, typed response, scribe as needed.
KEEP LIST OF NEW VOCAB from KWL Discussion posted in classroom and
ADD any other vocabulary: health, snacks, meals, favorites, nutrition, exercise, workout, sports)
(15 mins) Hands-on exploratory activities various set up at 3 different areas (students can go to the one they want to first, and then try the others if time allows. Teacher brings in some new foods found in lesson 1)
Touch and Name Game (put on blindfold. open box.1 item.)
Smell and Tell Game (close eyes. Open paper bag.1 item)
See and Sort Game (9 items, 3 holes: F&V, Calc, Grain)
ADV: develop Green Machine Mash or another Food Color Mash Machine!
Teacher notes: Time to observe, informally assess styles, social interaction, friends, likes, comfort & frustration levels, ease of making decisions, etc. Teacher brings in well known and lesser known foods for this).
Simple snack: Celery and carrot sticks
__________________________________________________________
Lesson 3: Explore Foods
Warm up Why do we eat?
Guiding ideas: To help our bodies grow. To get nutrients our bodies need to be healthy. To satisfy hunger.
To stay alive. To enjoy the taste of food. To have fun, be social.
NUTRITION ACTIVITY FROM MEDIA SMART YOUTH LESSON 1 on Fruits & Veges
"Nutrition is pretty complicated…and we don’t have time to cover all the details, so we’re going to focus on a few types of foods that experts agree are really important for youth:
Fruits and vegetables
Whole grains
Calcium containing foods
Kinesthetic: Activity on grains (MIX IT UP SNACK)
Auditory: Activity calcium(3-a-day of Dairy super mom)
Visual: Color Activity on fruits and vegetables (5 a day THE COLOR WAY FOR KIDS)
Discuss smooth "as-called-upon" transitions to
Individual Teacher conferences for Individual Project talks.
Contract available, but not filled out today. Time to think!
In-class project for a student who is your age or younger:
Collage on food or physical activity, Poster, Coloring book, Story book, Song Lyrics, Skit, Poem, Diorama Clay model, Restaurant Menu, Plan a Party, Solve a specific problem, Make a Movie, Record a Song,Other.
Teacher's note: Remember: Individual Conferences are times for teacher to evaluate understanding,concerns, topics of interest to individual students, analyze and evaluate who can use info to think critically.
Snack: Granola. will take preparation time in class. Make sure all WASH hands with aide and work near sink: Mix whole grain cereal; low fat granola; toasted rolled oats; sunflower or pumpkin seeds, raisins, other dried fruits if avail. Spoon some of each into indiv bags for others
__________________________________________________________
Lesson 4: HOW WE LEARN (40 mins) Hand out printed inventory from
www.howtolearn.com/lsinventory_student.html for Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic Inventory
Students take turns reading questions, then answer each silently on their own.
If clarification needed: raise hand. (AIDE assists)
Assistance: including paraphrasing and translation as needed.
Actual online calculations done by teacher after class and results handed out to students during next session.
ADV: the few advanced readers do inventory directly online.
Teacher Note: If done early use ikeepbookmarks GAMES folder (expect low readers will)
________________________________________________________
Lesson 5: Food Groups Fruits and Vegetables
Intro new pyramid (as some may not have heard of it):
Group viewing of MyPyramid Animation www.mypyramid.gov/global_nav/media_animation.html
Introduce MyPyramid Blast Off in Game folder www.mypyramid.gov/kids/kids_game.html (elementary)
Post big colored My Pyramind chart www.myfoodPyramid.gov/tips_resources.index.html
Show QUINTRICIOUS and PYRAMID TOUR bookmark
Demonstrate using www.mypyramidtracker.gov (nutrient and physical activity tracker) and NUTRITION TRACKER game with Hand out: www.nutritionexplorations.org/pdf/kids/nutritiontracker.pdf
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES: COLORS MATTER
Introduce "Goodness Grows in Living Color" www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/pdf/fvResources/resources Families.pdf
Introduce: 5 A Day The Color Way www.dole5aday.com and the NEW national "Fruits and Veggies – More Matters" logo and message to be in place by January 2009. www.fruitsandveggiesnc.com/resources www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/index.htm
Whole group overview of colors using "Goodness Grows in Living Color": www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/pdf/fvResources/resources Families.pdf
Basic: Begin making chart of 3-5 days food intake with aide
Mid: Begin food chartinv evaluation (with PyramidTracker/Menu Planner or Shaq’s Food Log)
Advanced: Try Interactive charts on phytochemicals at www.dole5aday.com or other bkmrk .
Visual: list, chart or spreadsheet of yesterday’s food
Auditory: Listen to tape about what a 13 year old ate; tape how food choices fit in food pyramid.
Kinesthetic: basketball type activity tossing labeled foam balls into wire baskets (adj for ability).
Whole group: MAKE Venn diagrams to help identify foods made up of more than one group;
Show COMBO KITCHEN and FOOD FORCE bookmarks (could be somewhat difficult)
Nutrition Label info details to identify GRAINS (Use CDC handout on Nutrition Labels)
See Interactive called "What’s a Food Label?" at http://www.coolfoodplanet.org/gb/kidz/index.htm
CALCIUM RICH foods from 3 a day) www.3aday.org/3aday/TipsAndTools/ToolsYouCanUse
3-a-day tracker, snackulator, 33 snack ideas, 3-a-day recipe wizard & Scholastic mini-books
Demonstrate MAKE A SHAKE game
Why Calcium? www.teenshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/calcium.html
Middle group: Use online tools of choice from ikeepbookmarks.com to explore,vperfect identification.
Basic: List as many items that are CALCIUM filled and could fit into a picnic basket for your friends.
Upper: You are judging the most CALCIUM filled Family Picnic. Explain your criteria.
Additional expansion possibilities: JIGSAW with Discussion on each activity at next session.
Basic: BREAKFAST DETECTIVE in group with Aide
Middle: Arianna & Marcus GAMES, or BREAKFAST
ALL: www.flickr.com for food photos
ADV: use flickr geography tool to find food photos
DINING DECISIONS game.
Lesson 6: PORTIONS VS SERVINGS
A CHOICE YOU CAN MAKE: KEEP an EYE on PORTION SIZE (Whole Class)
Download their Serving Size Card. Do PORTION DISTORTION I and II together
PAIR AND SHARE:
Group 1: Make the PORTION SIZE GUIDELINES Handout more kid-friendly! Discuss with partner then share with group for discussion and suggestions
Group 2: Use the SERVING SIZE SURPRISE Interactive Tool from www.intelihealth.com to click on any item in pyramid and choose correct serving size. Discuss with partner & share in group disc.
Group 3: Check NUTRITION MIXER and RATE YOUR PLATE to analyze food intake and portion sizes, discuss with partner, then share http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/keep.htm and http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/menuplanner/menu.cgi
http://shaqsfamilychallenge.com/PublicSite/index.aspx?puid=8be7f291-5144-4ad8-a629-dd3b8d129f32&p=4 about portions, includes message on candy!
Additional expansion if needed:
www.teenshealth.org
www.Healthychoices.org/index.php?page_id=28
www.coolfoodplanet.org/gb/kidz/index.htm Many games
_____________________________________________________
Lesson 7: "Empty Foods and Drinks and More Thoughts on Food
ANOTHER CHOICE YOU CAN MAKE
Taped message on how empty calories impact your health and well-being.
With peer partner interested in same activity:
Visual: Make a poster that shows "empty" foods to 8 yo
Auditory: Tape a commercial that tells about "empty" foods
Kinesthetic: perform skit about these "empties" for teens
Use Discretionary Calories on www.mypyramid.gov
http://shaqsfamilychallenge.com/PublicSite/index.aspx?puid=8be7f291-5144-4ad8-a629-dd3b8d129f32&p=4 about portions, includes message on candy!
__________________________________________________
Lesson 8: Food Choices Continue MORE ON GRAINS
KWL revisited.
Congratulate each student for their hard work.
Review KWL chart for gaps. (Suspect more work on grains) What can you tell me about grains? What they are? Where they grow? How they are used? Some tasty treats?
Foods Think Tac Toe (based on Learning Style as determined by howtolearn)
1)Draw 3 grains from plant to table
2)Write where 3 different grains grow & how they’re used
3)Make a menu using 12 grain items
1)Write a thank you note to a grain
2)Research & decide which grain is eaten the most in the US
3)Interview a grain on your TV "talk" show
1)Draw a specific grain and label its parts
2)Which grain do U think is most needed by Americans.Why
3)Make a collage of 12 foods that have grains in them
Ideas For expansion if needed:
Set up info gathering at Pbwiki.com or wikispaces.com
Or A blog to discuss at epals.com
Exit card: Name 3 things you’ve learned or gave ideas to improve how you’ll eat in the future.
Name 2 things that you learned about the color of foods
Name 1 thing that you’d like to explore more about food.
__________________________________________________________
Leson 9: Exploring PHYSICAL ACTIVITY and EXERCISE
Group: Make list: how different students get physical daily
Discuss: How much time do you think young people spend with media at home in one day? Mark
Data: Young people ages 11 to 14 spend an average of 6 hours and 45 minutes a day using media. This is more time than they spend doing anything else except sleeping"
(MediaSmartYouth Lesson 2 Activity B)
How does that compare with what you thought?
Instead of being in front of computer or TV,
What else could young people do? BRAINSTORM
Examples: Walk with friends. Play sports or games with friends or family. Go roller-skating, bowling. Do household chores. Go on errands with a parent. Go to sportsplex. Swim at community cent
Use www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/MSY_Lesson_5.pdf
Include Pulse Game. On pg 25 at end of DISCUSSION
Group Discussion:
What does the term physical activity mean?
Discuss physical activity vs. exercise. Opinions/comments
SHAQ’S BIG CHALLENGE WORKOUT LOG with Food and workout logs at shaqsfamilychallenge.com/publicsite/downloadcenter/index.aspx
Also www.teenshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/nutrition_center.html
Chart personal fitness goals
(at Personal Fitness Planner especially for adolescents to determine physical activity levels)
Get Moving Calculator
Expansion if needed:
Advanced: Brainstorm physical activity for a person who is blind; or has difficulty breathing
Develop goals for person in your community/family.
EXIT Cards:
What physical activities mentioned interested you most?
Do you have any new ideas about your physical activities?
List one idea that might help someone you know get more physical activity?
________________________________________________________
Lesson 11: OPINIONS MATTER
This whole Health and Well-being thing/ Opinions
KWL revisited again!
Anything we still haven’t covered that you’d like to know more about?
Group discussion on CHOICE changes during this UNIT
Thoughts on ways to improve yourself in relation to unit
How to help others improve how they eat and get physical? (especially if there is a health related issue in family or something that you can do in your community)
Complex Instruction Task Cards (assign Primary person and review tasks before product begun.
___________________________________________
Lesson 12: New Food And Fitness Choices
Share the Complex Instruction Tasks and Summaries of Each Student’s Project
YOUR individual new choices for food and fitness!
Materials: Large paper, easel, colored markers, index cards, masking tape, pens, pencils, clock & timer, print resources. Snack items: hand soap, plastic sandwich bags, twist ties, paper plates, spoons, cups, napkins, pitcher of water
_____________________________________________________
Lesson 1 Unit Introduction (10 mins)
This Unit is called Eat Well, Keep Active.
Everyone can explore bookmarked games and have some fun with food and action during the next 9 weeks!
SHOW GAMES FOLDER opening 1 or 2 links www.ikeepbookmarks.com/eat_well,_keep_active
Over the next 9 weeks, I hope everyone learns more about their own food choices and their physical activity. Everyone will also have a chance to make something new, like a new game, a movie, a poster, a song, or a booklet, to help other students learn more about food and physical activity!
(15 mins) KWL
We’ll list some things you already KNOW about food and physical activity (5 mins). Give details
Examples: anyone know food categories? a really strange food? "empty foods"? types of physical activity?
What do you think you WANT to learn about food and physical activity(5 mins).
For example: How to make healthful snacks for your friends. track your food intake. be more active every day
Then by end of unit we’ll see how much you do LEARN about food and physical activity !!
(15 minutes): TIERED ACTIVITIES (by identified reading levels):
Basic: SORT food groups of physical set or picture examples brought in by teacher. (aide if needed)
If easily done: List ideas to use the above foods for a snack. (or tape if struggling writers)
Middle: preview Games on ikeepbookmarks
Upper: Use resource table or library to list some of the strangest fruits and vegetables you can find!
SIMPLE SNACK…APPLES
_________________________________________________________
Lesson 2 Pre-Assess (15 mins)
Hand out Pre-Assessment Printout of How To Learn
Raise hand for Aide or teacher re: language/meaning. (Comprehension adjustments by teacher/aide)
As students finish they go to computer GAMES FOLDER (expect highest reading level students only)
Teacher notes: Some will be able to complete independently. Those needing read-aloud have it on tape. Bilingual volunteers, translations in print, taped response, typed response, scribe as needed.
KEEP LIST OF NEW VOCAB from KWL Discussion posted in classroom and
ADD any other vocabulary: health, snacks, meals, favorites, nutrition, exercise, workout, sports)
(15 mins) Hands-on exploratory activities various set up at 3 different areas (students can go to the one they want to first, and then try the others if time allows. Teacher brings in some new foods found in lesson 1)
Touch and Name Game (put on blindfold. open box.1 item.)
Smell and Tell Game (close eyes. Open paper bag.1 item)
See and Sort Game (9 items, 3 holes: F&V, Calc, Grain)
ADV: develop Green Machine Mash or another Food Color Mash Machine!
Teacher notes: Time to observe, informally assess styles, social interaction, friends, likes, comfort & frustration levels, ease of making decisions, etc. Teacher brings in well known and lesser known foods for this).
Simple snack: Celery and carrot sticks
__________________________________________________________
Lesson 3: Explore Foods
Warm up Why do we eat?
Guiding ideas: To help our bodies grow. To get nutrients our bodies need to be healthy. To satisfy hunger.
To stay alive. To enjoy the taste of food. To have fun, be social.
NUTRITION ACTIVITY FROM MEDIA SMART YOUTH LESSON 1 on Fruits & Veges
"Nutrition is pretty complicated…and we don’t have time to cover all the details, so we’re going to focus on a few types of foods that experts agree are really important for youth:
Fruits and vegetables
Whole grains
Calcium containing foods
Kinesthetic: Activity on grains (MIX IT UP SNACK)
Auditory: Activity calcium(3-a-day of Dairy super mom)
Visual: Color Activity on fruits and vegetables (5 a day THE COLOR WAY FOR KIDS)
Discuss smooth "as-called-upon" transitions to
Individual Teacher conferences for Individual Project talks.
Contract available, but not filled out today. Time to think!
In-class project for a student who is your age or younger:
Collage on food or physical activity, Poster, Coloring book, Story book, Song Lyrics, Skit, Poem, Diorama Clay model, Restaurant Menu, Plan a Party, Solve a specific problem, Make a Movie, Record a Song,Other.
Teacher's note: Remember: Individual Conferences are times for teacher to evaluate understanding,concerns, topics of interest to individual students, analyze and evaluate who can use info to think critically.
Snack: Granola. will take preparation time in class. Make sure all WASH hands with aide and work near sink: Mix whole grain cereal; low fat granola; toasted rolled oats; sunflower or pumpkin seeds, raisins, other dried fruits if avail. Spoon some of each into indiv bags for others
__________________________________________________________
Lesson 4: HOW WE LEARN (40 mins) Hand out printed inventory from
www.howtolearn.com/lsinventory_student.html for Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic Inventory
Students take turns reading questions, then answer each silently on their own.
If clarification needed: raise hand. (AIDE assists)
Assistance: including paraphrasing and translation as needed.
Actual online calculations done by teacher after class and results handed out to students during next session.
ADV: the few advanced readers do inventory directly online.
Teacher Note: If done early use ikeepbookmarks GAMES folder (expect low readers will)
________________________________________________________
Lesson 5: Food Groups Fruits and Vegetables
Intro new pyramid (as some may not have heard of it):
Group viewing of MyPyramid Animation www.mypyramid.gov/global_nav/media_animation.html
Introduce MyPyramid Blast Off in Game folder www.mypyramid.gov/kids/kids_game.html (elementary)
Post big colored My Pyramind chart www.myfoodPyramid.gov/tips_resources.index.html
Show QUINTRICIOUS and PYRAMID TOUR bookmark
Demonstrate using www.mypyramidtracker.gov (nutrient and physical activity tracker) and NUTRITION TRACKER game with Hand out: www.nutritionexplorations.org/pdf/kids/nutritiontracker.pdf
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES: COLORS MATTER
Introduce "Goodness Grows in Living Color" www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/pdf/fvResources/resources Families.pdf
Introduce: 5 A Day The Color Way www.dole5aday.com and the NEW national "Fruits and Veggies – More Matters" logo and message to be in place by January 2009. www.fruitsandveggiesnc.com/resources www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/index.htm
Whole group overview of colors using "Goodness Grows in Living Color": www.nutritionnc.com/ResourcesForSchools/pdf/fvResources/resources Families.pdf
Basic: Begin making chart of 3-5 days food intake with aide
Mid: Begin food chartinv evaluation (with PyramidTracker/Menu Planner or Shaq’s Food Log)
Advanced: Try Interactive charts on phytochemicals at www.dole5aday.com or other bkmrk .
Visual: list, chart or spreadsheet of yesterday’s food
Auditory: Listen to tape about what a 13 year old ate; tape how food choices fit in food pyramid.
Kinesthetic: basketball type activity tossing labeled foam balls into wire baskets (adj for ability).
Whole group: MAKE Venn diagrams to help identify foods made up of more than one group;
Show COMBO KITCHEN and FOOD FORCE bookmarks (could be somewhat difficult)
Nutrition Label info details to identify GRAINS (Use CDC handout on Nutrition Labels)
See Interactive called "What’s a Food Label?" at http://www.coolfoodplanet.org/gb/kidz/index.htm
CALCIUM RICH foods from 3 a day) www.3aday.org/3aday/TipsAndTools/ToolsYouCanUse
3-a-day tracker, snackulator, 33 snack ideas, 3-a-day recipe wizard & Scholastic mini-books
Demonstrate MAKE A SHAKE game
Why Calcium? www.teenshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/calcium.html
Middle group: Use online tools of choice from ikeepbookmarks.com to explore,vperfect identification.
Basic: List as many items that are CALCIUM filled and could fit into a picnic basket for your friends.
Upper: You are judging the most CALCIUM filled Family Picnic. Explain your criteria.
Additional expansion possibilities: JIGSAW with Discussion on each activity at next session.
Basic: BREAKFAST DETECTIVE in group with Aide
Middle: Arianna & Marcus GAMES, or BREAKFAST
ALL: www.flickr.com for food photos
ADV: use flickr geography tool to find food photos
DINING DECISIONS game.
Lesson 6: PORTIONS VS SERVINGS
A CHOICE YOU CAN MAKE: KEEP an EYE on PORTION SIZE (Whole Class)
Download their Serving Size Card. Do PORTION DISTORTION I and II together
PAIR AND SHARE:
Group 1: Make the PORTION SIZE GUIDELINES Handout more kid-friendly! Discuss with partner then share with group for discussion and suggestions
Group 2: Use the SERVING SIZE SURPRISE Interactive Tool from www.intelihealth.com to click on any item in pyramid and choose correct serving size. Discuss with partner & share in group disc.
Group 3: Check NUTRITION MIXER and RATE YOUR PLATE to analyze food intake and portion sizes, discuss with partner, then share http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/keep.htm and http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/menuplanner/menu.cgi
http://shaqsfamilychallenge.com/PublicSite/index.aspx?puid=8be7f291-5144-4ad8-a629-dd3b8d129f32&p=4 about portions, includes message on candy!
Additional expansion if needed:
www.teenshealth.org
www.Healthychoices.org/index.php?page_id=28
www.coolfoodplanet.org/gb/kidz/index.htm Many games
_____________________________________________________
Lesson 7: "Empty Foods and Drinks and More Thoughts on Food
ANOTHER CHOICE YOU CAN MAKE
Taped message on how empty calories impact your health and well-being.
With peer partner interested in same activity:
Visual: Make a poster that shows "empty" foods to 8 yo
Auditory: Tape a commercial that tells about "empty" foods
Kinesthetic: perform skit about these "empties" for teens
Use Discretionary Calories on www.mypyramid.gov
http://shaqsfamilychallenge.com/PublicSite/index.aspx?puid=8be7f291-5144-4ad8-a629-dd3b8d129f32&p=4 about portions, includes message on candy!
__________________________________________________
Lesson 8: Food Choices Continue MORE ON GRAINS
KWL revisited.
Congratulate each student for their hard work.
Review KWL chart for gaps. (Suspect more work on grains) What can you tell me about grains? What they are? Where they grow? How they are used? Some tasty treats?
Foods Think Tac Toe (based on Learning Style as determined by howtolearn)
1)Draw 3 grains from plant to table
2)Write where 3 different grains grow & how they’re used
3)Make a menu using 12 grain items
1)Write a thank you note to a grain
2)Research & decide which grain is eaten the most in the US
3)Interview a grain on your TV "talk" show
1)Draw a specific grain and label its parts
2)Which grain do U think is most needed by Americans.Why
3)Make a collage of 12 foods that have grains in them
Ideas For expansion if needed:
Set up info gathering at Pbwiki.com or wikispaces.com
Or A blog to discuss at epals.com
Exit card: Name 3 things you’ve learned or gave ideas to improve how you’ll eat in the future.
Name 2 things that you learned about the color of foods
Name 1 thing that you’d like to explore more about food.
__________________________________________________________
Leson 9: Exploring PHYSICAL ACTIVITY and EXERCISE
Group: Make list: how different students get physical daily
Discuss: How much time do you think young people spend with media at home in one day? Mark
Data: Young people ages 11 to 14 spend an average of 6 hours and 45 minutes a day using media. This is more time than they spend doing anything else except sleeping"
(MediaSmartYouth Lesson 2 Activity B)
How does that compare with what you thought?
Instead of being in front of computer or TV,
What else could young people do? BRAINSTORM
Examples: Walk with friends. Play sports or games with friends or family. Go roller-skating, bowling. Do household chores. Go on errands with a parent. Go to sportsplex. Swim at community cent
Use www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/MSY_Lesson_5.pdf
Include Pulse Game. On pg 25 at end of DISCUSSION
Group Discussion:
What does the term physical activity mean?
Discuss physical activity vs. exercise. Opinions/comments
SHAQ’S BIG CHALLENGE WORKOUT LOG with Food and workout logs at shaqsfamilychallenge.com/publicsite/downloadcenter/index.aspx
Also www.teenshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/nutrition_center.html
Chart personal fitness goals
(at Personal Fitness Planner especially for adolescents to determine physical activity levels)
Get Moving Calculator
Expansion if needed:
Advanced: Brainstorm physical activity for a person who is blind; or has difficulty breathing
Develop goals for person in your community/family.
EXIT Cards:
What physical activities mentioned interested you most?
Do you have any new ideas about your physical activities?
List one idea that might help someone you know get more physical activity?
________________________________________________________
Lesson 11: OPINIONS MATTER
This whole Health and Well-being thing/ Opinions
KWL revisited again!
Anything we still haven’t covered that you’d like to know more about?
Group discussion on CHOICE changes during this UNIT
Thoughts on ways to improve yourself in relation to unit
How to help others improve how they eat and get physical? (especially if there is a health related issue in family or something that you can do in your community)
Complex Instruction Task Cards (assign Primary person and review tasks before product begun.
___________________________________________
Lesson 12: New Food And Fitness Choices
Share the Complex Instruction Tasks and Summaries of Each Student’s Project
YOUR individual new choices for food and fitness!
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Technology Implementation Plan
Please see our class blackboard discussion board to read comments on using MovieMaker for a project with a middle school student I tutor. Here is my description of the project:
I decided that the steep learning curve I was experiencing while doing my digital imagery project with Movie Maker, would be a perfect starting point for implementing a plan that utilized Movie Maker for an instructional purpose with a 6th grade student I tutor. This particular student has organizational and executive decision-making strengths, with fine motor coordination and social-emotional concerns. His need for learning accommodations for schoolwork contributes to his social discomfort with peers, and appears to be negatively impacting his self-image, which results in low self-esteem. His parents have asked that I help him to handle his situation as healthfully as possible.Much of what I do with him revolves around highlighting his strengths. We discuss the pros and cons of his learning accommodations, and try to substitute his awkwardness about his coordination with confidence in what he CAN do (such as making informed choices). Augmenting his knowledge of how to use technology to express his ideas has been very successful in the past. In this case, I decided that my goals to help him develop a healthier self-image and higher self-esteem could be integrated most authentically by working with him on producing a MovieMaker video. I could think of no better way to actively involve him in this project, than to have him comment and make constructive suggestions to my movie making project!!It was a lot of fun to design this series of lessons. I was trying to pique his interest in movie making while helping him to identify factors that would contribute to his lifelong health (and happiness). As I had already determined that he is a strong visual learner, I believed that this particular medium would be intrinsically stimulating and engaging for him. I had learned the basic mechanics of the Movie Maker application, and was ready to interactively explore it with input from a younger mind! We started by viewing public domain photos, discussing the specifics of creative commons shared rights and exploring the various rights expressed in flickr.com. I purchased a $25 camera cell phone for his use. I was ready to move forward and engage!For age appropriate guidance, I turned to the "Media Smart Youth: Eat, Think and Be Active!" program (www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/msy_intro_overview.pdf). It is a health promotion program, designed for young people 11-13, "to teach them about the complex media world around them, and how it can affect theirhealth, especially in the areas of nutrition and physical activity".The program is also designed to help teens become critical, creative thinkers by helping them make smart and positive choices about nutrition and physical activity every day.
Learning objectives:
1. Student will be able to identify the broad indicators of healthful living (eat, drink and sleep well; engage in physical activity daily; feel good about self by doing your best; identify meaningful choices; learn about being a critical consumer)
2. Student will be able to state his personal view of "healthful living". (through discussion and brainstorming)
3. Student will make a visual presentation with MovieMaker that shows young children involved in healthful activities (and pretty obviously feeling good!)for a “healthful living” discussion with 8 year olds.
As I have worked with this young man for a few years now, I am quite familiar with his creative mind and confident in his ability to analyze, evaluate and create new thoughts. For the purposes of this implementation, I touched upon the nutrition and physical activity sections of this program through open topical discussions that contributed to the images of healthy young children that were used in the final product. As a springboard into the Movie Maker work, I used the 6 Media Questions handouts from Media Smart Youth www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/MSY_Poster.pdf with the following questions: Who is the author or sponsor? Who is the audience? What is the purpose? What is the message? What information is missing? What techniques are used to attract your attention? These questions helped our discussions by giving a framework to explain how to recognize the ways that media try to get the audience's attention and to have the student analyze media messages and evaluate them for accuracy and for consistency with his ideas of what it means to be healthy. It gave us time to discuss the many aspects of healthfulness that may not have been mentioned in relation to nutrition and physical activity, including the importance of healthy family interactions, decision making and self image. To create additional interest in making the MovieMaker video, I presented the video I was working on so that he would offer comments and see that his opinions mattered to me. Adding that dimension definitely improved our level of discussion, and encouraged him to solve some technical problems along the way, while stimulating his critical thinking at every turn regarding the photo selection process! To apply all of that to a hands-on project really made sense to my student. It helped him feel confident in being able to photographically depict what he determined to be qualities of healthful living for younger children. He seemed to be very interested in also helping younger children understand all that goes into living more healthfully. This is an adaptation of the Media Smart Youth program media project goal which is "to motivate other young people to take action for better nutrition or increased physical activity" and definitely relates to work I am currently doing with other families. I was extremely impressed by his level of engagement and the depth of his interest in video production. I believe that this will spark additional use of Movie Maker for both of us. In this process, we both learned new skills of production, teamwork and creativity.
I decided that the steep learning curve I was experiencing while doing my digital imagery project with Movie Maker, would be a perfect starting point for implementing a plan that utilized Movie Maker for an instructional purpose with a 6th grade student I tutor. This particular student has organizational and executive decision-making strengths, with fine motor coordination and social-emotional concerns. His need for learning accommodations for schoolwork contributes to his social discomfort with peers, and appears to be negatively impacting his self-image, which results in low self-esteem. His parents have asked that I help him to handle his situation as healthfully as possible.Much of what I do with him revolves around highlighting his strengths. We discuss the pros and cons of his learning accommodations, and try to substitute his awkwardness about his coordination with confidence in what he CAN do (such as making informed choices). Augmenting his knowledge of how to use technology to express his ideas has been very successful in the past. In this case, I decided that my goals to help him develop a healthier self-image and higher self-esteem could be integrated most authentically by working with him on producing a MovieMaker video. I could think of no better way to actively involve him in this project, than to have him comment and make constructive suggestions to my movie making project!!It was a lot of fun to design this series of lessons. I was trying to pique his interest in movie making while helping him to identify factors that would contribute to his lifelong health (and happiness). As I had already determined that he is a strong visual learner, I believed that this particular medium would be intrinsically stimulating and engaging for him. I had learned the basic mechanics of the Movie Maker application, and was ready to interactively explore it with input from a younger mind! We started by viewing public domain photos, discussing the specifics of creative commons shared rights and exploring the various rights expressed in flickr.com. I purchased a $25 camera cell phone for his use. I was ready to move forward and engage!For age appropriate guidance, I turned to the "Media Smart Youth: Eat, Think and Be Active!" program (www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/msy_intro_overview.pdf). It is a health promotion program, designed for young people 11-13, "to teach them about the complex media world around them, and how it can affect theirhealth, especially in the areas of nutrition and physical activity".The program is also designed to help teens become critical, creative thinkers by helping them make smart and positive choices about nutrition and physical activity every day.
Learning objectives:
1. Student will be able to identify the broad indicators of healthful living (eat, drink and sleep well; engage in physical activity daily; feel good about self by doing your best; identify meaningful choices; learn about being a critical consumer)
2. Student will be able to state his personal view of "healthful living". (through discussion and brainstorming)
3. Student will make a visual presentation with MovieMaker that shows young children involved in healthful activities (and pretty obviously feeling good!)for a “healthful living” discussion with 8 year olds.
As I have worked with this young man for a few years now, I am quite familiar with his creative mind and confident in his ability to analyze, evaluate and create new thoughts. For the purposes of this implementation, I touched upon the nutrition and physical activity sections of this program through open topical discussions that contributed to the images of healthy young children that were used in the final product. As a springboard into the Movie Maker work, I used the 6 Media Questions handouts from Media Smart Youth www.nichd.nih.gov/msy/pdf/MSY_Poster.pdf with the following questions: Who is the author or sponsor? Who is the audience? What is the purpose? What is the message? What information is missing? What techniques are used to attract your attention? These questions helped our discussions by giving a framework to explain how to recognize the ways that media try to get the audience's attention and to have the student analyze media messages and evaluate them for accuracy and for consistency with his ideas of what it means to be healthy. It gave us time to discuss the many aspects of healthfulness that may not have been mentioned in relation to nutrition and physical activity, including the importance of healthy family interactions, decision making and self image. To create additional interest in making the MovieMaker video, I presented the video I was working on so that he would offer comments and see that his opinions mattered to me. Adding that dimension definitely improved our level of discussion, and encouraged him to solve some technical problems along the way, while stimulating his critical thinking at every turn regarding the photo selection process! To apply all of that to a hands-on project really made sense to my student. It helped him feel confident in being able to photographically depict what he determined to be qualities of healthful living for younger children. He seemed to be very interested in also helping younger children understand all that goes into living more healthfully. This is an adaptation of the Media Smart Youth program media project goal which is "to motivate other young people to take action for better nutrition or increased physical activity" and definitely relates to work I am currently doing with other families. I was extremely impressed by his level of engagement and the depth of his interest in video production. I believe that this will spark additional use of Movie Maker for both of us. In this process, we both learned new skills of production, teamwork and creativity.
Digital Imagery Project
I hope that most of you have seen the MovieMaker project I presented in class, because I will not be able to post it online at this time. Additional information on the planning process can be seen on our wiki communication at http://techacrosscurriculum.wikispaces.com/
The video is a brief introduction to Early Intervention in North Carolina for parents, family members, professionals and all interested residents of our state. The current version is in English only, but I hope to make a Spanish equivalent and post both versions online in the near future. As an overview of early intervention for children who have visible or invisible special needs, the video briefly describes the 2 parts of the Early Intervention system: The Infant Toddler Program and The Preschool Program. It explains how both are mandated by The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). I made every attempt to represent cultural backgrounds of families in our state and to represent caring and concern for ALL families. It also provides contact information to learn more about accessing North Carolina's early intervention system and any other NC program or service for children with special needs and their families.
The video is a brief introduction to Early Intervention in North Carolina for parents, family members, professionals and all interested residents of our state. The current version is in English only, but I hope to make a Spanish equivalent and post both versions online in the near future. As an overview of early intervention for children who have visible or invisible special needs, the video briefly describes the 2 parts of the Early Intervention system: The Infant Toddler Program and The Preschool Program. It explains how both are mandated by The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). I made every attempt to represent cultural backgrounds of families in our state and to represent caring and concern for ALL families. It also provides contact information to learn more about accessing North Carolina's early intervention system and any other NC program or service for children with special needs and their families.
Book Review
Classroom Blogging by David Warlock (2005) is just what the “technology doctor ordered for this educator! It is chock full of useful “handbook” type information for any educator interested in how the interactive global discussion (blogosphere) fits into the learning/teaching process. David Warlick provides extensive how-to details to enter the conversation with blogs, wikis and podcasts. The book initiates and promotes further discussion of his broader vision of a new society of “citizen journalists” who observe, reflect and report on current issues through meaningful interaction among respected individuals. The book is all about what and how we teach our students.
Many parts of this book were totally new to me this year. It clarified RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and how it essentially allows each person to “train” the internet to search and deliver what he/she wants each day. It explained that podcasts are audio blogs developed by Apple through a “clever usage of RSS syndication”, but that they do NOT require a Mac or iPod. It provided specific instructions for making and using blogs, wikis and podcasts for classroom and personal use. It offered specific examples across multiple disciplines. It detailed programs such as Garageband and Audacity to record, mix and produce audio tracks. It presented Content Management Systems, information on Seedwiki, CheeseWiki, bloglines, blogger.com, listservs and message boards. Furl, flickr, archive.org were introduced, with educators’ blogs ( David’s 2 Cents Worth, Weblogg-ed, One-Trick Cyberpony, shifted Librarian, Teach42) and Technorati to search blogs.
For me, the most meaningful and insightful conversations in the book were on net publishing for educators being “our best opportunity to reassert ourselves as the experts on education and …taking leadership in retooling classrooms for the 21st century teaching and learning” (p 98); on uncovering the truth through conversation (p 110); on how to “include in our instruction the ethics of how we access, use, and communicate information”(p 167); and how “we should no longer assume the authority of the information we encounter, but, instead, prove the authority.” (p 11). I greatly appreciate the practical inclusion of his Blog Contract and information on creative commons licenses that allow individuals to publish materials as long as the creator is given credit (http://creativecommons.org )
I am certainly excited that David Warlick is here in Raleigh and wonder why, prior to this class, I had not chanced upon any information about him. In this course, I was introduced to BlogMeister, but I did not know anything about his Landmark Project and the many applications he offers freely to teachers. I now know considerably more about David. On http://davidwarlick.com/wordpress/?page_id=2 he states “my web site, Landmarks for Schools (http://landmark-project.com/ ), is a labor of love for teachers offering links to hundreds of Web sites”. His blog for teachers has been mentioned, but he also created Rubric Builder, Citation Machine, PiNet Library, The Education Podcast Network and placed his workshop handouts online. It is obvious that David Warlick’s 25 years as a classroom teacher and technology director, contributed to his attention to teachers’ specific needs for using technology and to matters such as student privacy and protection. The book and applications he has created will help teachers successfully and creatively manage students’ access to truthful information and global conversation, while keeping track of the progress of each student’s learning. I have so much more to learn on this, but at least I have begun the process! I thank the author for this incredibly rich, detailed, truthful and comprehensive overview of the technological tools to achieve instructional objectives and promote authentic learning.
Many parts of this book were totally new to me this year. It clarified RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and how it essentially allows each person to “train” the internet to search and deliver what he/she wants each day. It explained that podcasts are audio blogs developed by Apple through a “clever usage of RSS syndication”, but that they do NOT require a Mac or iPod. It provided specific instructions for making and using blogs, wikis and podcasts for classroom and personal use. It offered specific examples across multiple disciplines. It detailed programs such as Garageband and Audacity to record, mix and produce audio tracks. It presented Content Management Systems, information on Seedwiki, CheeseWiki, bloglines, blogger.com, listservs and message boards. Furl, flickr, archive.org were introduced, with educators’ blogs ( David’s 2 Cents Worth, Weblogg-ed, One-Trick Cyberpony, shifted Librarian, Teach42) and Technorati to search blogs.
For me, the most meaningful and insightful conversations in the book were on net publishing for educators being “our best opportunity to reassert ourselves as the experts on education and …taking leadership in retooling classrooms for the 21st century teaching and learning” (p 98); on uncovering the truth through conversation (p 110); on how to “include in our instruction the ethics of how we access, use, and communicate information”(p 167); and how “we should no longer assume the authority of the information we encounter, but, instead, prove the authority.” (p 11). I greatly appreciate the practical inclusion of his Blog Contract and information on creative commons licenses that allow individuals to publish materials as long as the creator is given credit (http://creativecommons.org )
I am certainly excited that David Warlick is here in Raleigh and wonder why, prior to this class, I had not chanced upon any information about him. In this course, I was introduced to BlogMeister, but I did not know anything about his Landmark Project and the many applications he offers freely to teachers. I now know considerably more about David. On http://davidwarlick.com/wordpress/?page_id=2 he states “my web site, Landmarks for Schools (http://landmark-project.com/ ), is a labor of love for teachers offering links to hundreds of Web sites”. His blog for teachers has been mentioned, but he also created Rubric Builder, Citation Machine, PiNet Library, The Education Podcast Network and placed his workshop handouts online. It is obvious that David Warlick’s 25 years as a classroom teacher and technology director, contributed to his attention to teachers’ specific needs for using technology and to matters such as student privacy and protection. The book and applications he has created will help teachers successfully and creatively manage students’ access to truthful information and global conversation, while keeping track of the progress of each student’s learning. I have so much more to learn on this, but at least I have begun the process! I thank the author for this incredibly rich, detailed, truthful and comprehensive overview of the technological tools to achieve instructional objectives and promote authentic learning.
Technology Autobiography Revisited Dec 2007
Here I am at the final week of Technology across the Curriculum, EDUC 602, and in looking back over the short span of this course, I am extremely pleased to say that I have had my technological horizon broadened immensely and have been able to incorporate various technologies into my work with students and teachers. I have gained enormously from the professionally expanding experience of interacting with other teachers and professionals involved in educational technology, and I know I will learn so much more as I review my classmates’ portfolios in the next few weeks. Their insights and feedback have helped me become significantly more relaxed with technology itself and with using it for teaching and learning. I am still overwhelmed by the many technological options to improve educational excursions, but I now know I will become comfortable with them.
It is invigorating to know that in this relatively short span of time, I have not only acquired innumerable technological skills, but have had my appetite whetted for so much more. I have learned to "blog" and know when and why to use one with students and I have actually created one that is an extremely useful tool for me. I also created a movie for families and professionals to more easily understand Early Intervention in North Carolina and an online bookmark page that has been used in various classrooms. I can create and add to "wikis". I understand and use RSS feeds. I have taught digital imagery technology to specific students, including the use of emailing photos from a cell phone. I have used online videos and web publishing with students, with confidence, as I can now address reliability of information with them, and instruct them on internet safety and copyright protections. I have learned more about web hosting, webquests, YouTube, TeacherTube, and more, to broaden our online and actual social network. I have initiated and executed a webconference, and continue to improve my agency’s web presence with the possibility of moderating a discussion board or hosting a webcast.
David Warlick’s book, Classroom Blogging, provided details that have enabled me to embrace the concept of being a “citizen journalist” in the global conversation. He and his Landmark Project have provided incredibly concrete information on reasserting myself as an expert on education and clarified the need to take leadership in improving schools for all learners. I expect to use his book and website often. His teacher tools, such as Rubric Builder, and his handouts on Ethics and Teaching in a New Information Landscape have already been quite helpful to me. I have found many other thought provoking materials on http://www.citejournal.org/ Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, and ideas about worldwide student exchanges via think.com, epals.com, and Global Nomads (to name a few). I continue to explore ideas for collaboration in schools using Google Docs and spreadsheets . I regularly check for important educational tips on edutopia.org, iste.org, ESchoolNews and their new Spanish eScuela Americana. EduWikis http://educationalwikis.wikispaces.com/ offers useful articles and resources, such as a list of existing educational wikis, and a place to post and discuss ideas. All in all, using technology just doesn’t seem as hard for me to do as it did before!
The concept of teachers having personal responsibility for creating change has become much more real and do-able for me. For many years, I have applied Dewey’s principles of student-centered learning and constructivist principles of hands-on learning, but I now see more clearly how I can incorporate Freire’s important aspect of social activism. For me it includes promoting, justifying and enhancing the use of technology in all aspects of education. There are many issues of equity and the digital divide, and more study of http://www.digitaldivide.net/ is constantly required to remain current on resources on this subject. It is not a matter of giving out more computers, it is a matter of developing the VISION for their effective use that is SO important. With a cohesive curriculum that is fully infused with technology, I believe we will see technology help level the playing field for students with disabilities, improve differentiated instruction for all students, and meet the needs of culturally diverse populations.
Although qualitative research on technology in education is being questioned by those who want quantitative results, I believe that I, and other educators like me, can play a part in designing and implementing quantitative research that substantiates the important place that technology holds in improving educational outcomes. I plan to further explore the evaluation results of North Carolina IMPACT model schools, examining their data on how technology positively impacted student math and reading achievement and teacher retention, and how it impacted teachers’ leadership perceptions. I hope to help prove that schools using technology can be more successful in student learning, more connected to their communities, and serve a strong leadership role for advancing technology and enhancing the satisfaction and retention rates of teachers.
I know that this is just the start of a long process, set off in a wonderful forward gear heading me toward continual learning and growth by actually being capable of implementing technological applications with students, as well as helping teachers, principals and parents become more comfortable with the technological tools in their midst. Aside from becoming significantly more adept at using technology, I have broadened my understanding regarding some of the implications technology may have for meeting future teacher and educational leadership training needs. As an innovator interested in promoting the use of technology in schools, I have the background to construct meaningful programs to train teachers and other school professionals in utilizing technological tools for educational purposes. I believe that technology can improve the educational outcomes of schools in North Carolina, while helping to improve teacher accountability and satisfaction. Although various educators have indicated that applying technology in the classroom places additional strain on an already overworked group, I believe it is possible to document that there are multiple long term benefits to schools and students that far outweigh the difficulties of the initial work required to become familiar with using technology in the classroom. I believe that technology has the potential to make the whole learning/teaching experience more exciting and engaging, and in the long run will help individual teachers and school systems alleviate many of the disruptive, and time-consuming distractions that take place in today’s schools due to boredom, lack of creativity and lack of authentic learning opportunities.
I am extremely grateful for having pushed myself to stretch and meet the rigors of this program and know that the information and skills I have acquired will improve all of my educational endeavors. I believe that I am off to an excellent start in my personal quest to become computer literate. I now know that I will become proficient in using technology for whatever aspect of the teaching/learning spectrum I chose. What I have learned in this course will be beneficial to myself and others, in this country or anywhere in the world, whether I continue tutoring, become an educational researcher, an administrator, a technology facilitator, or apply my knowledge to professional development. I have certainly become a far stronger believer that technology will improve learning and positively impact the field of education.
It is invigorating to know that in this relatively short span of time, I have not only acquired innumerable technological skills, but have had my appetite whetted for so much more. I have learned to "blog" and know when and why to use one with students and I have actually created one that is an extremely useful tool for me. I also created a movie for families and professionals to more easily understand Early Intervention in North Carolina and an online bookmark page that has been used in various classrooms. I can create and add to "wikis". I understand and use RSS feeds. I have taught digital imagery technology to specific students, including the use of emailing photos from a cell phone. I have used online videos and web publishing with students, with confidence, as I can now address reliability of information with them, and instruct them on internet safety and copyright protections. I have learned more about web hosting, webquests, YouTube, TeacherTube, and more, to broaden our online and actual social network. I have initiated and executed a webconference, and continue to improve my agency’s web presence with the possibility of moderating a discussion board or hosting a webcast.
David Warlick’s book, Classroom Blogging, provided details that have enabled me to embrace the concept of being a “citizen journalist” in the global conversation. He and his Landmark Project have provided incredibly concrete information on reasserting myself as an expert on education and clarified the need to take leadership in improving schools for all learners. I expect to use his book and website often. His teacher tools, such as Rubric Builder, and his handouts on Ethics and Teaching in a New Information Landscape have already been quite helpful to me. I have found many other thought provoking materials on http://www.citejournal.org/ Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, and ideas about worldwide student exchanges via think.com, epals.com, and Global Nomads (to name a few). I continue to explore ideas for collaboration in schools using Google Docs and spreadsheets . I regularly check for important educational tips on edutopia.org, iste.org, ESchoolNews and their new Spanish eScuela Americana. EduWikis http://educationalwikis.wikispaces.com/ offers useful articles and resources, such as a list of existing educational wikis, and a place to post and discuss ideas. All in all, using technology just doesn’t seem as hard for me to do as it did before!
The concept of teachers having personal responsibility for creating change has become much more real and do-able for me. For many years, I have applied Dewey’s principles of student-centered learning and constructivist principles of hands-on learning, but I now see more clearly how I can incorporate Freire’s important aspect of social activism. For me it includes promoting, justifying and enhancing the use of technology in all aspects of education. There are many issues of equity and the digital divide, and more study of http://www.digitaldivide.net/ is constantly required to remain current on resources on this subject. It is not a matter of giving out more computers, it is a matter of developing the VISION for their effective use that is SO important. With a cohesive curriculum that is fully infused with technology, I believe we will see technology help level the playing field for students with disabilities, improve differentiated instruction for all students, and meet the needs of culturally diverse populations.
Although qualitative research on technology in education is being questioned by those who want quantitative results, I believe that I, and other educators like me, can play a part in designing and implementing quantitative research that substantiates the important place that technology holds in improving educational outcomes. I plan to further explore the evaluation results of North Carolina IMPACT model schools, examining their data on how technology positively impacted student math and reading achievement and teacher retention, and how it impacted teachers’ leadership perceptions. I hope to help prove that schools using technology can be more successful in student learning, more connected to their communities, and serve a strong leadership role for advancing technology and enhancing the satisfaction and retention rates of teachers.
I know that this is just the start of a long process, set off in a wonderful forward gear heading me toward continual learning and growth by actually being capable of implementing technological applications with students, as well as helping teachers, principals and parents become more comfortable with the technological tools in their midst. Aside from becoming significantly more adept at using technology, I have broadened my understanding regarding some of the implications technology may have for meeting future teacher and educational leadership training needs. As an innovator interested in promoting the use of technology in schools, I have the background to construct meaningful programs to train teachers and other school professionals in utilizing technological tools for educational purposes. I believe that technology can improve the educational outcomes of schools in North Carolina, while helping to improve teacher accountability and satisfaction. Although various educators have indicated that applying technology in the classroom places additional strain on an already overworked group, I believe it is possible to document that there are multiple long term benefits to schools and students that far outweigh the difficulties of the initial work required to become familiar with using technology in the classroom. I believe that technology has the potential to make the whole learning/teaching experience more exciting and engaging, and in the long run will help individual teachers and school systems alleviate many of the disruptive, and time-consuming distractions that take place in today’s schools due to boredom, lack of creativity and lack of authentic learning opportunities.
I am extremely grateful for having pushed myself to stretch and meet the rigors of this program and know that the information and skills I have acquired will improve all of my educational endeavors. I believe that I am off to an excellent start in my personal quest to become computer literate. I now know that I will become proficient in using technology for whatever aspect of the teaching/learning spectrum I chose. What I have learned in this course will be beneficial to myself and others, in this country or anywhere in the world, whether I continue tutoring, become an educational researcher, an administrator, a technology facilitator, or apply my knowledge to professional development. I have certainly become a far stronger believer that technology will improve learning and positively impact the field of education.
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