Saturday, March 28, 2009

A New Understanding

This week I was able to use my computer and an LCD projector to teach my students a concept of sink and float. I know my lesson below deals with the computer lab and kidpix, but I thought talking about my most recent lesson would be beneficial. I was able to find an online game that helped teach sink and float. I hooked up the projector to my computer and together my students and I completed the online activities. This week was a testament to me that students love technology and anytime you can incorporate it into a lesson you should. I believe my students learned more from the online activities and discussion then they did during my instruction. It was amazing to see their excitement.

Monday, March 23, 2009

Monday, March 16, 2009

Tech Classroom

It is amazing to me how little some schools have available technology, and how desperately they need those technologies. My teacher would love to have a projector in her classroom to help assist her in teaching. Students are so advanced these days that they almost need technology to stimulate their understanding of a topic. They get excited when you bring out the projector, use the TV, or use the computers that it makes them want to learn the material.
I discovered this week that computers are a great way to help students learn. This last week my class was able to go into the computer lab for writing. They were so excited to use the computers. They were able to complete the assignment faster and more effectively then if they just did it by hand in the classroom. They were so excited to type and print their individual projects.
I learned so much about the importance of technology in the classroom. If you have it, it is a great teaching tool.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Grade 5 Standard 2 objective 2a
Plot a time line of the key events of the Revolutionary War.

Pedagogy:
The lesson focus is mainly on observation and analysis of new information. As the students watch and participate in the tour of the major battle locations of the Revolutionary war they will come across lots of new information, students will be required to analyze what they are learning and apply it in various forms such as journal entries and short stories. These activities are a good way to get students to be actively engaged in the learning process; while some things will be directly taught the students will also be required to search out and discover some things on their own. As the students complete the tour and work on the activities at each site, they will also fill in their own timeline of the key events/battles that occurred during the war. This pedagogy works well with the content as the students will be working actively to learn about each of the battles and then they will be able to meet the core standard by creating their own timeline.

Technology:
We will be using Google Earth to create and present a tour of the locations of the main battles of the Revolutionary War. This technology works well for the lesson being taught as it allows the students to explore the different locations without having to actually go there. Students will be able to visualize what it is like at each of these locations as well as get an idea of where each battle location is in relation to the others. This also works well with the content as the battle locations will be visited in chronological order during the tour.