Below are the images from my contributions to the outline/storyboard and script. The words on the sides of the images are hyper-linked to the full documents.
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Here is my post on MACUL.space.NING.com for Tips and Tricks of Using Technology in the Classroom Part 2. I've made a video to share a tip for using Box.com. I made multiple attempts to embed my YouTube video without success. So there is a hyperlink instead. Below is a snapshot from the video. Here is also the link to my video: Box.com tip for MACUL
GROUP 1 Brainstorm Session NOTES ON SESSION: All group members are present and participating in the session All were present in group besides me. I was unable to access the Google Hangout but did watch the recording. A technology is chosen to be taught (This will be what the tutorial is about) Google Tools - specifically: Ramiro: Sites Jean: Translator Sam: Blogger Katie: Drive A technology is chosen to facilitate the learning:
Jean will make the intro Sam will narrate Ramiro will do the conclusion Katie will design the Google Presentation and make it look cohesive Slide 1: Introduction Slide 2: Benefit for schools (Google’s Greatness) Slide 3: Google Translator Slide 4: Google Translator Slide 5: Google Blogger Slide 6: Google Blogger Slide 7: Google Sites Slide 8: Google Sites Slide 9: Google Drive Slide 10: Google Drive Slide 11: Google Presentation (is this needed if we are making this in Google Presentation?) Slide 12: Conclusion
I started by creating a Google Doc for my class. At this time on the document I’ve included instructions for completing the assignment and a video for learning. I plan to add other lessons to the Google Doc as needed. These lesson ideas support my teaching strategies because I aim to share information with the students individually and collaboratively both at school and at home. Students are able to access the document from their Gmail accounts or from our class website on any computer. Since we are all on one document I am easily able to update the instructions, as the learning needs of the students change. Students have been asked to access the document at school and at home. Having everything in one place helps keep 18 people organized and up to date on the same idea.
The need I am addressing is to help elementary students, specifically grade 3 students, to identify the structure of paragraphs and be able to write a complete paragraph independently and correct. In my experience I have found that students struggle with understanding how to identify the traits of a paragraph and especially to write a paragraph. Through discussions with my colleagues it is apparent that this is a common problem for many students in grade 3 and beyond. I feel a more student centered approach to paragraph writing is needed. I’ve used mini-lessons and worksheets that detail paragraphs and provide practice but students seem unable to transfer this to their other writing. With use of technology I think students will pay closer attention, not only because they are excited to use a computer for their learning but also because they will have the ability to work at their own pace and discuss with each other strong paragraph writing.
I have created a Google Doc to communicate with and teach my students. This will allow me to share video lessons, monitor students work, and provide feedback, and it will also provide ample opportunities for students to communication with each other. With the comment feature students will be able to comment on each others' paragraphs and other entries on the Google Doc to show their learning and understanding. This feature will encourage students to write stronger paragraphs knowing their peers will be looking a their work. With the feedback from their peers they will be able to make adjustments to their writing. My school has provided each student with their own Google account. They are able to access this Google Doc through their Drive, via the Google Doc invite I sent to their email, or via the link on our class blog page. Students will be asked to work on this project a minimum of once a week. The lessons will vary between a 15-minute lesson/practice to practice at home for their homework. This project will last for 5 weeks. I will be on maternity leave for the entirety of this project so this technology choice is ideal since I will not be at school. My replacement while I am gone has agreed to allow the class 15 minutes prior to their typing class to work on their paragraphing. Before I left last week I set up the project with my class to make sure they knew how to access the Google Doc and also let them try it for two 15 minutes periods. This past weekend almost the entire class went on the Google Doc to finish what they started! So far it’s a big hit. In researching my WPP I went to several resources and I will continue to research this as the project unfolds. Initially I spoke with my tech team about how to create a class blog within our grade level website. We spoke about several other options since we want to make sure students can each edit the Google Doc and comment on each others' work since editing rights were an issue with our Google site. After deciding the Google Doc is one of the better choices for this project I next researched other examples of using a Google Doc in the classroom and more specifically for collaborative writing. I found on gettingsmart.com an article titled 6 Powerful Google Docs Features to Support the Collaborative Writing Process, by Susan Oxnevad. This article has several tips that I had not considered until now, such as the research tool and the smart spell checker with grammar support. I have also researched videos that support teaching paragraph writing. Brain Pop Jr has a great student friendly video that allows students to watch again and again, to start and stop as needed, to view notes highlighting the key ideas, and also to use the closed captioning feature if needed such as for English language learners. This site is colorful, simple and features follow-up activities as well. I will continue to research other resources that will support the remainder of the lessons I plan to teach. I plan to teach at least four more lessons (one a week) on writing paragraphs including identifying features of a paragraph through an interactive quiz. Other lessons will give examples of paragraphing for both fiction and nonfiction work and ask students to try this as well. Students will have opportunities to write their own paragraphs about one common topic and then compare their work on the Google Doc. Another lesson will be students typing a paragraph they have written in the past into the Google Doc and use a guide to edit their writing. Most lessons will require peer-to-peer communication on the Google Doc. I will know that this project has worked both through the student work on the Google Doc and their other class writing. I will take record of their progress and success through their Writer’s Workshop notebooks, published stories, and essays. If more lessons are needed I will provide more time for learning about paragraphs via the class Google Doc. |