Digital Storytelling & Video:
Bringing a creative element such as digital stories into our classroom opened up a new way of expression and learning for both my students and myself. I discovered that by weaving together photos, videos and even my student's own artwork, a story could be told in a new format that made the students more involved with the content. This skill is a powerful tool in reaching students who are struggling to find reading interesting. This can be a way to make learning personalized and put them in control of their experience.
TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE
This technology showcase page serves to highlight some of the projects I have created for use in my classroom and as a resource for other teachers. I am always seeking ways to engage my students in achieving their goals and working to bring new learning opportunities into our classroom. As a technology coordinator for our school, I have taken on a leadership role in guiding our technology roadmap. These projects were chosen to display some the skills that have been developed throughout my coursework at Michigan State University and in my professional career.
Dairy Farm Digital Story
Using photos, video footage of our fieldtrip, classroom simulations and even music, I was able to create a digital story for my students, highlighting our experience at the dairy farm. The students and I worked together as we solved the mystery of "Does Chocolate Milk Come from Chocolate Cows?" This brought together our classroom study on dairy farms and created a lasting memory of our experience at the dairy farm. I used my skills at video editing, adding voice through the use of Audacity, shooting and importing videos into a video as well as improving pacing between pictures. Projects such as this have allowed me to give students a means of expressing themselves in non-traditional ways and allowed me to explore subject matter from many perspectives.
Mrs. Wishy-Washy iMovie
Making stories come alive for my students has been a key component in the success of my reading program. Using my iPad and iMovie, I was able to take our classroom reenactment of the story Mrs. Wishy-Washy and turn it into a digital recording for them to watch. My students were engaged throughout each step as they learned to read the text of the book, signed up for roles they wanted in our play and finally, performed while recording it "live." Having gone through iPad training with our Apple Education Specialist, I was pleased to put my learning into action. I still have much to learn in with this app, but I was pleased to collaborate with my students to produce their Mrs. Wishy Washy movie.
Websites for Learning:
Sharing the knowledge I've gained concerning the use of technology in the classroom or how to better reach struggling readers and writers has been important to me as I develop my role as a technology leader. As I completed each project, I would aim to create a resource that other educators would find beneficial and "user friendly", so that even if they did not have much experience with technology, they could still access the information with ease.
Teacher/Parent Wiki
In order to share resources and have an ongoing space in which to direct teachers, parents and other professionals who often ask for websites, I developed a wiki which puts all of these in one place. I try and organize our topics by subject area and grade. This is often my summer project and I send emails out to those that subscribe, asking for new ideas and reminding them check out the new updates. This is my small contribution to our "Tech Community" and I hope that I will have more time to devote to it in the future. By providing one place that people can bookmark, rather than trying to keep track of several, I hope to alleviate some of the stress that teachers often feel when they are pressed for time and searching for that one website they had found the other day, but can't remember.
Literacy Challenges Website
This website has been created for both educators and parents to use when looking for help with challenging literacy issues. As a kindergarten teacher, I know the importance of early intervention but still see students who struggle everyday as they learn to read and write. I have selected the "top-five" issues that I believe students in my setting most often struggle with and technology tools that could be of assistance to them. I have been using this website as the basis for my presentations as I demonstrate how to incorporate technology into the classroom for teachers who have been reluctant to do so. I have received a very positive response, with more districts requesting my presence at their conventions in the future.
Online Learning
Creating my own online learning course was one of the greatest challenges in my career so far. My desire was to strike a balance between activities that I would lead my students through in our classroom lab and allowing them the freedom to work at their own pace. I believe that this goal was achieved by including audio directions that the students could listen to at any time. Adding video screencasts to give additional directions when needed, helped clarify some of the more difficult tasks. My web design skills were stretched and I discovered the importance of testing the page layout on systems with different screen resolutions before publishing the sites for public consumption.
Dairy Farm WebQuest
A WebQuest is using internet resources to lead your student through an inquiry based learning adventure! I selected a subject matter than my students were interested in, farm animals, and began to find educational games, videos and simulations that they could use to further their learning. They became a "Farmhand" and were assigned five jobs to complete as they worked their way through their internet based tasks. I created a rubric in which to assess their learning and included audio directions so they would understand what each step involved. This gave me a chance to demonstrate my proficiency at developing educational tools that are appropriate for this age group and maintaining this site on a regular basis to make sure the links are still functional so that it continues to be of use to others.
Presentations & Tutorials:
Presenting information to my co-workers, students and the families I serve has to be interesting and easy to understand so they stay engaged for the whole time period. Through the use of web 2.0 tools, I have been able to create presentations that they are able to watch both "live" or review multiple times as part of a lesson. Screen casting has proven to be an invaluable tool for developing tutorials for our staff and has been very useful, both as a teacher and as a technology leader because the viewer can review them repeatedly (as necessary) to learn at their own pace. I have learned to be careful in my wording so that my ideas are expressed clearly and to choose images that enhance, rather than distract from the purpose of my message.​
Leadership Qualities Presentation
Using Prezi, I developed a presentation based on Goffee and Jones' four qualities of inspirational leadership. This blend of graphics, movement and text allowed me to experience a new medium while spotlighting key elements on which I wanted to focus. These leadership qualities have remained at the forefront of my mind as I pursue a future as a technology leader. I revisit these often and let them guide me as I make decisions that will influence the path I am going to lead others down.
Popplet Screencast
I have loved using Jing to create screencasts for my students. This skill has been very useful in explaining directions to students who would like to be independent, but are just waiting on the directions. Screen casting has allowed me the freedom to record these directions for them, while they review the steps as needed on their own. It has also taught me to get to the point, as there is a time limit! This is an example of a screen cast I have created on how to use Popplet to create a very simple story board with my reading group.
Powtoons is a new animated video presentation tool that I learned during my coursework and have really enjoyed working with. I have found by adding my own voice to animated presentations, I can still control the content of the message, but the delivery is something new and entertaining for the viewer. In the sample below, I have created a presentation to demonstrate some of the features of a website could be used to educate parents who are looking for resources with their struggling readers. This presentation has become a resource that our principal has been sharing with many families who have come to her asking for suggestions in literacy. I love the challenge of working with new formats like this and then having a chance to teach others how they can use this tool in their own setting.
PBS Explainer Video
Tech Tips for Non "Techie" Teachers in Language Arts
This presentation is from the All-Professional Church Workers Conference in which I demonstrated some quick and easy ways teachers can incorporate technology into their classrooms. By using free websites, designing some easy journaling prompts and making use of whatever technology they have available (one device or many), technology doesn't have to be expensive and overwhelming, The presentation focuses on encouraging our struggling readers and writers, primarily in grades K through 2nd. Teacher resources, such as assessment techniques are also discussed.
Research and Lesson Plans:
One of the most important lessons that I have learned during my time in the Educational Technology program is the value of research and really analyzing all of the data before jumping in and purchasing the "latest and greatest" tools. You must focus on whether or not the technology will fit with the goals your school has set out to achieve and then look for the research to back up your decision. As a technology leader, it is my job to make sure I "do my homework" when I am asked to report on a technology tool. If I don't have the answers available, I have to know where to look for them and research until I find them. The technology should enhance the learning environment, not detract from it. Not every lesson plan has to have technology added to it, just for the sake of having technology. It must be used effectively. In my own classroom, I need the students to experience all aspects of learning. They will sing, move, draw and use computers! All of these avenues of learning lead them to the path of successful learning! Finding a proper balance is what I strive to teach other teachers how to do. I want them to be comfortable with the tools that will help their students, but not feel overwhelmed or that they have to use tech for every subject, every minute. Below are some samples of research papers I have written analyzing different technology tools as well as lesson plans that demonstrate how I incorporate technology in my teaching.
Analysis of a Technology Innovation in the Classroom
This research was conducted during one of my earlier courses in the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) program, but was very personal to me as it was at a time in which our school was deciding on whether or not to purchase interactive white boards for each classroom. This research proved to be very useful in the decision making process as our technology committee found the analysis to be well constructed and fellow teachers leaned heavily on my recommendations based on my research. My course instructor also asked if she could use this as a resource for her own school district as they were considering a similar initiative. This marked my first "real" work as a true Technology Leader for our school and had the opportunity to influence such a large decision.
Interactive Math Lesson
My goal is to have my students active and engaged in their learning. I have found that by incorporating action rhymes, counting activities, repetition, kinesthetic movements and practical activities both digitally and through paper and pencil, my math lessons are able to reach more learners in ways that appeal to them. The lesson plan below was created using some of these techniques and helps to reinforce numerals one through twenty. I have also included my reflection on how this lesson was implemented it, changes I would make and suggestions for future lessons. This gives a good indication of the type of activities that I carry out with my kindergarten class on a daily basis.