CC Montessori Tour

My tour through CC Montessori school was very enlightening. I had some preconceived ideas of what and/or how Montessori works. After speaking with the director, and observing the classrooms, I realize that my perceptions of Montessori were uneducated. I was very impressed with the classrooms. I could not believe how quiet they were. I even had to ask the director where the ADHD students were. She assured me there were quite a few.

Another thing that impressed me is the extra education these students receive, besides the three R's. Students are responsible for maintaining a salt water fish tank, taking care of doves, planting a garden, and even a pet rabbit. They are actively engaged in recycling. This school is raising well-educated and well-rounded students. My hats off to Montessori!

Service Project Finalized

Wow, what an experience! I started making a movie in MovieMaker, then found out that since I was using internet pictures, I needed to create a voicethread. I had less than 24 hours to create the voicethread, but I did it. I had the pictures all done, and my part of the recording finished.

I met with my student and her mother yesterday after school. The only thing we had to do was record her voice, then finish her blog. We embedded the voicethread into her blog. As we were packing up, I thanked her mother for allowing her daughter to participate in this project. I also promised to send an email with the links to all three children's blogs, so she can forward on to interested family and friends. I have embedded her voicethread below.

Overall, this has been a positive, although stressful experience. Something I would change is the timeline. It would have been nice to have a little longer to work on the project. It would also have been nice if I weren't working, so I could perhaps work with the child a little bit during school hours, if the teacher permitted.

Now that I know how easy it is to record voice, I will definitely plan to use voicethreads and MovieMaker in my classroom. It's not as scary as it sounds. All it takes is a little practice, then the realization that, "I can do this!"

Service Project Experience Week 2 (cont)

During this week, my student and her mother did some research on Mount Vesuvius. They found some really great pictures, and some interesting facts about the volcano. They did a great job of finding some answers to the questions that we posed last week. While they've been researching, I worked on getting the blog set up.

This weekend, I took the research and created the storyboard. I also put together the Works Cited page. I have started the MovieMaker movie, but it's still a work in progress. I will meet with my student again this week, and our goal is to get some audio files recorded. Then I will add them into the movie. At this point, I believe I am about halfway finished with this project. At first I didn't think it would happen, but it has been moving along nicely this last week.

Service Project Experience Week 2

This week, I will be meeting with my student to begin working on our project. We will be meeting at the Montessori school, and our first goal is to accomlish the KWL chart. Next, we will begin our blog. I'll post more after our first meeting.

I met with my student for 15 mintues this week. Her project is open-ended, so her mother and I made up a few questions, and asked her to research the answers. These questions should give us a good start for a voicethread, and possibly a movie. She took the KWL chart home with her. So this week she will try to complete the KWL chart, answer the questions, and look up some pictures.

Service Project Experience Week 1

I have been assigned to work with a first grader, and we'll be working on volcanoes. Our first week was not very productive, as both the parent and I have very busy schedules. The child was not clear about her assignment, so the parent is going to meet with the teacher for some details. We are looking forward to getting started as we move into the second week.

Spreadsheets in the Classroom?

Is there a place for spreadsheets in the classroom? Absolutely! If we are trying to educate a technologically savvy generation, then we must include spreadsheets! Some people automatically associate numbers with math, and assume spreadsheets can only be used for math. Josette Longoria's spreadsheet shows us a great example of using a spreadsheet in science. In fact, we can use spreadsheets in just about any subject area.

When using spreadsheets in the classroom, I will begin by showing several examples of how they are used. I will ask questions of the students, such as asking them to explain to me what they see, and how they can read the spreadsheet. Some guiding questions might include:

(1) How can spreadsheets give us information in very little space?
(2) Would graphs be a good idea to expand and/or condense the information?
(3) In what subjects can we use spreadsheets?

These questions would encourage students to investigate spreadsheets, and to open their minds to more ideas that are outside the box. For example, a spreadsheet can be used to compare information about several subjects, such as in Josette's spreadsheet. I can see that being very useful in Social Studies units.

I think spreadsheets would be too much for young students, but I can definitely see older elementary students using them. Here is my example of the Wedding Budget from this week's assignments.

The Magic of Movies

Creating a movie is one of the most creative ways to express an idea. It is easy to put a movie together when following the 7 elements of digital storytelling we learned earlier. The fun is in the filming, and the mechanics is in the editing.

When I was a child, it seemed each year we had to be in a play. Now that we have video editing software, it would be great to film the play, then mix in some sound effects and/or music. The students would have a ball learning how to do this. Or in the case of younger students, the teacher could do it, then post the video online for the students and their parents to enjoy. The best part would be having the video available for family and friends around the country (or the world) to enjoy. Grandparents may never miss out on their grandchild’s achievements ever again!

These tools would also be useful to me as a teacher. I’m sure there will be science experiments that would be perfect, except they may be too time consuming and/or too dangerous for younger students. I could conduct the experiments at home and video them. That would give me an opportunity to present the experiment to the class, without all the hands-on mess that sometimes occurs. Here is my first video, designed as part of a lesson on natural forces.

7 Elements of Digital Storytelling

Digital storytelling is an exciting way to introduce a topic to students, especially topics they may find boring. I'm sure we all remember the boring science movies from our childhood...digital storytelling doesn't have to be anything like that. It can be fun and creative, and the students can even learn how to create one for themselves. Just imagine how much thought they'd put into a digital storytelling project, and how proud they'll be when they are finished.

If we teach our students the seven elements of digital storytelling, it will be a snap for them to create digital versions of their favorite books, or even their very own stories.
Point of view - they must decide which character will be the central character, which lends point of view.
Dramatic question - they will determine the main plot of the story.
Emotional - choosing stories with high emotions usually brings the story to its climax.
Gift of voice - voiceover narration would be an excellent way to get the student into the story.
Power of soundtrack - if the story has particular highs and lows, music can be a great way to get the audience into the emotions.
Economy - only the best parts should be included, otherwise the story could get bogged down in details.
Pacing - keep the story moving along, so it does not start to drag. Voiceovers can be a great way to keep the pace moving.

I can see endless possibilities for digital storytelling. Students who are shy and introverted may really find their voice in digital storytelling. It brings together all kinds of skills: imagination, writing, and creativity. These are skills that are hard to teach from a book. It will require a technology-savvy teacher to help bring them out through digital storytelling.

My next unit question is about earthquakes. Again, it's not something that can be taught hands-on. It can get quite boring to teach about earthquakes from a book. Hopefully, my unit presentation will be able to provide some valuable information, in a more meaningful way than just reading a textbook.

Digital Storytelling

Hurricanes

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In a modern classroom, digital storytelling is sure to be a big hit! When students get bored with reading print, it is a good idea to switch to technology, to shake things up a bit. Digital storytelling can be as simple as a powerpoint presentation, or as elaborate as a digital treasure hunt. It is a change of pace that can really get your students involved in their learning.

The theories behind digital storytelling include greater participation by all students. Some students will not read in front of the class, but when given the opportunity to read into a microphone, without all eyes on them, they can participate without being in the spotlight. Digital storytelling also appeals to visual learners, and those who have problems with letters, such as those with dyslexia. Digital storytelling uses lots of other types of media, including video, images, and audio. Several avenues of information appeals to several types of learners.

My unit on forces of nature can easily include multiple forms of digital storytelling. The first portion of my unit includes many photos, which really helps tell the story of how devastating a hurricane can be. My slideshare has very little words, because I intend the pictures to be discussion starters. The affects of a hurricane are hard to write about without getting very wordy. However, it would be much easier to convey the information through pictures and discussions.

I can envision adding video to the slideshare. It would be a great way to "experience" a hurricane, without having to experience a hurricane. As a way to incorporate fun and games into the presentation, I can imagine having a hurricane tracking map on the screen, and using a laser pointer to track the path of a hurricane. The possibilities are endless!

Internet Resources

As I'm learning about new Internet resources, I realize how little I actually know about the Internet. There is so much more out there on the Internet than I have ever seen. Some of the options I would probably not use, but oh, so many more have great potential!

In my future classroom, I can envision using collaborative email projects. Many students moan when they hear they have to work on a unit study. But wouldn't it be exciting if they could work on it with students from around the country, or even around the world? This would open up their minds to how things work in other geographical areas. I can especially envision this option when working on a unit about weather. Just imagine an American student conversing with an Australian student about the weather in December!

Most students have prepared unit studies on the usual poster boards. Think of how excited they would be to work on an electronic project, with images, sounds, and video. My unit theme is on natural forces, including hurricanes, earthquakes and floods. Most children have never seen these forces up close and personal. Imagine their delight when they find videos on the internet to embed into their project. Or they fill their project with pictures and sound bytes. They will be so much more interested in learning about natural forces. As I cruised around the internet, I began a list of interesting sites to explore for this unit on natural forces.

I have never been one to jump head first into anything electronic. As they say, ignorance is bliss. Well, I'm beginning to get bored with bliss. So if I'm getting excited about adding technology to my future classroom, I can only imagine how excited the students will get!

As I look forward to becoming a teacher, I wonder how much technology will really be used in the classroom. Is it important for me to learn this stuff? Will the students enjoy using technology in the classroom?

I visited David Warlick's blog site, and he has some interesting blogs about the state of education at this time. Something he said made me really think. He said, "There’s nothing special about blogging or working with simulations to them. Participating in large, ongoing, and nearly always available conversations, and playing with simulations is a part of their childhood. It’s part of their culture."

This is a very good point. What I'm struggling with learning, is second nature to our students. I can foresee using blogs in combination with projects-based units, such as social studies or history. History is of the past, but social studies can be the present. We could create blogs with students from other states and/or countries, and share experiences of our locations or our cultures. This can be a very exciting project for the students as well as the teacher.

Inquiry-based vs Projects-based Learning

Have you heard about inquiry-based and projects-based learning? Can you envision them in your classroom? Are you at a loss of where to begin? Let's take a look at these valuable tools.

Inquiry-based learning is an active learning process. It begins with a question, then proceeds through finding the information, then ends with an understanding of the information. Inquiry-based learning in the classroom becomes a much more involved teaching method. Working in groups is a very practical way of including it. Students who have the opportunity to work in groups will have the opportunity to brainstorm together. As the saying goes, "two minds are better than one."

Project-based learning is truly thinking "outside the box." Students use hands-on learning to obtain their knowledge. The textbook is not as relevant as the project. Instead of reading about building a project, they actually put their hands on it and build it themselves. Project-based learning is education of the 21st century. It is not defined by a classroom. The outdoors can be the classroom, as can a laboratory, or a farm. All it really takes is imagination, and ingenuity to put it to practice.

I am intrigued with the idea of projects-based learning for my classroom. I can see it being very helpful for students who do not learn well in a traditional lecture environment. Young children and/or ADHD children come to mind. They will have the opportunity for movement and discussion, allowing them to learn more, without as many disruptions.

My unit theme is forces of nature. Here is a brief overview of my essential question and unit questions:

EQ: How do forces of nature change our planet?
UQ1: How would a hurricane affect our community?
UQ2: How do earthquakes affect land structures?
UQ3: How much damage do floods cause?

Incorporating these tools with my unit theme will require some imagination. As you can imagine from my essential question, we cannot feasible create a projects-based unit on forces of nature. So we will have to lean more towards the inquiry-based approach. That doesn't mean we can't be imaginative...we'll just have to get creative in our research.