Instructional Architect

Gravity

I included an accountability component by having the children write down their thoughts and hypothesis throughout the entire assignment. It is kind of like a journal of sorts, or a cause and effect series, because the children would write down what they think will happen, and then write down what actually happened.
I would implement this into my curriculum by having my students complete this program before starting the actual unit. I set up the program to kind of be an introduction to gravity, so by using it I would be able to see what my students already know about gravity, and what kinds of subjects I would need to focus on.

Four NETS for Better Searching Article

I really liked the opening statement of this article, where it said "The perfect page is out there somewhere." I can completely relate to that feeling when I'm searching for things on the web. I admit, after reading this article I realize that I often search the web in an untimely manner by just typing in a key word and hoping to get a hit with all the information that I would need. Anybody who has done any kind of research paper using internet sources can probably attest that it usually doesn't work, and we spend more time wading through all the information instead of writing the actual paper!
I guess I had played with the idea that there were more advanced options for searching the web, but I just never really took the time to find out how and when to use them. I know now that by adding exact phrases, eliminating words, and looking for similar pages I could cut the time going through all the excess information. To search the net more efficiently in the future, I will take the small moments required to decide what I don't need as well as what I do need, so that I can weed out useless information. I will use the advanced search options to find websites that are close to the ones that I have and have the information I am looking for. I will also better know how to "trim the URL" so that I can see all of what certain web pages have to offer. I'm glad for this information, because I know it will help me with my studies in the future!

Links

Online Resources

I chose to search the NSDL website to find online resources for my future classroom. Some of the links I found were:

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/Animals/CreatureFeature

This is National Geographic's website for kids featuring animals. I would use the site in my classroom to help my students explore different kinds of animals, habitats, the sounds each animal makes, where they are located in the world, and so forth. This website is definately meant for children to use, because the vocabulary is child-centered, and the pictures are very colorful and fun to look at.

http://www.sesameworkshop.org/sesamestreet/music/zone/

This is a Sesame Street music workshop page made for children to learn more about music. As a musician myself, I would want my students to learn the importance of music in our lives. This site would help them to learn more about what kinds of music is in the society around them, how music is made, get a multicultural view on music, and understand musical terms and approaches.

http://www.kidspsych.org/index2.html

This site is called KidsPsych, and it is for children ages 1-9 to learn more about "understanding ourselves, understanding each other." It helps children's cognitive development increase by having games that increase thinking skills and deductive reasoning. I would use this in my classroom to teach children first and foremost how to use technology, and then as a teaching tool to continue learning more cognitive skills. The games would allow for children to interact with how websites are formed, and how to use a computer, even at a very young age.

imovie assignment

I believe that elementary kids could create a movie, and that it could be very educational and fun for them as well. However, I think that we as teachers REALLY need to understand the technology before we try to incorporate it into an assignment. The instructional values of an assignment like this could be numerous, mostly because movies can be made on just about every subject. I do think, though, that this assignment would require a lot more in depth technology instruction in the classroom, and I would probably recommend it for older grades.
I would definately want to use these programs in my classroom because I think it would be fun for the kids, and can be very educational. When I was doing my movie I had some of my younger siblings and cousin help me and they had a blast! I think that to incorporate movie making would expand learning and make things more hands on and creative.

Reflections on Online Photo Sharing

I think that these online photo sharing tools have a lot of potential in the classroom, but could be slightly hard to use and could possibly be costly. I would probably use bubbleshare and flickr above photobucket and zoomr, mostly because they make more sense as far as students sharing photos with each other. I liked that there was the possibility of creating books, calendars, and so forth with these programs. I think that the children would love to see their work in a hard bound form, especially young children who have a hard time with abstract concepts. All of these programs would could be used with any grade, but would be better suited for older children I believe. Of all of the programs, I think that I would use flickr in my classroom. I would use it by having students post pictures of things or ideas that they have been studying. They could post comments on the pictures, and share more about themselves through their pictures. I would also use the program to do the same thing we did with the cameras, but instead of making iphoto books they could use the program to do their assignments. That way they learn how to use more and more technology.

Geometry iphoto Assignment

This assignment was very interesting and insightful. I had never really thought to have the students use cameras to find things in the environment that they are studying. The assignment was fun to do, and got us really thinking about geometry. As a teacher, you could use the cameras to do a lot of assignments, and integrate the technology into all kinds of subjects. I definately think that third or fourth graders could do this assignment, and they would learn a lot about using camera. To be honest, I think that a lot of these kids probably know how to use a camera. They would mostly need to be taught how to import everything and arrange everything. If you spent the time to teach them the technology first, the assignment would go very well, with all the focus on the geometry. I, personally, would balance the time by explicitly teaching the technology, and then spend the bulk of the time on the geometry. The technology should enhance the curriculum, not overshadow it.