More Gifts from K-8 Friends

Hello all,

When I saw K-8 at the top of “Blogging Helps Students Learn Literacy Skills and More”, I thought I would have to look for something more relevant for the secondary classroom.  I’m glad I kept reading. Teacher Linda Yollis shares the benefits of maintaining a classroom blog.  Quality literacy skills are being developed and the students are learning what it means to be digital citizens.  The students are engaged, choosing sometimes to post from home.  More information about what all of that means can be viewed on her Wiki site created to share tips with educators interested in blogging. Her class blog is also accessible from the article and shows many examples of the creative ways she has been able to connect the classroom blog with lessons in the classroom.  I found it interesting that she has virtual volunteer parents that help encourage discussion by commenting.  I’m not sure secondary parents would be interested in this.  I do like the idea of the blog being open to family to view and support their children.  I do plan to go back and explore her Wiki in greater depth.  I could see using her students’ videos to teach online etiquette and some literacy skills.

Blogging Helps Students Learn Key Literacy Skills and More. (2012). Curriculum Review, 52(2), 7.

Enjoy!

Mrs. A

Growth Along the Journey...

Hello All,

I'm adding many new online resources for my prospective classroom. Some information has been applicable as I substitute teach. While substituting, sometimes I think through how I could have implemented a literacy strategy or look for what the teacher is using that I can borrow from and apply. Overall, the literacy class has made me much more aware of the literacy strategies being used in classrooms. I especially view my time in the elementary schools as a gift, since much of what secondary teachers are integrating is old news to many elementary teachers! (I perceive a Word Wall in my future classroom)

On a slightly different note, I have had students in my science classes write fictional stories using their vocabulary words to review and check for understanding in the past. While working on a vocabulary foldable for the literacy class, I thought it may be interesting to have the students write earthquake stories as lift-the-flap books. The students could read through younger elementary level earthquake books first for ideas and content or I could walk the students through a few books. Reviewing these books would continue to reinforce information being learned in the earthquake unit. Once the students finish with their lift-the-flap creations, we could share these books with an elementary class as reading buddies (pair an older student with a younger student to read). If we were unable to visit an elementary classroom, we could pass the books along to an elementary teacher for awhile. Perhaps, the books could be part of their independent reading selection for a few weeks or used in some other manner in the classroom.

Happy defining this week,

Mrs.A

A Quick Addition...

Hello again,

The earlier post led me to Fractus Learning where I discovered 7 of the Best Science Blogs for Students and Teachers.  Another large chunk of time is gone…. Here is a look at a few of the sites.  I was drawn to The Frog Blog,  originally because of the frog picture (media was mentioned above in 6 Tips for Quality Student Blogging). I value the global perspective presented on this site.  Unfortunately, The Frog Blog will not be continuing.  I think the past content is worth a look.  It contains information on many science topics and science education.  Hmmm, I can recall listening to The Naked Scientists a few years ago and integrating Podcast clips into science lessons. Having revisited, I think I may use some clips from there again in the future.  Students enjoy listening to the program and for educators it is an easy way to keep up with science content.  I highly recommend listening!  I was hoping Bad Science would give me some quick short attention getting pieces to use in the classroom.  It wasn't what I thought it would be.  If you are looking for bad science in medical or pharmaceutical areas, there is much to choose from there.  Be sure to review thoroughly, some of the language may be inappropriate for the classroom.

Enjoy,

Mrs. A

Two Blogs, Too Many Choices

Hello All,

Here are two blogs I follow on occasion.  I say on occasion, because I lose track of large chunks of time if I go to either of these sites.  Both are more technology based.  The first is Richard Byrne’s Free Technology for Teachers.   Whether you are looking for interactive maps, instant feedback solutions, or tips and tricks to work with the many Google apps sooner or later Richard will post something to make your day that much better.  If you are looking for information to setup a blog or you desire to branch out and create a website, click the tab Creating Blogs and Websites.  It has plenty of resources to help you choose the right tool to get off to a good start.  The other blog is Gary Johnston’s Teaching Ahead of the Curve.  His blog is geared toward ed tech, science teachers, and math teachers.  He gets quite excited about curriculum development and assessments.  The February 17, 2013 post is actually a repost of his article from Fractus Learning, 6 Tips for Quality Student Blogging.  I have to admit, I too have struggled with the content quality seen in some students' blog posts.  The tips are applicable to me as well as I work on finding a voice for this blog.  I appreciated his insights.

Enjoy,

Mrs. A

Choosing a Direction...

Hello all,

Literacy mattering in all content areas seems like common sense to me.  The definition of literacy will be kept general here, viewed as the ability to comprehend information for oneself from a variety of resources for application and the ability to communicate these understandings to others.  There is a plethora of resources and strategies that can be used to engage our students and to effectively teach lessons.  The goal here will be to dig in and determine the resources and strategies that may best fit the educational communities one may teach within from a perspective of science literacy.  According to Hazen, R. and Trefil, J. (2009), “More than ever before, scientific and technological issues dominate, from global climate change to the teaching of evolution, to the perceived gradual decline of American competitiveness.  Being able to understand these debates is becoming as important to you as being able to read. You must be scientifically literate.”(p. xi)

Five years ago when I left the science classroom, electronic technology was beginning to play a much larger role in encouraging literacy in our middle school classrooms.  Some big tech tools that stood out at that time used in my room were WebQuests and Myspace. There was still plenty of room for the paper graphic organizers, various note taking methods, various techniques for learning vocabulary, plenty of diagramming and labeling, graph reading skills, and hand written and word processed reports, summaries, and lab reports.  I read aloud, they read aloud, and we read silently.  We read a variety of texts online, offline, and our textbooks.  We watched and listened to videos, presentations, and listened to music.  Gasp, there was even a VCR in the room.  We discussed in pairs, small groups and large groups.  I modeled questions and thinking about reading and hands on investigations.  There was room for demos and hands-on activities, both cookbook and inquiry based.

A lot of what was used in the past will still be great in the future.  OK, I’ll be streaming videos and possibly giving up some of my favorite VCR materials.  Today, I would move to Edmodo or similar over Myspace.  I see there are far more WebQuests to choose from.

Right now, I am most motivated to learn more about the Web 2.0 side as part of the science literacy journey.  I’m excited about using the online simulations in the classroom.  I see much potential for tools such as Glogster for informational posters and ads.  The thought has crossed my mind to incorporate some online sites such as Quizlet for vocabulary, Quia for quizzes to know students watched a video before coming to class or as an ‘entry ticket’ for an activity, and Google Docs or Wikispaces for collaborative projects.  I can see great advantages for a flipped classroom with more time to dedicate to hands-on activity, discussion, and argument. Many of my teacher friends at the secondary level have given up their paper textbooks for online build your own curriculum.  Their students are taking pictures with cell phones and iPods as part of their data collection, using phones for quick definition searches, listening to teacher podcasts and watching teacher made videos. 

I have to admit having all these opportunities for students to respond wherever they are at any time may be time consuming in the beginning in developing materials for some of the applications or in teaching students how to use the tools.  I wonder how best to protect students’ privacy and how to keep them safe online.  Being in a middle school recently, I see students of that age group are not all quite mature enough to make wise choices in the use of their technology.  The realization that posted information is permanent does not seem to be a reality for many of them.  I see this somewhat better understood at the high school level.  I also wonder how excited to become about implementing the outside technology before understanding the technology policies of a school or district.  I’ve learned some districts are very protective of their students' and teachers' online activities while some districts are open to integrating and trying the latest educational technology trends.

Enjoy,


Mrs. A

Hazen, R. and Trefil, J. (2009). Science Matters.  New York, NY: Anchor Books.