Geocaching

Geocaching is a global treasure hunt where searchers look for containers and hidden treasures outside using GPS. There are nearly a million different treasures, or caches, hidden throughout the world. The coordinates of these caches can be found on a variety of different websites where you can log your findings and experiences. Geocaching is a fun activity that can be incorporated into the science classroom. There are multiple benefits to getting out of the classroom to seek a cache. Sites may provide historical information about the area and some provide problem solving clues. They also provide the opportunity for exercise and a good way to enjoy nature. Geocaching allows the teacher and students to use the world as their classroom. Students and teachers use questioning and cooperative learning as they track through nature looking for the cache. Geocaching is great way incorporate technology into the science classroom and teach students about the natural world.

Technology empowers differentiated instruction

I read a very interesting article from eSchool News. It was called Technology Empowers Differentiated Instruction. The article talks about a webinar presented by two authors, Grace Smith and Stephanie Throne (Differentiating Instruction with Technology in K-5 Classrooms and the soon-to-be-published Differentiating Instruction with Technology in Middle School Classrooms). The webinar was created to help teachers find concrete applications of differentiating in the classroom using technology. Both authors believe that differentiated instruction is student-centered, and offers multiple paths to learning.

The first step is to pre-assess student’s interest through surveys, observations, or interviews. Next they said to choose different strategies to build on students’’ interest in ways that are appropriate for their abilities or age levels.  Some of these strategies include I-Search, Web Quests, interest centers, flexible groups, literature circles, Role Audience Format Topic Tech (R.A.F.T.T.), jigsaw, or computer software. The article continues to break these strategies down and explain more about each one.

http://www.eschoolnews.com/2009/02/02/technology-empowers-differentiated-instruction/

Effects of Technology on Classrooms and Students

One of the affects of technology in the classroom is the increase in motivation and self-esteem. Giving students the opportunity to use technology can motivate them to complete assignments that would other wise be unimportant to them. I truly believe that students who do enough to get by when given conventional academic task can excel with an assignment using technology. Here is a quote from a fifth grade teacher on technology and its affect on her students; “Technology is the ultimate carrot for students. It's something they want to master. Learning to use it enhances their self-esteem and makes them excited about coming to school.” If a student enjoys the method in which they are learning the content, the content itself doesn’t have to be as motivating to them. In other words, a student may not be motivated to learn about nouns, but if you teach the content

Education, U. D. (n.d.). Effects of Technology on Classrooms and Students. Retrieved from Technology and Education Reform : U.S. Department of Education

Using Prezi in my Classroom

I used Prezi for the first time during our 3^rd project for EDUC 675. I had never used Prezi before and had no idea what it would be used for. I signed up for an account and began creating my presentation. It took only a few minutes and I was hooked. It was easy to follow and allowed for creativity, even though creativity is not one of my strong suits. It was fun! I worked for about two hours and created something completely new to me.

I enjoyed using Prezi and knew it could be a great option for my students to enhance their class presentations. My students are currently working on a project for my science class that must include some form of technology. They are going to teach a science topic or concept that they find interesting. I used the projector and computer in my room to give the students a quick tutorial on how to use Prezi. Many of the students were interested in using Prezi, and created accounts that day. The following day I had students wanting to show me what they were able to do using Prezi. I was shocked on how fast they were able to pick up and create an awesome presentation. I showed the students Prezi because I thought it was interesting and it turned out to be a great resource for us to use in class. I truly recommend teaching your class how to use Prezi. If you give them a little time with the site they will be the ones teaching you!

Using a Wiki in a Community of Practice to Strengthen K-12 Education.

Sharing knowledge can be a challenging and the one of the biggest challenges when it comes to sharing knowledge is how to do it. What is the best way to communicate knowledge to other individuals? With high stakes testing in schools it is imperative we use knowledge that resides in our brains and create new knowledge that will launch innovative teaching approaches. With that being said, the problem becomes managing all of that knowledge. It is said that teachers share knowledge because they would gain something from it – whether it be a stronger understanding of an idea or a better reputation – and because they felt an obligation to their communities – whether the obligation arose from a sense of principal or compassion. One way for teachers to share and manage their knowledge is a wiki. Wikis are convenient because of their speedy editing, non-code web users, multiple contributors and no one person in charge.

I also chose to create a wiki in my classroom. The idea behind my wiki was to create a space in which all the teachers to contribute something. Our school is pushing differentiated instruction and I thought creating a wiki would be a good way to help this process. All teachers differentiate instruction, they just may not know it, and some teachers differentiate more than others. That means all the teachers in our school have some knowledge of how to differentiate instruction in the classroom. This wiki is a way to manage the knowledge of all the teachers. Teachers can post their ideas, methods or concepts that they use in their classroom for other teachers to try and also use the wiki as a resource to find new concepts that other teachers are using.

Sheehy, G. (2008). Using a wiki in a community of practice to strengthen k-12 education. . TechTrends, 52(6), 55-60.

Digital Literacies

With the emergence of the Web, online collaboration and participation has greatly increased. This article helps us focus on one of the more popular resources and that is the wiki. A wiki is usually a collection of webpages that are created and edited by a group of people. The content of the webpage is typically organized around a specific purpose of topic and can be collaboratively written, edited and added to by users.  Wikis are shared, online writing spaces that have great potential in education. Wikis can work in education as professional development tools, resource host, and shared interest space. This article discusses an example of a wiki used as professional development for middle school teachers called NewLits.org.

NewLits.org is a wiki used as resource for middle school literacy or language arts teachers. It provides a context for showcasing, demonstrating, and supporting the acquisition and understanding of digital literacies relevant to its scope and purpose. People participating in this wiki may contribute podcast, music videos, students made documentaries, lesson filmed, response videos and much more. The idea behind NewLits.org is that participates learn about digital literacies by engaging in digital literacies.

For my action research project I decided to create a wiki as a resource for our middle school teachers. This wiki can make an impact in the classrooms of all the teachers in the school, like NewLits.org, by providing a resource to better help them differentiate instruction in their class. Through collaborative interaction and participation the contributions from all the teachers will enhance the quality of the space. 

Knobel, M, & Lankshear, C. (2009). Wikis, digital literacies, and professional growth. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Liiteracy, 52(7), 631-634.

Cross-Continental Collaboration

Fire and Ice. This is the name of a project that connects students from the northern hemisphere with students in the southern hemisphere. The “fire” represents the students in the southern hemisphere and “ice” students in the northern hemisphere. The goal of this project was to demonstrate that, despite their differences, both hemispheres face environmental issues that are similar to one another. The course offers students the opportunity to collaborate with one another on topics such as peace, poverty, and climate change. The students’ present different issues they face to the other schools across the word. In return the other schools work, give suggestions and information on how to solve such problems. For example, a school in Africa used the idea of plants helping to provide oxygen to water from a school in Washington to help them solve their problem of erosion and desertification. Technology made it possible for the students to meet others from around the world. Instead of reading about the different regions of the world students were able to interact and learn from people their own age that lived in those particular regions. Computers have allowed us to expand our knowledge way beyond the classroom and make what we teach meaning full for the students.