Week 4 Goals for Future Learning

Below is a list of three goals that I would like to implement for my future learning and integration of technology within the classroom throughout student teaching and after graduation.

Goal 1: Introduce 5 digital tools into the classroom.

Action step: In order for this to be done, I need to effectively research multiple digital tools so I can choose the ones I find most beneficial and accessible for 4th grade. Also, I need to make sure the tools I choose are compatible with the technology that my school offers.
Deadline: I would like this to be done within the first month of school.
Necessary resources: In order to complete this step, I need to choose my 5 tools and research what resources are needed for each specific tools. Main tools that will be needed are iPads/phones/computers.
Potential challenges: There are many great tools out there, but often they do not all work well with all devices. If I work in a BYOD school, this could raise possible challenges. Another challenge may be if my school does not have one to one devices. If this is the case, I would need to make sure that the tools I introduce are beneficial with partner or group work.

Goal 2: Develop QR codes for weekly newsletters and posters.

Action step: Research and find multiple videos, websites, and more that I would like to link to the QR codes. Also, create some of these videos or writings to make the codes for personalized for parents and students.
Deadline: This will continue throughout the school year, but I would like QR codes to be on the very first newsletter sent out and have them on certain posters on the first day of school.
Necessary resources: The resources I will need are QR code readers, QR code creators, printer, compatible devices.
Potential challenges: If parents in my community do not have access to devices that can scan QR codes (or internet access) than they will not be able to access the information that is held in that code. Also, if certain links do not work on specific devices (if I am in a BYOD school), this would provide potential limits to access for students who do not have compatible devices.

Goal 3: Create an online blog/twitter/remind account for the classroom.

Action step: I need to find an app that best fits the needs of my classroom, students, parents, and school. Once found, I will need to create an account and share the information with all necessary parties so that they are able to access the information I post on that account.
Deadline: I would like the account information to be posted in the first weekly newsletter to parents so that this communication can begin right away at the beginning of the school year. This will continue throughout the entire year.
Necessary resources: A device that I can use to post and create the account, devices within the classroom that are compatible with the app or website I choose, and internet access.
Potential challenges: If the students and parents do not have internet access at home or do not have devices that can access this account, they will be unable to view the information that others students and parents are seeing. Also, if not all of my students have internet access at home, they will have a much more difficult time seeing any updates on this account outside of the school setting.

Week 4 Storybird

This week, I decided to explore the technological tool called Storybird. Last semester, while student teaching in Waseca, I had overheard another 4th grade teacher discuss using Storybird in her lessons and how successful it was. Knowing that 4th grade students typically have a hard time being engaged in many reading and language arts lessons, I was intrigued to find out more about Storybird and why it was such a successful and beneficial tool. I found out that this website is very easy to navigate for teachers and allows them to create accounts for each of their students as well. I really enjoyed this aspect of being able to create the student accounts because I have found that it is very time consuming to try to have students create accounts on their own. After creating accounts, teachers can create their own books to share with students, or they can have students create books as well to share with the class, parents, community, and more. I found this to be an extremely fun and interactive spin on doing projects such as book reports or creating your own short stories. For my project, I decided to use the poem The Voice by Shel Silverstein. The reason I chose to create my own Storybird using this poem was because I think it is a powerful poem for 4th graders. I noticed many students this age struggle knowing what is right or wrong, who they should or should not be friends with, how they should or should not act, and more. This is just one reason why Storybird is so great, because it allows teachers to approach these and other topics in a much more engaging, personalized, and interactive manner. Also, Storybird allows the users to choose from a wide range of illustrations that they provide which is also nice because it allows the user to choose the appropriate picture to go along with the story they create. I highly recommend using Storybird in classrooms of all ages because there are so many possibilities for creation among both teachers and students that will help students become more engaged in their learning.

Below is the link to my Storybird that I created, along with multiple pictures of the website that I took throughout my exploration.

Shel Silverstein Poem

Week 3 AR

AUGMENTED REALITY

This week, along with reading and learning about QR codes, I also learned about augmented reality. This concept was very new and exciting for me as I have had no experience with it in the past. I think this is a great tool that students can use within the classroom to give them a sense of hands on learning through the 3D technology without having to spend money on purchasing the materials to make the activity hands on. I also think augmented reality lessons give a very big wow factor that really catches students' attention and makes them engaged and interested in the lesson. Learning to use AR was simple depending on the app you chose. I chose to use Quiver because it had many great reviews and seemed very user friendly for beginners. However, as I read about AR, it mentioned that creating your own augmented reality experience is more difficult. As mentioned earlier, one of the big potential benefits I see within the classroom is being able to give students the sense of hands on learning since they are able to manipulate the objects of AR without having to worry about budgeting for the materials needed for the activity. I think this would allow teachers to provide students with many more interactive lessons and experiences than before without digging into their own pockets for funding. Another big benefit that I see from AR is the ability for students to create and express through different apps. Some of these apps, like Quiver, let you draw and then they bring those drawings to life. I believe this allows students to have a greater sense of ownership within their learning. I would love to use this tool within my classroom for many science activities as well as with a word wall. I saw many fun and interactive apps with AR that were science and vocabulary based which I think would be easy to incorporate into a classroom. The way I would engage students in using AR to learn would be to allow them to create as well which gives them increased motivation in their learning and a greater sense of ownership. From my past student teaching experiences, I have noticed that students are much more engaged in lessons where they feel a sense of ownership within the lesson. After researching and reading about AR, I chose the Quiver app and decided to look into the plant cell coloring page. I chose this because it allowed students to color their own plant cell however they wanted, but once finished and scanned, all students would receive the same information about the plant cell. The standard that goes along with this lesson would be 3.4.1.1.1 Compare how the different structures of plants and animals serve various functions of growth, survival and reproduction. Overall, I am very intrigued by AR and am excited to try it in my classroom and see how the students respond to it.

Below are pictures of my AR experience along with a link to a tutorial on how to use Quiver.

Quiver AR App Tutorial

Week 3 QR

QR CODES

This week, I read a short book an watched a few videos about QR codes and augmented reality. Taking in all of this information allowed me to see all of the endless possibilities for integrating technology into the classroom and using it as a tool to save instructional time, differentiate learning, engage students, involve families, and more. I have experienced QR codes before through advertisements and social media, but I never thought about the possibilities that they could bring to a classroom. Learning how to use QR codes was very quick and simple. All I needed to do was choose the free app I wanted to download and find a QR code to scan. Once I did that, the app did the rest and took me to the link that was attached to the QR code. To my surprise, creating QR codes was easy as well. Once I found the website I wanted to use to create my code, all I had to do was copy and paste it into the QR generator website and it developed a QR code for me that I could customize, download, and share. There are many different apps and websites out there for creating and scanning QR codes which is beneficial for teachers who may have different types of technology in their classroom. This way they are able to choose the app and website that best fits their needs along with the needs of their students. I see many benefits from using QR codes within education. One of the biggest benefits that I think QR codes could give teachers is the amount of instructional time that is saved. After student teaching in multiple grade levels and settings, I have noticed that it is very rare for all students to quickly and accurately get to the correct website, video, or other link. Usually, there are a few students who type in the link incorrectly which then takes up instructional time trying to fix these errors. With QR codes, teachers and students would no longer have to worry about getting to the wrong website or video because of a simple error in typing. Another major benefit that I see with QR codes is the ability to involve family members into the classroom. I loved the idea of having a weekly QR code attached to letters sent home that family members could. I really think this would allow family members to feel involved in their child's school life and the growing technological involvement that their child is experiencing. I believe I would use this tool any time I desired students to access a certain website or video and also to make deeper connections between home and school. However, I would also like to experiment using QR codes as a way of letting students know what to do next if they finish an activity or assignment early. This would allow for smoother transitions within the classroom without disturbing the students who are still working. In order to keep students engaged in using QR codes, I would like to show them how to create them on their own so that they would be able to use them as a way to communicate with others, show off any of their works or creations, and more. I believe this would give students a greater sense of ownership in their learning as well as excitement in utilizing the new technology.

I decided to create a QR code that takes students directly to IXL level D.16 which has them practice lattice multiplication. I chose this website and activity because many of my fourth graders from last semester struggled with lattice multiplication. I also was in a classroom that frequently used IXL and my mentor teacher would simply write the levels on the board that she wanted the students to do. However, many of the students would find themselves lost because they were on the Language Arts IXL or simply could not locate the levels on the board. I think using a QR code would greatly help to solve these issues and allow the students to have more time to work and practice on their math skills.

Standard: 4.1.1.3 Multiply multi-digit numbers, using efficient and generalizable procedures, based on knowledge of place value, including standard algorithms.

Below are some pictures that I took while experimenting with and exploring QR codes.

 

Week 2

Link to scratch name animation:
https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/167456920/

Reflection:
I have worked with Scratch Jr. previously in another STEM class so I was rather familiar with many of the basic workings of this website. However, after taking the course, I realized there was much more you could create with Scratch! It was very interesting for me to see all of the details that went into creating the Fruit Slicer game and how even one minor mistake could make the entire game not work correctly. I believe students could truly benefit from learning how to code, especially using software like Scratch. I thought this was a website that could easily be differentiated for students based on their knowledge and skills of coding to make the same content have higher level demands as well as lower level. Because of this aspect, teachers would be able to make sure all students in their classroom are receiving the core content at the level that best fits their needs. Using Scratch would help students to create fun, interactive presentations and projects to use as summative assessments in the classroom. For example, students could create certain math games on Scratch where they would have to correctly answer math problems that appear in order to win/continue playing the game that was created. Scratch is a great way to integrate TPACK into your classroom and allow students to experiment with creating new things using technology while also receiving core curriculum instruction.

Certificate of Course Completion:

About Me

My name is Alesha Wickersham. I grew up in a small town in southern Minnesota with my parents, older sister, and younger brother. I am currently an undergraduate at Minnesota State University, Mankato studying Elementary Education while pursuing a certificate in STEM. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Teaching has always been a passion of mine and I am excited to begin my dream career. I have currently student taught in St. Peter, Owatonna, and Waseca. My next student teaching placement will be in Houston, Texas and I am very enthusiastic to see what this new state and adventure has in store for me.

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass,  but learning to dance in the rain."

Week 1

Screencast-o-matic Link:
C:\Users\Alesha\Documents\Fall 2016\Recording #3.mp4

Prezi Link:
http://prezi.com/ssbluxajp0jb/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy&rc=ex0share

Resources:
Framework for 21st Century Learning
http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework

ISTE Standards for Students and Teachers
 http://www.iste.org/standards/standards

SAMR Model
http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2013/06/samr-model-explained-for-teachers.html

TPACK Framework
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FagVSQlZELY  http://www.tpack.org\

TPACK & SAMR combined
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDV2oyAgu9Y

Blog Post: How technology can make our kids better learners https://medium.com/@NitashaM/how-technology-can-make-our-kids-better-learners-mit-media-labs-mitch-resnick-on-raising-digital-493d165b1747

A Planning Cycle for Integrating Digital Technology