Project 10: Interviewing A Teacher

Blog Post 12

C4T Summary #3

I had the privilege of commenting on Larry Ferlazzo's blog post both weeks. He blogs every day, and it really grabbed my attention on how useful blogging really is. Mr. Ferlazzo's blogs are very interesting, and I strongly encourage everyone to check them out!

The first post I commented on was about blogging. I had explained to Mr. Ferlazzo that I was introduced to blogging in EDM 310, and how far I have improved with blogging. It has become very popular, and I will use it in my classroom.

The second post I commented on was Learning About Thanksgiving. As the holidays are slowly moving in, our kids are getting more and more excited. There are so many crafts we get to do with our kids that brings out their creativity and imagination. This site has numerous sites for worksheets, crafts, and you can make lessons from the sites about history of Thanksgiving. This will help the younger students better understand Thanksgiving, instead of it being a holiday where everyone gets together to eat until they pop.

Project 14

Lesson Plan

Calendar

Rubric

Checklist

As a group, we decided to have our students create a history project on our founding fathers. Each group will be assigned a founding father, and will work together to research their father and create a Board Builder project they will present to the class. The students will be given an option to dress up as their founding father for bonus points.

Blog Post #11

Brian Crosby is a fourth grade who does not take it easy on his students. He is not just satisfied from high test scores, he makes sure his students are understanding the material. Not only did he teach his students from their text books, the also used charts and had them complete numerous, fun activities. He also had his students blog. He would have them record their experiments and upload them in their blogs. The most important thing I learned from Mr. Crosby was to not rush our student into learning material. It is important to make sure they understand it, and having high test score results does not mean they understand it. He exposes his class to parts of the world like Dr. Strange exposes us when we do our C4K comments. At first I was all confused about why we had to comments, but now I love interacting with these kids, and seeing how our work interacts with what we are learning about.

Paul Anderson teaches AP Biology in Bozeman, Montana. He decided to do a something a little different in his classroom, so he decided to do blended learning. Blended learning is mobile, online, and classroom learning all blended together into one. Mr. Anderson says you need six things: a question to hook students attention, investigate and experience, a video for independent learning, elaboration, meet with students in small groups to review, summary, and a quiz to test them on everything they have learned.

Mark Church's video shows us some techniques he uses in the classroom. He puts his students into groups and gives them questions to talk about within their group. Each group will come up with a headline that represents their topic, and each group will present their headline. To completely finish the project, all of the headlines will be combined together to make a bulletin board. I believe this is a great way to introduce collaborative learning. It will get students familiar together in groups, and have them work as a team instead of individually and one person doing all the work.

Super Digital Citizen

Sam Pane is a fourth grade teacher who shows us the importance of teaching out students to safely use the internet to gather the information they need. The internet is becoming more popular in the schools, and I believe it is every important we as teachers teach our students how to properly use the internet. He also mentions how important it is for students to keep their information private. Pane also had his students use a website to create their own Digital Superhero. It was a fun way to learn in their own imaginative, creative situation what the superhero would do to save the day. I thought this was a cute idea to get the students involved in using technology. In this video, the students looked like they were having a blast, and I hope my students enjoy this activity as much as his did. Mr. Pane also states that it is important to create projects that are about the students because it makes them more meaningful. As teachers, we will be doing countless projects, so this is very important to keep in mind. We want our kids to have fun in our classrooms, but also remember and learn the material.

Project Based Learning

In this video, Dean Shareski teaches us how we can combine different subjects into one Project Based Learning. We learn how three teachers in Canada use Project Based Learning in their classrooms. Teachers integrate subjects like Math and Science or History and English with technology. I learned in this video that research shows integrated learning through projects which allows students to be more involved and provides them opportunities to deeper understand material. The teachers in this video stated it took time for Project Based Learning to be beneficial. I believe giving students time to complete their PBL will give them time to create something on their own, be successful, and proud of their work they have accomplished.

Roosevelt Elementary PBL

This video shows how PBL is really growing in schools and within the classrooms. There are five things PBL means in Roosevelt Elementary: in depth learning, integrated thematic instructions, lessons that are based on “real-world” problems, research driven, and presentations. They use Project Based Learning in groups and individually, which allows students to think for themselves. As students get older, they will not always have someone there holding their hand. This is a good way to get them going motivated and motivating themselves. I also like how they focus on public speaking skills at such a young age. In college, we have to take a public speaking class, and it is intimidating for so many people to stand up in front of a class and give a speech. As the teacher's at Roosevelt Elementary School said "It's not easy. It's a lot of work for teachers." I believe as long as our students are happy, having fun, excited to learn, involved in the class, and comprehending what we are teaching, that is all that matters.

Project 12 Part A

October C4K Summary

I am so thrilled I get to read these post every week. This is my favorite part of EDM 310, and I love seeing how creative these kids are. They are so cute, and I definitely get a good laugh at how humorous mine are. Being able to interact with these kids around the world throughout the week, reminds me why I love teaching so much!

Week 1:

My student was really concerned about how he was going to make his mark on the world. He was really upset because he was getting older and he had not figured out how to achieve the mark he wanted to leave. I had explained to him that he was so young and has so much more to experience in life. Once he got a little older and gets to experience the world, his mark will just come to him and will forever remain on the world. I told him not to worry, he has plenty of time to figure it out, and to enjoy life while he is still young.

Week 2:

My student Bella told me everything about herself. She loved basketball, volleyball, horses, and dogs. She also liked to go shopping and making crafts. We had a lot in common and really connected. I explained to her that we were a lot alike. I also like animals, shopping, and crafting. I also told her that my sister plays all of the same sports she does, and I was just a cheerleader in high school. She was really fun to get to know, and her blog was very enthusiastic and entertaining.

Week 3:

My student really cracked me up! She had to identify things in something the class had to read. She began explaining a few things and came across a bride and a groom. She had mentioned in her blog post how one day she wants to be a bride. I told her we both have the same dream, and I hope one day she gets to fulfill that dream.

Week 4:

Owen is a six year old student at PT England School in Auckland, NZ. He is in Class 7, and Mrs. Jacobsen's teacher. His blog post this week was on the importance of fitness and exercising. He explains that exercising keeps your body strong and fit, and fitness means having the energy to work and play. He also did a little research, and says that exercising help you relax, sleep better, and stay fit. Owen also says, "You need to move it!" If you need any motivation to go to the gym, I strongly recommend you read this post! I am so proud of him for encouraging others to be healthy.