Reflections

One of my favorite tools that I explored would have to be digital storytelling.  This tool will work beautifully with storytelling and all of its components.  I will encourage the children to create dramatizations of both adult -authored and dictated stories so that they can view them over and over again to increase their comprehension skills.  When thinking about having the children do this, the process will be just as important as the product. 

My thinking has been transformed in that teaching in the 21st century requires us to reach all children through technology integration in all areas of learning.  Careful planning and training on our part will have to take place so that we can meet the needs of all children.

Nothing unexpected, but I have to say that this experience was an eye-opener for me.  There are so many useful and user-friendly tools that will make teaching and learning exciting and meaningful.

Tool # 11

Teaching good digital citizenship for our little ones will require task analyzing at the most basic level and build upon that.  Good modeling of appropriate behaviors and facilitation to ensure these skills are internalized will be so important and required for the iTouch implementation to be successful!

Tool # 10

I could spend hours looking through the apps.  Some of my favorites that would be age-appropriate for our Pre-K students include:

   Read me Stories:  Talking picture books that are updated daily which teach new vocabulary and concepts.
  
   Shape Builder:  Reinforce shape recognition

   Toddler ABC's;  Assist children with alphabet recognition...including a photo that begins with the letter

   Learning to Count:  Great for teaching the sequence of numbers when counting

The iTouch is going to be a great teaching tool for the classroom.  The children will be able to work cooperatively and independently on specific skills and concepts. 

Tool # 9

Jing will be great for capturing a window and then explaining in further detail with captions/text.  I like that you can use Jing for screencasting by selecting a region or window and record up to 5 min. of video with narration.  This would be a great teaching tool to use with projects.

Skype would be a neat learning tool to use with students of other schools around the globe.  Children could communicate with one another about topics of study.  Great way to increase their oral language development.

Tool # 8

Videos are another avenue for students to become engaged in learning. It is an auditory/visual aid that has a high interst level with children and aids in retention of concepts.

The first vidoe I posted could be used in conjunction with teaching number concepts. It is a video about "Five Little Ducks".

The second video would be used in my classrrom in conjunction with a shared reading book that we use in the beginning of the year, "Fruit Salad."  The Wiggles created a song that works beautifully with this book.

Tool #7

This was so much fun creating.  As I was making the video, I had so many ideas about how this could be implemented in my classroom to improve student learning.  Photo story could be used hand-in-hand with storytelling...children could dramatize dictated stories as well as read alouds which could then be placed in story-baskets.  Children could create videos as they relate to projects, books read aloud,etc.  Digital storytelling could also be used with teachers who want to model a lesson/view a lesson or share student learning with others, including parents. 

 LOVE THIS TOOL!!!

Tool #6

Wiki is a great tool, and with lots of assistance, could be used by my Pre-K students.  This would be a fun way for the class to collaborate and create a story, poem or any type of writing.  This tool really opens the door to the rest of the world so that the children can see what others are learning and actually contribute.  It gives them an opportunity to be an active participant in the learning process.

This tool could be used by my teammates in collaborating to create a newsletter, lesson plan or just 'spreading the word' regarding teaching ideas.

Found this really neat Wiki and thought I would share...
http://mrsibrahim.wikispaces.com/

Tool #5

After joining Delicious (already had a Yahoo account), I found a couple of websites that were of interest to me which could be used with my Pre-k students.

The first website has fun, interactive games for children to play that reinforce literacy skills and concepts that we teach daily basis.
http://www.gamequarium.com/

I used tags such as pre-k lessons and pre-k language arts to find this website.

The second site is a great resource for teachers to gain ideas for lessons.  It covers all content areas and has a wealth of info.
http://prekinders.com/

I used the tag pre-k math to locate this site.

This tool could be useful for creating a library of websites that are of interest to teachers...and an added bonus...it can be done from any computer through http://delicious.com/

Tool #4

Google Docs is going to prove beneficial in collaborating and editing lesson plans, newsletters, classroom notes etc..  All completed in a casual manner without a meeting!  I created a letter for parents to be handed out at orientation.

Google Reader is an efficient way of keeping up-to-date with my favorite sites and teacher blogs as they relate to my teaching.

Tool # 3

I created a list of words related to ice cream.  This would be a motivating way of getting children engaged in writing.  This could be a springboard for any type of writing, including: stories, poems, language experiences, descriptions of artifacts-characters/people, etc.



I used Bookr to make a book to be used in conjunction with a shared reading. Bookr could be used to create books for children and parents.  Children could also create their own books...the possibilities are endless!

Tool #2

I am thrilled to be a part of a PLN. It's so exciting to connect with others of similar interest regarding passionate topics. It's one more avenue to improve my teaching, which in turn, will improve student performance. An added bonus...this can be done anywhere and anytime!
I took to heart the suggestion about mutual respect when commenting. Often times, we take down our guard when at a computer, not being mindful of how our words may be interpreted. Posting thoughtful and meaningful responses and/or questions are important.

5 Blogs with comments:
Mrs. Boone's Class
Spring Daffodils
Bellas Orquideas
Kierstenbear
Melissa

Tool #1

Finally began blogging and creation of my Avatar. Took longer than I expected, but had many distractions along the way.

Blogging will prove useful in keeping an open line of communication between colleagues regarding specific lessons and great teaching ideas that can be shared and implemented into our classroom. I could also see a blog useful in communication with parents via photos of the students' learning, posting our topics of study as well as pertinent websites that are related to objectives being taught.

I had fun creating an Avatar. If think this lends itself to a creative and effective means of getting children "hooked" to a lesson and keeping them engaged during that time.

Reflections

I was a bit hesitant about getting started because of the unknown. This will be a challenge and may take some time and patience on my part (especially since I will be "working" with my two little ones alongside me), but I am ready for the journey!