WEEK 14 report of tasks

I did tasks 2-4 for this week. I completed the online evaluation and survey and checked my grades in moodle. Everything looks good!

Internet Safety Reflection

What article did you choose to read for your article of choice?
"Opposing Evil"
Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, Nov. 1975, 38–40

Describe the video resources you watched?
I watched several videos that told stories of girls that had been caught in the trap of associating with online predators and even running away to meet them. These videos were all very informative, with the girls describing what they were feeling through this process, how to avoid it, what they regretted, and that they were lucky and happy to be safe now. I also watched a couple of videos about cyber bullying, one of which was about a boy who actually ended up killing himself because of all of the teasing he dealt with both at school and at home once he logged onto the internet. I also watched a video made by BYU that was a fun cartoon meant to inform children and parents about the dangers of the media and online chatrooms, etc. All of the video resources I watched were extremely informative.

Write a paragraph describing what your most important "take-aways" were from the readings and video?
I think my biggest take-away from the resources we were given is the importance of being aware. Every video I watched and every article I read brought awareness to the fact that the media and the internet can be extremely helpful and have many benefits, but that we must be aware as parents and teachers of the harms that can come from these tools if we are not careful. I really learned a lot about preventative actions that we can put into place so that our children and students are not even in a situation that could become dangerous.

Write a paragraph or more describing the details of your "doing" experience (you don't need to include any names).
I decided to share the information I learned with my husband because we are expecting our first child and it is so important to know how to protect against the filth and everything that is so scary in the world in this day and age. My husband already knew that you could put online filters on your computer(which I didn't know about until doing this project.) He also knew that it is important to place time limits on media exposure and to put computers in open areas. I shared with him some other information such as the importance of being aware of what internet access your children have at school and the importance of teaching children to shut the computer down and come tell an adult if they are exposed to anything pornographic, etc. and why doing so is important. My husband's reaction was that he was glad I was able to share with him and that we were able to discuss the topic becuase it is so important to protect our home and children from predators and other evil influences. Nothing really surprised me about his reaction to my message--he really appreciated the discussion, which is what I expected. The discussion gave us opportunity to decide before we were put in the situation how we would handle different aspects of using the media and technology safely in our home. I think we will definitely both be able to use the information we discussed in our lives as we establish guidelines and rules for safety in our home and as we both try to be cautious examples ourselves to others around us.

TPACK report

Here is the link to my TPACK presentation:
This document is published on the web.
Your document is publicly viewable at:

http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dcvds2f2_8fdcnqffb

lesson plans

Here are the links to my lesson plans:

Math---http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcvds2f2_4f4bttjhk
Language Arts----http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcvds2f2_5c5zcg4fm
Science---http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcvds2f2_5c5zcg4fm

The one I implemented was the math lesson.

Video thoughts

One of the biggest things I think I gleaned from watching these three videos about technology in the classroom is just the shear importance of exposing students to technology as a part of their education. I think that especially in some of the more urban areas there are probably many children that do not have much experience with or access to technology. However, knowledge about technology and the ability to apply technology to many aspects of education are almost essential skills in the age of innovation and in the society we live in. The thing that impressed me about each of the lesson plans or units presented in the videos was that they were all simple, but they all accomplished some pretty profound teaching. Especially the lesson about “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” seemed very easy to implement and the technology was not even very difficult to use, but it was great to see that even children as young as kindergarten age were doing something with technology that added a whole new dimension to their learning experience. I thought it was really amazing how much deeper the content and learning of these lesson plans became as the teachers simply exposed their students to all of the possibilities that existed in the classroom when technology was used.

Week 9 report

I was actually very surprised at first when I began learning at the technology available at my school. I believe my school is a Title 1 school and it is kind of in the country and only has a school enrollment of less than 600 or something like that. Thus, I wasn't really expecting them to have much technology and I was surprised to find out that there were 2 technology computer labs and that every classroom had 4 computers and that they are trying to get 6 for every room. The computers do not seem to have a lot of up-to-date software or anything, but I thought the sheer amount of computers available was pretty impressive. Also, each classroom has a computer projector. However, I was disappointed that the technology specialist did not mention that the school had any real scientific technology equipment to enhance science learning(I really liked the digital microscopes!)Mostly, I think it's just so important to know what resources are available to you so you can make the best of what you have!

I have completed both the informed consent form and the midcourse evaluation.

Technology Science Experience

I watched the voicethreads of Sam, Sarah, and Nancy. They were all different and very good.

I learned a lot about using technology to enhance science in an elementary classroom. I honestly never even knew that most of the technologies we could use existed. It is amazing to me even the simple things that technology can enhance to make them more efficient, interesting, or authentic. Children can have real experiences with technology such as digital thermometers, digital microscopes, and online technologies that they really may end up using in their careers when they are older and I think it is important to let them know the purposes behind them and how real the experiences they are having really are. This was a very enlightening project and I feel like I am much more aware now of many new technologies I could use to help my future students learn better.

voicethread story

Science technology lesson

My project will be a technology enhanced science activity about microorganisms for 6th grade. The standard I will be covering is Standard 5: "Students will understand that microorganisms range from simple to complex, are found almost everywhere, and are both helpful and harmful."

Students will gain knowledge about microorganisms and their complexity and prevalence by using the microbe zoo interactive website found at http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/dlc-me/zoo/index.html. Students will then use digital microscopes to view microorganisms and observe their characteristics.

The pedagogy involved deals with a focus on the students observing the world around them, particularly the micro world using digital microscopes to enhance and deepen their ability to observe. Students will also be acquiring and processing data they encounter through their observation of different microorganisms. This will help them to analyze the data and connect their learning experience to the real world around them.

As listed above, the technology the students will use will include the microbe zoo interactive website and the digital microscopes. These technology tools will be especially beneficial for teaching the content and for accomplishing the intended pedagogy because they allow the students to observe and really experience the world around them in a way that they are discovering a whole new micro world.

tour reviews

I downloaded and looked at the virtual tours created by Alli Whitzell, Julie Chatfield, and Sarah Kunz.

I think the positives to using Google Earth in the classroom have mostly to do with engagement levels. It makes different sites in history or different concepts in science and biology seem so much more real when you can see where they are located in relation to other places and when you can use so many resources about that site all in one little computer screen. These places seem so much more real and it is a very intriguing way to keep students engaged.

I think the drawbacks to using Google Earth in the classroom would be that some students could become frustrated with the technology. However, with teacher help and scaffolding, this should not be a huge issue. Also, the issue of having enough computers pops up, but if there is a school computer lab that could be used, there should not be a big problem here either.

virtual tour description

My virtual tour will cover the 6th grade standard 1 objective 1. It states: Standard 1: Students will understand how ancient civilizations developed and how they contributed to the current state of the world. Objective 1: Explain why physical geography affected the development of early civilizations.
I chose to do a virtual tour about this topic mainly because I love learning about different ancient civilizations. I really like the idea of bringing these ancient civilizations to life through a virtual tour. The virtual tour helps these civilizations that are so far removed from our students seem more real to them.
I think a virtual tour would be one of the most effective ways to teach this core curriculum because it brings these civilizations to the lives of our students so they can relate and be excited about something that is otherwise just another story to them.

Virtual tour plans

Here is my tour on Google Earth about the formation of ancient civilizations and the connection to physical geography.

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Ancient Greece	View slideshow of information and pictures about how geography affected the civilization. (Compare and contrast with each civilization).	Google pictures/boundaries/information/geography and terrain features
2. Ancient Jerusalem	View slideshow of information and pictures about how geography affected the civilization	Google pictures/boundaries/information/geography and terrain features
3. Ancient Egypt	View slideshow of information and pictures about how geography affected the civilization	Google pictures/boundaries/information/geography and terrain features
4. Ancient Rome	View slideshow of information and pictures about how geography affected the civilization	Google pictures/boundaries/information/geography and terrain features

digital story with music and credits

new digital story

video comments and thoughts

I watched the videos that Sam, Alli, Nancy, Julie Chatfield, Keri Wooten, and Sarah Kunz made. They were all really good and so different and creative!

I think the most difficult challenge in implementing a project like this would be students getting frustrated. I know that even I got a little bit frustrated a couple of times when things would not import or when I could not get two audio tracks to be filled at the same time. I could just see how there would have to be a lot of teacher help and scaffolding to prevent kids from getting to their frustration level and wanting to give up. Also, I think that the students who are really perfectionistic could take a long time making their project, which could be a problem if we had to visit a computer lab for limited time or if we had a limited number of computers to share in the classroom.

TPACK--what it means for me

I think that TPACK is really just a great way for us as teachers to stay focused on making all of our teaching and learning activities really meaningful and purposeful for our students. What I understand about TPACK is that it is an easy way to check that we are using many different knowledge bases to pack a ton of meaning into even one lesson plan--we can just mentally go through TPACK in every lesson. I also think the principles behind TPACK--of using technology, content, and pedagogy in our teaching--helps us as teachers to fulfill the sometimes overwhelmingly long list of things we have to cover in the 7-8 hours we have each day. Using TPACK really helps to kill 2 birds with 1 stone as we fulfill multiple objectives and pack in all of the learning we should provide students with. Also, these multiple facets to each lesson plan helps present the materials in a variety of ways to help meet the needs of all students.

Most important learning this week

I think the most beneficial learning I participated in this week was in completing the first half of the communications project. It really opened my eyes that I could create a beneficial website for both my own learning and that of my students. I never realized that creating a class website/wiki could be so easy! I didn't know that there were so many tutorials out there to help you do virtually anything. I really like the idea of having a sort of online community that can encompass my classroom and the learning my students and I do together. I know that the students I will be teaching are really a part of this new technological culture, and thus believe that using technology as a teaching tool can really reach out to the kids and their understanding. I also never realized you could have so many convenient online resources in one central location.

My initial technology experience

I do not have a lot of technology background or experience, but I feel like I know enough to get by and to continue learning about technology. I took a computer class that was mandatory in high school (which probably everyone has to take). I wasn't ever really into computers, but during my senior year of high school I worked for a man who had a web design business. During this experience I learned how to create a simple html website and design html pages. I also did a lot of photo-editing on photoshop. I have used powerpoint several times for class projects and lesson plans. Mostly, my experience is average.