Letter Writing Lesson Video

http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=489b0da0c67a0713f80b
This video shows an attempt at identifying the letter "f" in an abstract way. The success of the lesson depends not only on the accuracy of each student involved, but their ability to visualize what is being written through the sense of touch from behind them. It uses teamwork and prior knowledge. The letter "f" can be easily construed as a "t" if not carefully executed. As a result, the student's "felt" the letter incorrectly by the time the last person went. It's like playing telephone. The end result was unsuccessful. I would think that you could accomplish the same type of activity with better success if you had each child blindfolded and feeling the letter outlined with yarn on a piece of cardboard. This would give consistency to the shape of the letter for better recognition and would allow the child to identify it in a frontal position as they would do when reading or writing. As each child felt the letter I would have them write it on a personal slate board/white board for assessment purposes. I think the concept was a good one but the task involved too many factors leaning toward an unsuccessful result in the activity demonstrated. I do, however, feel that you should challenge your students, but never set them up for failure, especially at a young age. Encourage them, keep them interested with games such as this one, be creative, promote literacy, and at the same time, boost their self esteem.

http://www.schooltube.com/video/1179/Its-Read-Aloud-Time
This reading video uses various reading strategies to promote comprehension, interpretation, evaluation and analyzation. The lesson promotes literacy through understanding, repetition, movement, vocalization, vocabulary, reading, reasoning and higher order thinking skills. It brings the children into the story line and makes it an interactive experience in which they can draw from their own personal experiences and prior knowledge. I enjoyed it and hope you do.

Light an Educational Fire Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kjm-t6VfQ6g Here's a video I'd like to share with you. It's very brief and to the point. Encouraging students makes them enthusiastic about learning. Tap into your student's interests and watch the spark ignite. Surfing the web is one way to motivate students of today. Allow them to take off soaring by using modern technology.

Educational Blogging Article Review

The article, by Stephen Downes, was enlightening and educational. To understand and reach your students, in the classroom, you must first listen. I find the student's perspective on blogging interesting. Utilization of technology/blogging affords students the ability to retrieve directions, assignments, grades, general information, guidelines, post their work, reflect and record personal thoughts. It motivates them to read and write more often and opens up the opportunity to read comments from fellow bloggers from all parts of the world. This exchange of thoughts promotes higher order thinking skills and encourages students to reflect on their work. Across America, blogging for some teachers may seem like a complex process, due to a lack of understanding or experience, but for students, their readiness and yearning to incorporate blogging into the learning process is long overdue.

Blogging is a medium that expands a student's knowledge and experiences far beyond the traditional classroom. It has established a form of communication that has rapidly grown and captured our youth. It's a part of their life. They're digital learners. Blogging reveals a persons inner most thoughts, interests and attitudes. It exercises a persons ability to be receptive to other perspectives and assists in the sharing of knowledge. Blogging enhances reading skills, encourages good writing skills, fosters analytical skills, reflection, research and organizational skills, to name a few. There is a whole gamut of learning that is acquired when using weblogs to connect education to today's student.

The history of blogs, software and applications provided gave the pro's and con's to blogs for educational purposes. However, if the blog is monitored by the teacher and the student's are given guidelines and trained properly, it can be an effective tool to supplement your classroom. Blogging makes a person think twice about what to write and how to write it. Blogging is an interactive source of communication that brings self initiated thoughts to the table. Using it for educational purposes is an innovative way to help students feel connected and engaged. In education, students must be given a reason to want to blog, with the purpose of working towards a goal, but with the freedom and respect of others. Keep students engaged with topics of personal interest to them. Communication and the sharing of information provides a healthy stimulus for educational growth.

To succeed in the use of blogs as an educational, supplemental tool you should give guidelines, take proper security measures, provide adequate training and have a meaningful purpose. It will motivate and keep your students engaged on a different level. Blogging offers additional resources and adds some spice into the bland chicken soup, so to speak. Keep your students motivated in their digital world and watch them soar! This may be the "missing link" all teachers have been searching for! http://www.downes.ca

Teacher's Virtual Lives Conflict With Classroom

Does the youth of today have personal morals.? A teacher, or future teacher, is held to higher standards. They are role models and should portray their best assets on Book Face or My Space. What is the purpose of publishing photos that reveal inappropriate behavior anyway? Are these people even aware that this is inappropriate? Who are they trying to impress? I don't see any humor in it! There is a cause and effect issue in dealing with publications like this.

Any person who decides to become a teacher must be aware of their actions and future consequences. What kind of morals do they possess? They're setting themselves up for failure in the work force. Students love to gossip and find out about teacher's personal lives, especially in high school. They must keep their students in mind and their reputation as an upstanding citizen. Maybe part of the teaching curriculum should include character education!!! This is taught to our students, isn't it? What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Many times students idolize their teachers and try to follow in their footsteps. Students are impressionable. What are you telling your students when you have photos and comments on the web that promote lewd and inappropriate behavior? There's no good to come of it, so what's the purpose? I just don't know what some of the younger teachers are thinking about these days! They should possess certain personal qualities that are consistent with good role models.

Teachers are held to higher standards and are expected to maintain those standards or suffer the consequences. If this is not something they are willing to uphold, they shouldn't be in the teaching field. If they don't have the foreseeability to know right from wrong in their own personal lives, how can they guide their students in the right direction. Teaching is not just about content areas. You teach the whole person..., building a strong, moral society for the future!
http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=4791295

The Innovative Classroom

This video gives everyone an awareness of the various means of technology out there and available. My goal is to start incorporating some of these technologies into my classroom and personal life. It's brief but gets the point across. Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RADBrLM8JZk

Chat Rooms in Elementary School

Although I've never used a chat room, this sounds like a good idea if done with the safety of the students in mind. Creating private chat rooms with password protection sounds like the best way to go. Especially with 1st grade students. As stated by Amy Grigsby in Alpine, Texas: www.epals.com, would be a great way to have students chat with other students. I would start with partner schools in the district, expand to the US, and then, possibly, other countries. It has to be done in a step by step process. Learning should be fun and geared to personal interests.

I like this concept and am going to try it with my 1st and 2nd graders next month. It has my interest, so I'm sure it will have theirs. Assigned projects using chat rooms sounds like a fun way to learn about others and to share their knowledge with each other. Partner classrooms sound like a great way to motivate and involve my students in a style of learning that conforms to their interests and is innovative to the district. Affording my students with the opportunities that the world of technology has to offer is inviting, exciting and something they are entitled to.

I agree that there is good and bad in using the internet with young children, but the good does out weigh the bad. One of the best ways that students learn is through peer teaching. Student to student, at the same grade level, puts the learning into their world. Many great things can be accomplished through peer teaching, with guidance from an adult (teacher). Give children a chance to do what they were born to do. Experiment and absorb as much knowledge as they can, because they want to. Let's keep them engaged! Bring their world into your classroom!

Response to Professor Luongo's Blog Sit - Article entitled "Let's Chat: Chat Rooms in the Elementary School" by Amy Grigsby (agrigsby@alpine.esc18.net)

Hi and Welcome to My Education Blog

Hello everyone,
I finally got my blog site going. I'm a music teacher in the Jersey City Public Schools and have been in public education for 25 years. I've been reading a lot of your blogs. We have a very diverse group. I'm glad we met face to face first. Dr. Luongo has been very instrumental in helping me get things going. Thank you Dr. Luongo. Blogging is new to me and many people I know. I can't wait to show them how to do it and start their own blogs. Everyone is interested in learning. Since I only teach very young children, I don't think I will be using blogs for school, but it has opened my eyes to other possibilities, such as i-pods and other computer software. My students range from age 3-7. If you have any other suggestions, please let me know. Thanks.

Change is good

The world of education and technology is definitely changing the way we teach. As technology continues to advance, so does the education world. The students of today live in a fast and immediate world of communication. It is literally at their fingertips. It is a craze that has engulfed the youth of today. Teachers need to realize the importance of keeping their students actively engaged in their world. Yes, the world has changed and we have to change with it. It is an ongoing change that has exploded and is unavoidable. Change is good, but difficult to some. Where will technology bring us in our lifetime, teachers? Where will it bring our students in their lifetime? Only time will tell!