Reading Strategies

I just viewed the reading strategies video and I found it extremely interesting. Though I thought all the ideas were very valuable my favorites were reader's theatre and the anticipation worksheet. Readers theatre is an exercise where students act out a book or part of a book that they are reading. Not only is this fun for the class both as actors and audience, I think it is very valuable for teaching many skills. To act as a character from the reading students must first analyze the character. This forces them to deeply consider that character's personality based on what they have read, and it also allows them to be creative and add their own interpretation of the character based on their opinion of the character's actions and reactions in the reading. Bringing a character to life for students helps make the reading easier to understand because they can see the character as real and visualize them in situations in the story. Acting out a story or section of a book also gets students to think about the order of events and the causes and effects in the story. Sometimes causes and effects are not immediately apparent to readers, but as part of the scripting process the teacher is able to guide the students to consider the relationship of various events in the story more carefully. I thought the anticipation worksheet was also a very interesting and creative idea. The teacher designs the sheet based on the story and lists general ideas that pertain to the events about to be covered in the reading. Before the students read they go through the worksheet and respond to each topic. Then after the reading the students revisit the sheet and see if their thoughts on each topic have changed based on what they just learned. I think this is a great idea because it gets students thinking about what they already know on topics beforehand which makes it easier to relate to and understand the reading. Then after the reading going back to the worksheet shows the students what they have learned or how their opinions have changed as a result of the reading which gives it real value. I am very excited to learn more about both of these techniques and try them out in my classroom when I become a teacher!

My Space is Everyone's Space!

After reading the article Dr. Luongo posted about a woman who was denied her teaching certificate due to a photo on her My Space page I have to say I am in agreement. I believe that teachers need to be role models for their students, and that duty doesn't end when they leave the school building. Though I personally do not have a My Space page I do not think it is wrong, but I do believe that anyone who wants a career in any profession, not just teaching, needs to consider the content of their page. My Space is open to anyone and everyone which means that potential employers, clients, customers, students, parents, coworkers - whoever - can view your page. This means that the content should be kept completely "G" and professional. Pictures and information that friends find funny other people may find offensive. In this woman's case she was shown drinking, but was of age. The problem is that she was studying to teach high school. Any of her students that viewed the page would probably not think "I too will be able to drink when I am old enough." Instead they will think "see Miss X parties, there's nothing wrong with me doing it too." She even stated on her page that she had nothing to hide and did not mind if her students viewed her page. I do not necessarily think she needs to be banned from teaching forever, but I do think she needs to grow up herself before she should be put in the position of being a role model to teenagers.

Blogs as Educational Tools

After reading Stephen Downes' article on blogs as educational tools I am excited and intrigued by the idea. I really see his point that blogging can be great for students but only if used properly. When I was first assigned to start a blog I thought I would have nothing important to say that would interest other people or inspire comments. Now I am beginning to understand how blogging can be very useful to students. I enjoy seeing what other people have to say about my posts and I love reading other people's posts and commenting. It is exciting to see a dialoge or even a debate develop as different people give their perspective on a topic. As an educational tool I think the first important element the students blogs must have is an appropriate audience. Though students in a class can blog and respond to each other I like Downes' idea of connecting with a class in a different area or state. This allows students to gain different perspectives they could not gain in face to face interaction within their own classroom. The second important element in successful student blogging is assigning topics. Though at first it is interesting to blog about each other's schools and lives and look for similarities and differences this soon becomes boring. To give student blogs real educational value they need to have specific topics to discuss and assignments to work on through their blogs. These of course must be age appropriate and relevant to both classes. Downes talked about setting up projects that the two classes could work together on through blogging. I think this is a great idea that would be interesting and fun for students. Perhaps students could design and administer some type of survey and then compare and analyze the results on their blogs. These surveys could be as simple as comparing what hobbies and activities are popular in different areas for younger students, or as involved as studying daily weather and climate for extended time periods in several different areas throughout the country with older students. Another idea for a project might be to have students work together through blogging to create a pamphlet for the community on environmental concerns. There are endless possibilities for effective educational blogging with students of all levels.

Chats in Elementary School

I love the idea of chats in elementary school! I definitely see it being successful at least fifth grade and older, but it may work for third or fourth grade depending on the application and the students. Chats are a great tool for teachers to be able to aid students on homework and assignments, as well as stay connected with them on breaks. Group projects would also be greatly aided by online chats with the teacher and even just among group members depending again on their age and skill level. The only thing that makes chats difficult is finding a time when everyone is available. I think the way to avoid this problem would be to establish a class chat time at the beginning of the year. Of course not every student would be able to make every chat, but if at the beginning of the year you talked with parents and students and selected a time that was acceptable for most families you would give them a chance to incorporate it in their schedules. After the class time was established, for instance 7:30 every Tuesday, the teacher could decide the topics and students to attend the chats. A schedule might be worked out where for instance all students attended the chat on the first Tuesday of the month, then special groups were assigned based on group projects, reading groups, or any other special interest portion of the class that needed an individual chat that month. With this method every student would be required to chat probably only twice a month so families would not have to worry about keeping every Tuesday open so their child could make the chat. Like in Professor Luongo's class the chats could be recorded and posted somewhere so all students could access them as review or if they missed the session. Even if some of the topics that were discussed in the chats could have been covered in class I think the idea itself with engage students. Today's learners are immersed in the world of technology so the format itself interests them. Also regular classroom chats help develop and sharpen a students ability to think on their feet, as they must respond to information as soon as they receive it. Unlike in the classroom, however, I think there is less fear about volunteering questions or comments or speaking your mind, as students are not face to face. Also, since chatting has become useful for us in our education today with the introduction of hybrid and online classes who knows what will be expected of these students another ten years from now when they are in high school, college, or the workforce. As a future educator I hope to be able to use online chats as an effective tool in my teaching.

Virtual Classroom

I thought tonight's chat was great! It was a little confusing at first, especially since my whiteboard wasn't working, but it all came together when I left then joined back in. Once the whiteboard was active and I was able to see what Professor Luongo was posting everything made more sense. The chat was especially helpful for me, since I was still a little confused about the Webquest project. Now I feel I understand what I really need to do and what is not necessary for the project. I am excited to try the website that allows you to create your own webquests as Fran suggested. Even though Professor Luongo said Webquests are more of a nineties trend, and I can see that in the style when viewing some of the Webquests, I also think Webquests could be quality educational tools if used properly. I am not yet a teacher, but I am interested to hear if any of the experienced teachers in the class have used any Webquests in their classroom and how effective they felt the was with real students.

Hello!

Hello Everyone,
My name is Elena and I am currently a graduate student in the teacher certification program at Saint Peter's College in Jersey City, New Jersey. This is my first time blogging, but I hope to be able to use it as a forum to discuss topics important to aspiring teachers and those already in the classroom.