Internet Safety Reflection

I completed the Course Feedback Survey, University Course Evaluation, and checked my grades on moodle.

I read all of the articles on the resources lists, as well as Leave It Alone by Elder H. Burke Peterson, Emeritus Member of the Seventy.

I watched the videos on Netsmartz, iKeepSafe Faux Paws, all of the chapters of the Frontline PBS Documentary, and Katie’s Story from WebWiseKids.
There were many things I took away from reading and watching these resources to learn more about internet safety. The first thing is the reality of the dangers of the internet, such as cyberbullying, pornography, child predators, etc. They are real and they occur all around us. However, I also learned what measures can be taken to prevent things like this from happening and I loved how many of these dangers are actually being combated with technology. Another thing I learned from Elder Bednar’s talk, along with the PBS documentary, is how much we can become absorbed in a virtual world. The scary thing is that all of us do it! Whether it is facebook, email, video games or a number of other stimuli, we struggle to function without it. It has made me realize that while these things are not inherently bad, they become dangerous when we cannot moderate the time we spend using them.

I taught and shared information with a mother about cyberbullying. She had read some articles about it before and knew that it was bullying that happens through email, chatrooms, etc. Her reaction was one of disgust, but she was not surprised because she had read about it before and how common it is becoming. I was most surprised by her reaction because she actually listed a number of things she thought could be done to prevent cyberbullying, which showed that parents are becoming more aware of this problem and working to remediate it. I think this mom will continue to be aware of what her children are doing when they use the internet. I think she will use the things I told her to protect them from the dangers of the internet and encourage them to be open with her about what happens there. I think she will also discuss with her children about the negative things that can happen, but also remain optimistic that there are many benefits of the internet as well.

TPACK Project Report

Lesson Plans

Math Lesson Plan

Shared Reading Lesson Plan

Science Lesson Plan

PLE Week 10

The most important thing I learned from these three videos is that technology is a valuable resource that can easily be implemented into the classroom. These videos showed that no matter what the age of the students, they are capable of using technology. They showed that using technology is very beneficial because it allows teachers to use many different teaching styles in the classroom, while allowing students to do relevant, age-appropriate projects to learn concepts. I especially loved in the I Love Spiders video how the class shared information they found and pictures they took with another class in a different state and received information and pictures from the other class as well. I think this shows that technology can be useful for teaching multiple concepts. In this case, students were learning about spiders, along with how to collaborate and build communication with others. It is crucial that students learn these skills early to aid them throughout their lives.

Practicum Week 1

I was actually quite impressed with the amount of technology available to my mentor teacher. There are 3 macs in my classroom, as well as the teacher's laptop. We have a TV, VCR, CD player, etc. We have a projector that can be hooked up to a lap top and a promethium board, both of which are very beneficial in the classroom. I think they are very helpful in using different teaching styles in the classroom. Students use games on the computer to practice blending words and it is looked at as a reward to students who turn in their work on time. I hope I will have this kind of technology available to me when I teach because I think it will greatly benefit my classroom.

I completed the midcourse evaluation and the informed consent.

Science Challenge

I viewed and commented on the following projects:

Stephanie
Megan
Jessica

I thought doing this project was very beneficial. It showed me how easy and fun using technology can be, in a variety of different subject matters. I particularly loved learning about Kidsperation. This is a program that I think I will definitely use in my classroom. It makes it so easy for the kids to organize and analyze data, which will greatly assist in their learning.

Voice Thread Phases of the Moon

Science Challenge Plan

Rebecca Peek
Ali Balls
Meagan Miller

Content
Standard 1
Students will understand that the appearance of the moon changes in a predictable cycle as it orbits Earth and as Earth rotates on its axis.
Objective 1
Explain patterns of changes in the appearance of the moon as it orbits Earth.
Identifier
a. Describe changes in the appearance of the moon during a month.

Pedagogy
Observing: given a blank calendar students will track the phases of the moon for one month
Predicting: students will make predictions of what the moon will look like on various days of the month
Acquiring and processing data: students will fill out calendar by sketching the phases of the moon as they observe it
Analyzing data: students will create a complete visual representation of the phases of the moon

Observing, predicting, acquiring and processing data, and analyzing data will be a good fit with the content because they will aid the students in learning the phases of the moon. As students make predictions about the phases of the moon, students will be more accountable for their observations and how it relates to their hypothesis. As they acquire, process and analyze data they will better understand how the moon changes in appearance throughout the month.

Technology
• Kidsperation: This allows students to create concept maps, which will be useful in analyzing the phases of the moon.
• Stellarium: This allows students to look at the night sky from anywhere on the earth at any time. This will be perfect for analyzing the phases of the moon and making accurate representations of what each phase looks like.

Science Activity:
We will be having the students use Stellarium to observe the moon each night. They will be given a blank calendar and will be assigned to sketch the appearance/observation of the moon each night for one complete month. Throughout this month they will also be creating concept maps through the use of Kidsperation on which they will make predictions concerning the phases of the moon. At the end of the month they will analyze the concept maps and compare and contrast them with their own sketches from the calendar. They will also create a complete visual representation of the phases of the moon.

Google Earth Tour PLE

I viewed and commented on the following tours:

Cassy
Stephanie
Jessica

I thought the Google Earth tour was really cool. I think kids would love it and I do think that it would be helpful in the classroom to show students where things are and to make places throughout the world become more real to them. However, this tour took a lot of time to complete and I think there are other ways that could present the information that may be just as affective. I think I will use Google Earth tours in my classroom, but using regular Google Earth might be more practical.

Google Earth Tour

Here is the link to the tour.

Virtual Tour Plan

5th Grade Social Studies

Standard 2: Students will understand the chronology and significance of key events leading to self government

Objective 1: Describe how the movement toward revolution culminated in a Declaration of Independence

Indicator a: Explain the role of events that led to declaring independence (e.g. French and Indian War, Stamp Act, Boston Tea Party)

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Carpenters Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Please click on the link and read about the first Continental Congress. We all have "grievances" about something. Make a list of grievances you have about the set up of our classroom. (i.e. I demand longer recess.)	Read information on First Continental Congress on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimline.htm

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
2. Lexington, Massachusetts	Look at and measure the distance of Paul Revere's ride.	Read information on Paul Revere's ride on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm
3. Valley Forge, Pennsylvania	View photo of Valley Forge.	Read information on George Washington's encampment at Valley forge on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm
4. Boston, Massachusetts	Write your own account as if you were a participant of Boston Tea Party on class blog.	Read "Account of a Boston Tea Party Participant" on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Bunker Hill, Massachusetts	View photos of Bunker Hill. Write a letter to your parents as if you were a soldier fighting at Bunker Hill. View example on link.	Read information on Battle of Bunker Hill on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm
2. York, Pennsylvania	How many Articles are there in the Articles of Confederation? What does the word "united" mean to you?	Read first three Articles of Confederation on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm
3. Independence Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	How many signatures are on the Declaration of Independence? Practice your own signature as if you were a signer of the Declaration of Independence.	View Declaration of Independence on link http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm
4. Third Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	If you were a writer during the Revolutionary War, what do you think would be the most important things to write?	Read about and view Common Sense by Thomas Paine on link http://ushistory.org/declaration/revwartimeline.htm

Meagan and I decided to do our digital tour on the Revolutionary War because it is such an important part of our American history. We thought it would make this topic more realistic for the students and help them better understand the times, events, and places of the Revolutionary War. I believe the Google Earth Tour would be better than traditional teaching because it will make the Revolutionary War come alive for the students and really help them understand the content. I also believe that it would benefit the students because they could actually visualize where these events took place.

Movies I Watched

I watched and commented on the following videos:

Jessica's
Rebecca's
Stephanie's
Beth's
Brooke's
Meagan's

Digital Storytelling Projects in the Elementary Classroom

I think the most difficult challenge in implementing a digital storytelling project in an elementary education classroom will be making sure that every student keeps up on all of the steps to story making. Each step - writing, finding pictures, finding sound, recording narration, etc. is relatively easy, however, doing all of them correctly can be rather overwhelming, especially to a younger student. I think it is also difficult because when things don't work, I don't know how to address the problem. For example, if one of my students coudn't get their sound to record, I'm not sure I would know how to make it work. I am learning though and I think that using digital storytelling projects in the classroom will be a fun way for students to learn.

Story Telling Challenge

Story Board

TPACK

Pedagogical knowledge, or PK, is general skills and teaching methods that teachers need to manage a classroom, motivate students, etc. Content knowledge, or CK, is knowledge of concepts of a particular domain. Technological knowledge, or TK, is an understanding of and the ability to use technology. While each of these components are important on their own, they are much more useful when all combined. A teacher might have extensive PK, but if they don’t have CK or TK, the teacher has no way to apply his or her pedagogical knowledge to help students learn and vice versa with any of these three important components of TPACK. It is important for teachers to have all three components to maximize learning in the classroom.

Week #2

I thought learning to create a wiki page was the most useful to me. I will definitely use this in my classroom. It is a great way to communicate with both students and parents and really lets parents know what is going on at school. I think it is also a good way to help kids become technology savvy and improve their computer skills. I think my favorite thing about the wiki page I created is how organized it made me feel. I especially liked the calendar application that will help me and parents stay on top of things. I will definitely use this in my future teaching!

Asynchonous Video Message

Synchronous Video

Technology Background and Experience

My first encounter with a computer was in the first grade. It was one of those tiny block computers with the keyboard built in and we mainly used it to play games on if we finished our work early. I also had a computer at home, which I used for similar purposes. Further into my elementary experience, computers became more and more important. We took a typing class and typed the stories and papers we wrote. In middle school and high school, computers were a must. Homework and assignments would have been virtually impossible without the internet and computer programs now available. I love all the options available through computers - email, facebook, photoshop, etc. I hope to become more technology savvy in order to be a better teacher.