Plans for the Future

Next semester I plan to have my theater kids do a research paper about a person they have studied in history or something they have learned in science. Being an 8th grader and having to take TAKS in all four core subjects is difficult. So I am going to incorporate what they are learning in to my curriculum.
So they will be creating a PPT presentation that contains a video they have created and a video they have found that represents what they have learned. The video they create can be of a teacher giving them information or PPT slides set to go on cue. They could interview one of their teachers asking questions about the concept as well. They will obviously have to have research that backs up their information and a citation page at the end of the presentation stating where they found their information. I want part of their presentation to be them explaining what they are presenting. that may be the only part that is not using technology. They will have to be in front of the class telling us about that.
When they are finished putting this together, they will be presenting it to class and administrators as well as other teachers.
I hope it goes well!

Mentoring and Watching ESL Podcasts

One of the ladies that I mentored teaches newcomer ESL. She had her kids create podcasts about math charts. They had to talk about who they surveyed and what kinds of questions they asked. They also had to discuss their results using the vocabulary they learned in math class pertaining to the lesson. Some did very well, while other students who have low language skills did not do as well and need more practice speaking.
This exercise was good for ESL students because one of the criteria for exiting the ESL program is fluent speaking in English (obviously). This makes them realize how far they need to stretch in order to successfully exit.
This is a technique I look forward to using with my students who are closer to exiting than her students due to the fact that they have been here longer. I have already made them recite poems into PPT presentations, but that does not qualify as fluent English speaking.

Presentation Day

Was fun! I had no idea what to expect for presentation day, but it was so smooth I actually had a great time. It was funny because at the beginning of the presentations I was talking to another one of my classmates and we discussed how we had nothing prepared about what to say. I was just hoping that someone would come up to me and ask me questions so I would know what they were interested in. I really enjoyed talking to the first three girls who came to my station. They were in the first technology class. They asked me questions about all the classes and which ones I liked best and which were the hardest. I told them that the one I liked best and was the hardest was the multimedia class. Definitely the most rewarding. I began showing them some of the things I created in that class and about some of the software that I used.....I hope I encouraged them.
I think the showcase was a great ending to my MTT course work.
Thanks Dr. Smolka!

Simple and Easy

So to increase the scores for vocabulary for my students I have them create PPT presentations using the word, the definition in their own words, and then they have to insert an animated clip, picture, or video that explains their words. So far it has increased scores for me. I know that it takes time to get your kids into the lab and most teachers feel that they don't have time to waste even one day of lab time that does not fall within their content for the day, but I believe it works. I can actually prove that it works, although not with the same words. I have a kid in class who has trouble with vocabulary and if I allow my kids to go to the lab to create a PPT with their words he does much better than if I don't get a chance to go to the lab. So that is proof enough for me.

Changed my Technological Life

Finally I am able to see my Esperanza website wherever I am!!! I have uploaded my website using www.myhosting.com, but couldn't get it to come up although I had not reached the limit....luckily Dr. Smolka introduced me to Ipswitch. Now I can use www.myhosting.com to host the website, but got around the fact that my file was too big. So this is exciting that it works and I can use it next semester with my kids. I have one kid that I had last year and this year. So he has read the book and done the "paper assessments". I can't wait to see what he says about the computerized assessments this year. I have shown him my website and he wanted to see every page one by one and was telling me all that he remembered about the book. It was fun for him to look at what we will be doing next semester. Now the website is attached to my portfolio so I can get it anywhere anytime any place! All my work is coming together!

The Last One!!

Professional Development - Movie Maker
This was almost as fun as the Flip Cameras. Teachers again filming themselves to show the students how beneficial and fun learning can be.
This time the science teacher I had (only one) had a woman from my department who sometimes is a helping teacher in her class, film her doing an experiment about natural disasters. She wanted to put this video on a PowerPoint presentation with notes and actual videos from the Internet about natural disasters. So we uploaded her video to movie maker and later went through the steps to upload that video and others to the PPT so she wouldn't have to navigate from the PPT to show the kids all of her findings. Very effective! I had kids come in my room talking about tsunamis and earthquakes. Very cool!
The one math teacher that was there talked about having her kids make videos about order of operations to help them remember when to do what. She made one using a digital camera and had someone else record it. She sings her kids a song and she actually sang the song while filming...pretty funny.
All in all the professional development classes went well. Some APs came in to see what we were doing and helped record and act in the videos. The kids will be able to see a different side of them. They said we were supposed to get more computers with the rolling computer lab so hopefully we will soon so more students can use them!

Professional Development - Flip Camera

This was much better than the first professional development I did the week before. The teachers had a good time filming each other. They all chose something from their content area. The history teachers filmed George Washington crossing the Delaware to attack the British on Christmas Day. It was hilarious watching them film themselves, but will be beneficial for the students to see that the teachers can make fools of themselves on film and it be good in hopes that they do the same.
The science teachers filmed some sort of rock cycle motion.....they used more of a poster and various things they had in their room. I asked them to bring ideas to film and since that was what they were working on that is what they chose to film. It was ok.
My department worked with a couple of the reading and English teachers to come up with some scenes from one of the books they are reading.
After we watched all the recordings - which were so hilarious!! - some of the reading and history teachers did talk about how to integrate a big project for 8th graders next semester that covers WWII. I can't wait to see some of them!

Professional Development - Power Point

So my first professional development was a little nerve racking. My papers were not copied until that day (which I know was my fault, but still), and I was just nervous that no one was going to show up except my department - because I told them they had to come to the first one - even though people said they were.
Well, good news people came like they said they would. I had enough papers - even a few too many. My principal came in to see what was going on and stayed for a while. After the class was over, she told me that what I was doing was a good thing and she hoped it would make a difference. She said she could see some teachers really getting into it.
Time ran over a bit and I could feel people getting restless. It is basically the same as a class of regular students, some are more advanced than others and want to know more, and others need more help and ask more questions than others. It is funny in that way......when put in a position where we are the student, that is how we act.
I know some of the teachers have beefed up their PowerPoint presentations with the information I taught them. Some of them still feel that it would take too much time for the kids to do it. I hope they give it a chance to work somehow. I would be more than happy to help them with a lesson for it! Others were already sharing ideas about how to incorporate some sort of PowerPoint making into their upcoming lessons. Overall....a success!

Rewarding

Helping other teachers incorporate technology into their classes for their kids is very rewarding. Having watched my kids use the technology I have learned about is rewarding in itself, but passing that knowledge on to see other kids have fun using technology is also great. I can't wait to hear about other presentations or better yet, I hope I get invited to watch the presentations made by students. It is so fun to watch them use what is sometimes so new and since they know other people will be watching it, they, for the most part, do a better job than they would just presenting in front of people as a one time deal. This is so much more permanent for them. We can do some many other things with it like upload it to websites, send it to the staff, and even the parents. I had a great time using the technology with these teachers and their students. I was glad to pass on my information and hope they will do the same.

Watching Students Use Technology

I have had my students create commercials using a Flip Camera to record them for the class. I then put them together and show them to the class and other teachers and administrators. They get so excited to use the camera....I had to create a part of my rubric that scores camera use. That way everyone gets to use it as part of their grade. Some don't think that they are good at recording, but this gives them a chance to try new things, which all students need to experience in order to become more well-rounded. Some of them are so used to using technology that it comes easy to them. Others hate being in front of a room filled with people, but don't mind the camera because they can almost hide behind it. Some students got nervous using the technology and wanted to read their scripts, but the somewhat memorized ones turned out so much better. (They had to have a script for their commercial, but didn't have to memorize it, just have an idea about what they were going to say.) One of the videos is attached.....they chose to read their script, but the product is humorous and the camera is done well.

Sharing Ideas while Mentoring

While mentoring Christina and Leigh in the computer lab a few weeks ago, we were discussing ways to provide opportunities for our students to use technology in the classroom. We came up with having them create scenes that they make up or that we give them. Then we could watch it in class and have the other students create a plot chart using the elements of the story that are being studied. For example, if we are studying figurative language, students could create first the plot chart about what happened in the story and then explain why the figurative language supported the scene. This would give the students many opportunities to teach others using technology and the concepts in language that are required for the TAKS. Although it might take a while the first time it is done, it would be worth it in the end. They always say that if you can teach another person something that means you have learned it and understand it well. This could be one of those instances!