ahhhh

Oh my word these past few weeks have been so hectic! I feel like there are so many detailed projects in this class, I am having trouble fitting everything in. The projects we've made are definitely cool though. I really do love my team's website, it really incorporates our whole unit into one little space. I'm kind of nervous because tomorrow my team presents. We know what we're doing, but its one of the final grades and I am really trying to get an A. I hope we do everything up to standards. I'm also trying to edit my website so that I achieve all the elements that need to be required. I wish Lock Haven laptops had MS web expression.
Well I just wanted to post and update since I am almost done with this blog! I will let you know how the presentation/eportfolio goes!

movie

I love our movie!! I think we totally worked as a team making it between the lesson plan, student samples, script, movie editing: we all contributed so much! Plus I think the movie was really interactive so that equals very cool for students =) This was probably one of my favorite lessons so far. I would love to use movie maker in the classroom for students to create their own, or even watch mine!

Podcast

Last week I created a podcast all about my science movement integration lesson plan. Then my team and I combined our podcasts so we had one giant one. I thought this assignment was pretty easy and actually pretty fun. I really like video editing, so voice/sound editing was pretty cool too. It took me a few tries not to completely butcher my script, but I am really happy how mine turned out. Audacity is pretty easy to use and I really like how you can layer sounds.
I can see how a podcast could be used in a classroom, but I don't know if I think it's practical enough. It's great for teachers to introduce independent lessons or projects, but I think written instructions are just as efficient. I think, however, podcasts are probably really practical in special needs classrooms, especially if the child can't read/see/ etc to follow directions. I am a visual learner, so I do not think I would like to be taught or given instructions through a podcast.

excel

So this past week I made a bunch of different stuff on excel and even made a mail merger using one of my databases. I thought this work was pretty tedious, but it wasn't too bad to put together. Even though it took me forever to make the mail merger, I think that is a pretty need skill and I could totally see myself incorporating it in the classroom as a way to send grades to parents. I also think spreadsheets always come in handy, whether its for something like grades or a budget. I am not sure how else I would be able to incorporate it as a really good learning tool for students, but maybe I'll figure something out.

I've been so busy that I haven't had time to update my blog! Well this past week I worked on 2 projects: digital storytelling and my team project where I created a newsletter. Ah was it ever hectic!
First I began working on the newsletter. I did the first page and emailed it to myself at home to work at. Later that week I spent 2 hours on it and completely finished it! I was sooo excited to be done. I tried to incorporate everyones ASSURE models and lots of pictures! I also created a crossword puzzle online. I actually think a newsletter to parents is something I might want to do when I have my own classroom.
After I finished my newsletter, I moved onto my digital storytelling. I did not really like doing digital storytelling because 1. I had no idea what to say about myself 2. I hate the sound of my voice. I did not find this activity beneficial, and I do not see myself using it in a classroom as the teacher. Perhaps Id have my students use it, but I personally did not like it. I submitted it onto youtube and it took FOREVER to upload. Then my computer restarted automatically.
When I went to submit my newsletter, it hadn't saved. I was so frusterated because I only had my version with just the first page completed. It was already Friday evening, so I had to rush to re-make the rest of the newsletter. I tried to make it the same as I remembered, but I definitely think my first version was better =(

Assure lesson plan

Last week I created my ASSURE model lesson plan. How different this was to create! First of all, I had to incorporate dance and movement into a SCIENCE lesson. I have never ever thought about mixing dance and science, but after doing some research online, I saw a really neat idea on using dance to learn about different types of rocks. This was a great start for me, and I went with it! I decided to create a lesson plan geared at 3rd graders. This lesson first taught them about the three different types of rocks and then taught them about locomotive and non-locomotive movement. The students were evaluated on two different objectives: the dance they came up with to describe each type of rock and a written quiz on the types of rocks. The dance they needed to come up with needed to reflect something they learned about the rock. Maybe the rock was soft, so they needed to have soft movement. Igneous rocks are created from volcanoes, so maybe the students could "explode" and "flow" in their movement.
After coming up with ideas for science and dance, it was pretty easy to create the lesson. I looked at all 5 examples as well as the template to help guide me; I didn't want to leave anything out! I also inserted cells into my lesson plan to create a rubric, though I wish I could have thought of more things to grade on.
I will for sure want to integrate subjects that don't traditionally "mix" (such as dance and science) in my classroom. I think it makes for a much more interesting lesson that the students are probabley more likely to remember.

Publisher Projects

Here is what I have created on MS Publisher so far. I really enjoy using Publisher because I think it is easy to navigate and pretty simple over-all. I am looking forward to creating my group project on Publisher and creating more things I can use in the classroom. In this post I have included my resume, certificate I made for the 4th grade girl I tutor, my business card, and a flyer for a philanthropic event I organized for my sorority.



Resume

Certificate

Business card

Flyer