Tool 2 - MovieMaker

My first uploaded videoclip of my weird dog! Yogie-Bear

I discovered hours of fun using Movie Maker! This tool allowed me to edit a movie recorded from my iPhone. I played with the sound, picture effects, time, voice recording and cutting tool. I would use this tool in the classroom, as I believe it could help engage students in activities making the task fun and motivating. It would be the teachers duty to monitor the tool among students. The downside is if you don’t know how to use moviemaker it can be quite confusing and  take hours from your day. However, it is easy to upload the movie to YouTube the link it to you online space.

Tool 4 - Images

Time spent playing with images. It was fun spending time exploring how to crop images and add effects. The down side is some students may find it difficult to hold the camera still to take the picture. I would use this tool in the classroom with students or on excursions (Camera). For instance, the students can you the tool to create a stock motion animation. This can involve taking photos, selecting specific ones and editing them. Afterwards, placing the image onto a specific background that could relate to a topic of study. Then the students can present their work in a class discussion and be assessed.

Online Spaces

Over the last few weeks I have explored the use of Wiki, Blogger and Weebly. At first this was all very overwhelming for me. I honestly did not think I could ever get the hang of these new web tools. However, now it is one month into E-Learning and I have had so much fun creating websites, making a talking Voki (Bono's six thinking hats (VOKI)), using Wordle, Screen Shots (E-Learning Week 3 Yeepee!!), linking items to personal online spaces and exploring so much more other tools.

Technology is incredible! I am definitely going to use these tools in the classroom for activities. For instance, I would use blogger to allow students to access resources online. These resources could be homework tasks and lessons that students may have missed. The blogger could also be an advantage to the student as they could share schoolwork, gain support, receive feedback and reflect on their schoolwork. Furthermore, students could set up a school class blog and become pen pals with another school class around the world. Additionally, allowing the students to interact and experience the other culture through higher order thinking.

I believe students will benefit from the fun and challenging moments in exploring and using social networking. Also allowing the student to use higher order thinking as them come across difficult challenges when using online tools.

E-Learning Week 3 Yeepee!!

This afternoon in E-Learning we looked at ways technology could enrich a child’s learning. Simone and I considered the TPACK framework and how we would practice it in a lesson teaching Ancient Egypt. We both decided it is important to make the lesson real for the children so they would want to engage in the learning activity. We thought an interesting tool to use would be Google Earth allowing the children to explore and find where Egypt is. Then using Scribble Map the children could mark all the landmarks they would want to visit. Subsequently the class would discuss what they would pack if they were to go to Egypt. Allow the students to spend time on the computer developing their researching skill. Furthermore, allowing higher order thinking to take place.

Oh yes I also remembered… Always Have Plan B! That is what I have below an example of a screen shot of Egypt. This is just in case the internet decides it does not want to work.

Bono's six thinking hats (VOKI)

Debno’s six thinking hats method was developed in the early 1980’s. I think this method would help encourage student’s to view information differently. This would be a great tool in classroom discussion showing children all the different positions they could take. For example, looking at transport from a black hats perspective. The negative things that arise using transport, or a yellow hat looking at the positives of transport etc. 

E-Learning Week 2!

TPACK?
Technology
Pedagogical
And
Content
Knowledge Framework

Digital technology is the future. To embed this knowledge into teaching children will enhance the students understanding. Furthermore, preparing students with levels of knowing, from simple to complex knowledge (Bloom, 2011). There is a range of software available for educational purposes and I believe this would be very feasible for classroom learning. For example, the use of a computer could include visualisation, modelling, presentation, simulation, organisation and learning objectives. Furthermore, the Internet has a vast amount of limitless resources. However, it is up to the teacher to design learning using digital technology so that learners can come to distinguish what is know, and in the way the teacher knows it. Pedagogical-Content knowledge occurs when the teacher can design lessons with the pupils in different forms to make learning comprehensible for the students. TPACK teaching would assist future students in developing skills and preparing them for real life perspectives.

Creativity & Students

Creativity is important for future generations we need to allow children to have experiences with being creative. 

Do we get educated out of creativity? I found this question quiet interesting as I watch (Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?). 


Throughout school I was always encouraged by people to avoid creative subject: dance, music, art, and so on. This is because they thought they were not relevant for my future. I now believe we need to encourage and build on a students future allowing them to express themselves through creativity.

Learning Styles & my Approach...

Q. In a traditional classroom of 25 students, how would you support the range of learning styles each lesson?

Our goal as teachers should always be complex thinking. In a class of 25 students I would support the students different range of learning through the ‘Pedagogy Approach’. This approach requires the teachers to focus on the mindset plus skills necessary for effective teaching and learning of the student. Furthermore, this approach caters for the different learning styles using various methods that support students in the way they learn beast (Moodle – Week 2, 2011). For instance, at the start of a lesson the topic can be explained to the students as a group having an overview of the topic (catering for Kinaesthetic Learners). The class can then discuss the topic (catering for Auditory Learners), helping the students comprehend the activity through conversation (Florida, R, 1969, p.68).  Followed by a practical demonstration involving they students (catering for Visual Learners). This method I believe can help support students who learn differently and encourage them to engage in their studies.

Know Your Learner

In completing the Felder and Solomon learning style test I realised that I am a ‘Visual Learner’. I do agree with these results because when I reflect on myself I recognized that I use numerous visual elements to aid my studies. For instance, pictures, colours to highlight my work, notes from lectures and visual information to help me memorise the information. 

The learning experiences I believe would cater best to my studies would be having practical example embedded into theory lessons. This would help me understand what is being spoken about, putting it into action for myself. Likewise keeping me engaged as I can become uninterested listening to tedious lectures.

As a future learning manager I would require techniques that would cater to all learning styles (Auditory, Visual and Kinaesthetic learning). I have started understand that each learners’ have a range of attributes and different style that need to be considered when planning lessons. This is how ICT could be a great tool to work with in the classroom as it has a variety of tools that can benefit each learning style. For example, a bright colourful website on learning math’s found at ‘Maths Fun’:

http://www.mathsisfun.com/games/dstar-puzzle.html

This would be great tool for a visual learner as they can be captured with the colours and interacting of the website. Furthermore, gaining knowledge learning about maths.

Oh what fills my head when I think about E-Learning!

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/3830185/E-Learning

E-Learning hmm what did I expect? Well let’s start by saying I didn’t know what to expect entering uni midyear. However, I have made it through my first week of lectures woohoo!I do enjoy fiddling on the computer and learning new things. The only thing that concerns me is writing all your comments and feeling on a webpage. I was never one to post much on FB. The comments of people seem to show how boring there life is (I’m bored, I’m eating, I’m driving… Do we need to know all this?) Technology these days and socialising online has never caught my eye. I like real face-to-face chats when I socialise. Sometime online we can read a message totally wrong or totally miss the point of what was said. This is just my opinion and I’m open to other views or Maybe I will experience some transformative thinking lol :-D