Thread: technology teacher seeks fresh ideas...

You may already be aware of this, but the website [url="http://www.4teachers.org"]www.4teachers.org[/url] has some really great stuff on it - it's maintained by a university (Iforget which one). There are a lot of really neat applictions that are useful to me: the rubric maker and online poster are two that I use most.

The online poster is sort of a neat thing to have your kids do. It's a bit formulaic, but that's ok. I have my kids research a bacteria and the disease it causes and then create a MOST WANTED poster for the bacteria. The site allows the student to get one picture up and a lot of text. I really like that the site makes the kids cite their sources and give credit - no copy/paste.

You do have to register and make "classes" - this lets you see your kids' posters as they make them and keep track of where they are. I just grade them from online - saves a tree, too!

The site will host the posters for 30 days unless you choose to archive them, then you can access the archived ones whenever - this is great to use because you can keep a few of the best ones as guides for the next year's assignment.

Thank you so much for your input. I'll definitely check out the website. This past summer when I taught summer school (a non-technology class), we actually made Mythology's Most Wanted posters. I like the idea of making it online. Thank you again!

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What type of computers are in your lab?

MACs have a whole world of opportunities pacckaged in them, windows machines do not, unless you pay a hefty price.

I have a ton of lessons for the Kidspiration and Inspiratino programs if you ahve them..or maybe could look into getting them if you dont.

Also, check out scholastic. they have a fantastic learning series that has pictures and information that your students could make venn diagrams with (and if they are low readers...there is an audio reading of each section in the series) check them out here...

This is the website i used for thanksgiving last year.. i know they have like 9 others on vairous holidays like MLK Day and such...

[url="http://teacher.scholastic.com/thanksgiving/"]http://teacher.scholastic.com/thanksgiving/[/url]


ALso, I have a fantastic website of hundreds of technology lesson plans and interactive learning sites...i added it to my teacher toolbar integrating technology section...its free for all teacher to download. I originally created it to organize my own favorite sites and then all my co-workers asked me to give it to them..so to make my life easier i posted it up on the web for all teachers at [url="http://www.teachersfirstday.com"]http://www.teachersfirstday.com[/url]

I am in 6th - 12th grade but I used to be in elementary See if any of your teachers would like to work with you on their lessons. If a class is studying something in particular aee if you can do a webquest along the same lines. Maybe they could use your class as a resource class to look up information that ties in to what the are suding in the regular classroom.

How about creating webquests with/for your students at zunal.com?
[url="http://zunal.com"]http://zunal.com[/url]

A WebQuest is a learning activity used by educators. During this activity learners read, analyze, and synthesize information using the World Wide Web. Webquests were invented by Bernie Dodge and Tom March at San Diego State University in 1995.

According to Dodge's original publication a WebQuest is "an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet, optionally supplemented with videoconferencing" (Dodge, 1995a; Dodge, 1995b).

A WebQuest is a highly valued instructional strategy of constructivism, during which learners actively build their own critical understanding of a topic. "Authentic," or real-world questions or problems are often researched, and learners may work cooperatively to find solutions.

Instructors can alter the rigor of the activity by challenging students according to varying levels of abstraction. Questions can be defined by Taxonomy of Educational Objectives.

The relevance of the instructional materials is an important factor, because it can provide increased motivation. Relevance may be provided by using news resources to infuse current events into the lesson.

Usually, a Webquest is divided in the following:

Introduction
Task
Process
Evaluation
Conclusion
Teacher Page

Learners typically complete WebQuests as cooperative groups. Each learner within a group can be given a "role," or specific area to research. WebQuests may take the form of role-playing scenarios, where students take on the personas of professional researchers or historical figures.

WebQuests, are a great tool for teachers to use in their classroom. A teacher can search for webquests on a particular topic or they can develop their own using a web editor like Microsoft FrontPage or Dreamweaver. This tool allows learners to complete various task using other Cognitive tools (e.g. Inspiration, MS Word, PowerPoint, Access, Excel, and Publisher). A WebQuest is a great way to integrate technology into your classroom.

Finally Webquests do not have to be developed as a true web site. They may be developed and implemented using lower threshold (less demanding) technologies, (e.g. they may be saved as a word document on a local computer).

If keyboarding or theme writing is part of the course, I have something that I have found to be successful. I make up one half of a story that is school related. One might a bus accident coming home from a game. Another might be students "telling" on other students. Another involved the principal using a fake, but easily recognizable name. The students have to read the story and then write the second half of the report. Students seem more spontaneous in this situation. I still remind them, however, of my first rule when working on the computer: Never write anything that you would not want anyone in the class to read.