Here's a new book Snap Is the New Sound of Learning about using cameras in the classroom with primary school kids. Just what I need for my project, and lots of new learning projects as well.
Pat Barrett Dragan, the author, is a thirty -year veteran of primary classrooms, and has other great books on teaching English language learners, developing literacy, and more. A great mentor.
One idea from her book about teaching first grade is to have a first-day alphabet walk. She puts magnetic letters on the board, but some are missing. (The kids look for b by the bathroom, and are introduced to the custodian who clues them into taking care of themselves and the bathroom.) Sounds like a great plan for our first day, one that fits into our year's ABC project. A book she uses is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I'm going to also use The Letters Are Lost!
(and while I'm on the subject of books, she suggests retelling Hickory to help develop a classroom community of caring, and The Alphabet Tree by Leo Lionni, which shows how letters cooperate to make words.)
Saturday, August 9, 2008
WR#11 Tech Project Timeline
An ABC book/Movie of Loleta by Ms. Watson's Students
Week One
Set up class blog, to showcase work and receive comments.
Introduce project to administrator and school board. (Get permission, support).
Introduce project to students.
Talk to staff, families, and community members.
Send letter to families, board members, chamber of commerce, Ferndale Enterprise.
Post letter downtown.
Introduce interview skills to students. Have them generate questions and interview each other, take interview notes, draw each other. Present interviews--the interviewer tells about the interviewee. (Teacher or helper records video).
Reflect with student.
Reflect without students.
Week Two
Review standards for appropriate topics.
Critique published ABC books with students.
Generate, with students, something about the people and places in Loleta, that correspond to each letter of the alphabet.
Have students generate questions specific to the principal and custodian. Have them interview them, taking notes, recording audio and images (teacher records). Each student will write a story about the principal and the custodian. Demonstrate response to authors.
Have students work together to develop story about principal and custodian.
Work as a group on the story production. As a group, evaluate the story.
Submit the story to the website, school newsletter, Ferndale Enterprise.
Reflect!
Week Three
Figure out a way to make the ABC subjects fit into the rest of the curriculum. Organize by geography (land forms, mapping), families, careers, history, culture, etc.
Send home an update/thanks for contributions letter to families.
Teach students how to use jamcams and how to take good shots.
Teach students how to record sound.
(Pray that all students are superkids, superpowered--no, this could work...)
Reflect!
Week Four
Organize field trips and guest speakers.
Pick the first topic. Have students develop KWRL (knowledge, wonder/questions, resources, learnings chart) about the first topic. Do research, develop specific questions.
Visit first person/place, taking notes, (students, teacher), recording audio (teacher or helper?) and images (teachers, students also?).
Have class work together to make story and production decisions.
Upload story to web, blog. Submit to school news?
Reflect!
Week Five
At this point, it's time to see if any of this actually occurred, can we get a story done each week? was it worth the time, what are students getting out of it, what's the community (school and wider) response?
If things are actually working, continue and consider:
Can students do any of the work in small groups?
Can we do more than one project in a week?
Can we do more than one project in a week?
Can I keep up with the production so I don't have a backlog of undone stuff piling up and causing hideous guilt?
Things to be aware of:
Why are the students doing this and how are they meeting standards?
Have students evaluate their work (writing, knowledge, art, communication skills) and help develop rubrics and specific pointers.
Keep up with the production to keep us on task, focused, and accomplishing.
Keep up with thank-you's to those who help.
Show work-in-progress to school board and at family events.
Send copies to participants at the end.
Plusses:
Valuable project--audience for student work, authentic, students need tech skills, good PR
Have some of last year's kids--they know about movies and are motivated. They can do sound, they know ABC books.
New admin supportive of tech and projects.
Will keep me focused and kids will have to produce.
Week Five
Keep going. At this rate we should be done with weeks to spare at the end of the year. (too tired to do the math now, and wondering if we can do two a week--probably just one is more reasonable, or maybe one every two weeks...)
Week One
Set up class blog, to showcase work and receive comments.
Introduce project to administrator and school board. (Get permission, support).
Introduce project to students.
Talk to staff, families, and community members.
Send letter to families, board members, chamber of commerce, Ferndale Enterprise.
Post letter downtown.
Introduce interview skills to students. Have them generate questions and interview each other, take interview notes, draw each other. Present interviews--the interviewer tells about the interviewee. (Teacher or helper records video).
Reflect with student.
Reflect without students.
Week Two
Review standards for appropriate topics.
Critique published ABC books with students.
Generate, with students, something about the people and places in Loleta, that correspond to each letter of the alphabet.
Have students generate questions specific to the principal and custodian. Have them interview them, taking notes, recording audio and images (teacher records). Each student will write a story about the principal and the custodian. Demonstrate response to authors.
Have students work together to develop story about principal and custodian.
Work as a group on the story production. As a group, evaluate the story.
Submit the story to the website, school newsletter, Ferndale Enterprise.
Reflect!
Week Three
Figure out a way to make the ABC subjects fit into the rest of the curriculum. Organize by geography (land forms, mapping), families, careers, history, culture, etc.
Send home an update/thanks for contributions letter to families.
Teach students how to use jamcams and how to take good shots.
Teach students how to record sound.
(Pray that all students are superkids, superpowered--no, this could work...)
Reflect!
Week Four
Organize field trips and guest speakers.
Pick the first topic. Have students develop KWRL (knowledge, wonder/questions, resources, learnings chart) about the first topic. Do research, develop specific questions.
Visit first person/place, taking notes, (students, teacher), recording audio (teacher or helper?) and images (teachers, students also?).
Have class work together to make story and production decisions.
Upload story to web, blog. Submit to school news?
Reflect!
Week Five
At this point, it's time to see if any of this actually occurred, can we get a story done each week? was it worth the time, what are students getting out of it, what's the community (school and wider) response?
If things are actually working, continue and consider:
Can students do any of the work in small groups?
Can we do more than one project in a week?
Can we do more than one project in a week?
Can I keep up with the production so I don't have a backlog of undone stuff piling up and causing hideous guilt?
Things to be aware of:
Why are the students doing this and how are they meeting standards?
Have students evaluate their work (writing, knowledge, art, communication skills) and help develop rubrics and specific pointers.
Keep up with the production to keep us on task, focused, and accomplishing.
Keep up with thank-you's to those who help.
Show work-in-progress to school board and at family events.
Send copies to participants at the end.
Plusses:
Valuable project--audience for student work, authentic, students need tech skills, good PR
Have some of last year's kids--they know about movies and are motivated. They can do sound, they know ABC books.
New admin supportive of tech and projects.
Will keep me focused and kids will have to produce.
Week Five
Keep going. At this rate we should be done with weeks to spare at the end of the year. (too tired to do the math now, and wondering if we can do two a week--probably just one is more reasonable, or maybe one every two weeks...)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Meet Me At The Corner
I read about this site in a family magazine while waiting at the dentist's office. You never know where you will find inspiration! Meet Me At the Corner calls itself "Virtual Field Trips for Kids", narrated by kids, and the site will edit and show kid-made videos. Other cool connections are the Comic Book Project at Columbia University, and contests for kids. The site is aimed at 8 to 12 year olds. This site, and my friend Kriste's class project "An ABC of Careers", inspired my tech project.
ABC Brainstorming (for Tech Project)
A artists
B Bear River, Bank, bluff , boat launch
C Cheese Factory, Creamery, Casino, Cemetery, churches, Cock Robin, Cannibal Island, Chamber of Commerce, College of the Redwoods, Crab Park
D dairies, dunes
E Emus, eel River
F Fire Station
G Geese, Grocery, Gilded Rose
H Humboldt Bay Wildlife Refuge, Hotel
I island
J Jetty
K Kinetic Sculpture Race
L Loleta, Los Amigas Club
M Meat Market
N
O
P Park, Pavilion, Playground, Post Office, Pedrazinni Boat Ramp
Q Quest
R Reservation, Rancheria, recreation
S school, Swauger Station
T Table Bluff
U
V valley
W Water District
X exit
Y
Z
B Bear River, Bank, bluff , boat launch
C Cheese Factory, Creamery, Casino, Cemetery, churches, Cock Robin, Cannibal Island, Chamber of Commerce, College of the Redwoods, Crab Park
D dairies, dunes
E Emus, eel River
F Fire Station
G Geese, Grocery, Gilded Rose
H Humboldt Bay Wildlife Refuge, Hotel
I island
J Jetty
K Kinetic Sculpture Race
L Loleta, Los Amigas Club
M Meat Market
N
O
P Park, Pavilion, Playground, Post Office, Pedrazinni Boat Ramp
Q Quest
R Reservation, Rancheria, recreation
S school, Swauger Station
T Table Bluff
U
V valley
W Water District
X exit
Y
Z
Monday, August 4, 2008
A TP Document (WR#10)
Dear Family and Friends:
Welcome to a new and exciting school year here at Loleta!
We have appreciated your involvement in our students' learning, and this year we will be asking you to contribute to our community in new ways.
We are going to create an ABC of Loleta, and we will share what we learn in book and digital form. The students will be visiting people and places in our community, and learning about Loleta's past and present. This may help us all shape Loleta's future!
If you have suggestions about where and who to visit, and if you would be willing to help us, we would love your participation! Please look for a survey in the mail soon, and please call or email us with your ideas at any time.
Through this project, students will learn more about our community, share that with the community, develop 21st century literacies and skills (reading, writing, technology, communication, connection, creativity), meet state standards (in language arts, math, science, social studies, art), and have a great time learning.
Thanks so much for your support of our students, and our community. We're looking forward to a great project, and a great year.
Sincerely,
Harriet Watson
Welcome to a new and exciting school year here at Loleta!
We have appreciated your involvement in our students' learning, and this year we will be asking you to contribute to our community in new ways.
We are going to create an ABC of Loleta, and we will share what we learn in book and digital form. The students will be visiting people and places in our community, and learning about Loleta's past and present. This may help us all shape Loleta's future!
If you have suggestions about where and who to visit, and if you would be willing to help us, we would love your participation! Please look for a survey in the mail soon, and please call or email us with your ideas at any time.
Through this project, students will learn more about our community, share that with the community, develop 21st century literacies and skills (reading, writing, technology, communication, connection, creativity), meet state standards (in language arts, math, science, social studies, art), and have a great time learning.
Thanks so much for your support of our students, and our community. We're looking forward to a great project, and a great year.
Sincerely,
Harriet Watson
TP Success? (WR#8)
I guess that TP success would mean that my students actually produce a digital ABC of our community, and forge bonds with community members and meet standards along the way. I'm sure I will get smarter along the way, usually by experiencing failures, but that would be good.
Modest Tech Project (WR#7)
In my heart of hearts, I want each student to produce their own digital story. Not sure I can get there from here, in the next year.
So... my modest, or grandiose project, is: to get my students (not even sure what grades they will be yet--changes week to week) to produce an ABC of our community. We will brainstorm (I will suggest as needed) people and places for each letter. We will visit, photograph, interview, record, document each, and produce a digital program about our community. I learned last year that with a small group (12), even six-year olds could learn to record and edit the sound. I'm sure they can do more. This will be a great way to learn, process, and produce, and I can think of several places to share the work when it is complete. It's great to know how to do stuff, especially to do stuff others can't do, or for kids to do stuff adults can't do.
It's a challenge, but I think we can meet a number of standards through such a project.
What do I need?
Focus
Admin support
Family support
Community support
Someone in the classroom with me at times
a tech troubleshooter
a functioning laptop with internet connection
dig camera
dig vid camera
probably other things I'm not yet aware of...
So... my modest, or grandiose project, is: to get my students (not even sure what grades they will be yet--changes week to week) to produce an ABC of our community. We will brainstorm (I will suggest as needed) people and places for each letter. We will visit, photograph, interview, record, document each, and produce a digital program about our community. I learned last year that with a small group (12), even six-year olds could learn to record and edit the sound. I'm sure they can do more. This will be a great way to learn, process, and produce, and I can think of several places to share the work when it is complete. It's great to know how to do stuff, especially to do stuff others can't do, or for kids to do stuff adults can't do.
It's a challenge, but I think we can meet a number of standards through such a project.
What do I need?
Focus
Admin support
Family support
Community support
Someone in the classroom with me at times
a tech troubleshooter
a functioning laptop with internet connection
dig camera
dig vid camera
probably other things I'm not yet aware of...
Tech have/Tech needed (WR#6)
Have--
really old mac that doesn't work
laptop--yay!
jam cam cameras--never used, hope to figure out if they still work
old overhead
tape recorder
video streaming--have looked at it, no way to share with students
school has (somewhere)
video cam
dig vid cam
dig cam
document cam (I want one for my classroom)
scanner
inFocus projector
tripod
I could more fully use any of these things. They could be applied to any area. I think the document camera would have the most impact. I am seeing all kinds of ways students can research, connect, and share what they have learned, digitally.
really old mac that doesn't work
laptop--yay!
jam cam cameras--never used, hope to figure out if they still work
old overhead
tape recorder
video streaming--have looked at it, no way to share with students
school has (somewhere)
video cam
dig vid cam
dig cam
document cam (I want one for my classroom)
scanner
inFocus projector
tripod
I could more fully use any of these things. They could be applied to any area. I think the document camera would have the most impact. I am seeing all kinds of ways students can research, connect, and share what they have learned, digitally.
What Have I Been Up To? (WR#5)
What have I been up to?
Well, traveling around the East Coast. Taking digital photos and uploading them to a laptop. Also taking a little geocaching travel bug around and photographing it in various places. I'll need to upload those photos, too. Thinking about what I need to show my students about the history I am experiencing, and how to share it with them. Thinking about how to do more with my students in the future.
Well, traveling around the East Coast. Taking digital photos and uploading them to a laptop. Also taking a little geocaching travel bug around and photographing it in various places. I'll need to upload those photos, too. Thinking about what I need to show my students about the history I am experiencing, and how to share it with them. Thinking about how to do more with my students in the future.
Tokoni WR#4
I checked out this site, and being a digital storytelling convert/addict/apostle, I really really wanted to hear the authors telling their stories. I kept thinking my computer was malfunctioning--just a photo, and then the text? Very primitive. I still worship books, but on the web now, I want it all--text, images, and sound. Some of the stories were very compelling, but with actual voices, how much more so? I am spoiled, spoiled by my digital storytelling experiences...
Technology (WR#3)
I can blog (look, Ma, no hands!), word process, email, do digital photos (take, upload, edit, photoshop, email, oraganize, upload to blog or movie). I can surf (web, not water.). I can scan and print. I can make slide shows in iPhoto and stories in iMovie (thank you Ken Burns).
I want to learn to skype, podcast, do jing. I don't know how to customize a blog, avoid the chronological order, or do a web page (even with a template). I get sweaty when I have to hook things up, such as an InFocus projector. Don't really trust that the technology will work when I need it, and don't have the know-how to trouble shoot and stay cool.
I hate when stuff doesn't work, or when we don't have access. My students don't worry me--they actually impress me with what they know and they are willing to do anything. They are also critical, particularly if I make decisions without consulting them (and I love that).
I want to learn to skype, podcast, do jing. I don't know how to customize a blog, avoid the chronological order, or do a web page (even with a template). I get sweaty when I have to hook things up, such as an InFocus projector. Don't really trust that the technology will work when I need it, and don't have the know-how to trouble shoot and stay cool.
I hate when stuff doesn't work, or when we don't have access. My students don't worry me--they actually impress me with what they know and they are willing to do anything. They are also critical, particularly if I make decisions without consulting them (and I love that).
Read/Write Web (WR#2)
I'm very excited about the potential my students have to do work that affects their community, via the web. I'm thinking that we could partner with community groups and members to do a digital ABC of our community. The students could interview and photograph people and places in our community, and we could put this together into a digital field trip, showcasing our community.
I also am interested in connecting my students with other people around the world. via the web, way easier than through regular mail, which is very slow for kids (and involves paper, which I may misplace.).
I am really amazed at the critical thinking that goes into a digital communication (have also seen many examples of a lack of thought as well). I teach small children, but I can think we can do big stuff.
I also am interested in connecting my students with other people around the world. via the web, way easier than through regular mail, which is very slow for kids (and involves paper, which I may misplace.).
I am really amazed at the critical thinking that goes into a digital communication (have also seen many examples of a lack of thought as well). I teach small children, but I can think we can do big stuff.
Why am I here? WR#1
Actually, I was here in spirit and intention only, with regrets for my lack of physical presence.
I learned a lot from last year's tech institute (hey! I'm blogging!) and I hope to get a little more adept with more technology. I really learn this stuff better with someone's physical help, but the directions Tracy has posted work really well too.
I hope to learn a lot from other participants. I am amazed at all the things to do with technology, things that have not occurred to me before.
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