Two Classroom Ideas

One idea that I would definitely like to incorporate into my classroom is the use of a Survey on Effort from Chapter 8. I actually had the opportunity to use this during my student teaching experience. I created a sample survey using surveymonkey.com and I was amazed at how easy it was to use. The survey that I did last semester was incredibly long and wasted a lot of paper. I had to add up and collect all the data myself and it took me hours to do so. Using surveymonkey was quick and easy and it analyzes the data for you. It would be very simple to let the students use the computer lab for just a few minutes one day to complete an end of the year survey. I think that students would be able to express how they felt about the class and also give you a better picture of how they view their own effort. It would be important for a teacher to know these things. The next time I give a survey in class I will most likely be using and online survey tool like surveymonkey.

Another idea that I would like to use is blogs from Chapter 6. I think that this is an exciting way for students to be able to share their knowledge. It is also easy to set up and track as a teacher. Students would be able to complete the work at their own time and if used over a full semester class could be very beneficial. Students could do an individual blog that describes their progress and growth throughout the class or could do a group blog where they collaborate to accomplish a specific goal or task. This may be challenging for students without computer access, but I could make accommodations for those students, such as a written journal or class time in the computer lab. I think that anytime technology can be incorporated to an assignment, it makes students more engaged in the task.

Sample of Effort Survey

Click here to take survey

Relevant Idea from Chapters 4-8

Chapter 5 discusses the use of nonlinguistic representations to "enhance students' ability to use mental images to represent and elaborate on knowledge" (p. 86). I think that this is most likely typically used in the elementary ages, but I believe that it could have strong benefits for students of all ages. This chapter describes mental images and physical sensations that can help students to learn more quickly and also retain that knowledge longer. This is also a great way for teachers to incorporate differentiated instruction and also reach out to students who learn in a variety of styles. By incorporating kinesthetic activities to give students a memory of a concept, they will be much more likely to enjoy the learning process and also engage in the learning process. There is a wide range of ways that teacher can help students to gain these nonlinguistic representations, which allows for more creativity in the instructional style. Although there are so many strong benefits to teaching in this way, it does have an added responsibility for the teacher. The teacher may have to work a bit harder to plan lessons that allow for kinesthetic activities and mental representations. The first few times a teacher teaches in this way will probably be more challenging and students may get out of control. But as the students become accustomed to these methods and the teacher becomes more comfortable teaching in this way, the benefits will out weigh the work involved.

Sample

Google calendar site emailed to Professor Swensen as a sample of an idea to use in the classroom. If this link does not work, see email.

Useful Classroom Ideas

One of the ideas mentioned in the book that I think would be a useful tool for the classroom is to use a digital microscope to observe changes in things. If I teacher kindergarten I plan on doing themematic units. One of the units could possibly be either plants or gardening. The students could plant their own seeds of their choice of plant and observe the changes. The class could have a collective plant that they grow together and observe under the microscope. With this technology, it enables students to observe the growing process in a way they otherwise would not have been able to do.

A second idea that I found useful that is mentioned in the text is graphics enforced notes. The example given in the book shows incorporating pictures into a lesson focused on letter recognition. As a teacher, I could put letter on the projector (maybe even a SMARTboard so students could interact) and ask students to think of sight words or words that they can think of that begin with that letter. Text and images could then be incorporated to enhance their understanding of letter sounds.

Relevant Ideas

One of the general ideas discussed in Chapter 7 is the idewa that organizing groups based on ability levels should be done sparingly. This would decrease the sense of isolation that often comes with separating students into groups based on ability. Often, students will look and others and compare themselves to their classmates. While the "higher" ability group may have more to boast about, they may see themselves as set apart from the class. This also may happen with the "lower" ability group, and they may even feel a sense of stupidity when measuring themselves against their classmates. While I can understand the recommendation that the book makes, teaching all students based on the same curriculum will hold some students back and leave some students behind. Often, ability groups give students a chance to work at a pace that they, and other students with similar ability, feel comfortable with. Though the groups should be used sparingly, there is also a use ofr ability groups in the classroom.

Ideas for my classroom

One thing that I think would be awesome of my classroom is video conferencing. I think that it would be a fun and educational opportunity for my students to be able to video conference students in a different country. It is a quick and easy way to learn about different cultures in the classroom, but also being able to see the people from these cultures. It would also be a good way for students to practice and learn about different languages.

Another useful resource are web resources. Web resources allow the students to not only work on skills in the classroom in a fun way, but they can also use them at home. The different games provide the students immediate feedback to the information they are working with. The immediate feedback is very important so the students can correct their error right away. The students can stay focused and motivated to their work.
~Katie