Current Projects

 Kooser News

Even though this class has only lasted a semester, I have learned a tremendous amount. I have pushed myself to try new things and through this process have found incorporating technology into my lessons as simple, fun, and best of all… engaging for my students! My most current project, which I’m co-taught with my practicum student, has been my most favorite so far. Here’s what we did:

This unit was centered around our essential question “Who Helps You?” Students participated in a research project where they learned about an inventor who has helped make our lives easier with their creation. The class worked in partners to research this person using Pebblego and a graphic organizer my practicum student created. Here is a sample of a completed one:

Next, students worked to create a script using the information from their research. This script mimics one of a news reporter and was created using the Comic Life App. Partners transferred the information they found from research to their graphic organizer and then practiced reading parts for their presentation.

The class then delivered “The Kooser News” using a screencast, which makes them appear they are on a news set. This is how they shared their research. I also sent these links of the newscast to their parents so they could see what their child created. The links are below:

http://touchcast.com/kooser_news/a98025bf83

http://touchcast.com/kooser_news/068544f51e

http://touchcast.com/kooser_news/2a44bc9eb9  

Poetry Celebration

Another fun project my class completed centered on Poetry. My students just finished a poetry unit and for our writing celebration, I wanted them to publish their work in a new, creative way. Mrs. Topp and I decided we would work on this project together and instead of sharing with only our class, we would invite each other's class too in order to make it more special. Students began this project by typing their poem on ReadWriteThink using their "Theme Poem" resource. After typing, students were able to send their poem to me and I printed them. Next, students illustrated their poems and mounted them on paper. Lastly, I took a photo of each poem and uploaded it to SeeSaw. Students then recorded their voices reading their poem. After that, we were ready and excited to share. Mrs. Topp's classroom came to ours and we were able to show off all our hard work with our presentation. Below is a link to one of the poems. 

SeeSaw Poem

ISTE Standards

The International Society for Technology in Education has created six standards for use in the digital and global world. They are as follows:

1. Creativity and Innovation

2. Communication and Collaboration

3. Research and Information Fluency

4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making

5. Digital Citizenship

6. Technology Operations and Concepts

Working with my practicum teacher and students, we have devised a plan which will incorporate several of these standards. The project aligns with our literacy question, “Who Can Help Us?” Students will be learning about different people in their community who help them, such as coaches, police officers, teachers, and firefighters. They will also complete a research project where they will discover people from the past who have created inventions, which in turn have made their lives easier. Our class will use the Pebblego Website to complete their research with a partner. They will have to use their research information to then write a script, which outlines who they researched, facts about their life, what contributions they made to society, and how these contributions helped. They will write this script using a graphic organizer, which will aid them in developing their “News Story.” Students will then present this information to the class using a Touchcast screen that makes them appear to be sitting behind a news desk. This project teaches standards 1, 2, 3, and 6 because students are working collaboratively in groups, researching a historical person using a digital resource, and then creating a digital presentation.