Mobile Learning Lab

The first tool I explored was how to use a cell phone in the classroom.  I read the article called, 25 Practical Reasons for Using a Cell Phone.  To be honest, I am not a strong advocate for the use of cell phones in my fifth grade classroom.  First, not every students has a cell phone.  Also, I know how easy it is to use a cell phone to do other functions (text, check email, go on twitter, facebook, etc.)   However, I think the use of cell phones for upper elementary students would be effective to use as a homework assignment that kids could complete at night.  After setting up a poll from Poll Everywhere I realized what a great tool it is.  Here is an example of a question I created- Poll Everywhere.  Ultimately, I believe a cell phone in fifth grade could be beneficial using at home for a question of the day.     

I am a strong advocate for iPads in the classroom.  Although they are similar to cell phones where students can be off task, I think it would be easier to manage iPads with students.  For example, I looked up a variety of apps for elementary students.  A few apps in particular stood out to me.  First, miTables Lite is a free app for children to practice their multiplication facts.  This would be a great tool for students to review multiplication the first few weeks of fifth grade.  Whether you believe it or not, knowing your multiplication facts quickly and fluently will benefit your students for their entire lives.  Another app I found was for science called Molecules.  This free app gives three-dimensional depictions of molecules.  This would be a great hands on tool to help students understand an abstract concept such as matter and molecules.    

Another mobile device I would love in my classroom would be flip cameras.  In Using Flip Cameras in the Classroom, many practical educational and fun learning ideas were presented.  For example, in math students could talk through the steps in solving a particular math problem.  In reading, students could act out a scene from a book, record a book talk, or narrate a story.  Students could act out a scene from the past acting like historical characters for social studies.  The positive aspect of a flip camera is that you do not need a classroom set.  One per three or four children would be ideal.  

As I am learning about all the ways to incorporate technology into the classroom, it tends to leave me bittersweet.  As great as all these ideas and tools are, it does come down to funding in the classroom.  I would love flip cameras, iPods, and iPads in the classroom; however, unfortunately most school budgets do not allow for that much technology.  Even having my students use the computers is difficult enough because our school library is not available for half of the day and there are not enough computers for each students.

Part C- Implimentation

Podcast

Screencast of Humpty Dumpty Math Fraction Review

Screencast of Decimal Race

Here is the text in written form:

The educational need I am in the process of addressing in my Wicked Project is how to use math games to get students engaged in their learning.  So far, I have had the opportunity to implement math centers numerous times in the past month, as well as use my newest and greatest classroom addition, the SMARTboard.

During centers, I have witnessed student engagement increase compared to daily work without games or the use of the SMARTboard.   On a daily basis, I have been pleasantly surprised when I ask math questions because almost 100% of my kids hands go up.  They all want the opportunity to show their work on the SMARTboard.     

There are some changes I would make though through the use of math games and SMARTboard lessons.  First, not all the lessons I have chosen on the SMARTboard have been as interactive as I would like.  Also, only one student is able to write on the board at a time.  This causes a long wait time and students grow more disinterested in the task at hand.  For example, I did a SMARTboard lesson on reviewing fractions.  Although it was a great lesson, it was time consuming for each child to come up and solve a problem.  I saw some students bored, while others only were interested in getting called on and not watching the work being done.  

However there has been a lot that has went well so far.  I found a decimal race game where students are trying to get the highest decimal.  They roll a dice and write down the digit in one of the decimal place values.  As I watched students from afar, they were very energetic about the game and for the students who forgot place value of decimals, it was a way to recall their past knowledge.  Also,  I allow students to choose the computer math game they want to play based on three or four choices I provide.  This way they are engaged more because they have a say.   I have tried it where I give students one game and they get bored easily with this. 

Part A-Brainstorming Session

The web conferencing tool my group used was Adobe Connect. The advantages to using this tool was that is was easy to use and there was an unlimited time to communicate with group members, unlike other web conferencing tools just as Jing. Also, it was a way to quickly communicate about our project instead of sending constant emails or postings to Google docs. The disadvantage was that in order to use Adobe Connect, we had to first have our instructor set one of us up to have hosting rights. Nonetheless, it was helpful because Chuck explained what I had to do to web conference quickly and effectively.


http://connect.msu.edu/p1tktsq8ij4/

Wicked Project Part B-Application of TPACK

Based on the TPACK, I need to know how to combine content (subject area to teach), pedagogy (how to teach), and technology (tools that help make teaching more effective) together. It is not only important to use technology, but innovate technology into learning. As the teacher, my job is to not only become an expert on the curriculum. It is my job to integrate as much technology as possibly into my instruction. Using math games from http://www.mrnussbaum.com/ or hundreds of other effective math sites, will allow my students to grasp the curriculum in an authentic and creative manner. Also, I will utilize the SMARTboard daily to get students excited about their learning.

One of the issues with learning mathematics is that students solve problem after problem, not being able to relate their work to the real world. Also, they may struggle because they are not given a visual and hands-on representation. My fifth grade curriculum is a textbook. If I simply assigned problems out of the textbook each day, students would not be engaged, not have memorable learning opportunities, and would most likely dislike everything about math. I would not blame them for disliking math with that type of teaching. By using the SMARTboard even as a math warm-up exercise, children are able to work hands on. For example, as a five minute review before I started my lesson on the angles of a triangle, students were given the opportunity to estimate angles on the SMARTboard. The object of the lesson was to collect as many bananas as they could for the monkey. The closer they were to the angle given, the more bananas they would collect. This activity got students excited about estimating angles much more than giving them a worksheet to fill out. I had the majority of kids raising their hand to participate because they were engaged. Technology is a way to engross students positively and help them become more successful as a learner.

One of the first jobs as a teacher is to find out how your students learn. I found out my students learn most effectively by working with partners in math. With the curriculum very challenging, students tend to succeed in pairs or with a teacher led small group. Once I discovered how my students learn, I had to figure out ways to help them grasp information easier. One way I found was by giving them choices. For example, during math centers students were given approximately three or four math activities and games they could complete. In this way, they stayed focused on their learning. If they were very successful with measuring angles, but struggled with finding unknown angles, they had the opportunity to take responsibility for their own learning and chose the game that would help them succeed the most. Also, this helped to differentiate between all my students. They learned the content in the most effective way and in an appealing fashion through the use of technology.

Part A-Description of Need or Opportunity

The educational need I am going to address is how to use online math games to effectively get kids engaged in their learning. This will be done through the use of computers and a SMARTboard. I am going to utilize numerous educational math websites, as well as discover interactive games I can use on my SMARTboard to help students make worthwhile connections to their learning. My intent to use math games is to provide a fun and engaging way to learn about math. Most children that receive worksheets after worksheets are not going to retain the knowledge. With math games, they can have fun by connecting a variety of games to their own lives and not even realize they are learning in the process.

As often as possible, I will utilize math games into student learning. However, because my classroom only has three computers, I will use math games more often when I have parent helpers for math centers. That way, a group of students can use math games at once. Also, once I get my SMARTboard, I plan to use numerous quick activities to draw students into lessons. This will be used on a daily basis to impact student learning.

Here is some of the research I have gathered, as well as great interactive math sites.

Articles on why to use math games-
http://www.mathgamesandactivities.com/what-parents-of-successful-children-know-about-writing/
http://nrich.maths.org/2928

Links to math websites-
http://www.mec-math.org/math-at-home/math-websites

Interactive math sites-
http://www.funbrain.com/kidscenter.html
http://www.mrnussbaum.com/
http://www.mathplayground.com/

My plan is to implement math centers often in the classroom (approximately 1x per week). I will know that I am successful over time with student achievement. If students are recalling knowledge from the units prior, I know that I have taught math concepts effectively and in a way they can recall. For example, some students had a difficult time with measuring angles. I found a great website to practice: http://www.mathplayground.com/measuringangles.html. After they practiced, many students had the aha moment every teacher looks for.

Personal Introduction

Link to Personal Introduction

Personal Learning Reflection

Throughout this course I have learned a lot about effective teaching strategies when integrating technology.  Learning about UDL helped me evaluate activities I have used with my students and allowed me to make sure I am choosing activities that are beneficial for all students.  I think the most effective project this semester was the creation of my own web page.  Once I created my page, I shared it with the parents and students in my class.  This has allowed students to communicate with me through the classroom blog, use my useful website link to play educational math and spelling games, and is a tool to use when they forget what their homework was for the night.   I have received positive feedback on my website so far.    

Before this class, I used the term web-quest incorrectly in my vocabulary.  The web-quest activity we completed in this course allowed me to find online activities I could use in my classroom.  For example, I plan on using the “Blending Fiction and Nonfiction” to improve comprehension and writing skills.  Also, I enjoyed the creation of the StAIR project.  I had never done a stand-alone project before and I think it is an effective learning tool for students.  Although it is time consuming for a teacher to create, I think it would be a great project for upper elementary, middle school or high school students to do.  They could create their own StAIR project on a variety of topics related to the curriculum.  

One of my goals when I started my master’s was to create a web page that students and parents could go to for support.  I am proud of my current web page and I think it is useful for a variety of reasons.  I also am beginning to feel more confident with using technology in my classroom.  I rarely went to the library with my class last year; however, this year my class has  went a variety of times to use the Internet for their learning.  

My long term goals are continued from CEP 810.  One goal of mine is to find ways of incorporating even more technology into the classroom.  Just from two classes, I have learned about so many new educational sites, as well as social sites that people turn to all around the world.  MACUL has helped me find many educational sites to use daily.  I am excited that this class is the second class I have taken and I have many more to go to feel more confident in my abilities to incorporate technology into my classroom.  My long-term goals are to discover many more free online technological resources that are user-friendly to implement into my classroom.  Also, I would love to eventually be able to use online portfolios with my students.  Lastly, I would love for my district to see the need of creating google accounts for students.    

Thanks for a great semester!