Watching the three videos

This has really been an eye opener for me as to what technology can do for children in a classroom. The video that demonstrated the spiders was amazing. It used to be that you could only draw information from an encyclopedia when I was in school to now actually seeing them in a real-life setting in a place where kids can actually go and take pictures, put those pictures on the computer and then send their to another school in a state thousands of miles away to make comparisons of different spiders in each of the states. To me, that is very fascinating. I really liked the story extension application. Taking what was a simple story on pages in a book to creating a multimedia presentation with the same idea but extending it using the students' ideas is fun to watch especially having the students be in Kindergarten. Wow!! The teacher mentioned the students being fearless when it comes to learning technology. I'm learning that a little at a time. There is so much out there that I still am overwhelmed with most of it. I've watched how Kid-pix deluxe software has been a hit with kids everywhere. The students at the school where I am teaching right now are thrilled when they are able to explore this application. They especially like the drawing tool that was used in the video clip. It was an amazing thing to see it drawn and then published to make a presentation for parents and other to view by using technology. I will continue on improving my skills as I continue to learn about technology.

1st grade lesson plans

Math direct instruction
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dg7xgcg8_0cn3d6xcn

Literacy direct instruction
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dg7xgcg8_3hfg2gfgr
http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dg7xgcg8_4hq8qvddw

Content guided instruction
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dg7xgcg8_13jzb5rhr

Completing the evaluations

I completed both evaluations that were included in Assignment 9 along with the survey.

Observation of technology at my school

My first initial response to the technology in the school where I'm teaching was a little surprising at the small amount that was available. This school has a high socio-economic rating and I thought there would be more funding for technology. But I am very excited for some of the updated pieces of technology that are available, like the flex-cams and the computer projectors. This makes sharing possible for anything you have to show rather than just using an overhead projector and being limited on what you can share. Each grade has a TV/VCR checked out to them at the beginning of the year. The school is limited to one DVD player so scheduling that is a little more difficult, so planning is very important. There is also one mobile lab with about 30 laptops for the students to use. There are some digital cameras and camcorders also available. Teachers are becoming more computer savvy at my school -- there is no computer specialist at the school. If a teacher wants to teach using a specific program, someone from the district comes and teaches the teacher and then the teacher instructs the class. You really have to be on your toes with this. This encourages the teachers to get with technology!!