Module 4: SMARTBoard Lessons & My First Lesson Plan!

The SMARTBoard, needless to say, has been one of my greatest adversaries throughout the course of this class so far.  It was far less time consuming then the Digital Story, but it was more difficult to understand in comparison.  With the Digital Story, my problem was with time than overall understanding.  With the SMARTBoard Lesson, it was just the opposite.  In the end, I really enjoyed this project and teaching my lesson to my classmates.  

For my SMARTBoard Lesson, I focused on the ELA Teaching Standard for 6th Grade Language for Vocabulary Acquisition and Use, 4b.  It states: "Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 6 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies: Use common, grade-appropriate Greek or Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., audience, auditory, audible)."  For my lesson, I decided to teach about 6 different Greek/ Latin prefixes:  aud-, ex-, sub-, cent-, tri-, and mis-.  My overall goal was for my students to recognize these roots in words that they see in their everyday lives, and from knowing the prefixes' meanings, be able to determine the meanings of unknown words which contain these roots.  

Starting this lesson with just a teaching standard was difficult, because I wasn't sure where exactly to begin.  But eventually, I was able to pinpoint how I could teach the lesson in an effective way, and then engage my students in a way where they will learn the subject efficiently as well as apply it.  I had three different activities planned, one building off of the other.  In this way, it can go from simple to more complex.  After teaching the definition of a prefix as well as the definition of the six prefixes, I gave them a matching game where they match the word containing the root with its definition.  Then, I gave them a fill-in-the-blank activity so that they can test their contextual skills using the same prefixes, but different words. I also asked my students to explain why they made certain choices.  The last activity I had planned was not able to be done during the process, but the main point that I wanted to elaborate on there was that while a word may contain what seems to be a prefix, the English language can trip us up.  So, it's important to be able to identify when it's a prefix and when it is not.

Overall, I had a lot of fun creating my lesson.  It was definitely difficult at first and also inconvenient (for I had to be working on it in the computer lab or in the library), but, honestly, when I'm a teacher, I can see myself using this in the future to teach my students.  It may be more useful if I use it for middle school, because high schoolers would be on another level of learning.  This was my first lesson plan ever, and I'm nervous and excited to create more. 

Module 3: Screencasting

From this class, I am learning about so many different technologies that I could use in the classroom.  One of these applications that I can use on my desktop to help me teach is this idea of screencasting.  In screencasting, you can explain how to do something on your desktop and SHOW others how to do something.  It is very simple to do, and it makes learning an online tool much easier to understand.  In this way, if I need to use a certain application in the future, I could refer to a screencast for beneficial guidance.

For my screencast, I chose to explain how to use the online tool, Evernote.  Evernote is an educational, online tool where someone can take notes and keep them organized so that there is easy access.  I actually use Evernote all the time now.  It makes it easier for me to keep all my notes together for all my different classes, and because I constantly use my laptop, they are always there.  Another benefit is that if something happens to my computer, I could easily log onto a different computer and be able to access these notes there.

To create this screencast, I used the tool screencast-o-matic.com.  The other option that I could have used was Jing, but for some reason, it was not compatible with my laptop.  It was very simple to use, because it was not necessary to download the application onto your laptop.  You simply go to the site, choose to open the application, and you're free to use it!  One thing that I liked about my screencasting tool was that if I messed up on a part, instead of restarting from the beginning, I could just restart from a certain point.  Also, it let me upload directly to YouTube.

Coming up with a script for my screencast was not too difficult, because I had started using this tool very recently, and I knew what I was doing.  The most difficult part of this screencast was looking into how this online tool could be used for special education.  It took much research, but I was able to find some helpful information, and I put it into my screencast.  Even if an online tool doesn't seem like it will benefit special needs kids, I believe that most, if not all tools have some aspect to it that makes it easier for special needs kids.  My feature that I discovered on Evernote was the audio function.  You can record lessons or notes, and play them back later.  It is very useful for kids with learning disabilities who may struggle with understanding things right away or may need more clarification.

In the future, when I become a teacher, I can see myself using Evernote as well as Screencast-o-matic.  I found it a great tool for not only students to use, but also for teachers and special needs students.