By Lori Menger, Reading teacher

Smooth Sailing

As part of the plan the design team evaluated progress at the end of the school year, using their own observations, feedback from teacher and parent surveys, and information gathered informally during teacher evaluation conferences and staff meetings. Following are what were deemed to be the successes experienced during the first year of implementation.
All teachers had been required to implement classroom blogs and 100 percent of the teachers complied. Blogs were for the use of students and parents and were password protected for safety. Most of the teachers updated their blog regularly and used their blog to post homework, showcase student work, place pictures from field trips, and provide links to resources.
Professional development was provided on a monthly basis, after school, and teachers were required to attend two, but were welcome to attend all if desired. Only four teachers attended the minimum required two trainings, with all the other teachers attending three or more. Professional development was provided on the following topics:

• Blogging.
• Power Point.
• Digital cameras.
• Google features such as email, searching, documents, calendars, etc.
• Podcasting.

All grades did at least two integration projects integrating technology and drama. Some grade levels did more. Following is a list by grade level of some of the projects that were done.
School-wide:

• Students in all grades created an Avatar, which is an icon or object representing a person, and used these to participate in a Voice Thread project on the study of Egypt.
• Pre-K:
  • Teachers utilized Microsoft Power Point and United Streaming in their daily lessons.
  • Teachers created digital photo albums of the class using Mixbook that parents could view and had the option of purchasing if they wanted.
  • A Webkinz stuffed animal was sent home with each student and the family posted on a blog that was then read in class. Previously a paper journal had been used.
• Kindergarten:
  • Students did journaling using AlphaSmart Neos® where previously they had written in journals.
  • A Webkinz stuffed animal was sent home with each student and the family posted on a blog that was then read in class. Previously a paper journal had been used.
  • The students created ABC books using Microsoft Power Point. Pictures were taken by students with digital cameras.
  • On Valentine’s Day students sent messages to their parents using Animoto (an application that produces an MTV style video) and Voice Thread, which were posted on the class blog.
• First Grade:
  • Students drew pictures of their favorite season which were scanned and then the students used Voice Thread to describe their picture.
  • Students did an insect report using Microsoft Power Point. This was an annual project but in the past the report was done on paper.
  • A Webkinz stuffed animal was sent home with each student and the family posted on a blog that was then read in class. Previously a paper journal had been used.
• Second Grade:
  • Students routinely did their writing assignments using word processing.
  • Students used Voice Thread to describe the planets.
  • Podcasts were made of students reading stories they had written.
  • A song was learned and then the class was video recorded as they performed it.
  • Students celebrated an international day and pictures were taken of the students in their costumes and showcased on the class blog.
  • Each student created a doll of a famous person. Then two were matched up and an interview done between the dolls. Windows Movie Maker was used to record the interviews.
• Third Grade:
  • Students did reports on famous African Americans using Microsoft Power Point.
  • The AlphaSmart Neos® were taken on field trips and the students recorded observations and these were uploaded to the class blog.
• Fourth Grade:
  • Students created a digital photo album about explorers using Mixbook. This project was featured on the Mixbook site. Part of the lesson involved how to obtain pictures that were not bound by copyright.
  • Students, using a map of Florida created in Microsoft Word, had to label the map.
• Fifth Grade:
  • Students created digital scrapbooks of their trip to Washington, D.C. This was an annual project, but in the past only paper scrapbooks were allowed.
  • Podcasting was done while in Washington, D.C. using cell phones. A number was called and a recording made using the phone. Then an audio file was emailed to the school.
• Sixth Grade:
  • Students wrote a script and produced an informational DVD about tombs in ancient Egypt. Copies of the DVD were then distributed to all the classes in the school. This was to provide background knowledge about tombs prior to the classes touring a tomb built by the sixth graders.
  • Students created an Egyptian tomb replica and made artifacts to go in the tomb. The students posed as student archaeologists and led tours of the tomb.
  • Students posed as a Greek god or goddess and then performed monologues which were video recorded.
  • Students routinely did writing assignments using AlphaSmart Neos®.
  • Students created digital photo albums of a four day field trip to an outdoor science camp using Mixbook.
  • Students participated in an international project called “Life ‘Round Here”. Photo stories were made telling about life around SJEDS and the best ones were entered into an international competition.
  • Students created photo stories about ancient Egypt that were shared with the first grade students.
  • Students scripted, recorded, and edited a radio broadcast about literary elements. The recordings were manipulated using Audacity.
  • Pictures taken during the year of class activities, field trips, and school events were uploaded to a Flickr account created for sixth grade. Parents were given log in information and could then view the pictures, copy to a CD, or order prints. Students used the pictures from Flickr when creating digital photo albums.
  • Laptops were used regularly for web quests, writing, and research.
  • Readers Theater.
  • Performance Poetry.

It should be noted that many of the technology integrations occurred in projects that were done annually by grade levels, but the projects were updated to include technology. In the process of this integration the teachers developed a common language regarding technology which promoted increased dialogue. For example, prior to the implementation of this plan, many teachers had never heard of a blog. This was not an expected part of the plan, but a pleasant outcome.

Continue reading Part IV: Weathering the Storm

Posted: 10. August, 2008 at 5:39 pm. Filed under: Education, Elementary School, Literacy, Tech Integration, Technology Integration Facilitator.
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