‘The Partnership for 21st Century Skills” website was designed with a vision of preparing our students to succeed as citizens and workers in the 21st century. When reading this week’s blog assignment, my first reaction was a shocking one. If this very important website exists, why then has it never been mentioned in my school district. As I read the information presented in the website, I was impressed by the organization and content of the information.
The information that surprised me from the website is that not every state is listed in the “How States are Integrating ICT Literacy into Schools.” (page 18-19) I am thinking that every state should be listed. I feel that when a teacher is viewing the website, it is a powerful statement to see your state listed. It also surprises me that the website was developed in 2002 and there is not a link to real world results. What I mean is if a school implemented the nine steps to build momentum,(page 20) “Were the results met?” “Did students succeed that went through the program?” Another surprising thing was the very detailed list about “How Key Stakeholders Can Support the Effort” (Page 24) Is there any research showing how public and private sectors have followed through with the website’s suggestions?
I did not disagree with anything on the website. As I stated above, I would just like to see an update as to if the plan works. I would also like to know if students are more prepared and succeeding at their jobs. It would be powerful to have some testimonials from students who went through the program.
The biggest implication for my students is to incorporate technology as much as possible in my daily lessons. For me as an educator, this is my vision for my students. The statement from pages 21 & 22 really made me think: “The power of core subjects and 21st century skills to make a difference in student learning is tempered by the fact that many students do not yet have access to them.” This was written in 2002, and here 7 years later, my students still do not have 21st century technology readily available to them in the classroom. As an educator, I need to come up with a plan to try and change this fact. I still have only 2 computers in my classroom. It seems that the majority of technology improvements that are made in my district happen in the middle school and high schools. This continues to be a challenge for educators to balance the teaching of basic skills and 21st century skills.
References:
Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (n.d.). A report and mile guide for 21st century skills. Washington DC: Author. Retrieved from http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/images/stories/otherdocs/p21up_Report.pdf
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
A Blog in Mrs. Budd’s Classroom (Using a blog as a way to read and write critical thinking responses in my third grade classroom)
Using technology is my favorite way to motivate my third grade classroom. The children love using computers. One example of how I would begin my blog would be to post a question and require my students to respond to my question, or another classmate’s response.
In my third grade class we read the book Balto, the Dog Who Saved Nome, by Margaret Davidson. After reading the book I ask the students the question: Who do you think was the hero in the story? Explain. I would begin my blog with this question. I would also provide links to some websites that provide information about Huskies, The True Story of Balto, and Attributes of Heroes. Providing these links on my blog will allow student to gain some background knowledge to assist them in responding to the blog’s question.
My hope is that students will come up with new ideas, show creativity and original thinking. Many students may start with trying to repeat what the first student response was. I think with proper modeling, students will expand their thinking as they become more comfortable with the world of blog writing. My ultimate goal is to transform my classroom into a community of learners.
Blogging requires teachers to show students how to write for a public audience. Prior to the posting of the answers to the blog question, many lessons need to be covered. Blogging etiquette lessons would be taught. The students would also be taught how to write an answer to a question for an audience to read. The last thing I would do is expose my students to several great examples of blog responses.
A rational for my blog lesson:
Blogs are changing the way students learn. They provide the opportunity for students to spend quality time in school and at home sharing knowledge, opinions and learning from others. My blog would promote critical and analytical thinking. When I wrote this lesson I had not previously had a classroom blog. In my reading lessons, I like to ask thought provoking questions to lead my students to higher levels of thinking. The teaching of reading is really more the teaching of thinking. Students need to be shown how to think as they read. I am constantly telling my students that a good reader is always thinking. A great way to show my students this would be to create a critical reading blog. A blog is an excellent opportunity to allow my students to read and write more while collaborating and discussing higher level thinking questions. I look forward to implementing this lesson as I grow more comfortable in using blogs.
In my third grade class we read the book Balto, the Dog Who Saved Nome, by Margaret Davidson. After reading the book I ask the students the question: Who do you think was the hero in the story? Explain. I would begin my blog with this question. I would also provide links to some websites that provide information about Huskies, The True Story of Balto, and Attributes of Heroes. Providing these links on my blog will allow student to gain some background knowledge to assist them in responding to the blog’s question.
My hope is that students will come up with new ideas, show creativity and original thinking. Many students may start with trying to repeat what the first student response was. I think with proper modeling, students will expand their thinking as they become more comfortable with the world of blog writing. My ultimate goal is to transform my classroom into a community of learners.
Blogging requires teachers to show students how to write for a public audience. Prior to the posting of the answers to the blog question, many lessons need to be covered. Blogging etiquette lessons would be taught. The students would also be taught how to write an answer to a question for an audience to read. The last thing I would do is expose my students to several great examples of blog responses.
A rational for my blog lesson:
Blogs are changing the way students learn. They provide the opportunity for students to spend quality time in school and at home sharing knowledge, opinions and learning from others. My blog would promote critical and analytical thinking. When I wrote this lesson I had not previously had a classroom blog. In my reading lessons, I like to ask thought provoking questions to lead my students to higher levels of thinking. The teaching of reading is really more the teaching of thinking. Students need to be shown how to think as they read. I am constantly telling my students that a good reader is always thinking. A great way to show my students this would be to create a critical reading blog. A blog is an excellent opportunity to allow my students to read and write more while collaborating and discussing higher level thinking questions. I look forward to implementing this lesson as I grow more comfortable in using blogs.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Trade With Me
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Welcome! Welcome to my technology trading blog. I open this blog up to all educators. Think of this blog as a recession buster. You can trade your great technology ideas for free.
Work: I have been teaching third grade for 12 years. I utilize technology in several capacities. I use it to plan my lessons, post grades, communicate homework assignments for parents (Genesis), to motivate my students, and enhance my classroom lessons.
Home: I live in New Jersey. I am a mom of two active children. My 8 year-old son Daniel is in third grade. He plays travel soccer and loves sports. He is also involved in cub scouts (I am Den mother). My 6 year-old daughter, Abigail, is in first grade. She competes as a member of a nationally ranked dance team. She loves art and draws all the time. She is an active member of Daisy Scouts. My husband runs his own moving and storage business. My favorite free-time activities are traveling, exercise classes, and cooking. As a family, we enjoy traveling and hiking.
Ideas / Tips: One of my favorite technology lessons is my Midwest Wax Museum PowerPoint project. While studying the Midwest region, my students create an exhibit of a famous person, alive or dead from the Midwest region. Then they create a PowerPoint presentation describing attributes of the famous person and facts from their birth state. Finally, the museum opens and each learner dresses their part. Buttons are placed on the floor and when you push the button, the wax figures come to life describing who they are and where they are from. This project is both motivating and enriching to my Midwest Region Unit. Tip: this project takes a lot of time on the computer. One to two hours of lab time a week for about six weeks. The students are taught how to use PowerPoint prior to this project.
Trading: Please share any of your favorite technology lessons with me. I am interested in focusing on creating some technology lessons that enrich test prep. In my state, I spend a lot of time on preparing my learners for the NJASK (our state test). It would be nice to learn about how other teachers have utilized technology to motivate students while preparing them for state tests. Please note I have only two computers in my classroom. I can sometimes use our computer lab that has 30 computers, a Smart Board, and two printers.
Welcome! Welcome to my technology trading blog. I open this blog up to all educators. Think of this blog as a recession buster. You can trade your great technology ideas for free.
Work: I have been teaching third grade for 12 years. I utilize technology in several capacities. I use it to plan my lessons, post grades, communicate homework assignments for parents (Genesis), to motivate my students, and enhance my classroom lessons.
Home: I live in New Jersey. I am a mom of two active children. My 8 year-old son Daniel is in third grade. He plays travel soccer and loves sports. He is also involved in cub scouts (I am Den mother). My 6 year-old daughter, Abigail, is in first grade. She competes as a member of a nationally ranked dance team. She loves art and draws all the time. She is an active member of Daisy Scouts. My husband runs his own moving and storage business. My favorite free-time activities are traveling, exercise classes, and cooking. As a family, we enjoy traveling and hiking.
Ideas / Tips: One of my favorite technology lessons is my Midwest Wax Museum PowerPoint project. While studying the Midwest region, my students create an exhibit of a famous person, alive or dead from the Midwest region. Then they create a PowerPoint presentation describing attributes of the famous person and facts from their birth state. Finally, the museum opens and each learner dresses their part. Buttons are placed on the floor and when you push the button, the wax figures come to life describing who they are and where they are from. This project is both motivating and enriching to my Midwest Region Unit. Tip: this project takes a lot of time on the computer. One to two hours of lab time a week for about six weeks. The students are taught how to use PowerPoint prior to this project.
Trading: Please share any of your favorite technology lessons with me. I am interested in focusing on creating some technology lessons that enrich test prep. In my state, I spend a lot of time on preparing my learners for the NJASK (our state test). It would be nice to learn about how other teachers have utilized technology to motivate students while preparing them for state tests. Please note I have only two computers in my classroom. I can sometimes use our computer lab that has 30 computers, a Smart Board, and two printers.
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