Weather Diagram

Concept maps and visual aids in general are essential to a young child's interest, understanding, and memory. Even though I had never used this tool before, the weather diagram I completed was simple and not very time consuming. I found the program to be very user friendly, and the assignment went well. I feel like this program is something I could use weekly in my classroom for each concept or theme we cover to help the children understand what will be included in the topic that week. I may also consider completing it with the students' help, because they would benefit most from their own ideas being included. However, I'm also excited to see what kidspiration has to offer, and I plan to download a free trial at home soon.

Scavenger Hunt

Today, we went on a scavenger hunt to find 12 specific shapes around campus. I found it was so fun, even as an adult, and thought it all went very well. It was a great change of scenery, and one I really think my pre-k students would love. After a lesson about shapes, we could go on a scavenger hunt as a class. Because my students could not understand all those shapes, we could make it more appropriate by splitting the class into two sections. I could lead one group, while my paraprofessional could lead another. We could have a contest to see who can find the most circles, triangles, squares, and rectangles. Then, as a class we could view each picture of what the students found, and what a great review this would be! I’m very excited to use this lesson.

Posting Pictures

Recently in class, we were asked to post digital pictures to the web from different technologies, including a picture from the web, a scanner, a CD, and a digital camera. I have used all methods with a PC. Yet, I think it will be good to understand how to post pictures on a Mac also. I found the process fairly easy, and I know it will become less time consuming for me with practice. I know I could use these skills in my classroom. Because I will be a teacher of young children, visual cues are so essential, and the more resources the better. I could use pictures to update my classroom website as well to keep parents informed and interested in what occurs in our classroom.

Writing a Lesson Plan

When we wrote a lesson plan for 486, I found it more difficult than I expected, because different instructors have different expectations. Specifically, I found writing objectives difficult, because usually I write them with the process the student's would go through in mind. (Ex. The student will show interest by asking questions during discussion). However, this time we were required to focus on the product, or the outcome, of what the student's will know after the unit is complete. (Ex. The students will identify three community workers and their roles in the community.) In addition, I've never used a guided teaching book to direct my lessons, because I have been encouraged to be creative and open-minded. Regardless of the differences, I can recognize the importance of different expectations and experiences, because I do not yet know what my principal will expect. Therefore, various types of lesson plans will probably be beneficial.

Research on Rocks

In class, we completed a research assignment on rocks. I learned about rubies, which is my birthstone. Even though it was interesting, it was difficult for me to consider how I would use a research assignment in my classroom with pre-k students. I may be able to create a power point of pictures of different types of weather, and ask them to find rainy. However, I don't know that this would really be research. I know it would require a very watered down version of our assignment, because my students cannot yet read. Although I think if I had a smart board in my classroom, we could do something like this together if it was a topic they were interested in. For example, during my internship in kindergarten the students were interested in the difference between alligators and crocodiles. So, we did a small research activity on the computer together. They looked at the pictures while I read them the information about each. I believe they learned something in that moment because I took time to recognize their interests. I believe I could do this with preschool also. It’s not as complex as our assignment, and the students don’t find the information themselves. However, they do hear the new information and understand it comes from the internet.

Social Networking and Wikis in Plain English

These were two videos we were to watch. Social networking explained how social networks help connect us across people and places, and they can help us to obtain jobs or homes through friends of friends. Even though I use a social networking tool every day, I never thought about using it with this goal in mind. I guess I could be more productive with it than I ever imagined. The second video was about wikis. It explained that wikis are a great way to connect with multiple people and exchange ideas especially compared to email. I have really enjoyed using our wiki so far in class, because it is so simple and quick. I'm excited to see what the girls in my wiki will share and how that will change our website.

Website Evaluation Reflection

I evaluated starfall.com, which I have seen used daily in both Pre-K and Kindergarten classrooms. The site includes games, lessons on letters and their sounds, stories, and information and games about holidays. I was very impressed with the site, including the authors, cost, accessibility, reasoning for publishing, and design. The site is created by a team, which includes educators, artists, designers, and engineers. They stated that their intent in publishing a free public site was to motivate students about phonics and reading. It is obvious to me that the team considered young children when they created the site, because it has limited choices, easy access, and loads quickly. I found this site to be highly recommended, and now that I have evaluated the site, I feel comfortable using it in my own classroom!

"Pay Attention" on Teacher Tube

We watched a video called "Pay Attention" on Teacher Tube. I found it very interesting and mind opening. It reminded me that children are born into a world of technology, so they can adapt to it more quickly than most adults. Also, it made me think that they have a right to learn how to use it at school as well as have access to it. We know that young children learn through interaction, and I believe the technology can help us accomplish this. In addition, I was surprised of the statistics the video gave about the amounts of time 4-6 year olds spend with technology each day. I would love for my students to access to the smart board in preschool as well as multiple computers. I believe they could benefit from games, puzzles, videos, calendar, music, and stories provided on each.

Welcome

Hello! My name is Amanda Chambers, and I'm a senior at UT in the Early Childhood Education program. I will be licensed to teacher Pre-K and kindergarten. I'm currently learning how to incorporate more technology into the classroom. Even though my students are not yet able to read or write, I know how important the use of daily technology in the classroom is for them. I feel they should become familiar with it and very comfortable at a young age, because they are the next generation, which will take us to new levels of technology and it's abilities. During my internship, I spend several weeks in a kindergarten classroom, which daily used a promethean board (can be compared to a smart board). I was very nervous about using this with the students, but I had never seen or used one before. However, the five and six year old students always knew and could tell me exactly what I was doing wrong. Young children gain vast amounts of knowledge each day and technology is apart of that, which for most seems to come with ease. This is a skill I wish I had. In comparison, I have less skills and patience, but I hope to instill in them the importance and endless abilities technology can bring us in our classroom and in our lives!