I am overwhelmed by the amount of technology that is available. I think many teachers are also. New apps come out daily and there are 1000s to choose from. Which one should you use? What will help you the most and not take up all of your time? How will students use it? How do you get it into their hands? 10 years ago we wanted computers for our classrooms. Now we want iPads, CPS clickers, iPods, Kindles, and the list goes on and on. Where do you begin?
I spent hours looking at ideas, trying to decide where to start. I have an iPod touch at my home and I have to ask my kids how to use it. How am I going to teach my students how to use one? After watching the video on PBL - project based learning, from Learning at Hand http://learninginhand.com/ , I realized what my students are missing because I am overwhelmed by the questions. I need to find the answers. I think back to my classroom and how and where I need to motivate students to create the biggest impact. Where do students checkout because they are bored or simply don't show as much interest as I would like? Reading fluency, especially for low readers, and writing immediately came to my mind.
I Googled iPods and fluency and came up with a great article http://www.eusd4kids.org/edtech/pdf/iREAD_CUE2008.pdf . It talks about how iPod touches could be used to help improve fluency. This is definitely a challenge in 2nd grade. Students have a great idea of how to read the words, but they don't hear how they read. They need to hear themselves read. If students were given a tool that is exciting, they would be willing to read out loud. I would be able to listen to their recording any time. This is fabulous since Reader's workshop is centered on being able to listen to each student at least once per week. This isn't always possible, but with the help of iPods, maybe it can be. This would give me the chance to know what I needed to talk to the student about before meeting at the conference. They would be self motivated to improve their fluency and I would get an extra chance to ensure I am able to listen to every student every week. This could also guide my instruction. If several students had trouble with oi/oy words, I could integrate this lesson into my mini lessons that week. This would still be a significant cost to the district at $100-$300 each, however there are many grant options available if we only know where to look.
iPads became the second focus I searched trying to find the best mobile technology to use in the classroom. After watching several videos about iPads, one thing became clear, no one knows what you are reading. This is so very important in a second grade classroom. What I mean is the all important question - are you reading chapter books or are you still reading those baby books? I can't tell you how many students carry around a big chapter book in 2nd grade and they can't even read the title. It is a status symbol. Well, if they were carrying around an iPad, no one would have to know or be able to judge them. While I realize I am dreaming that every child in my second grade class is carrying around their iPad due to the cost ($300-$800 each), I can also see utilizing them on a smaller scale. If I had 5 in my class, I could use them as centers or rewards to use. I can have them for checkout, for students to take them home and work on reading projects. I could use them for a weekly checkout where each child would bring it back and forth to school each day and be able to read or play games at home. If they were reading, they wouldn't even need to have internet connection if it was a book we had already downloaded. The possibilities are endless.
Another interesting way to use iPads is in writing. Students can create their own storybook with apps like this books creator - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/book-creator-for-ipad/id442378070?mt=8 . Students tend to need extra motivation to write stories - if they could be creative and see their story come to life, I feel we would see amazing results in their motivation.
I love your ideas for integrating the iPod Touch and iPad into your classroom! One thought I had while I was reading your idea of assessing your students' reading fluency with the iPod recording, was I wonder if students will actually read more fluently while being recording than when having a teacher sitting by them. I would think maybe they wouldn't feel so much pressure, relax and read more freely. Just a thought! I completely relate and agree with your opinion of the iPad allowing students to read at their level and not have the pressure of everyone knowing their reading level. This is an issue at the 6th grade level also. Especially, when I have students reading over three grades below level. They will carry around popular chapter books, that they never read or understand. As a school, we allow students to bring their own e-readers, and I have a high percentage of students that bring them and use them daily. The number of students with e-readers always seems to increase significantly after Christmas! I love that! I would really like to have a few iPads or e-readers available to check-out to my struggling readers. I believe it would be motivating and beneficial for them in so many ways.
ReplyDeleteCheryl,
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of policies would you have for checking out? This is something that I have wondered. How do you check out something so expensive? Do you start with parent approval? What happens if it is lost or stolen? These are some questions I have been considering.
What a great idea to have students use ipods to hear themselves read AND what a great way to access what your students needs when you listen. As a teacher, I also find it hard to integrate technology I don't know how to use. I teach high school math, a subject that can be difficult for students. If those same students can show me how to use or "fix" a device, it gives them confidence to try the math.
ReplyDeleteMargaret,
ReplyDeleteI admire the fact that you admit that you are somewhat overwhelmed by all of the new educational technologies that are coming out. You are correct in saying that it is hard to keep up. I teach in a high school in which we have laptops for every student and staff member. While they are great to use in class, they can easily cause me as teacher to lose focus of the overall objective of the class. Sometimes I do too much technological integration and other times not enough. I think the key is to keep working on improving your teaching while integrating the technology. Don't give up or get complacent. Have an open mind and good things will happen. When we first got the laptops there was a mixed bag of responses from the teachers. Some liked them, others were intimidated by them, and many more had no clue how to use them. After a year or so, I noticed that there were several teachers who had yet to take a leap of faith with the laptops. Instead of attempting to integrate them, they simply refused to use them. They closed their minds and continued to teach how they always had. While many of them were still great teachers, I couldn't help but wonder how much better they would be if they implemented the laptops into their classrooms. My advice would be to not be afraid or close minded when it comes to the technology. If you have a positive attitude toward the technologies and are open to learn from others (fellow teachers and even students) eventually you will get the hang of it. The better you get at utilizing the technology the more confident you will be to use it more and more in class. Pretty soon you will be amazed at how far you have come. Good Luck!