Chapter 11: Generating and Testing Hypotheses

One of the math projects that I typically have my students complete at the beginning of the year requires them to keep track of a budget. I tell my students that they earn "X" number of dollars at their job, as well as how many children they have (if any). Students are told to document how much money they spend per week on various household items, utilities, car/transportation, housing, and "extras." Students always record their information in a pre-made sheet, but I think that using Spread Sheet is a better idea. Students can create their columns and enter in their data. Students will also learn how to use the formula function within the program. This will make the data collection process much easier for the students, and grading much easier for me.

With science, and even math, I love using Vernier probes and my graphing calculator. These tools allow students to immediately observe what is happening, and they can also predict what will happen with the next trial. It's fun to do investigations with miniature cars. Students create ramps from textbooks and rulers, and race their cars down the ramps at different inclines. Students use the probeware to determine speed and distance. They can record their results, adjust their incline, and predict what will happen with the next run. Students enjoy using the probeware because it does most of the work for them. I always have them record their data and re-create the graphs that they saw on the calculator.

Chapter 10: Homework and Practice

My principal doesn't encourage teachers to give students homework, for fear that it will never get done or that textbooks will be lost forever. This makes it difficult for students to practice skills at home, unless teachers photocopy assignments to hand-out and pray that they return. In order for students to practice, and practice the skill often, I like to have my students do a lot of research on math related concepts (and now I will also require it for science concepts as well). Students typically do their research on our designated lab days, which only happen to be once a month...then they have to wait their turn for the student computer in the classroom unless I can gain access to one of the mobile labs. When my students have done research in the past, I've always sent them to Google or Bing. I guess that I'm one of the teachers that the authors referred to in that I didn't know there was a research option within Word. When my students complete research projects this year, that will be the first place that I send them.

To practice skills and new concepts repeatedly, I often use BrainPop. This program has a lot of great mathematical concepts developed into easy to understand (and follow) video clips. The students like the videos because they are all animated. When I use BrainPop as a review, or an introduction even, I have my students take notes in their journals. We usually watch the video clip two times...The first time, students are completely engaged, listening to the information being presented. The second time, students are busy taking notes over what they are hearing and seeing. Once we have watched the video clips twice, we discuss them as a class and then complete the short quiz that follows the video. I have never had the students complete the video online, as I want individual results. I always print the quiz off and run copies for all students. This is a fun and different way to keep the students engaged.

Chapter 9: Identifying Similarities and Differences

As a teacher, I often rely on Microsoft Word to create many documents...along with Excel. I think that using these two programs as a means of creating graphic organizers and comparison tables/charts is very useful. Graphic organizers are a great way to get students to remember content, especially new content which they were not introduced to in the previous year. Graphic organizers can be used to compare and contrast objects, such as biotic and abiotic organisms in science. Excel can be used to compare animals, planets, plants, heights, etc. Once students are familiar with entering data into the program, they can even use it to enhance their charts by figuring in calculations as well.

I am very excited to try Inspiration this year. I love the idea that I can create graphic organizers for my students, or allow them to do so themselves, and even add graphics to them. This will be an effective learning tool for the students, as well as myself. Teaching new science concepts can be a difficult task, especially if students struggle with the terminology. Being able to add pictures to the graphic organizers will help tremendously. The only drawback I see to having the students use Inspiration themselves is that they cannot do it from home. Many of my students do not have computer access outside of school, so I could never have them create a graphic organizer from home. Also, being able to have access to enough computers while at school is sometimes an issue.

Chapter 8: Reinforcing Effort

Many students, especially in this day and age, have the idea engraved in their minds that if they don't do well in school it's because their parents never did well when they were growing up. Students have a difficult time relating the amount of time and effort that they put into an assignment, or even the attention that they give a lesson, to achievement. I really found the idea of using Spread Sheet to show students just how effort and achievement are tied together. I think that having students keep track of the amount of time and effort they put into an assignment or class per week is a wonderful idea. I often hear from students,"Why did you give me that grade? You want me to fail, don't you?" It's never,"Man, I guess I didn't try hard enough. I'll have to do better next time." If students had a Spread Sheet in which to document how much effort was afforded to each task, I think that they would better understand the relationship. Creating a Spread Sheet isn't a time consuming task, so it wouldn't be difficult to have something like this ready for the start of the year. Students could paste it into their journals each week, and document their effort. Students could then use the results to create a graph so that they can visually see what they might need to improve upon.

Along with the Spread Sheet, using SurveyMonkey to create an effort survey would be a great idea. I've never used this particular program, but I'm willing to give it a try. It's important for me to teach students that grades are earned, not given, and that if the effort isn't there then they are going to receive the grade that's most appropriate. It would be interesting to see how students respond, especially if done the first week of school, to the questions on the survey. Using the survey at the beginning of the year would give me an idea as to how the students feel that they perform in school and on homework assignments. I think that this type of survey would be most helpful to students if given at least twice during the year. Students should complete the survey within the first week of school, and then again around semester break. I think that they would have a different opinion about the amount of effort that they put into something if they could compare the two surveys...especially after having been in school for an entire semester.

Chapter 7: Cooperative Learning

Seeing that I will be teaching science this year, for the first time in 7 years, I would like to do something different with my students. I like the idea of using student-created videos to enhance a curricular topic. While this process requires a lot of pre-planning and preparation on the part of the teacher, I think that it would be benificial to the students in the long run. I would like to have students create short video clips in which the demonstrate chemical reactions or even how density columns work. Students would have different responsibilities during the creation of the video clips, working together to produce a solid presentation. I think that it would also be interesting to have the students use multimedia to create some type of interactive journal for future use in the classroom or preceding grade levels.

I also find the idea of keypals very interesting. I've had students in previous years write letters to students in Minnesota, discussing math concepts and comparing processes of instruction and learning. I think that having students use ePals, or even a blog, to keep in contact with students in Minnesota or other states or countries would be benificial. The students could discuss science concepts, such as weather conditions, and journal or blog about the differences in each state/country. This would give the students an opportunity to better understand the types of weather conditions, especially during the different seasons (since our area rarely sees snow, for example). Students could then use their information obtained from their ePals to create charts, or even to complete a compare/contrast graphic organizer.

Chapter 6: Summarizing and Note Taking

To enhance the note taking that takes place within my classroom, I would like to incorporate Power Point to create combination notes. I think that all students, if they aren't already familiar with it, should be able to create a power point presentation at some point. Using Power Point as a means of taking notes and adding graphics to those notes would tackle two areas for teachers...familiarizing the students with Power Point and teaching another way to go about taking notes in class. I think though, just as the authors stated, it's necessary to set rules for the note taking. Students, just as some adults, tend to write down every word that is said or every piece of information that they read in a text. It's important to teach the students that unnecessary information should be deleted...only key points should be recorded. Students should also be taught how to locate clip art, or other forms of graphics, that will accurately portray their information and assist their memory recall.

I would like to try to use Wikis or blogs with my students this coming year. I do see a lot of problems with this, however. On my campus, not many of the students have access to a computer outside of school....none within the household, and some aren't able to go to the public library. If students only have access to a computer at school, and it's very limited access, blogs and wikis may not be a successful tool. I suppose that setting up a blog for students to use only during projects would suffice, except that I'm worried that they will forget passwords and usernames every time that they are used...since they would be used so intermittently.

Chapter 5: Nonlinguistic Representation

Because I require my students to keep up with a mathematics journal, and now a science journal starting this year, I think that using the software provided through Inspiration would make the process a lot easier. The students would be able to enter their notes, or other data, into the program and then neatly organize their information. Because many of the students, and myself included, often understand definitions more thoroughly when pictures are provided, the students could also use the Inspiration software to incorporate graphics into their notes. This would be a much easier way of notetaking for the students, and it also enables them to become more familiar with the computer and its many functions.

Previously, I have used Vernier probes in my math class to demonstrate temperature changes and speed. I think that these tools are wonderful, and when used with a graphing calculator, they provide students with easy to read data. These tools also save time...allowing students and teachers to focus on the concept of the lesson, and the TEK, rather than drawing every chart and graph by hand. Some students have difficulties labeling the x-axis and y-axis correctly, and knowing which one is dependent and which is independent. Using the Vernier probes resolves that issue for children, while getting them used to seeing the appropriate placement of each. Eventually, students should be able to construct such a graph without the use of so much technology, but in a technological society (and job force) it's necessary to know how to use the probes and read the results.

Chapter 4: Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers

Knowing that students have difficuly remembering how a particular assignment is supposed to be done, or what is expected of them, I like the idea of using a rubric to guide the students. I have tried this before, with some success. I think that the rubrics I've used previously haven't been very successful because they were done by hand and not very easy to follow. I like the idea of using spreadsheet software to create a rubric for the students to follow. I could incorporate different sections for each portion of the project, along with examples of what constitutes the alloted point value. I think that this would greatly assist students in creating their best project.

Using Kidspiration or Inspiration as a means of creating organizers for students sounds helpful. Showing students that they already know something about what they are going to study (activating their prior knowledge), will help them to delve deeper into their understanding and learning of a new topic. I like the idea of using Kidspiration to create organizational tools which cue students. I think that it would be benificial to also use Kidspiration or Inspiration to inclue graphics along with the text, helping students to better activate their prior knowledge. I think that students should also be allowed to access these online programs to create their own graphic organizers. This would also be helpful when it came to taking notes on a new topic. Currently, my students all keep journals for math class, and will do the same for science class. Rather than write everything out in their journals, I think that I am going to have them use the computers (whether it's Excel, Work, Inspiration, Kidspiration) to create graphics and organizers to go along with their journal entries.

Chapter 3: Providing Recognition

Students love being recognized for a job well done...just as adults do. I usually recognize my students for their effort and improvement by verbally praising them, patting them on the back, giving them a high-five, or writing a certificate out by hand. I found the idea of voice email to be interesting. I think that students, if they have access to a computer at home, school, or the public library, would appreciate such recognition. Many of the students today have email accounts, some of them multiple ones. I know that I always ask my students about their access to computers when school first starts. I may attempt to use the idea of voice email as a way to recognize student improvement/success. If students do not have an existing email account, it wouldn't be difficult to set them up with a free email account (with the permission of the parents). This would enable me to not only recognize them for their achievement, but also send updates or reminders regarding assignments.

Again, I like the Classroom Response System as a means of recognizing students for their effort and achievement. Once the students have completed an assignment using the "clickers," all I have to do is choose which type of summary I would like to print. This provides me with all of the information needed to show students where they excelled and where they struggled. Another program that I love, which isn't listed in the book, is Fast Math. This program allows teachers to print individual certificates for students as they reach their determined goal with their math facts. The students love getting personlized certificates to show their achievements.

Chapter 1:Setting Objectives

KWL, or KWHL, charts are an excellent means of gathering information based on how students feel about a topic of study. Prior to beginning any new lesson in class, I always have my students complete a KWL chart in order to determine what they remember from previous years. It gets to be rather tedious when I have to draw out a KWL chart and then run copies for every unit. I like the idea of having students create a KWL chart using a word processing application, such as the draw tool in Microsoft Word or even Excel. This teaches the students how to use the features within such programs, while enabling them to digitally create and even fill-in their own chart. Once the students have created their charts and filled-in their information, the charts can be printed...saving the teacher a lot of work. The only drawback I see is that my campus doesn't have enough computers (working computers) for all students to use as needed. Students could use the mobile labs, but there is no capability of printing from these mobile labs. I only have one student station in my classroom, so it would take a huge amount of time for them to accomplish this task in the classroom.

Another program that I think would be very helpful in my classroom is Inspiration. I like my students to brainstorm ideas prior to beginning a lesson, as well as throughout. Being that I'm also going to be teaching science this year, I think that Inspiration would be very benifical to my classroom. The students can easily use Inspiration to create various charts or webs for organizing their information. Inspiration could also assist me, and my students in keeping track of our individual and class goals for each lesson or unit of study.

Chapter 2: Providing Feedback

Microsoft Word is a common program that many students are at least somewhat familiar with, and that all teachers have used at some point during their careers. I use Microsoft Word every day, and find that the Track Changes and Insert Comments features are extremely helpful. I implement these features when writing my own college essays for my principal program, and have seen how useful they are in editing papers. I think that these two features would be of great use when my students are working on papers in math class and science class. As they write short essays, or even create brochures or other documents, this feature can allow me (or other students) to insert comments as to how they might improve their writing assignments. This provides them with immediate feedback, whether positive or critical, and helps them to improve their skills. This would also enable the students to practice critiquing others and working as "editors."

I also find that Classroom Response Systems are extremely useful. My campus has 3 sets of "clickers" available for use by the teachers. I tend to check a set of clickers out for my classroom when we are preparing for tests/quizzes. It's very easy to enter questions into the database, and compose the type of review or game that you are wanting to use. As we review for our tests/quizzes, students typically have their own "clicker" which they use to answer the questions. I always time the students, which gives them an opportunity to compete with one another. I really like the fact that Classroom Response Systems allow a teacher to keep students' names hidden from view. It eliminates the fears and uncomfortableness of the students when they know that other students cannot see how they responded to a question. When the reviews are finished, students love seeing how the class did as a whole, as well as how they did individually. Sometimes, I tell the classes that if the group reaches at least an 85% passing rate on the review then they can have freetime the following day. This always results in students encouraging other students to do their best. There are times when the students will even provide hints to classmates in hopes that they will respond correctly. Another feature I love about this type of program is that there is no grading to be done by me. The Classroom Response System grades everything once the review/game/quiz is complete. You can print out class averages, student averages, or even a summary of how students performed on particular questions. It's great!

A Vision of K-12 Students Today

This video really touched my heart and soul. When I was growing up and going through school, everything was done through paper-pencil method, with very little access to computers. As a teacher in the "digital age" of education, I make every attempt possible to incorporate some form of technology into my classroom teaching. I understand the importance of teaching children how to create multimedia presentations, but sometimes there isn't enough time...terrible excuse, I know. Only having one computer lab, and one mobile lab that actually works, it's difficult for teachers to grant their students access to computers. I always try to incorporate multimedia into the projects that my students create, only offering assistance in navigation and initial setup. Students today definitely need to be able to create, nagivate, and understand technology in all its forms in order to be successful and compete with other nations...as well as to be competitive in the job market. By not allowing students the freedom to be creative, using what they know and already have in their possession, teachers are doing a disservice to them.