Field-Based+Activities+Monthly+Report-April+2010

Week 1, 2, 3 (Discussing and creating the PK report card in Excel) TF-II. C-1, F-1; TF-IV. B-1; TF-V. C-1; TF-VIII. D-1, E-1 TF-I. B-1; TF-IV. A-1, B; TF-V. C-1, C-6, C-7 I discussed the possibility of creating the PK report card using technology with my Site Mentor because we now complete them by hand. She had done this when she was a PK teacher (no longer had it) and stated this would be a great idea. I then discussed this possibility with the three other PK teachers who thought this would be easier and would require less paper as we have to make copies of them before we send them home. They also agreed it would be easier to complete it on the computer because we have to use different colors of ink for each six weeks. I then asked our principal about the project who quickly agreed without me having to explain the pros of it. I am wondering if this is the best program to use for this project but discussions with my Site Mentor ruled out PDF. I am also hoping it will be easier to complete. I think the worst part of this project is still to come - finalizing the layout so I can add the borders. This activity will help me master the listed standards/indicators because I will have to continue to use Excel and therefore master its components. In moving the report card from paper to technology, I am improving teachers productivity.

Week 4 (Helping 2 PK students create letter C video in Animoto) TF-I. A-1, A-2; TF-I, B-1; TF-III. A-1, A-5, A-7, C-1, D-1, E-1; TF-IV. A-1, C-2; TF-V. C-1, C-5, C-6; TF-VI. A-1 My freshman son had to create a video using Animoto and this was the first I had ever seen of the program. I decided it looked easy enough for PK students to use so I chose two of my highest students to co-create a video for the letter c. Since this was the first time they would use the program, we use the pictures provided by Animoto. We went through each section and they chose words that began with the letter c. They then typed the word on their own while I assisted on helping them sound out the word. They chose their own music and were so excited when they viewed the finished video for the first time. I am planning on having groups of students create a video for all the letters of the alphabet. During this project, I learned that even PK students are excited to use technology and can learn how to navigate through this easy program and the keyboard. I did emphasize the need to practice using the keyboard by showing them how I could type fast without looking at it. I am mastering these standards/indicators because I am planning technology curriculum, applying technology to increase productivity (both by increasing my students use of technology and having students create videos to help future students learn about the letter c), and using the project as a means to assess and evaluate my students knowledge of the letter c beginning sound. I also explained that there were certain moral, ethical and legal issues that we had to consider when using pictures.

Week 5 (Helping 2 PK students use digital camera to take photographs to use in letter S video using Animoto) TF-I. A-1, A-2; TF-I, B-1; TF-III. A-1, A-5, A-7, C-1, D-1, E-1; TF-IV. A-1, C-2; TF-V. C-1, C-5, C-6; TF-VI. A-1 I shared my students' letter c Animoto video with my Site Mentor and she was excited to see that I was educating PK students in the use of technology. She suggested that I move them towards using a digital camera to photograph items around the school that began with the letter, therefore adding another technology element to their repertoire. I used the same students as I did with the letter c video and showed them how to use a digital camera. They have now become proficient in turning it on, centering and using the close-up and wide angle feature of the camera. They were very excited when they were able to skip quiet time to wander around the school in order to find items that began with the letter s. I was amazed at all the items they found that I overlook each day. Although I did not let them upload the pictures themselves, I did explain the procedure as I completed it. They were very happy to discover that they did not have to search through pictures to find words that began with the letter s - they quickly appeared and all they had to do was type the word for the item. I again let them type the words for themselves and was pleased to discover how they went about trying to spell the words. Not only did they find some of the words around the room, they found words that rhymed and changed the spelling, they used books they remembered seeing the word in, and they also remembered some of the rules I had discussed in the first lesson (e at the end makes the vowel say its name). I am mastering these standards/indicators by adding another element of technology, allowing them more use of the technology and reinforcing the social, ethical and legal issues when photographing by explaining that we could not take pictures of peoples' faces and/or names without having the appropriate permission.