EDLD+5366+Discussion+Boards


 * Week 1**




 * Week 2**

We should start teaching students about self-branding as soon as possible. Most students come in with a brand but it is not necessarily one they have chosen. Even in Pre-Kinder, I have students that have already been branded by their family. They have already been branded as an athlete, cheerleader or troublemaker. I want to brand them as capable of achieving anything and as life-long learners. “Brand discovery is about figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life, setting goals, writing down a mission, vision and personal brand statement (what you do and who you serve), as well as creating a development plan.” (Schawbel, 2009). These are the concepts about self-branding that are important but they may be a little difficult for young students to understand. They might take these concepts literally but because your brand can change over time, they can choose general brands such as being honest, an achiever or driven. Strategies I would use to teach branding would be patience and reflection. Students need to realize it will take a great deal of time to reflect on their self to create a brand. I would also make sure to emphasize the fact that EVERYONE will be able to see their “brand” whether they know it or not. They need to think before they do anything. Branding can be used in an educational environment in several ways. It can be used to identify students work and accomplishments. It can be used to log into certain programs and use internet tools. They can use it when applying for scholarships or grants. They can use it to discover who they are or who they want to be in the future. Schawbel, Dan. "Personal Branding 101: How to Discover and Create Your Brand." Social Media News and Web Tips – Mashable – The Social Media Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2010. []. ** Week 3 **     What are the implications for using animation in the K-12 classroom?

Because they are digital natives, animation is generally what most students see in their every day life. The more we can bring this into the classroom, the more our students will learn. Animation is what entertains them so if we can bring this into the classroom, they will be more apt to learn what we need to teach them. Animation is also able to reach students with various learning styles, learning pace and language abilities.

How can animation bring the “real world” to the classroom?

I am speaking as a pre-kinder teacher so this will be easy. Animation is a wonderful tool for bringing understanding to students who have not had many real life experiences. Trying to explain the concept of plant growth along with the parts of a plant is easier when you have animation to show roots and growth over a period of time. I also love having animation to help explain vocabulary, i.e. the difference between walk and run.

How can you use Bloom’s Digital taxonomy with your co-workers?

I am one of about 50 teachers on my campus who use technology on a regular basis. Each class was recently asked to create a class book for purchase by our parents. I had my PK students form each letter of the alphabet using an item that began with that letter (b out of buttons) then take a digital photograph of it. We used these pictures to create our Letter Detective book and also incorporated graphs of the first letter of our names using Graph Club. The students then practiced handwriting by writing sentences for each letter (B is for button). We are now in the process of using those same pictures and sentences to create an Animoto video in which the students are using a keyboard I color-coded to type the sentences themselves. I would like to have my co-workers compare the vocabulary and objectives in Bloom’s Digital taxonomy with the regular Bloom’s taxonomy vocabulary and objectives in order to realize that they can teach the concepts they need to teach by incorporating various forms of technology just as I did with our class book.

What impact does educational gaming have on the educational community?
 * Week 4 **

Educational gaming not only increases knowledge but it can allow students to fail in a safe environment. This increases the chances that they can handle disappointment in a better manner and learn to keep trying. They can learn to test their limits and think outside the box to solve problems. It will increase hand/eye coordination and memory skills also. Because our digital natives are entertained in this manner, it will be easier for a teacher to keep their attention when teaching a concept. Educational games can also teach students how to interact and work cooperatively with others. They can also show them how alike they are and discourage prejudice by having them realize that students with different backgrounds, beliefs, economic status, etc. also like to play the same games.

How would you assist your co-workers in unpacking the potential in educational gaming?

Inform teachers of how to properly choose an educational game, make them readily available and model how they can be used in an educational setting.

What questions would you ask when evaluating an educational game prior to using it in a classroom?

What educational experience will the student gain? Is it age/level appropriate? Is it easy to use/understand? Will it push the students limits? Will there be graphic/accessibility problems? Will the students be able to use this as whole group/peers/individually?

"Gaming in Education." Web Hosting Reviews :: WideOpenDoors.net. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2010. [].

Today's classrooms are becoming more academically diverse in most regions of the United States (and elsewhere, for that matter). Many, if not most, classrooms contain students representing both genders and multiple cultures, frequently include students who do not speak English as a first language, and generally contain students with a range of exceptionalities and markedly different experiential backgrounds. These students almost certainly work at differing readiness levels, have varying interests, and learn in a variety of ways. Based on your readings for the week and the activities that you have completed in this course, describe 4 strategies you would use to assist teachers/co-workers with creating a personal plan for implementing technology-supported instruction for diverse learners. 1. Survey the teachers on what technology they know, use regularly and are curious about using along with some of the concepts they find more difficult to teach. 2. Provide information on the various forms of technology that I have used during this course, such as stykz, googledocs and publisher via our weekly staff meetings or video (which our instructional technologist does regularly). 3. Model some of the technology-supported instruction I have used in my PK class (digital camera use, video creation, ipods for listening station, keyboard use, etc.) 4. Work with each grade level to create technology-supported activities focusing on some of the harder concepts to get across to students.
 * Week 5   **

Northeast Regional Educational Laboratory. (n. d) Meeting the needs of diverse learners. Retrieved from http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/pub/sec3.pdf