Assignment+2

Assignment #2: How ﻿ I have integrated technology in the classroom
Lesson One: Grade Level: Kindergarten Subject: Reading - Word Families Technology Used: SmartBoard WV CSO- RLA.O.K.1.04- use basic elements of phonetic analysis (e.g., common letter/sound relationships, beginning/ending consonant sounds, short vowel sounds, word patterns).

Description:

In this lesson, students used a pre-made SmartBoard lesson to match a picture with the correct beginning sounds and a word family. For instance, students would be shown a picture of a frog and given the ending -og. They would then have to take their finger and find the correct beginning sound (fr) and drag it to the lilypad with the ending -og written on it. If the students matched the beginning sound and word family correctly, they frog would jump off the lilypad. If their match was incorrect, the frog would say "try again." Once students matched all of the pictures and words correctly on one page, they would continue doing the same activity on the pages following.

Reflection: I loved this activity and ended up integrating it within other themes! What I loved most about this activity was that it required the students to not only identify a picture, but to match the correct beginning sounds and word families to create that word. I also loved that it was self-checking and I did not have to constantly watch the students to check for accuracy since the lesson gave them immediate feedback. In addition, I loved that students were able to use the SmartBoard independently and I feel that using technology GREATLY positively impacted the effectiveness of this activity by making it fun and interactive. The only change I would make would be to let the students spend more time at this center since they seemed to enjoy the activity and excelled!.

Lesson Two: Grade Level: 4th Subject: Social Studies Technology Used: SmartBoard/Internet WV CSOs: SS.O.3.4.4- name and locate states and capitals of the United States SS.O.3.4.1- construct and use the basic elements of maps and globes (e.g., title, legend, cardinal directions, scale, grid, parallels, meridians)

Description:In this lesson, students were learning about the states and their capitols. For the lesson, I used a pre-made SmartBoard lesson that required the students to label each state and its capitol. Students took turns coming up to the SmartBoard and labeling each state and its capitol. When a state and capitol were labeled correctly, the state lit up and a short audio clip would play listing important information about that state. I loved using this activity because students not only had to learn the geographic information of the each state but also were able to get a small bit of extra information upon labeling a state correctly. I was also able to ask students questions about the cardinal directions by asking them to locate a state north, south, east, or west of another state.

Reflection: I feel this is a great comprehensive activity for geography! Students seemed to enjoy the "trill" of labeling a state correctly and hearing the background information. The one change I would make would be for the SmartBoard lesson to require correct spelling of the state. This particular lesson would accept a state's abreviation (North Carolina = NC) and I would have prefered that students be required to spell each state correctly. I do feel that technology enhanced the effectiveness of this activity by making it interactive and by allowing every student to participate instead of having each student complete a worksheet independently. I was able to use this lesson several times throughout the unit and would even use this after the unit was completed if we had extra time before the bell rang, etc.  Lesson Three : Grade Level:Kindergarten Subject: Social Studies Technology Used: Computers/Paint WV CSO: SS.O.K.3.- give examples of occupations within the local community.

Description: In this lesson, students concluded their unit on "People in Our Community" by using a pre-made template on Microsoft Word to complete the sentence "When I grow up I want to be __." Students then used Paint to create a picture of what they wanted to be when they grew up. When students were finished, their pictures and sentences were printed, glued to large construction paper, and displayed in the hallway.

Reflection: Though I feel students greatly enjoyed this activity, I feel that many students lacked the necessary skills using software such as Paint to create a picture that was identifiable. Many students' pictures were messy and it was hard to determine what future career they wanted to have. Next time, I would consider using Microsoft Word for students to type a sentence or two about their future career but might have them draw a picture on paper OR wait until later in the year when they have gained computer skills to do this activity.Though I do feel this activity enhanced students computer skills, I do not feel it made the lesson more meaningful or effective for the students to create a picture on the computer.