Our First Podcast Is Here!

We completed our first podcast today! My student, A.B. tells a story about Wilbur from Charlotte’s Web. I used Audacity to record the sound file and podomatic.com to host the file. I have to do the work from home because podcasting sites are blocked at school.

I hope you enjoy our first podcast and stay tuned as we broadcast more stories from our classroom!

To listen to the podcast, go to the “podcasts” page (the tab is at the top of this page). And click on the picture of Wilbur. This will take you to our podomatic website. Once there, you can click on the play button or the “download” link.

You can subscribe to our RSS feed at the podomatic website and can be notified of new podcasts.

Great research coming out of England

I’ve got my eyes and ears on the CHAT researchers. I will post more later about this group and their research. You can see why they think technology should be used with preschoolers here: http://www.ioe.ac.uk/cdl/CHAT/index2.htm.

A Video on How a School in England is Using ICT with 3/4 Year Olds

This video features a school in England using technology with 3 and 4 year olds. http://www.teachers.tv/video/230

I will add my comments about this video later…

Why should my students podcast?

Altough this information is from Podium, a software program that allows you to make podcasts, it provides great information on why students should podcast. The site states this about letting students podcast:

In an educational context…

…podcasting can be used by both teachers and pupils and is attracting significant interest from all educational sectors. It is a fast, convenient, and low cost way to extend lessons both within and beyond the classroom. From simply recording existing lessons to developing new and extended course material, teachers and pupils alike can take advantage of the many benefits of downloadable content contained in educational podcasts. Using podcasting as part of a child’s daily educational routine has many potential advantages, including:

In the classroom

• Can be tailored to any curriculum area.
• Can provide bespoke materials to support any learning situation with audio material for learning “on demand”, at anytime and anywhere.
• Potential to support or extend the work of any pupil with special needs.
• Useful for children who miss sessions, e.g. due to illness.

At home and in the community

• Great community/school link potential.
• Could provide schools with an effective way to communicate with parents on a regular basis, e.g. regularly broadcast instead of / as well as a school newsletter
• Useful for those with a reading difficulty or for English as a second or third language.
• Could bring a whole new approach to homework, e.g. audio notes to reinforce learning.

For personalised learning – children benefit enormously from making a podcast

• It gives them a potential audience of thousands for their work and they can think about tailoring their podcasts for different audiences.
• Pupils must concentrate on their speaking and listening skills which will have consequential effects on their writing skills (writing scripts, setting up interviews etc).
• Publishing their own podcast is hugely motivating for pupils; also gives them a sense of ownership.
• In learning how to create a podcast, pupils are extending their ICT skills and capabilities to embrace new technologies.
• Podcasting can be tailored to a number of curriculum areas and is also great for developing teamwork skills.
• Podcasts can be interactive; the audience can be invited to send their comments, giving valuable feedback to the children about their work.

The site is at http://www.podiumpodcasting.com/whatispodcasting/index.html.

I will be reading up on the research on using podcasting in the classroom. I believe that my students can benefit greatly from making their own podcasts and I can’t wait to get started doing this with them.

One of the best sites I have seen for kids…

I found a great website while on Spring Break this week. It’s called The Better World Campaign. This site provides step-by-step video directions for kids on how to podcast, make movies, do whiteboard (ActiveBoard) activities, etc. They provide two different sections for students: elementary school and middle/high school.

One great video series is called, Assignment: Photo Movie. It can be found at

http://www.bteducation.org/resources/view.ikml?id=184

When you join the site (free) you can have access to the “start activity” page, a great page on learning how to make movies from digital photos. All of the step-by-step directions are via video. Perfect for young kids learning how to do movie making.

They also have video directions on how to make a podcast: http://www.bteducation.org/img/lib/dialogics/AssignmentPodcast/index.html This video features an animated ipod.

This page on the site provides a 8 animation videos on how to make a database, make a webpage, use LOGO, make mulitmedia presentations and spreadsheets, how to use word processing programs, how to use email, and how to use the internet. http://www.bteducation.org/resources/view.ikml?id=69

 I can’t wait to show my students the animation video on podcasting. I think it will help them when we start to make our own podcasts. We will be podcasting the stories that we write.

I highly recommend this site for any teacher or parent who wants to introduce using technology with children. This site also provides teachers with some great resources.

The Development of This Blog

Teaching in pre-k is unique. My student’s learning is contextual. They learn in context. They construct their own learning and my teaching is based on their unique interests. It really isn’t best for my students for me to teach on my own agenda. I have all of these cools ideas on how to incorporate technology into my classroom. My personal agenda could be to get my students to do a ton of technology -based projects but that would just be benefiting me and this blog. So I have decided to post my future plans/ideas in the “our work” section along with what we have done. Because of the nature of how I teach my students, and how they learn, the development of this blog could be slow going. I hope that you stick with us and subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for being patient as my students set the pace of their own learning.

Embarrassing Blogging Moments

I have found two grammatical errors today on my blog. Nothing could be more embarrassing than being an educator who has misspellings and grammatical errors on their blog. Should I offer a reward for anyone who can find my mistakes? Maybe hire a volunteer editor? Hmm…

We explored the LeapDesk today

Yesterday I had decided that I would show each child individually how to use the LeapDesk. Today became a different plan. Which is typically how pre-k works…I just go with the flow of my students. I called my first student over to the LeapDesk and before I began showing him how to cut it on, 5 students pulled up some chairs and joined us. My individual instruction became a small group instruction. I asked my students what they thought we should do first. “Cut it on!” I told my first student that the switch was in the back. He found it and cut it on. We listened to the LeapDesk talk to us but we still did not know what to do (of course, I knew but I wasn’t about to tell them). One student noticed that we had some game cards in a basket. She said, “what if we got that card?” I said, “Okay. Where does it go, I wonder?” Another student said, “Well, I guess there is only one place to put it. It must go in this place. It’s a big spot that matches the card.” I decided to give a little facilitation, “You’re right. The cards go in that slot. You have to slide it in the slot. When you have it in the slot the right way, the card will talk to you.” One student got the card and tried to slide it in the slot. It was upside down and nothing worked. One student offered, “try it the other way. Turn it around.” That tip worked and the students learned that the card has to go the right way in order to make it work. They said that the card can not be upside down. The LeapDesk told us some more things but we still did not know what to do. “I bet you can do something with those letters,” I suggested. Two students chimed in, “you can press them and that thing over there lights up with the letter.” “Can you take the letter off, Mrs.Wilcher?” “Yes. Are you thinking of using that letter for something?” I asked. “The card has a hole in it that looks like a shadow of the letter. You can put the letter in it.” “Go for it,” I encouraged. We continued to explore the LeapDesk in this student-led manner and the kids figured out how to use it on their own. They established their own rules for using the LeapDesk. Rule #1: You can’t loose the letters. Rule #2 You have to use a sticky note on the thing that lights up. Rule #3: “You can’t be fightin’ over it” The kids also decided how to play with the LeapDesk today. One student, a leader amongst her friends, told everyone that they could have two turns at writing a letter and then they had to give someone else a turn.

I am impressed today with the LeapDesk. I have a student with autism and one with delayed fine motor skills. My student with autism can paint letters at the easel but has never wanted to use a pencil. He used a pencil for the first time today (on his own) and wrote several letters while at the LeapDesk. My student with delayed fine motor skills has had a significantly hard time using a pencil. The LeapDesk helped him write letters he has never been able to write before. Am I a fan of tracing letters to learn how to write? I haven’t developed an opinion on this yet but have been leaning towards being against the idea. But the LeapDesk has helped two students grow in the area of Physical Health and Development and Language and Literacy. I’m giving the LeapDesk two thumbs up for now.

(Can you believe I found space in my classroom for another table?)

LeapFrog…Am I a Hypocrite?

I have listed how I feel pre-k teachers should use technology. And I always want to make sure that every item I place in my room, for the students to use, is age appropriate, reflects the guidelines set forth by Georgia’s Bright From the Start Program Quality Assessment standards (the “law of pre-k teachers”), and supports my curriculum, High Scope.

I want everything in my room to have educational value, purpose, and be meaningful to my students. So I have been pondering my thoughts about LeapFrog and similar types of technology toys and games. I have been examining my beliefs and trying to decide if they are appropriate for my students. I am cautious because these types of toys may just be advanced flash cards, worksheets, or drill and practice games…things that are inappropriate for my students.

Last year, we got a great surprise present from the County Office (the BOE). They purchased a LeapDesk and LeapMat from LeapFrog Schoohouse. Click on this link to read about the LeapDesk (Wow! $600.00! I just saw for the first time how much it cost!) Click here to read about the LeapMat. (Again, wow! $120.00!!!) I opened it, examined it with my students and packed it back up. The LeapDesk takes up a lot of room and I did not have the table space for it. It also seemed a little complicated and time consuming. I had to enter data for each student into the LeapDesk…something I did not have time for at the moment. Well, our media specialist got it out this week and played around with it. She said it was easy and had asked why I had not used it. I told her because I did not have the space and she sweetly offered me a table to keep it on. That same day, I got out the LeapMat and explored it with my students. I began by telling them it was a new game and I knew nothing about it. I narrated to them as I inserted batteries and told them my thoughts on what it might be. “It’s a game!” “You step on it!” “You cut it on up there at the top.” “You learn your ABC’s.” My students were very excited to tell me how to set it up and use it. In just a view minutes, we all had it figured out and were taking turns demonstrating it how to use it. It has now become the “hot new thing” at center time. My students have shown an interest in the alphabet recently through all of the letter games and writing we have been doing. The LeapMat is an excellent extension for that. Instead of introducing the LeapDesk in large or small group, I am taking each student through it one by one. I will post more about that journey in a few days. Both the LeapDesk and the LeapMat are a lot of fun for my students. These products seem to be in it for the long run for them and it looks like they will be very well used for the rest of the year. They both encourage active play and creativity (making up sound combinations, words, writing, etc). I am impressed with these products because they also adapt to every level of performance that I have in my class.

Another LeapFrog toy we have in our room is the Alphabet Pal Caterpillar This product is not purchased through LeapFrog SchoolHouse but a large retail company.  The Caterpillar lost its cool after a few days. It doesn’t do much. You press his foot and he tells you the letter. He can also ask you to find a letter. The kids got bored with it because it encourages passive play. I also believe it is an advanced set of flash cards and drill and practice game. So this toy must be inappropriate for my classroom, right?

So back to my thoughts on LeapFrog and other type products. If I have technology toys that encourage passive play, am I a hypocrite? I would love your thoughts on this as I examine all of the technology products in our classroom and as I determine which products to buy in the future.

Should I loosen up and include all technology toys because it is okay to just have toys that are fun and neat? Does everything in my room have to have a purpose? Is it necessary for my student’s learning that I be a purist and literalistic with the High Scope curriculum and the Georgia Bright From the Start Program of Quality Assessment? I would love your thoughts on this, too. What do you think? What do you in your classroom?

Added new things…

I added some new information to “look at what we’ve done!” There you can find my computer time management system and an example of how my students use a paint program.