Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity My goal is to teach students how use the internet to take virtual field trips to use this tool effectively.
Resources needed to facilitate this goal: Ask colleagues about successful virtual field trips they have done in their classes. Go online to discuss with other teachers what virtual field trips worked for them and were the most educational and interesting. Select virtual field trips that are aligned to the state standards as well.
I have discussed virtual field trips with a few colleagues, but need to ask others what works for them. As budget cuts continue, I feel this will be something for the future. Actually, I teamed with a teacher and we did a virtual field trip to Plimoth Plantation. They actually did a webcast; they were interviewed and answered as if they were still in that time. I really want to find more that will hold that type of attention with my students.
Model Digital-Age Work and Learning: My goal will be to communicate information and ideas to students, parents, and peers using email, classroom website, and classroom blogs.
Resources and materials needed: I will need to get with our technology director to understand how to set up a blog the most secure way. Also, I want to know the easiest way to monitor this, and to be able to read comments prior to posting on the blog. I would also view other teacher’s blogs as well as search online to understand how other third grade teachers use their blogs as well.
In order for the email to parents to work, I will need to get the email of parents at the beginning of the year, and then test it out to be sure I have the correct emails
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Lesia,
ReplyDeleteVirtual field trips are so awesome! I am not sure what grade you teach but when I taught fifth grade, I took them on a virtual field trip to Mount Vernon. It was great! The students got to see all the different parts of the area and to see where George Washington lived. We were lucky to actually be able to visit the place because it was so close to our school after we did the virtual trip. The students went on the actual field trip with so much knowledge and were able to go on the tours with ease because they knew where buildings were located and what they could see. Although, it was very hard to get funds to go on that trip and I can only imagine that it will become more of a challenge. Virtual field trips are a solution to that problem.
Mount Vernon Mansion Tour
http://www.mountvernon.org/virtual/index.cfm/ss/29/
The Teacher’s Guide to Virtual Fieldtrips
http://www.theteachersguide.com/virtualtours.html
HanNa Chung
Lesia,
ReplyDelete"Ask colleagues about successful virtual field trips they have done in their classes. Go online to discuss with other teachers what virtual field trips worked for them and were the most educational and interesting."
For me, the second action is really my only option. With regard to technology, I am probably the most knowledgable person at my school. It is kind of scary. In order for me to get sound advice and ideas about virtual field trips I would most certainly have to go online. Which brings me to my question. How many people do you think you could seek out in your own school who would be able to help you with virtual field trip ideas? I subbed for nearly 3 years in several different districts and rarely came accross a teacher who really made a serious effort to make technology an integral part of their classroom. Sure most of them used SMART boards, but generally they were only used to display powerpoints. I can only think of a handful of teachers that instituted the types of resources we have been learning about in our program.
Brandon
Lesia, I have done a lesson for kindergarten using virtual field trip. We went on a "Voyage of the Mayflower" and afterwards drew our own picture of the Mayflower. They children loved it and were able to answer my questions at the end of the lesson. Virtual field trips are excellent for students of all learning levels.
ReplyDeleteScholastic.com has a lot of Virtual Field trips. The one I used for this lesson is found at:
http://www.scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving/voyage/
Best of luck to you,
Lynn
In my experience, I have found that email is a very effective way to communicate with some parents. Just be aware from the get go, some people do not check regularly so it is not nearly as effective as just making a phone call to them. Some of my parents and I communicate on an almost daily basis. One of the really neat aspects of the email communication is that my students and their families can have access to me after school hours. If they have a question about their homework assignment, they can send me an email and I will usually get back to them before the end of the night or early the next day at school. Another really great thing about email is that I can send a quick “your child is having a great day” email without having to engage in a lengthy phone conversation.
ReplyDeleteHaving a classroom blog/website can be a lot of work but is a great resource for students and parents alike. You can post a lot of useful information on a classroom page that students will then have access to at home. Having things like homework assignments, calendars, extra worksheet copies, and useful links will allow your students to have access to the classroom from home. Once it becomes a daily part of your routine, it will be a great tool!