Finally.. the Final! :-)

yay! made it through another good semester... & to prove its the end, here is my Final Project, my portfolio!!

http://sites.google.com/site/mrsashleymalottportfolio/home

Would Socrates Approve of WebQuests?

I believe that Socrates would of approved in some ways of using WebQuests. Socrates strongly encouraged new and exciting ways to learn. Using a WebQuest in a class, is definitely a new and innovative way to learn. Socrates also liked the idea of asking lots of questions and being able to explore different ways of learning. By doing a WebQuest, a student is able to see many possibilities and ideas for solving a problem. I think that Socrates would of approved of the interesting way learning was being done through and the fact that lots of good questions were being answered and solved.

Irish Dance Presentation... =)

I did my presentation on Irish Dancing. This a topic that not everybody knows about, but that is very interesting to learn about. I have been Irish Dancing since 1995, my Dad has played the bagpipes since 1994, & my Mom, Sister, & whole family are very big into our Irish culture; so I thought this would be a great thing for me to share my knowledge of. This lesson could be taught around St Patricks Day in March, through a unit teaching the Irish culture.

Most of my effects & the music changed when I uploaded it as a GoogleDoc, but here is my PowerPoint Presentation on Irish Dancing...

Video Games.. & Learning?

Gee says that a good video game includes a lot of cognitive learning strategies, that are generally not learned in the classroom. He thinks these strategies should be taught & learned in the class, & that is one of the benefits of a good video game. He says a good video game will not be so easy the player becomes uninterested or bored, & not so hard that they give up.

I see both sides of the big debate on using computer and video games in the classroom, and have an opinion that is basically right in the middle. I know that different skills & strategies can be developed through video games, but I also know that learning can be done as good without playing a game. I have a hard time with them being used because teachers & parents can use them as a babysitter or time filler, & dont always pay 100% attention to what the child is doing. I also feel that some of the skills (like preparing for life outside of school) should be taught by a person, & not a machine. However, I do see the good aspects in how they can be a tool to enhance learning & reach children on a different level.

Scratch can be used in the classroom as a learning tool, to work on already developed skills; such as reviewing spelling words or math problems. The students are also able to learn through the aspect of creating a game, & reviewing the skills needed to know to play the game.

Blogging Activity Thoughts

I thought that the blogging activity with the students was a really neat & great idea. It was impressive to see how well they were able to communicate with us & each other using technology, such as the internet & a blog. I have not been out of school that long, but it still surprises me how much technology has changed & become such a big part of the curriculum. I always had computer classes during school, but we mainly learned how to type & make little projects. We were never allowed to use the internet until we got to High School. But even then, it was very protected & only for research purposes. We were never given the opportunity to blog with another class of students our age or college students! I think if we had blogged, it would of been an enjoyable & good learning experience. My only slight concern would be to always make sure that comments & blog postings are read over by the teacher first, before they are allowed to be posted (like how our comments needed approval). I would probably use blogging with my future class. It is a way for the students to receive more input, opinions, & to learn even more.

Scratch

Scratch Content Standards:

21C.S.PK-2.1: The student will access, analyze, manage, integrate, evaluate, and create information in a variety of forms using appropriate technology skills and communicate that information in an appropriate oral, written, or multimedia format.

RLA.6.1.13: Students will spell commonly misspelled words, easily confused words and words with irregular endings across the curriculum.



Here is the Scratch that I choose to Remix:


http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/pinkguin121/714323



I decided to change the background color, font type, & size of the cat. This made the scratch look more visually appealing & easier to look at.



Here is the Scratch after I Remixed it:

http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/mrsmalott/793450

Irish Dance Presentation

I am trying to upload my Power Point before class, like we are supposed to.. but I do not know how to. It will not let me from the Google Docs & I do not know where else it would get uploaded from or how to do it. I have been trying for awhile now, & I guess I will have to wait to class to do it. sorry!