Technology-enhanced Lesson

I had the opportunity to teach my third graders about commas. I specifically taught them about using commas for separating the day and the year in a date, separating cities and states, and also the use of commas when addressing a person. I was able to teach the whole class with the aid of the Promethean board. I made a small presentation which included the rules for the different uses of commas. For each rule I included some examples that so that the students could see exactly what I was talking about. For instance, when I showed them the rule about using commas to separate a city from a state, I included, "Seattle, Washington" or "Dallas, Texas." The Promethean board made it so that all of the students could see the new material at the same time, it also made it easier on me. I did not have to write out each rule on big posters or paper; all I had to do was type things and expose it on the Promethean board. After going through some examples, I decided to let the students show me what they learned. I wrote some sentences on the Promethean board with the special pen you use on it. The sentences included dates, cities and states, and examples of addressing people. None of these sentences included the commas which were needed. The students had the opportunity to go up and use the pen to fill in the missing commas on the Promethean board. This was so neat because I was able to see if the students really understood the concept. It was also neat because it included a lot of interaction and the students were so excited to use the Promethean board; I know that this kept their interest. Something that I know would be hard if I had simply explained the rules of commas.

Possible Lesson

Something that I have really liked seeing during the practicum is the use of the Promethean board. I think it is great because many students are visual learners. I think that I could make a lesson on lets say, contractions, much more inviting by allowing the students use of this board. For example, after I have taught students how you make a contraction, that is you combine two words like "is" and "not" and substitute the O with an apostrophe, I could have the students come up and actually use the special pen that the Promethean board uses to do that themselves. They could model to the class the crossing off of the letter O and adding an apostrophe between the N and the T. Their end result would be a new, shortened word. If asked, students could also underline or circle important things or rules, that help them remember contractions. This could make them feel more responsible for their learning, because they will want a chance to go up and apply their knowledge onto the Promethean board. I think that the Promethean board will also give me a better feel for if the students are understanding the material or not because of their participation or lack of. Not only that but students love to use technology, so anytime they are given a chance to do so, will get them much more excited to learn.

Technology Inventory

I have had a blast at my elementary school. My teacher is great and my students are great! I have had some opportunities to observe my teacher use technology. I noticed that she mostly uses her Mac and her Promethean board. This way the students can all see what she is doing as she is doing it. Her favorite programs include Word and Power Point; she does most of her lessons on these. I found it surprising to see a telephone in the classroom. I think it is a great idea because parents may need to get a hold of their children, and this makes the process easier. Besides that, if an emergency comes up, a phone would be very helpful.

The school is well equipped with computers, and there are two computer labs. My third graders mostly visit the computer lab to work on YPP. YPP is a program with activities that helps them prepare for the end of the year test. I also thought it interesting that students will be doing their end of the year test on computers. It seems like only yesterday I was doing my end of the year test, but I definitely did it on paper with my special number two pencil. Technology has obviously improved and really fast.

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