Classroom at Home

VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS

            Technology has advanced and become so amazing over the years! Class got canceled due to the fact of the weather conditions, but we were still able to have "class." Our whole class participated in a virtual lesson. During this virtual lesson we were able to see a power point presentation, see our teacher, hear one another, and type in a group message. It felt as if we were all in the classroom together; meanwhile in reality, I was in my bed in pajamas. I really enjoy this experience because even though class was canceled we did not get to miss out on learning! Some other benefits of being involved in a virtual classroom is that it requires students to use many different skills such as: communication through text and vocally and multi-tasking. Having a virtual classroom can also make students and teachers more organized. There are many different papers and assignments assigned to a class and people could lose track of these items; however, having a virtual classroom will keep losing things to a minimum since everything is in one spot, online. Even though having a virtual classroom has so many benefits, I believe that it has some disadvantages as well.

        A virtual classroom is not the same as actually being in the classroom. Getting out of bed, getting dressed, and going to a classroom can set a whole different tone and mindset for class and learning. When someone has a routine he or she is more aware and ready to learn than those who are still in bed. Also, emailing and typing to communicated could be misguided. It is very easy for recipients to read a  message and have a different meaning towards the message than what the sender is actually trying to convey. Even though people communicate from online it is not the same as being face-to-face with someone and the relationship that is formed from this. Being in classroom, students and teachers get immediate responses and feedback, but online this can be a little delayed. There can be technological difficulties at any second. During our virtual class, my computer was delayed a few minutes compared to my roommate's and it took one girl about fifteen minutes to join the classroom.

        Technology is becoming a part of every day life more and more each day. It may take time to adjust to these changes, but overall technology is a very big part in teaching even if it is not a virtual classroom. Technology gives us many new  opportunities even though it has its disadvantages.

Early Americans

During fieldwork we were to teach three lessons: direct instruction, inquiry, and cooperative learning. The first day of fieldwork I taught my direct instruction lesson. During this lesson I covered 400 years of material from Americans from the first Americans through slavery and the first form of government. I had a PowerPoint presentation corresponding with the information being taught. Students had a graphic organizer to fill in the notes throughout this lesson. Throughout the lesson I would ask questions and check for understanding. However, I did not just call on one person I would call on multiple people before saying "very good!" When I finished teaching I did three guided practice activities. One was to match the Columbian exchange pictures, the next was to match vocabulary words, and the third went over the amendments. The last thing I did was assign and go over the independent practice which was to write a paragraph explaining what you learned using at least ten of the vocabulary words.

I believe the Direct instruction lesson went well; however, there is always room for improvement. I noticed that I did sound too rehearsed and that I should be talking with the students like a conversation instead of putting on a fake teaching voice. Also, when asking a question I can have groups discuss the answer and then call on a different group randomly each time. This will include everyone in the class and have everyone thinking of an answer instead of just one person. I can also have traffic colored index cards throughout the lesson  and have students hold up which color card they feel after material was taught. If I see a majority of red or yellow cards I know that I have to go back and reteach the material. With these few adjustments this would make my Direct instruction lesson better.

Here is a link to my Direct Instruction PowerPoint.

During my inquiry lesson I pretended that the library flooded and librarians needed their help to put books and articles back together. After reviewing information from the previous lesson and the inquiry method students were to work in groups to solve a problem. They had a graphic organizer to fill out their problem, hypothesis, research and findings and their conclusion. Students had to go through different research articles to pick out an invention that would be most beneficial for their assigned job. After, students got to share their findings with the class.

I believe this was a good lesson and activity for students to get a deeper understanding on how the inventions in the industrial revolution impacted and changed people's lives. I also believe that working in groups and sharing findings with the class is good because students learn from their peers. However, I do believe that  I should have followed the story about the library being flooded throughout the whole lesson because it engaged students.

Here is a link to my inquiry and cooperative learning PowerPoint.

During my cooperative learning lesson students were to work in groups to come up with their own invention. Before students could complete this activity I modeled the steps and my invention as well as how students should behave and work with each other in groups (PIGS). I also told them that if the invention met the requirements it would be able to be patent. This engaged students and they wanted to come up with the best invention. Once each group had an invention they got to share with the class their invention and how it would be beneficial to people. Students then got to vote on the best invention. For their independent practice assignment students had to fill out a group processing forum which required them to rate themselves and a group. They also had to complete a newspaper article persuading people why they should buy their invention.

I really enjoyed this lesson and could tell that students really enjoyed this lesson. I believe that my model and directions were clear and students worked well with each other in groups. However, I do believe that I was rushed for time and need to be more aware of the time while completing lessons.

Here is a link to my three lesson plans.

Authentic Teaching

Authentic teaching and learning connects students to what they are learning to the real world. Instead of having multiple choice questions or papers to write, student would do a project or complete an activity that will be beneficial to the real world. This allows students relate to what they are learning to the real world which engages students while learning. When students are engaged while being taught they remember more. During fieldwork when students had a real life scenario they were more engaged in the lesson. For example during the inquiry lesson when I said that the library flooded and needed their help to put articles back together they were so eager to help and solve the problem Also, during the cooperative learning lesson when I said that we would be able to patent their inventions and make it available for the world, students worked really hard to make their invention the best.

Link to video.http://www.learner.org/workshops/socialstudies/session6/index.html

While watching the four videos I noticed many different methods teachers used for authentic instruction. For example, when teaching how the earth rotates the teacher did a hands on activity. First, she asked questions and then asked why after every answer which is good because it allows students to reflect on why they are thinking that. Then, she did an activity that allowed students to experience a concept to understand it abstractly.  During this activity the teacher shut all the lights and had students sit around her in a circle while she was holding a globe. She then held a flash light acting a sun to show the relationship of day and night because of the earth’s rotate and rotation. This allows students to see the physical relationship and what is actually happening between the sun and the earth.

Another activity that I liked from watching these videos was how a bill becomes a law. Students were to make a flip book of the steps on how a bill becomes a law. However, first the teacher wrote the steps out on a path on the board and modeled what was to be done. This is very important because it shows and clarifies exactly what is to be expected. Before students started to complete their flip books the teacher reminded them about helpfulness which is to help peers if they are stuck. This encourages student interaction and social skills as well as being able to learn from peers. While creating the flip books students had to illustrate the step in the front then write about it in the back. Having students write and illustrate the steps requires higher in depth knowledge and differentiating learning. While completing the activity the teacher asked a student to share what she completed because she was doing a good job. I think this is a brilliant idea because it lets students learn from their peers and see what is to be expected of them. This activity was authentic because it connected to the world and students got to model the exact steps that the government has to go through to get a bill passed as a law.

The third video shows students completing a jigsaw activity on explorers. Students were placed in groups and assigned an explorer and then had to answer questions about that explorer and how they influenced the world and history. After students answered all the questions in their groups they had to share their findings with the whole class. This activity teaches students learning how to learn because they have to research to find facts to answer questions. This is an authentic activity because students get to work together and socialize and answer questions about why the world is the way it is today because of explorers in the past. They then get to present and share their answers instead of having to do research on all the other given explorers.

The fourth clip shows first graders completing a time wheel comparing two books. While teaching social studies he also likes to inquire other subjects such as art and literacy so students see how everything is related to one another. After they are completed this in groups he allows students to share their work. I noticed that all these activities have students working as a class or in groups. They also share their findings with each other and teach the class. These are key points in authentic learning because students learn from their classmates and are engaged in the activity when they get to work with their friends.