Blog post # 6

Hmm, what do we need to know about asking questions to be an effective teacher?

        I watched the video Questioning Styles and Strategies first. I really like that the teacher ended the book Bridge To Terabithia with a "comprehension questions menu". This included four different types of questions Mastery, Interpersonal, Understanding, and Self-Expressive. Each question type required the students to think differently. No question was the same, they each reflected a different part of the book. All students really had to think about the answer, and write them down. After answers were recorded the students were able to talk to their neighbor to see if they had similar answers. The type of learning environment that was created really got the students to brainstorm.

        Asking Questions to Improve Learning taught me to be very clear when I ask questions. I will be teaching special needs, so it is crucial that I remember these tips. Instead of giving multiple steps, give one step. One simple question. Asking two or more questions is confusing, and students forget what they are suppose to answer. Be very specific in what you ask. Maybe instead of "what was your favorite part?" You could ask "In the book the Cat in the Hat, which part was your favorite". Simple things like this help questions make more sense to children.

        Three Better Ways to Ask Questions in the Classroom says to play with questions, prepare questions, and preserve good questions. All which are something I will now keep in mind. It is never good to try and "wing it". You should ALWAYS know what you want the students to know, therefor what you're going to ask. While preparing your questions, you should play with them. You will see what way of asking makes more sense, if there is a better way of wording the question, if theres a fun activity you can add on, and so on. After the session is over, save the questions that made a great impact on the students! There will be some questions that were too easy, or some that the students completely did not understand. That is why teaching is also a learning experience for the teacher!

Project #8 Book Trailer

Blog Post #5

My sentence videos

My Sentence Is...



My Passion Is...

Project #3 Presentation

Blog Post #4

Flat Stanley Podcast
The first podcast I listened to was about a first grade class that had just read the book "Flat Stanley". Each student shipped of their own Flat Stanley to family members all over the world. The teacher and her students saw what a success that was, and wanted to make their own "Flat Stanley" podcast. The students researched to what part of the world that they would like to travel, if they were flattened. The podcast consisted of the students telling about their adventures while being flat. These kids had the cutest stories of their "flat" adventures. Each child did a great job explaining scenery, sounds, and feelings of where they were shipped. I kept finding myself smiling while listening to each story. This is such a cute activity! It is something I want to try once I have students of my own. I have never read the book Flat Stanley, but after listening to this podcast I definitely will.

Podcasting With First Grade
I found it intriguing how excited the first graders were to make their own podcast after listening to the second grade podcast. Langwitches made a great point when she said "Believe it or not, having an audience matters....even to 6 yr. olds". This is very true. The first graders were eager to make a podcast in hopes of getting a lot of views and responses. These kids were so excited to learn and do something new. I loved that each student was featured and students were coming "out of their shells". When children are young, I think it is great to introduce new forms of interaction and technology. They were having so much fun creating a podcast, and not even realizing they were being taught in the process.

Podcast Collection
This link was so beneficial! I think that many people my age were deprived of technology. I am 21 and have never created a podcast. To be honest, I did not even know what a podcast was before this activity! Students now have so many opportunities. In the first part of my post I talked about a first grade class creating a podcast. Interaction in the classroom is definitely growing, and podcasts are a large part of that. As a future educator it is important for me to be knowledgable about more ways to interact, including knowing how to podcast. I will definitely keep in mind the "Tips to Succeed" that were mentioned. I will give a background of podcasting and what is included in podcasts. Making things relevant is very important. Creating podcasts on your own version of a book just read is great for students. It gives the ideas and gets them excited to create their own story. I feel working as a class, step by step will help the podcast succeed, especially when it is just being introduced. Also, having an audience is powerful! It gets the students excited to have people care about what they have worked so hard on, and encourages them to do more. Each link I explored will help me become a better teacher one day.

C4T #1

Bring your own ideas By benpaddlejones

        Ben wrote about the controversial Bring Your Own Device program. He seemed to feel strongly about it, in a negative way. He posted two links about the BYOD program, which let me know his feelings about it. He stated that the program will fail in the years to come due to "those dominating" being too concerned with their own agendas. Therefor, the devices will become used less and less. The links he posted for his readers stated things such as: teachers are too anxious to let students actually use their device, students will not have equal opportunities due to weaker devices, it says people don't actually want devices, and that educational decisions should not be based on price. My blogger decided to try BYOD without permission. He negotiates with his students about what they were able to access, and to bring it for every lesson. He states that if you want the BYOD program to work, stop writing policies on it. Just unite with your students and it will work.

        Comment:   In my reply I stated that I, too, have had concerns with the program. It was very refreshing to know that I was not alone in my opinions. The link stated about students not receiving equal opportunity, so I gave my opinion on how true this is. It stated that teachers are nervous about students using their devices, due to fear of something going wrong. I tied that together with equal opportunities. Lastly, I applauded the blogger for trying the BYOD program for himself. He would never know without trying it- either the kinks will be fixed easier than imagined, or he could find many more things wrong.

Anyone can lead from the negative, but it takes a real leader to lead from the positive By benpaddlejones

        This post is about the negative and positive ways people lead. Ben states some of the common strategies of leading from the negative. This includes searching for mistakes people have made and pointing it out the impact of that mistake. People who lead from the negative are actively setting up teams to fail. These "leaders" give new opportunities, but without coaching. They will also give away other teams weaknesses in order for that team to fail. Each of these negative is an ongoing circle to ensure mistakes happen and discourage others. Ben describes his learning strategy as positive. A few positive strategies he uses is showing random acts of kindness. By doing this, Ben motivates the team instead of discouraging them. He shows positive reinforcement and does not dwell on mistakes that have been made. Ben made the point to always provide coaching and support to avoid big failures. Big failures are a reflection on him, which means he has failed too.
        Comment:  
In my reply, I thanked him for being a positive leader. There are not as many positive leaders as there should be. I pointed out that negative leadership especially occurs in college professors. I do not understand why some teachers thrive on telling students they are wrong, instead of being happy for their success. This same strategy reminds me of bullying. Bullies like to feel empowerment over others, which is the reason for negative leadership. These negative "leaders" should think back to when they were students, and teach the way they enjoyed being taught.

Blog Assignment #3

Peer Editing
      The Peer Editing video taught me that peer editing is about trying to improve someones writing that is your age. One rule to peer editing is to STAY POSITIVE. The point of peer editing is working to improve your peer's writing, not to make them feel bad. Peer editing actually has three steps. First, you are suppose to compliment their work. Let him or her know what you liked about the writing. The Second step to peer editing is to make some suggestions about changes. Give specific suggestions about word choice, detail, organization, topic, etc. The third step to peer editing is making corrections. This includes punctuation, grammar, and spelling. Remember to stay positive and be specific!
This assignment taught me many things about peer editing. The term "peer editing" used to sound negative to me. I assumed that peer editing meant only telling the peer about his or her mistakes. The videos and slideshow gave me more knowledge about what peer editing really is, and how to edit effectively.
      Thanks to the videos and slideshow I now know that peer editing does not only consist of corrections, but it includes compliments and suggestions. I also never realized that I should be more specific when editing. Many times when I peer edit, I only sat things like, "you had a few spelling errors". Now I know I should point out exactly what was incorrect. The slideshow helped me think of ways to positively suggest changes. Instead of saying "Your post did not make sense", it would be more beneficial to say something like "I was a little confused about (insert part). Maybe you could add a few more details". These techniques will not only help me, but it will also help my peers.