Reflection

This course has reintroduced me to many different forms of technology that I can use in the classroom. I found that I had explored many of the technologies used in this course such as wikis and blogs. Before now I think that I failed to recall these technologies because I would have had a difficult time implementing them into the kindergarten classroom.

Throughout this course I have begun to implement and understand just how wikis, blogs and podcast can used to enhance any classroom, even kindergarten. I have been reminded that students will rise to the occasion! My students may be young but it is not to early to introduce them to 21st century skills. 

I now see that I can let loose the reins and let my students take the lead sometimes. If I set the tone and model for my students they will soon enough be able to handle certain technology on there own. By letting go sooner I am able to get major of my students able to independently problem solve and stop relying on me to support their finding of the answer. Now that I am working towards making my classroom more learner-centered, I will have more time to work with struggling students to support their growth. Actually I will really have more time to foster all learning levels in my classroom.

Having colleagues that were using the same technology in the classroom was a great asset. It was great to know that  I was not the only on struggling at times. I hope to continue the support to and from one another. I also plan to assist fellow teachers at my school with implementing technology in the classroom. I have already asked our technology teacher about working on a professional development to present to our colleagues in the near future.

I have set two long-term goals that will begin to transform my classroom environment. The first long-term goal is to begin adding technology to all content areas. I feel as though I do a good job with incorporating technology during phonics and reading lesson however the other subjects, not so much. I will begin by adding the use of technology to one content area per week. This will help me focus on adding the new concept and not spreading myself thin with all the new changes. I would rather start out slow and do it right rather than add technology across the board and teacher something wrong or something that may go over my students heads because it was not well thought out. 

The second long-term goal is to continue to enhance my knowledge and use of technology that I can incorporate in the classroom and share with colleagues. I have been awakened to many new idea that I can do with my students. No longer with I use my students age to hold them back from things I know they a capable of learning in time. I have to remember to take a step back and let my students take the reins sometime. 

At the begin of this course I felt unsure about my ability to allow my students to formulate their own questions for inquiry. Now I feel confident that with little to know directions my students be able to inquiry about things. I feel more confidant to seek out other professionals for support. I have to remember that I do not know it all and that there are many other teachers that are in a similar places. Having and helping support for one another is what will help all learners succeed in the future.

Podcast

http://www.podcastmachine.com/podcasts/18980/episodes/109746

I had so much fun creating this podcast and so did my students! Please note that I made up the school and students names (also a lot of fun!).

Partnership for 21st Century Skills

The Partnership for 21^st Century Learning was founded in 2002. Its purpose was to bring together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers to put 21st century readiness in the forefront of K-12 education and to get the conversation on 21st century skills and the importance for all students started (Partnership for 21st Century Skills). The Partnership for 21^st Century Learning has continued to evolve their message over the last 13 years as well as expand their partnerships (Partnership for 21st Century Skills).

This website offers many great resources for educators, policymakers and the community as a whole. I found many of the educator resources to be of benefit to me in my current classroom. The resource I found especially useful is the Roadmap for 21^st Century Learning Environments. This resource is a free planning tool that educators can use to create a plan for transforming the classroom to benefits the students future. I feel that I can really use this resource to support the transformation of my classroom.

One thing that I found surprising is that there are only 40 exemplar schools. Even more surprising is that there are only 19 states partnered with P21.  There are many great companies that are partnered with P21 and for this reason I thought there would be more schools involved. As I continue to explore the Partnership for 21^st Century Learning website I will keep in mind if this is a site that my school can partner with.

Valerie Hicks

Reference

Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (n.d.). Our history. Washington DC: Author. Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/about-us/our-history

How I will use this blog in my classroom

A blog is site that can be easily created and updated from any devices or location that has internet connection (Richardson, 2010). The ease of use makes blogging a great tool for teachers and students. I will gear my blog towards the parents and families of my kindergarten students. Blogs like many other online technologies have made communication between parents and teachers more timely, efficient, productive, and satisfying (Pearson, n.d.).

The main page of my blog will be used to keep parents up to date on important information and dates of upcoming events. This is also a great place to solicit volunteers for classroom help, home-helpers and donations. I will also post a snapshot of each week’s objectives, classwork and homework in case of an absence.

I will set up different pages on my blog for the content areas that I teach as well as the special classes that my students attend. They will be for Math, Phonics, Reading, Science, History, Health, Character, Art, Psychical Education, Music and Technology. I will use these pages to share what topics or units we are discussing, provide useful materials and resources (such as links to helpful websites) and showcase student work by uploading it and through photographs. 

I feel my blog is a great way to keep parents in the loop. Since I teach on a Military Base I have students whose family are spread out across the country and even parents that are deployed. This will great place for them to see what’s going on. Parents can also leave comments on a post if they have any questions. This will be a great way to keep parents involved and keep the lines of communication open.
Valerie Hicks

References:

Pearson. (n.d.)Using technology for effective parent-teacher communication. Digital Promise. Retrieved from http://www.digitalpromise.org/blog/entry/using-technology-for-effective-parent-teacher-communication

Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3^rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin