EDUC 586 ARTIFACTS
I would greatly appreciate any comments or feedback on my artifacts. Once you reviewing, you can scroll down to the bottom of this page and fill out the feedback form. I give you the option to indicate your name and what you teach, but both those fields are optional! Then you can use the final box to provide any comments or feedback on any of the artifacts. Thank you in advance for reviewing and sharing your thoughts!
Action Research Project
Description: For this project, I considered ways that I can bring technology or different multimedia in my classroom to enrich the learning experiences for my students. I attempted a project for my 8th grade classes where students would be creating final product using Google Sheets, Google Docs, and Google Slides. This paper outlines research supporting the integration and positive effects of utilizing technological tools in the classroom. I also discuss specifically what my lessons would look like with using the Google applications, how I will support students as they work with this new technology, and how I will assess their end product on both the content standards and technology use.
Action Research Project
Description: For this project, I considered ways that I can bring technology or different multimedia in my classroom to enrich the learning experiences for my students. I attempted a project for my 8th grade classes where students would be creating final product using Google Sheets, Google Docs, and Google Slides. This paper outlines research supporting the integration and positive effects of utilizing technological tools in the classroom. I also discuss specifically what my lessons would look like with using the Google applications, how I will support students as they work with this new technology, and how I will assess their end product on both the content standards and technology use.
Reflection:
I was really pleased with how this activity went when technology was integrated. I have done this project once before and felt that this was way more engaging for students when they had the opportunity to use computer and create a presentation of their information on Google Slides. First, students were able to select project topics that were more interesting to them (opening movie weekend vs. lifetime sales) whereas without computers students would need to pick a topic where data could be collected in the classroom without technology (student’s height vs. shoe size). Secondly, I was able to truly monitor how groups were doing and give them individualized feedback by commenting through Google Slides. Finally, I thought it was beneficial for students to become comfortable and familiar with programs like Google Slides which is going to be very evident in other educational experiences and classrooms.
Gamestar Mechanic Lesson Plan
Description: The following lesson plan illustrates how I would use video game creation in my 8th grade math classes. I have the class formatted with an entrance do now/bell ringing problem, mini-lesson to introduce learning, developmental period for the activity, a summary of the learning for that class, and at time an end of class assessment to help modify instruction for the next class day. The lesson plan template describes how the video game tool Gamestar Mechanic would fit in with my instruction.
Description: The following lesson plan illustrates how I would use video game creation in my 8th grade math classes. I have the class formatted with an entrance do now/bell ringing problem, mini-lesson to introduce learning, developmental period for the activity, a summary of the learning for that class, and at time an end of class assessment to help modify instruction for the next class day. The lesson plan template describes how the video game tool Gamestar Mechanic would fit in with my instruction.
Reflection: It proved to be much more simple to bring the technology of video game creation to fit my lesson needs while also supporting students in meeting the content objectives. I was pleased that in the lesson there is plenty of opportunities for differentiation with Gamestar Mechanic. Students could either play a video game that I created or students can create their own. I was surprised and happy to see that there are a lot of opportunities where I can provide students choice and meet them at their unique and individual learning needs.
Gamestar Mechanic Lesson and Example
Description: The video below describes the lesson plan and example game of what would be used or created in my 8th grade math classroom. I talk through the lesson plan in detail and discuss my thinking on how Gamestar Mechanic and video creation would look in my classroom. I also go through an example of what students would either create if they were up to a challenge or play (created by me) if students need a lighter challenge. I discuss two levels and two different options of what the video game would look like.
Reflection: It was initially challenging to come up with an idea on how I would use this in my classroom, but once I did that creating the game was so fun and somewhat easy! The actual program of Gamestar Mechanic is extremely user friendly and gives the creator so much room to explore and personalize their game to fit their needs. I was really pleased with the flexibility I had to really make the game mine and work for the needs of my classroom and students.
Gamestar Mechanic Game: https://gamestarmechanic.com/toolbox?game_id=9527733
Global Projects for Engaging Students in STEM Topics
https://blog.penpalschools.com/home/new-global-stem-projects
Description: The video below describes Pen Pal's New Global STEM Projects. This video provides an overview of the organization Pen Pal and how the global projects can be utilized across all content areas and grade levels. This video specifically highlights the STEM projects that are offered and how students can use these collaborative projects to solve real life issues in the classroom.
Reflection: I learned a lot from exploring Pen Pal School's website. As a math teacher, my eyes were significantly opened to all the ways that I can bring global collaboration and global issues to my classroom while still having students keep up with content standards.
Podcast - Board of EduCaitlin
Description: These podcasts were created for teachers to explore hot topics in education. The podcasts were created using Audacity and Soundcloud. Additionally websites were explored for the use of music and sound effects through the podcasts. I discuss topics in my podcast as well as share an interview with students.
Reflection: This seems to be a common theme with all the multimedia tools we are working with in this class, but I am completely surprised by how much I enjoyed working with Audacity. When I first sat down to look at the program last week, I felt extremely overwhelmed and discouraged by how complex the program initially felt to me. I'm used to extremely user friendly programs (screen-castify, google apps, etc.), so that coming across one that by first appearance isn't simple to navigate was at first initially frustrating. I then took to Youtube and started looking up videos after videos on tutorials on how to navigate Audacity. All the sudden this program that felt like learning another language began to become more clear and understandable. It was a relief that taking a few minutes to look for other resources on Youtube can completely change my understanding and my perspective. Last week, my podcast I created was more so a "trial" podcast. I was nervous that something wasn't going to save or that I wouldn't be able to post correctly, so after I figured out the basic mechanics of it I went through my presentation and stuck with my first attempt. This week, however, has been different. I felt last week that what I posted wasn't something that I felt incredibly proud of because there was so much I wanted to fix and a lot I wanted to try differently. I'm happy that I got that chance to really take the time to make things the way I wanted my podcast to sound like and really publish something that I am proud of. I felt much more comfortable using the basic tools of Audacity. I also experimented with different songs, sounds, and sound effects which are all three components I didn't try in my podcast last week. I had a really fun time talking about and interviewing students on a topic that is interesting to me. It was really great to be able to express these findings and conversations in the format of a podcast as opposed to a paper which we usually do in grad school. I am so surprised how much fun I had creating my podcast by using Audacity this week and how proud I am of what my end product was. This is something I would love to continue working on or even figure out a way to give my students the opportunity to use it in my classroom.