Final Reflection

Point of View and Perspective

I can't believe we're at the end of this project! It's been a big learning experience for myself and my students! The big idea I came up with in the beginning seemed a little daunting! My fear was that I was asking too much of my students with their first technology project. I knew they could handle the knowledge learned and sharing that out. But the inclusion of apps like Chatterpix and Padlet and inserting so many links into their project might be a little tough on them! Boy, was I wrong! These students acted like pros! Once I explained how to do something, they acted like they'd been doing it for years. One student even familiarized me with Control C and Control V after she watched me take about 50 steps to copy and paste! "Ms. Seltzer you could have just hit Control C to copy it and Control V to paste it." I haven't looked back since!

Our project was to present what they've learned about Point of View and Perspective in narrative texts. In the pre-assessment, not one student knew anything about either concept. We began by reading lots of books and pulling out these elements. Once they started working with their Google Slide shows, they could explain what the two elements were, how you could recognize it in text, and provide examples from text we had read! They did this without any real support from me by following a slideshow map booklet. The booklet let them know what slides should be in the show, an order to go in, and what to include on each slide. Once I showed them the how-to's, they just followed their map and went to town!

The classroom experience was positive. The students' engagement could not have been any deeper.They looked forward to Tech Time each day. Meeting during ELT for an hour everyday was just the right amount of time to learn something new, practice and edit it, and collaborate on the final look of the slide.They loved the freedom of design, loved searching the web for videos or pictures to insert. They absolutely loved the app Chatterpix where they created characters from Goldilocks and the Three Bears and gave them dialogue! We had many laughs with that!

Pre-Assessment
Question

Post-Assessment
Question

Their computer skills greatly improved! They are now professionals with creating slides, inserting things, using Chatterpix, and creating a Padlet. They really enjoyed working with a partner (except when they wanted to do something their partner was doing). And they loved that other 3rd graders in the school viewed their work and interacted with it through Padlet. You can view their Google Slides with this link: Slide Shows

Students admit that this project helped them understand Point of View and Perspective on a deeper level. It really brought these concepts to life. I even noticed that they observed Point of View ad Perspective in their independent reading and made sure to point this out to me! POV and Perspective seemed to be on their mind a lot! Their post-assessment showed a 100% knowledge gain of these two concepts. I think the whole experience will stay with them throughout their school years.  They will definitely remember these concepts!

I think what I've gained from this experience is that learning and creating through technology can go hand in hand. I've learned students CAN pick up on the technology skills and have it be a useful learning partner.  True engagement through technology use eliminates the distractions and boredom some lessons can bring. I've learned so much about the SAMR model and its implications for deeper learning and experience for my students.  I would gladly participate in another CLC of this type! Thank you for the experience!  And thanks to the team members for the support and laughs! It's been one of my favorite PD opportunities! 

Does technology make a difference in a student's learning?

I have learned a lot about technology infusion since I became a teacher. I've learned about many apps and websites, the many ways that Google can be used with my students.  And I truly have reflected on whether these things have been a help to or a big pain for my students.  Elementary students live in a more technological world than the one in which I grew up. But in an educational setting, there has to be rhyme and reason to the technology I bring to my elementary students.

This year I have offered my students an opportunity to produce their written pieces of different genres in Google Slides.  Most of them welcomed this new way of writing their reports (cool pictures to insert) or their opinions (it's easy to fix mistakes!).  I've gone back and forth on how much support I give to the actual content of the writing. While the form of writing is different, what's put into the writing has not improved.  If Susie is not going to elaborate with pencil and paper, she most likely won't just because she is typing on a slide. That will only take place through direct modeling and instruction from the teacher. Even if I had students sharing their slides during writing and gave opportunity for others to give feedback, this would only create hesitation on the part of poorer writers to want to type, and go back to paper and pencil.  The 'S' part of SAMR fails if the student feels threatened. In his video "Role of Technology", Skillen says that using the Word Outline in writing gave students a mental model of what needs to be included in certain pieces.  He said that a 'cognitive residue' takes place in that augmentation that students could bring with them to pieces completed without Word Outline...students construct that learning in their own minds and are able to transfer it. I can see his point and would think that could be true (here is the 'A' part of SAMR). I have made outlines in my students' Google Slides where they are instructed in the 'notes' section what goes where. I would like to think that if they go back to paper/pencil, they would remember those parts because of cognitive residue.  But there have been some instances where they had opportunity to show that, and many students didn't show their writing was enhanced because of using technology. Is true learning not taking place?  How can I ensure transfer of knowledge?

When my class got hooked on Pebblego last year in 2nd, they couldn't get enough of it.  Even in free time they wanted to get on. You could hear their schemas growing! Technology was greatly enhancing their learning world! But at the same time, the information from Pebblego that they would put in their reports were often taken from the text word for word. So then I would question if they were really learning or just great copiers?  Lessons on plagiarism ensued and most of my 7 year-olds really tried not to copy.  But my lower students did not change these habits and continued to copy for the sake of having info in their reports. Maybe they were learning, but were not able to transfer it into their own words?

Sometimes, my students don't like having to go on certain websites to practice reading or math. But because our school has paid for the websites, we have to promote use of it.  Student learning could still take place, but chances are, it might not be happening.  Students become wise in knowing how to get through their lessons, hitting the forward button instead of listening to what's being said. And a check of learning can be falsified when a student takes the assessment several times, after writing down what the wrong answers were in their assessment review. So is learning being enhanced, or are cheating skills just improving? How does a teacher fix that? Is there another app that is better?

In my teaching, I always keep student goals in mind when deciding to use technology.  If there is a website that will engage them for direct concept lessons, then we watch it.  If there is ease in use and good material for them to engage with, then I make assignments for them to complete. What I bring to the table for them to engage with has to create a fascination that holds their attention and makes them want to focus.  So I always preview anything before I assign.  How difficult are the directions to follow?  How difficult is the assignment?  I have to be very reflective before asking my students to use it.  

I'm not saying that technology is not a positive thing for a classroom. It most certainly is! The world of knowledge at our fingertips is more than we can imagine.  I can't imagine teaching in this day and age without technology. Many apps allow great ease in gathering data. Some even analyze it for me! Having the ability to see the outcomes of my students' work so quickly lets me shift instructional focus of their needs. This allows faster enhancement of lessons that hopefully allows for faster enhancement of learning.  However, teachers need to make sure that students can demonstrate knowledge and skills.  If I have them use Google to write, I want to see that their writing skills have improved. If I have them use a reading app, I want them to be able to share what they have learned in their own words.  If they are not loving an app to learn and practice skills, what is the point of using it? Teachers, especially in the elementary realm, need to make sure that what we bring to the student has relevance and actually has positive learning potential for that student. Technology can transform a student's learning, but as teachers, we need to make sure real learning is happening despite the technology. If learning is not enhanced, do we go back to the basics for that student?  I think we do. They obviously need further support. Their use of technology should demonstrate the most basic of skills. This was so even in the paper/pencil stage.  Demonstration of knowledge is demonstration of knowledge...no matter the avenue in which they choose to demonstrate it. Technology and the teacher are now a close-knit pair that will work together to ensure student engagement and growth. 

I've got plans...BIG plans!

This week's assignment for Planning and Goal Setting has stirred the brain cells big time! SAMR...Authentic Learning...Backward Design! Video lessons and note taking!  It's more than meets the eye!

I was planning on teaching Point of View with my students after we survived our adventure with NYState ELA testing.  So bringing that standard for learning over to this CLC was an easy enough idea.  POV is another strategy that will promote deeper comprehension of text, so that's the WHY of the lesson.  Little did I know the idiosyncrasies involved with this lesson plan would be so numerous!  I researched the concepts behind POV and browsed for ideas.  Many caught my eye. I would mull it all over in my head on the drive to and from work.  I met with a few mentors and used them as sounding boards as well as asked for and received advice and ideas. So I felt pretty ready to tackle the lesson design!

Making sure to hit all areas of Authentic Learning was easy enough. And Backward Design was doable too!  It was the SAMR part that really made me do some thinking.  And I kept questioning whether my ideas were actually hitting the M and R of the SAMR model.  At this point, I think I have succeeded in reaching those levels with my lesson...although I could be wrong!! But it really made me think and re-think about what I wanted my students to be able to do. The tech side of it all makes you consider so many things.  Was I pushing them beyond the old methods?  As I wrote and revised my plan, I wondered if maybe I was pushing too much?  The transfer part using technology seems intense...I need to teach my students how to make a Google Slide, how to make a Google Form and be able to link it into a slide...how to link a video from Youtube AND an app like ChatterPix Kids or Fotofriend into the slideshow...how to share the work with others in our room and a neighbor's room, and how to give others an opportunity to show response on their slides.  They will need to decide on design and create characters. They will be juggling a few balls on this one! So I've chosen to work with a large group of my highest achieving students to produce this Google Slide Show.  They have been known to teach me a thing or two about technology.  They love being on their chromes and love learning new things on it. So I'm pretty sure I can get them on the tech train easily.  I know in my head what the outcome of such a seemingly big plan could look like....it would be so cool for them!! The silliness and fun of acting like the book characters to convey POV will get them highly engaged. But getting there will be the challenge for us all! I can't wait to start, though!  

What is this thing called PLN?

PLN.  I have to admit at first I was skeptical about the term.  I watched the video three times and read the article several times.  After our CLC online discussion, and some reflection, I've finally made the connection to it and me as a professional.  Sometimes we as teachers get bogged down in our day to day and all the demands put on us, that we don't take a step back and reflect and consider.  Maybe after 19 years under my belt, I just move through it all automatically.  Well, that saying...You can't teach an old dog new tricks...you really can.  And having a PLN helps teach those new tricks.

Since our building has been, in my opinion, one that has used technology for a long time now, the knowledge I have gained has been through my #9LN (School 9 Learning Network).  Co-teachers talked me into Facebook, introduced me to Pinterest and Teachers Pay Teachers. I can say I am a strong lurker on all of these forums! Google went nuts within our building and I took district Google online courses to be able to use Classroom and Forms and Slides.  To present it to my students as a means for work and research has been eye opening, for me as well as them.  The change from paper/pencil, from teacher-led to technical paper/pencil and student-choice/self-lead has been bumpy, error-filled, and exciting all at once.  

My PLN has mostly been via word of mouth.  I'm on several teams where we discuss the latest this or suggest to go try that.  There is even a Teacher/Leaders Team at our school via Google Classroom where lesson ideas are posted for all to see and try. But I can see having a Social Media PLN would open up even more avenues and hopefully, inspire me.  I can see how it would contribute even more to my learning as a teacher and zero in on an educational focus. It may even give me food for thought. While I currently share with my colleagues, I never share outside of that circle...not even with other district buildings/teachers. I'm sure I have some good ideas or successful lesson plans that maybe others would like to take a look at.  Sharing will be a goal for me.  I look forward to building new relationships in education.  This "old dog" is always open for new tricks!

First Time Blogger

Hey Everyone!!

This is my first time blogging.  I'm not quite sure what's going on but here goes!

My name is Patti Seltzer.  I teach 3rd grade at School #9 Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary. I am not brand new to using technology in my classroom, but I am a slow mover.  I have used many apps with my class such as reading and math support/programs.  I have created a Google classroom this year.  I've made assignments, embedding links, for the kids to go in and use.  I've created tests and created writing assignments.  My students love doing their writing pieces in classroom.  They are learning Tynker (me too) and like playing around with it.  

I guess my goal with this CLC is to become stronger in my use of technology with my students.  I'd like to learn more uses and refine what I already use. I have a passion for creating lessons and units that my students really like to do.  My fears would include creating a great lesson and then losing it somewhere in the clouds.  I also hate creating assignments, thinking they are ready to go for the kids, and then when they go to the assignments there are glitches. I guess I will learn through these mistakes.

I also have a life out of school (which is hard to notice at times) that includes my daughter and son.  Sarah is 29 and planning a wedding for May of 2018.  Matthew is 22 and is new to the work force.  He still lives with his mommy and I'm good with it (for the time being!!)

Sarah and Matt

I also enjoy reading, reality shows, and doing things with my friends!  One of my favorite reality shows is Survivor...I've watched it since it began!  This is Season 34!!

I really look forward to learning more about this blogging thing and finding my voice and purpose for blogging.  Combining my role as a teacher with this blogging thing is exciting and nerve-tickling.  It should be interesting!