Friday, April 10, 2009

Geometry Comic Book

Technology can be so much fun in a classroom. Today in class we learned how we can use digital photography in our classroom to enhance learning. I absolutely loved the comic book making software and it made the project so much fun! I can totally use this in my classroom. I am also doing a math endorsement with my Eled degree so I will be able to teach middle level mathematics. I can just think of a bunch of middle school aged boys who hates math and then would absolutely love making a comic book using math concepts. When I was taking Geometry we had to do a similar project using real life examples of geometric concepts. We just made a power point, but I think this idea of making a comic book is much more fun! It can also be used for other things such as creating stories, making a comic book on significant historical event, or even doing an adventure with science concepts. I love the idea of using a camera in the classroom. Children love to see photos of themselves and when they can see them performing a task, their sense of accomplishment is enhanced. In my Kindergarten practicum, the teacher took pictures of everything and all of the projects the children were working on and posted the pictures aroudn the room. The children loved to look at the pictures of themselves. I want to use photograhy in my class and give the children a chance to learn how to use it. One of the Kindergarten standards is that the children will learn about their environment and the world around them. One activity that could be fun is take the children outside and have them take pictures of plants and animals that they see around them. Then together the class can make a book about them, thier characteristics, and how they make life better. There are so many ways you can use photography and technology in the classroom to enhance learning and make learning much more fun!


Friday, April 3, 2009

Web application links

The webquest I am creating is for second grade. My students will explore different sites and activities on the internet to learn about healthy eating and a balanced diet. Some of the sites that I found that I think would be really good resources are sites that will educate my students on what is contained in a balance diet. I found a site that has an interactive food guide pyramid for the children to click on the pyramid and find out what we should eat. Also I really love this site called Nutrition Explorations. It is a great site designed for kids to learn about healthy foods and then play games to test what they have learned. There is also a really fun website put out by the Center for Disease control. This is a game where kids decide what things to eat for lunch and then at the end, it explains to them what they have picked and why that is healthy to eat. Also there are many things that children can learn from MyPyramid.gov. I found some fun games and activies for my students to learn about a healthy diet.