I liked having the small group discussions and getting to know a few people who have been in class with me for the past couple of months. It's interesting to hear what different people found useful and what people are actually using in the classroom.
I'm returning next semester....see you then!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Homework Due 11/11
On the day that the students had to nail down the status-quo of their controversial issues I really learned what a hard time they were having with the project. To research facts to support the affirmative and negative sides was relatively easy, but when they had to actually find facts the students had a rough time. Since they had to verify the information, most of them ended up getting the correct information; however, it took many of them a long time. The day after this was due I had students meet with the opposing teams to make sure everyone had the same status-quo, and for the most part they did.
Another thing I taught the students that many of them used was googledocs. It was fun for them to be able to create a document with their partner and, I think, helpful for many of the students. Several groups used it for the bibliographical information, cutting and pasting the source citations to a single, shared page. This saved a lot of time for the person who had to put the whole thing together.
The project has been going well. I think that I have more confidence teaching the researching component now that I feel a bit more comfortable.
Another thing I taught the students that many of them used was googledocs. It was fun for them to be able to create a document with their partner and, I think, helpful for many of the students. Several groups used it for the bibliographical information, cutting and pasting the source citations to a single, shared page. This saved a lot of time for the person who had to put the whole thing together.
The project has been going well. I think that I have more confidence teaching the researching component now that I feel a bit more comfortable.
Homework Due 11/04
I know this is late...sorry. I didn't realize I had to write about my plan before doing it.
Lucky for me I had a research project planned before even knowing that I would be needing to create a lesson for this class. My junior CP class is currently doing a debate unit and that includes researching both sides of a controversial issue. Before even going to the library, we talked a lot about how to determine a reliable website, and what to do and look for if the site is questionable.
First I spent a lot of time showing students how to use the library data-bases, accessing them both through our school library and the public library. I also showed them how to limit their search by using the advanced search of google. This was especially helpful when students needed very specific data; I showed them how to limit the domain search and use, for example, only the .gov domain when looking for specific laws and information.
Second, we talked about verifying information. Because students are looking at controversial issues, websites can be very one-sided. This made even finding the status quo difficult because sometimes two websites would have completely different information. Students had to find the same information in two websites before using it.
Third, I showed them some of the things I learned in class. For example, I showed them the wonder wheel, and taught them how they can use "minus" infomation to limit their searches.
Fourth, I taught them how to site all of the information they get--and that was a real chore.
Overall the lessons went well and I'm looking forward to hearing all of the debates.
Lucky for me I had a research project planned before even knowing that I would be needing to create a lesson for this class. My junior CP class is currently doing a debate unit and that includes researching both sides of a controversial issue. Before even going to the library, we talked a lot about how to determine a reliable website, and what to do and look for if the site is questionable.
First I spent a lot of time showing students how to use the library data-bases, accessing them both through our school library and the public library. I also showed them how to limit their search by using the advanced search of google. This was especially helpful when students needed very specific data; I showed them how to limit the domain search and use, for example, only the .gov domain when looking for specific laws and information.
Second, we talked about verifying information. Because students are looking at controversial issues, websites can be very one-sided. This made even finding the status quo difficult because sometimes two websites would have completely different information. Students had to find the same information in two websites before using it.
Third, I showed them some of the things I learned in class. For example, I showed them the wonder wheel, and taught them how they can use "minus" infomation to limit their searches.
Fourth, I taught them how to site all of the information they get--and that was a real chore.
Overall the lessons went well and I'm looking forward to hearing all of the debates.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Online Reading (Homework due 10/27)
Since I assign research projects I have given this a lot of thought. My own kid who is ten will put anything in the URL--spiders.com, or pudgerodriguez.com--to try to find the information he wants. That's pretty scary, especially considering that when you type in martinlutherking.org you get an anti-king site. So when I assign research projects I ask students to find most of their information from the library data-bases. The student resource center has tons of information and it is all reliable. They can also find articles that are written for their reading levels, which can be helpful for those lower level readers. If they do use google, I encourage them to find sites within the .edu or .gov domains. I know they still use random sites, so I tell them that at the very least they need to know who the source is--where the information is coming from, and to corroborate the information in some way.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Searching Google
I guess I was most surprised by how much I actually knew. I did the entire tutorial and the two things I learned were quite helpful. The first was the short searches. It's cool that you can type something like "Thai food 94030" and get the results so easily. I also liked the "show options" button. I have never used that before and I think it will be helpful to limit my searches.
This assignment took longer than I expected, which is why it's a day late. I started it too late and then couldn't save the quiz so I had to do it all over again. There was probably a way to save it, but I couldn't do it. Oh well....
This assignment took longer than I expected, which is why it's a day late. I started it too late and then couldn't save the quiz so I had to do it all over again. There was probably a way to save it, but I couldn't do it. Oh well....
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Library of Congress
I spent some time looking at the Library of Congress website, and what I found that has immediate use for me in the classroom is the site that has the webcasts of the National Book Festivals. At the site you can see various authors reading from their latest or most important works. I viewed Rick Riordan, a children's author who my son adores, and Tim O'Brien, the author of Things They Carried, a book I'll be teaching in the spring. There is also a link to "Poetry Out Loud," which shows people reading either poems they love or their own poems. There is even a link to student winners, which is fun to listen to. The website not only has the 2009 festival, but many from years past, so there are a lot of authors to find.
I also enjoyed the Calisphere site. What I like about that site is how easy it is to navigate. It is easy to click on reliable websites and other primary source links. This is going to be useful throughout the year.
I also enjoyed the Calisphere site. What I like about that site is how easy it is to navigate. It is easy to click on reliable websites and other primary source links. This is going to be useful throughout the year.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
What I have learned today...
I learned to take my picture. I also learned how to share my calendar and create a blog.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
