Multitasking

This week has been very active and productive. At work, I was busy preparing my tech lessons and implementing them. I had a couple of tech issues during the classes, but I think it was a valuable learning experience on how to handle them in the future and be ready for offline practices. Though I was upset at first, I could handle without it. It is amazing how we soon get used to and feel threatened  by the power of web tools!

At the same time, I was writing the first draft of my project. I wasn`t sure at first if I was on the right track; fortunately, some of my colleages post their work very early and I could benefit from their input.   I  found  the Peer Review task provided feedback to both our partners and ourselves, actually very introspective.

The discovery of ANVILL was also very rewarding. ANVILL is a great tool  I can incorporate into my Newcomers program and regular classes.  I can create a class site for accompanying extra speaking and listening practices for each lesson while working face to face in class. Hot potatoes will also add a bit of salt into my lessons!

Finally, I enjoyed creating my class blog for the upcoming project on Adventure Stories and I`m looking forward to experiencing it along with my students. 

A New Teaching Perspective

Before I started this course I was kind of undecisive about using some tech tools in my daily practice, just like the man on right side of the picture."well, maybe next week", "What aobut if the internet connection is not working", "the computer lab is always taken". I think I found the perfect excuse not to use it.

Now, I feel more like the person on the left side of the picture. I feel more confident and ready to start a new journey, as I mentioned in week 2. In fact, I have realized that when planning my lessons, more tech tools and strategies pop up! "what if I prepare a web quest on adventure stories","2nd graders will love to type spelling words and listen to the pronunciation", "we can probably create a class blog to post our 5th graders`adventure stories"

The readings of this week sparkle my creativity and trigger even more my intrinsic motivation to incorporate the interactive web into my lessons; the power of the web can also be  in our hands. For sure, one- computer classroom will definitely enhance interest  while training, enforcing and shaping up our learners autonomy.

"I`ve got the whole (tech) world in my hand" 

Welcome to interactivity!

It has been a very rewarding week for me.  I read about engaging large classes by making PPP more active. Also, I got plenty of ideas from our discussion on nicenet: using the blank slide technique for Think-pair-share discussions, getting learners engage in a ConcepTest and using fewer slides with rich interactive elements, among others.

I`ve always wanted to use some of these strategies I`ve seen in plenary and concurrent sessions at some national and international conferences, but have no idea on how to do it. I spent more than 4 hours creating a jeopardy game I want to use for reviewing the unit in my second grade class this coming Thursday. Well, I have to admit that even though it took time to digest the information, practice, follow instructions and input your data;  once you see the final product you won`t regret it at all. 

I feel so proud of myself, I fnallly learned how to make my PPP more interective!

Learning is Relaxing

This has been a wonderful week! First, I felt I did have more time (I did not go to bed too late). I guess I`m becoming more confident about the content of the course and the weekly assignments.

Second, I finally could create a rubric by myself. Wow! I couldn`t believe it at first. Before, I used and adapted already made rubrics I found on the web or in books, and/or given by colleagues. I thought it was very complicated to come up with the description of each criteria but it was not at all. Once you have your expectations clear, it`s just a matter of logging in rubistar.4teachers.org and put your thoughts in writing, easily and quickly.

Third, I discovered a new world behind Web Quests. I thought I knew what they were, but it was not until I read and explored the suggested sites and some more that I realized they are not just questionnaires answered through the web. I came up with the idea of integrating at least two Web Quests per semester to empower the Science/Social Studies discussions and projects. This can be a plan for developing another complement to adhere to our ESL immersion program and help our population be more prepared for the grade level challenges.