Internet in the Classroom

With technology having such high importance in today's world, I have found that it will be essential to use a great technological tool in my classroom-the Internet. I have recently found how to use many different Internet tools in my classroom that I never knew could be implemented into a solid curriculum. Internet usage would be of significant help in the classroom because not only would students be getting educated on technology, they would also be engaging in activities at the same time that would help their knowledge grow. This Internet usage would also be very fun and exciting for them that they wouldn't even realize that they were learning such important content at the same time!

There are many different tools that can be used for a variety of educational purposes in the classroom. For example, I found that using blogs can really help students share ideas in a safe community about different topics. In my case, it would be over culture or different cultures. I would allow students to use IM services and Chat services to connect with one another interactively as well as possibly connecting with different classroom throughout the world. This would be a fun way for students to share ideas and really engage in discussion. E-mail projects could also be incorporated into my unit plan easily with pen pals and different e-mail projects where students could interact with different classrooms around the world with different cultural backgrounds. Another good tool would be online surveys where students can be assessed or share their opinions on different projects or units done in the classroom. VoIP is an advanced tool that could be used by students to interact with different children of different backgrounds where they can learn first hand through their words what their culture is like. Images, Sounds, and Videos could also be searched through different search engines designated for each one. Students can search these different items to learn about different cultures' music, videos on certain cultural rituals and images that show different cultures. Incorporating the Internet!

Blogs in the classroom

Blogs are a part of technology that has emerged within the past decade. Blogs are very popular in a wide range of areas. People use blogs on websites such as twitter or myspace to update people on their lives or just share personal thoughts or ideas. However, blogs can also be used among business people and even in the classroom.

It's a great way for people to share ideas about a certain topic and be critiqued by their peers with constructive feedback. An example of use of blogs in the classroom could be when doing a group project. Students can use their blogs to post their findings on a blogger website where their group members can easily access the information to collaborate all their research. They can also comment on any blogs and blogs are easy to go back and edit any information. Teachers can use blogs to communicate with their colleagues about activities, curriculum ideas or anything they'd like to share with their co-workers, maybe share a website they found on some good classroom ideas. Students can use blogs to reflect on things they've learned in the classroom. Maybe their teacher can instruct them to write in their own words the highlights of what they've learned during a particular lesson. Blogs are a great tool to integrate into the classroom. Blogs are a part of today's technology and technology is a fun, creative way to engage students in important learning!

An example of a great blog to follow would be David Warlick's blog!

Inquiry- and Project-Based Learning

The need for both inquiry- and project-based learning into a unit plan is essential. In order for a lesson to be thoroughly taught, a teach must incorporate different activities that engage the learner both mentally and physically. For the learner to be immersed in the topic and to really become educated on the subject, they must be go through a series of different learning methods. Inquiry-based learning will help the students answer questions facilitated by the teacher, themselves and other peers. It will help them learn through seeking knowledge on their own. Project-based learning will give the students hands-on experience. This is great because many children are bodily or kinesthetic learners. Also, it's great because they get to incorporate their creativity into many of the project-based activities. It opens many doors for these young learners.

For my particular unit plan, my topic was on Culture. The grade level I chose was Kindergarten. My essential question was "How does culture affect me?" My unit questions were as follows:
"Why is culture significant?"
"What are parts/features of my own culture?"
"What do you think about culture?"

The importance of inquiry-based learning in this unit plan would be great because much of the knowledge the children will be learning will be completely new to them. These are young learners so many questions will arise so therefore many inquiry-based learning will be implemented.

The significance of project-based learning is also high because of the topic that is being studied here. The possibilities of projects for this unit plan is endless and opens oppurtunities for children to learn about cultures in many creative ways. We created a Unit Plan to help guide us in our future projects for this class!