Go Animate Topic:  Diary of a Wimpy Kid

I will be introducing the book Diary of a Wimpy Kid to my students.  This book is about a young middle-school boy who tries to navigate the problems of middle school.  It also focuses on relationships with family and friends.  I think this book is appropriate for its stated age group (8 – 12) because it addresses many of the social issues kids have, and will encounter as they move through life, such as bullying.  What makes this book different from other books on the same topic is that ‘Diary’ readers are able to see their beloved characters come to life on the big screen.   

This lesson will be geared toward 6th graders and the following standards will be addressed:

Conventions of Standard English

1.       Demonstrate command of the conventions of Standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

2.       Demonstrate command of the conventions of Standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Students will read ‘Diary’ then write two paragraphs that describes one point in the book to which they can relate.   

http://goanimate.com/videos/0DPuJ5SoVHAI?utm_source=linkshare

VoiceThread Topic:  Video Games in the Classroom

The topic of using video games in the classroom is being discussed by academics around the world.  I decided to use voice thread to get the student’s point of view.  Students will view the voice thread and discuss why they agree or disagree with using video games in the classroom as a learning tool.   

This voice thread is geared toward 7th grade English.  This thread will address the following Indiana Academic English Standards: 

7.7.2      Determine the speaker’s attitude toward the subject

7.7.11    Deliver persuasive presentations that state a clear position in support of an argument or proposal

I think students will be more engaged in the discussion process because I’ve chosen a topic that affects their everyday lives, and one that is fun and engaging.  

https://voicethread.com/?#u3660475.b4369114.i22282600

http://voicethread.com/share/4369114/

How to Write a Check

http://zunal.com/webquest.php?w=189539

Hello everyone, 

This is my podcast.  What I’ve tried to do is connect my first lesson plan, where I use the video game Rock Band to teach a lesson on comparing examples of music genres, with the Book I chose to read:  Googled – The End of the World as We Know it.   This song is actually recorded from a YouTube video where two people are playing REMs, 'The End of the World As We Know It (teotwawki) using the Rock Band 3 video game.  

Please enjoy.

REMs TEOTWAWKI

The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

This methodology is commonly used in software development, but it can also be used to create other types of projects.

No matter what class I taught in the past, students always questioned why they had to learn one thing or another.  One of the classes I taught during my student teaching was Computer Applications, which included Excel, PowerPoint, and Microsoft Word.  I attempted to use a pun in this comic to get my point across about learning.  Students always appreciate a good pun - even if it is corny.  Teachers can use Pixton in the classroom to allow students to reflect on their own learning.  Students can create exit tickets before leaving the classroom, for instance. 

Pictures can say a thousand words. . .

When I saw this picture online I just had to post it to my blog.  I LOVE dogs -  especially when they're doing something out of the ordinary.  This dog seems to have complete trust in his owner and is comfortable riding in the basket.  We should give dogs more credit for their abilities.  Very cool picture.  

This is a picutre of our cat Perl.  Perl cannot be trained and does her own thing all the time.  She is very unpredictable.  She allows us to live in her world when she decides to tolerate us.

I used Picozu to edit Perl's picture.  Picozu offers a number of options for editing.  In my version, I was able to add a frame, a tecturing option called 'disco', and an option called 'noise', which gave the picutre a grainy look.  I think students would use this tool because it allows for creativity.  Teachers can use this tool in technology classes, for instance, if students are desiging graphics for video games.  The tool is intuitive and requires little effort to learn.