Day7

• Everything is done
• The cameras have a great mic (clearly picked up directed voices in a very noisy room)
• Sitting for five days is hard on the backside
• Need to remember headphones
• Can only use Epson scanner with the TTL laptops

Day 5

• Rubrics (for unit and/or culminating activity)
• Peer and large group work session
• Daily
  
• Photoshop Elements (masking and pasting in masking)
• iWeb (have to ftp package - not practical unless have dotmac account)
  

Day 4

• Annotated bibliography: web page for creating from 2 resources
  
• Culminating activity: what is a culminating activity
  
• Peer work: helped each other clear up ideas about culminating activity
• Unit work: added culminating activity and reworked standards
• ComicLife: advanced tools
• Daily: iMovie, iTunes, digital camera
  

Day 3

• 7 ways to take an interesting picture (depth was my favorite)
• Meeting with peer partners (helped to clear up some uncertainties)
• iMovie (very similar to other movie producing software)
• Downloading MPEG2's from digital video camera onto MacBook (QuickTime may work)
  

Using Technology to Dig for Meaning

Teachers can use the five identified elements for teaching for understanding, to help plan and teach lessons incorporating technology. Allowing teachers to effectively evaluate and plan lessons that incorporate various forms of technology. The student learning is therefore more authentic and engaging, as well as appropriate to they students academic needs. I like this idea since often computers are used as expensive word processors or game consoles in the school setting. Giving a clear focus for technology use will help to guide teachers and students into truely using technology to gain 21st century skills.

Day 2-Backward Design

Backward Design starts with the end goal in mind. This allows appropriate planning by keeping the focus on the outcomes. I will use this to help me refine many lessons I have already developed in order to more effectively meet the tested or intended objectives for the unit. I will also use it as an valuable tool in developing future lessons across all subject areas. In particular, the lessons for implementing the grant. I use a brain centered approach in my classroom. Since I am teaching for memory and transfer, I must first determine what needs to be measured; then create the assessment. This gives students a clear target. I will then plan learning experiences and instruction that will clearly lead students to the target. The purpose of this type of planning is to reveal important information to the students that they will be able to use in the real world. The end result is to created a brain-compatible classroom. Backwards design provides intentional learning that is the foundation of a brain-compatible classroom.

What role does visual literacy play in learning?

Visual literacy is generally defined as the ability to interpret and generate images for the purpose of communicating ideas and concepts. This approach has great potential in a constructivist classroom, if students are allowed to construct the material themselves. This will enable students to recode thus increasing learning. Students must be actively involved for higher level learning to take place. Just augmenting a lecture with a slide show presentation does not increase student learning. This approach could also be used to the detriment of non-visual learners. The very definition of visual literacy is opposite to the strengths of auditory and kinesthetic learners. Therefore student involvement is even more important for this group if recoding and higher level thinking is to take place.