Integrated Lesson Plan

For my integrated lesson plan, aimed towards 1st grade Math students, I will be focusing on basic addition in this lesson. This classroom activity is a group work activity which will help students learn how to work with others.

The purpose of this learning activity is to strengthen the students ability to use basic addition in everyday life a activities.

Objectives:

a. Students will go into groups which I assign them too.

b. Students will utilize the internet as I will go over to each group one by one assisting them with the computer. Then we will look on popular sites such as eBay to look at the prices of candy.

c. Students will select which type of candy they want to purchase, draw a picture of it and show how many pieces they can buy with the amount of money I said they had. Some groups will have four dimes, and four dollars, others will have five dollars.

Specific curriculum objectives:

Mathematics:

Give students a chance to use addition along with internet research.

Technology:

Educational Technology: All students will use digital tools to access, manage, evaluate, and synthesize information in order to solve problems individually and collaboratively and to create and communicate knowledge.

Substance of the Lesson:

Technology and group work will be important. Students will get to use the internet to do research while improving their math skills.

Assessment

Throughout the lesson I will encourage students to “buy” many different candies while keeping track of their groups spending. Students will need to agree with their group on which candies to purchase.

I would like to see students get along with each other while discussion their options.

I will know that this learning experience accomplished the learning goals I set out for and when they go to the store with their parents they will have some sense of the value of a dollar and determine what’s the total of their items.

Chapter 11: Interated Lesson Plan

For my 12th grade Math integrated lesson plan, students will spend half the period researching online for a game that involves math. Weather it be Magic The Gathering, Poker, or any other game they come across. They will then be put into groups based on what they selected. They will be assigned to do an out line of the game listing the rules and how the game is played. The next class students will then list all the math aspects of the game, rolling dice, score keeping, etc. I will then meet with each group to make sure they are on the correct track. I will then have them make up their own game using the math we are learning. They will now have the rules and math of other games to help them understand what I am looking for. The purpose of this lesson is for the students to use what we are learning in class in an exciting and fun way. Many times kids will say why do we need to learn this type of math so this will give them a good and fun reason to do so. I feel their math skills will improve and they will have a project they can be proud of doing while being creative.

Chapter Ten: Ethical and Legal uses of Technology

In both the first and second videos important lessons can be learn. For one it is overall pretty silly to care what people think about you and two cyber bullying is just as dumb as regular bullying. Taking away a kids cell phone won't stop bullying because that is not the root of the problem. The problem lies deeper. People need to talk to the children who are doing the bullying and to the children who are getting bullied, because communication is very important. The teachers who are teaching should know what is going on in their environment. Because getting teachers who are just smart won't help or solve any problems. This might be off topic but they really should have a class about random stuff and not just math, science, history, etc. It doesn't make sense to me that they don't have one. If they had a class that taught about some of the topics you bring up that would be good, and not just at a grad or post grad level because that is mostly past the point where the students really need it. Sexting, cyber bullying, and such is not a technology issue its a life issue that needs to be dealt with and discussed openly and should be taught starting 7th grade. Thanks for reading and good topic.

Chapter Nine School Copyright Issues

Gerard Fabiano 55% (11/20)

I remember hearing stories about kids getting in serious trouble for plagiarizing a paper. I always wondered how this could be. Don’t get me wrong, I always figured you had to copy what you read onto your paper and that was good. Facts that you read about and wanted to copy over was good, but only to a certain extent. "Putting it into your own words" can be the best way to sum it up, because that is how you avoid plagiarizing. The quiz that I just took was somewhat of a logic quiz regarding copyrights, and even though I only scored a 55% I feel that I do understand the difference between using something as a source and stealing it. Because when you do think about it taking someone else’s work and passing it off as your own is stealing. I feel the best way to avoid this from happening either on purpose or just by mistake is having teachers give unique assignments that cannot be copied. Rather than do a report on a certain topic, why not have the assignment be something along the lines of, write as though you were from a certain time and are there as it is going on in a story format. I feel assignments like this would be more fun to write and read, and  will also bring a creative side out in many of the students doing the assignment. Overall I think something like this along with a podcast or PowerPoint slide with voice over would be better suited than a drawn out report someone can read already since its been done a countless number of times.

Chapter Eight: Technology Intergration Matrix

The example I decided to go with for this week's assignment was Collaborative Learning Entry Level. This activity would correspond to everyday use in classrooms all over the world as collaborative learning is essential to today's teaching and learning. Technology can be confusing, but it is a very important part of the classroom. With Collaborative Learning something difficult such as new technology can become easier, making it a great resource.

Collaborative Learning exhibits traits from NETS For Teachers and can take a small piece from all five. Both Students and Teachers can take good advice from Collaborative Learning. In addition students use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.


At this point in the semester I would say Adaption and Infusion are my levels of comfort. I am a fan of using creativity and not being afraid to "not follow the crowd". Technology gives a good way to have someone express their own thoughts and take initiative when trying to learn a new topic. This was a good assignment to help compare and analyze a few things we might have already read about. Again a very informative assignment.

Week 7 Podcast

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This week I went over math answers from a quiz with a podcast presentation. This assignment was exciting and fun. Podcasts help students stay interested and are apart of classroom technology.

Week 6: The 21st Century Skills Debate and Schools Kill Creativity

"I'm kind oF A big Deal" is a shirt 21st century skills would not wear because the importance of 21st century skills are in fact a big deal and far from a fad. All of the articles had a great deal of value in each of them and the one I enjoyed the most was The Value of Teaching 21st century skills from The Boston Globe. I strongly agree that the skills are extremely important to be taught and will only become out of date if someday we do not use these specific skills anymore. One of my favorite lines from the article is "That is why the debate over the value of teaching students so-called 21st century skills is baffling" I would prefer to use the word "comical" but baffling will do. If you think about it, because I know I have pretty much all the jobs I had since I graduated from college had nothing to do with what I learned in college. My game design position was from the 15 years I played card games. My position at the start-up company came from my entrepreneurial experience I gathered through out the years of coming up with ideas and trying them. Then finally my position as a financial adviser I just fell into and pretty much no direct skills from college I carried over to it, even though I took many finance classes.

The simple fact is that for people to progress and learn things relevant the topics that are being taught always need to change.

So sure if the question at hand is are 21st century skills important to teach, and the answer in the 21st century is of course "Yes". I think overall teaching is on the right track since this is coming to notice. There are a few things that I might not agree so heavily with, for example state testing, since most of the exams given are not related to 21st century skills.

In the video Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity the point he is trying to get across is that schools are teaching kids not to make mistakes and is taking away the confidence from the kids to try new things. I agree with his point, but on a different level. I truly believe that it is more than just schools doing it, it is society. If there is one thing I never cared about it is what society says. If everyone is going out to the bar on a Saturday to get drunk and I want to go to a friends house to play a game, that is what I am going to do. Because it's not about killing the creativity from kids it's that people are scared to be wrong and if society tells them to the bar then they're going do it. I think the people who are creative and are not to afraid to be wrong, also need to have good morals and understand how to learn and listen. Many do not and they become either social outcasts or criminals, so having the teachers teach a certain way is kind of taking a "hedged bet" but either way a teacher can't fully control the outcome of a student.

Week 5 power point voice over

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 After a tough time figuring out how to add in sound I came to realize it was well worth it. Something like this that can be sent out to parents is very valuable. I tried to keep the power point fun and entertaining. My goal was to briefly go over the slides and give the parents that did not meet me yet a sense of who I am . In conclusion, I was happy with this project and thought it was highly educational.

Week 4 Back to School Presentation

Above is an embedded power point presentation. Back when I was in high school something like this did not exist and the usage of power point just started. This week I gave a run down of what is going on in my Algebra 1 class and what the parents and students should expect.

WEEK 3 - Philosophical - 21st Century Learning Task 2

Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision-Making. Is the standard I chose to focus on.  The major points shown are as followed.

  

Reason Effectively

Use Systems Thinking

Make Judgments and Decisions

Solve Problems

Each of these are the major focuses on this particular standard. For my particular content area (math) this corresponds fairly well with the overall base of the subject.
 

What I would do is break the class into groups and play a strategy game. The game I would want the class to play would be a social critical thinking game called Werewolf. Werewolf rules can be found here.

I would want my students to A.) get into a critical thinking sense of mind and B.) a problem solving one. Now some my think this is more of a psychology game, which it is. However, just as there is in a math problem there is information that needs to be drawn out then applied to the problem. Combining content areas is something that is important for students to think in an open frame of mind. Which will allow students to think in a critical way.

Here is how a rough draft of step by step to the class would be given.

Step 1: Explain and go over the rules to the students after I had them read the rules of the game for a homework assignment.

Step 2: I would discuss the problem solving and critical thinking skills this game has to offer. I would ask for their opinion now (before they play) and after to see whatever thoughts they had changed.

Step 3: I would pass out the cards and the game will start. I would grade them on how they play the game on an individual level rather than have it be based on whether or not their team won.

Step 4: I would have them write a report (1 page) on what happened, their experience, and what they learned that could be applied to the route they would take to solve problems.

Step 5: I would play the game again and view their differences from game 1 to game 2 after the paper has been turned in.

From there on out I would (when it applies) ask how a future problem given to the kids related back to this exercise.

This would be a fun exercise and I feel the students would learn a great amount when it comes to Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision-Making.

 

 

WEEK 3 - Philosophical - 21st Century Learning

This week's blog response comes after two very interesting videos. The main point it seemed that the videos were trying to make is the importance of technology in classrooms. However, the importance is matched by other factors. One of the questions in the assignment is; When you job search and interview, what will you look for in a district and in a school? 

In the video Chatam High School one point that is mentioned and I strongly agree with is that teacher need to become more of entertainers than just teachers. This is something I would keep in mind when looking for a teaching position. I think I am one who can entertain a group and make their learning experience more enjoyable. I would also look at districts that have the most advanced technology. In the video they were focusing strongly on smart boards in classrooms. This is important to make sure kids are learning with technology. Another point they made that I always wanted when I was in high school is having a podcast so kids could go home and listen to the lecture over and over again. Years ago when a student missed class they would have to ask someone else for the notes. Now at any time they could listen to it and not have to worry about contacting a student for the notes that might not even be accurate. This should help to keep everyone on an equal playing field, especially if all kids will have access to use school computers at all time.

The article also covered similar points with the overall concept being teachers needing to go the extra mile and work with students rather then just teach them. This leads to the change that teachers now need to learn both the material and the best route to go to teach. This leads to teacher to teacher meeting and discussions with students even more important than before. I also really enjoyed how honest the one teacher was in the video as she stated that if she doesn't know how to use a certain technology tool she would just ask a student how to do it. Being open minded is an important part of being a teacher and a good way to improve on how you teach.
 

Week 2 District Web Page

I decided to focus on Barnegat Township for this assignment. It was very interesting viewing the page of Barnegat as I never did before. On the main page I found a handful of useful information. The first thing that caught my eye on the home page was the school calender, school times, and finally a review of the 5k run for Barnegat. These three links were under the headline section which was easy to view on the site and showed its importance to the viewers. There is also a section on upcoming events which is good to have so the parents can view any events their child might not have told them about. I believe keeping everyone involved, up to date on events, and future plans is very important to a school district.
I remember reading an article about what children in 2011 will not experience. They had a few topics I could agree on such as home telephones, typewriters, and hand written mailed letters. I however did not agree on watches, as they stated everyone will have an I-Phone in their hands at all times with the exact time. I believe watches fall into a category of style and fashion, but that's something else to get into. The one thing that they did mention was long distance. Many years ago the average person didn't really have "friends" who lived hundred of miles away. People didn't know what was going on at all times because it was pretty much word of mouth. Now word of mouth is a click away so having a website about a school district and all the information is just as important as meetings they used to have to update parents about what was going on.
Barnegat has done a very good job with their site, it is organized, easy to follow, and very informative. I enjoyed viewing and learning new things and think district websites play an important role to a successful education.

Week 1: Hopes and Expectations

I never took an online class before and I honestly believe you gain much more value in a classroom setting. I know some people would read this and instantly think of a classroom setting as a scene from The Breakfast Club compared to a high-tech online class. However, I am a believer that the teacher and students are the true factors behind a successful class. In "Learning to Change-Changing to Learn" a number of different professors and teachers came on screen and talked about the importance of teaching students about and with technology rather than be against it. This is something I completely agree with, but the main point should not be teaching with technology. The message lies deeper and it should focus on how teachers should adapt when teaching, whether it may be technology or something else.

Technology is just a part of the adaption.    Technology is something that will help teachers teach their students in an exciting new way, but when it comes down to it all the technology in the world won't make a "bad" teacher into a "good" one. When I say a "bad" teacher I think of one that doesn't understand who they are teaching. To make it to the second grade you need to have made it past the first and the same goes with having to finish high-school to make it to college, but everyone has a different past with different experiences. 

This first assignment having us give you information on how experienced we are in technology is one that is very important on how this online class will progress, because knowing your students is one of the most important pieces in teaching. Right now computers, blogs, Facebook, Wikipedia, Youtube are what the students know which is why the teachers who want to continue to succeed will learn and know these as well.    As far as my experience goes with technology I would say I am some what experienced, but everything I do know about it I believe was self taught.

What I want to gain from this online class is something that can't be learn from reading a book or Googleing it. Something innovating would stand out, possibly a different approach to a class or something else unique to everyone in the class. I am excited to see more critical thinking teaching techniques rather than the learn a bunch of facts and try to remember it. With technology you are not trying to just remember a fact about something you are actually learning valuable information. Whether it be using excel, internet research, or just making a class more engaging as was discussed in Four Takes of Technology, teachers still need to stay ahead of technology, use it as a learning tool for students, but make sure they use it the right way for students to get the most out of it.