Revisiting Childhood Through A Digital Story

Over the past few weeks I have been in the process of creating my own digital story, which is essentially a movie made from pictures, audio, and voiceovers. This experience has taken me on a ride down memory lane as I search through childhood pictures that resurface cherished memories and unforgettable moments from the past. This project has enabled me to incorporate an important aspect of my life, my relationship with my older sister, into my academic work and explore technology with my own interests in mind. In addition, working on the story helps me to calm down and de-stress after crazy days spent in class, completing homework assignments, and being in a never-ending realm of energy and animal crackers: the kindergarten classroom. 

As I put the pieces of my childhood back together, I realize that I have lost sight of what’s important in life: family, relationships, and living for the moment. It has also helped me to understand how important it is, as a teacher, to provide students with the opportunity to incorporate their values, interests, and ideas into their learning in new and exciting ways. My advice to anyone reading this blog, whether you are a teacher, student, or just have nothing else to do, TAKE ADVANTAGE of this wonderful tool. Create a story. A project. A poem. A biography. Share, appreciate, and proudly display your own interests and ideas. Give your students the opportunity to learn in different ways and display their learning in a way that supports their needs and interests. 

Kindergarten!

When I was first told that I would be working in a kindergarten classroom this semester, I didnt know how to feel. Part of me was anxious that I wouldnt learn as much as I would in a higher grade level classroom. The other part of me was excited to experience something so new and be a part of helping young children build the foundation for their learning. A few weeks in, I cant tell you how happy I am to be in the environment i'm in. I work with wonderful teachers who provide me with valuable resources and skills that I know will help me in whatever grade I chose to teach. These teachers really make me feel like i'm a part of the kindergarten team which is really important to me as a future teacher. 

At a planning session this past week, I learned about an activity the teachers do with their students to help them learn the letters of the alphabet. For the activity, which they called the ABC beanbag toss, the teachers took a shower curtain and drew 26 boxes- each box had a letter of the alphabet in both uppercase and lowercase form, and the boxes where drawn randomly around the surface. Next, the teachers took 26 beanbags and wrote a letter of the alphabet in uppercase and lowercase form in permanent marker on each one. To play the game, the teacher hands a student a beanbag, and the student must say the letter thats on the bag and the sound it makes. Then, they go to the "start" square (which is a small box that says "start" on one of the corners of the curtain)  and toss the bean bag to the matching square on the curtain. The game ends when all the squares are filled up. 

The next say, I watched as the kids played the game, and I can honestly say that I have never seen anyone so excited to learn the ABCs and toss a beanbag in my life.

Just goes to show how such a simple idea can go a long way!

Wikiality

Sadly enough, I have never been "tech savy". However, over the past few weeks, I have learned to use several different technology tools, one of which being a wiki. Its been helpful to learn about all the advantages of wikis, however, I recently came across a funny video of Stephen Colbert discussing wikipedia, one of the most popular wikis on the web.

Theres a lot of political stuff in the video, but the main idea is that wikis are not ALWAYS reliable. I think that wikis are great to incorporate into the classroom environment, but, teachers need to remind students to be cautious when using wikis, such as wikipedia, as a resource or reference tool. I also found a great video that interviews teachers and students on the use of wikis in the classroom. This video is cool because it outlines some advantages of wikis and lets the audience see what students think. Check it out!

One advantage of blogging...

For many people, blogs may seem like just another social networking tool similar to facebook, myspace, and twitter. To be quite honest, I will admit that I felt this way before I created my own blog and discovered the many advantages of blogging as discussed in Diane Penrod's book Using Blogs to Enhance Literacy.

                                                   
In her book, Penrod describes some of the ways that blogs help students develop literacy skills, one of which being that blogs "encourage fluency in writing". When I first saw this point, I was in complete shock. How many people do you know that would spend the same amount of time and energy as they would writing a school paper on a blog? After I continued reading, I realized that I completely missed the point. Yes, it is very rare that you will run into someone who blogs in the same way they would write an academic paper. BUT, this means that many people view blogging as a non academic activity. In schools, this is crucial. Writing now becomes fun. Its an activity that allows students to publish personalized documents in a laid back manner, play around with technology, and explore different graphic. Little do they know that they are building literacy skills at the same time.

Blogging seems to be a growing trend in today's education. Throughout my education, I was never given the opportunity to participate in blogging activities, although I believe it would have had a postie influence on my writing. Next year, when I become a teacher, I hope to introduce this increasingly popular form of writing in my classroom because I think that it will make a once tedious task into an enjoyable, hands on learning experience for my students.

Why education?

As I reflect back on my childhood, I can remember sitting in front my easel chalkboard, teaching teddy bears and Barbie dolls how to add, subtract, and read. As I got older, I was able to begin working with kids in many situations, such as teaching swim lessons, tutoring, babysitting, and eventually becoming a preschool teacher. All of these experiences increased my desire to become a teacher, a dream that is finally beginning to feel like reality.

A few months ago, I saw the movie Remember Me, which is about a boy who falls in love with a girl, who helps him deal with his family issues and relationships. Now, I know your thinking, "what does this have to do with education?" Well, by the end of the movie, while most people were crying their eyes out, I was thinking about a quote from the movie that really inspired me. This quote, which says "Our fingerprints never fade from the lives we touch", perfectly describes why I want to be a teacher, and my past experiences in education. Several of my teachers in elementary school have left a lasting impression in my life. Not only did they teach me several important life lessons, but they played a large role in my future academic successes. In addition, they treated everyone with kindness and respect, which is critical to a positive classroom community. Like many of my teachers, I hope to leave lasting fingerprints on my students lives. I hope to help them grow, discover new possibilities, develop in their academics, and feel comfortable in the classroom environment. When I think about it, all of these things have motivated me to continue my journey in becoming a teacher.

Blogging

This picture perfectly describes where I want to be right now. There's not much more I can say, given that I am consumed with thoughts of laying on the beach on this beautiful Friday afternoon. I'll leave it at that, at least until I can figure out how to do this whole blogging thing... :)