My Technology-Enhanced Lesson

For my technology-enhanced lesson, I reviewed the parts of plants with my first grade class using I-Clickers. Prior to the lesson, I designed a review in the CPS program for clickers that Deerfield elementary uses. Some of the questions I entered only had 3 choices. Others had 4. Three of the fifteen questions were left without pictures, but the majority of the questions had a picture illustrating the concept I was quizzing at that moment. The formatting and set-up of each question was slightly different too maintain interest from all of my students. In order to do this, I placed the picture in a different spot when compared to the question base and the answer choices. For the actual lesson, each student was given an I-clicker. I used an LCD projector to project the questions onto the screen so that all students could see it. I read each question to the class with the options. After the question was read, the students were able to select which answer they thought was correct, then set down their controller on their desk to show they were ready and remove the tempation to continue pushing buttons. After all students had answered, I ended the question, showed the class the correct answer and the number who answered it correctly. This allowed each student to monitor their own progress and knowledge/understanding. If there were a large number who got the answer wrong, I explained the correct answer and why that was the right answer. At the end of the lesson, students brought their clicker back up to the front of the room to be put away.
Prior to this activity with the class, I tested out the system to make sure it worked. This turned out to be a great idea since my mentor teacher's computer (which I was using for the activity) was not recognizing the response system. After several attempts to get this to work, I ended up emailing the file to the facilitator's computer to use during the lesson. During my first attempt of the lesson with the students, the pictures would not work from the faciliators computer. For this reason, I only did the questions without pictures that day and downloaded the files onto that computer as well and then completed the rest of the questions the following day with the class. All in all it was a great success and the students really enjoyed it!

Technology-Enhanced Lesson

I have a couple of ideas that I might use for my technology-enhanced lesson during my first practicum. One idea I am planning on using in the future (and have done already) is to use a PowerPoint. Since our school has projectors, it is easy to create a PowerPoint that the students will enjoy and learn from. Although this is a relatively simple idea, technology is used so rarely in the first grade classroom I am working in that the students would absolutely love it.

Another idea I am planning on using will come after I have finished teaching my class about the different parts of a plant. I am planning on creating an I-Clicker review for the students. This would be completely new for them and let them actually become involved in the technological activity as well.

Classroom Technology Inventory

I am completing my first practicum at Deerfield Elementary in a first grade classroom. I was surprised to notice that while this is a really nice school that places a lot of emphasis on the education of the students, there is not a lot of technology involved in the classroom. This is the case at least for the first grade.
In the classroom there is one computer. This is the teacher's personal computer which most students do not get to use. One student, an ELL student who is still learning the alphabet gets to use Starfall.com to practice and work with the alphabet. There is not any specialty software downloaded onto my mentor teacher's computer. The first grade at Deerfield got a projector this year to share between 5 classrooms. Since this is a new feature for the classrooms, most of the teachers do not use the projector very much. The students have scheduled opportunities in the computer lab with a 3 month cycle. The computers in this lab have Kidspiration and Google Earth downloaded onto them for students to use. At this point in the cycle, my class has P.E. and does not get to use computers very often. This means that very little technology is used in their education.
I was impressed that the teachers in the first grade classrooms have microphones to use in the classroom. (Talking with other cohort students at this school who are in other grades, I was able to learn that not all of the grades have this equipment.) The fifth grade got Smartboards for their classrooms this year. Over the next few years, all of the classrooms will be getting this equipment. All the classrooms also have access to I-Clickers.
It is interesting how little technology is used in the classroom with all of the different resources that are available. Hopefully, I will be able to pull a little bit more technology into use with my class.