Claire's Education Blog!

"To Teach is to Learn Twice Over" -Joseph Joubert

Month: November 2022 Page 1 of 2

Writing a Childrens Book -10

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On 29 November 2022

In Free Inquiry Project

My Book

So, I know I said I was going to record a video of me reading my book. But I do not feel confident with I have to do that. So, instead, I am going to type out the dialogue and post the pages of illustrations I have.

Dialogue

Aarons Tour Of The Solar System

Page 1: Hi Friends! I’m Aaron, the antelope astronaut

Page 2: Today, we will be going on a tour of our solar system. Which means we will have to travel up into space in my rocket ship!

Page 3: Here’s my rocket ship! It can travel over 35,000km per hour, which is SUPER FAST, so we will be in space in no time!

Page 4: Okay everyone! Hop in and fasten your seatbelts.

Page 5: I hope you’re all ready. Can you help me count down? 3…2…1…

Page 6: BLAST OFF!!!!

Page 7: We are going to stop and visit each planet in order from closest to the sun to furthest to the sun.

Page 8: First stop, Mercury!

Page 9: Mercury is the smallest planet in our solar system and, even though it’s the closest planet to the sun, at night time it can get as cold as -180 degrees celius.

Page 10: Next stop is Mercury’s neighbour, Venus.

Page 11: Venus is the hottest planet in our solar system and shines ALMOST as bright as the Moon and Sun.

Page 12: Look friends! It’s Earth! That’s where we all live. Earth rotates around the Sun once about every 365 days. That’s what makes a year!

Page 13: Welcome to Mars! Mars is SUPER bright and close to Earth. It’s very cold here, let’s move on to Jupiter.

Page 14: Jupiter is biggest planet in our solar system and rotates once every 10 hours.

Page 15: Here we have Saturn. This planet have 7 rings around it that are made up of ice and rock.

Page 16: This is Uranus, it is not very bright and is big enough to fit 63 Earths inside it.

Page 17: Wow! We are now at the last planet, Neptune! Neptune is the only planet we can’t ever see without a telescope.

Page 18: Time for us to head back home to Earth. I hope you all enjoyed the tour of out solar system. See you back on Earth, friends!!!

Illistrations

Here are the illistrations that were completed by Katelynn.

SD5 Design Lab

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On 23 November 2022

In Weekly Reflections

This week, we got the luxury to go and explore the SD5 Design Lab located in the basement of Kootenay Orchards Elementary School.

This was an amazing opportunity and I have so much to share!

Anatomy

This large human eye artifact was one of many great educational tools for teaching anatomy. I know many are visual and hands-on learners like myself. I wish I had access to something like when I was in grade school as learning from a worksheet was a lot harder. They also had a large human head, brain, and ear. (All fake)

Now, holy smokes was this ever cool. They had a REAL cat digestive system. Another really interesting thing for students to learn from.

Outdoors

Adventure Backpacks

These were on of my favourite things. An already put-together backpack equipt with things like binoculars and magnifying glasses. This is amazing. Having the tools take students on adventures where they most likely do not have to share will make outdoor learning better for all students (and us teachers lol)

Outdoor Desks

Outdoor desks? Whaaaat? These are so awesome. In our field experience class, we spend a lot of writing outside, and having something like this would be great. I already know when I have my own classroom, that I want to spend as much time outdoors as possible. These will help tremendously!

Kits

Reading Kits

In our Literacy and Language class, we just talked about Reading Power. I was very interested in it, but not sure how exactly to go about it. Seeing these kits took away some of my stress for teaching reading. I love how they have different ones for each “big idea”.

Math Kits

These grade-organized math manipulative kits will make life so much easier. As we were told, keeping track of these in a school is merely impossible. So, having these already made-up kits to take out will be so nice!

Other

This set of drums is great. I would love to bring in an Indigenous drummer to teach my class the basics. Would be a great activity to explore Indigenous culture!

Laser Cutter

There was this super big and cool laser cutter (worth about $7,000). This had to be the highlight of the visit. I got to create a cute little Christmas ornament. Can you believe the finished product started out as a drawing? There are so many things a class could do with this!

There was so much more there and I was just so in the moment that I did not get photos of everything.

More things:

  • 3D Printer
  • IPads
  • Little Robots
  • Lego
  • and more

I feel so lucky to have this design lab in my backyard. I will be utilizing it a lot in my teaching career!

Writing A Children’s Book – 9

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On 17 November 2022

In Free Inquiry Project

Final Update

This is basically going to be my final post. I do plan to make one more which will be a video of me reading my finished product.

My last update is another illustration from Katelynn!

Sketches by Katelynn Sommerset

Summary

Throughout these past 9 weeks, I have learned a fair amount about writing a children’s book.

First, I learned about brainstorming and creativity. I had to come up with a theme and a storyline, a character. All while making sure it was catered to children and not “copied”.

Second, I learned how to navigate Epic! Books. Epic! Books is going to be an extremely valuable platform for me to utilize in my future classroom. For my writing process, this helped me to get an idea of how children’s books are laid out and what type of language to use!

And third, I learned communication. I had to chat with the parents of my target-aged kids to get a sense of what kids these days are into. I had to communicate with my mum as she edited my writing and I had to communicate with Katelynn as she works on my illustrations.

Digital Portfolios

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On 17 November 2022

In Weekly Reflections

What is a Digital Portfolio?

A digital portfolio is an assembly of student work that is digitized. These are things like photos, videos, drawings, audio recordings, or documents.

A great example is the app SeeSaw.

SeeSaw is used in SD5 and SD6

CC0 by P ter G bly s https://pixabay.com/en/dog-animal-canine-pet-portrait-3277414/
Image from SeeSaw Help Centre

How Can They be Used in the Classroom?

They can be used for SOO much in the classroom.

Digital portfolios are a great way for parents to have access to their student’s work in real-time. This can help parents build a connection with their child’s schooling and the teacher.

They also can help students feel a sense of pride in their work. When their stuff gets posted and their parent or teacher comments on it or brings it up at home, it makes them feel proud.

Seesaw can build independence within students. It is such an easy platform that they can make their own posts. Using an IPad, they can take a photo of their work, find their name, and post it!

It is also a place where teachers can mark student work and post assignments for them to complete.

There is so much more, so I recommend checking out the SeeSaw app!

My Experience and How I Envision Using it

My Experience:

I do not have a whole lot of experience with digital portfolios, but the amount I do have has really turned on my excitement for it! In class, I had so much fun doing the little “assignments” given to us and exploring the SeeSaw app a little bit. I love how you can add a voice recording to a photo or drawing!

How I Envision Using It:

I envision using it mainly as a platform to connect students with their parents. Posting what we are working on and final products. I will also allow students to tell me if there something they would like me to post.

Presentations – 2 Virtual Reality and Virtual Field Trips

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On 15 November 2022

In Presentations

Virtual Reality in the Classroom

Jake and Brad presented virtual reality (VR) experiences in the classroom.

I learned that there are 3 types of VR tech:

VR: putting on a headset, tracks movements

Augmented reality: can still see the real world, but can see other stuff that isn’t actually there. Example: BMW displays vehicle speed on the road in front of you.

Extended reality: super expensive, therapy for military vets?

Brad discussed PlayStation(PS) VR. PS VR uses a tethered headset which needs to be offloaded onto the PS. There is a camera set up on the top of the TV that corresponds with the lights on the headset.

Jake discussed the Meta Quest 2 which is a stand-alone headset that is portable and does not need to be offloaded. He showed some cool platforms. Librarium allows you to create your own study space and create or use flashcards to study! Hand Physicals Lab, Nanome, and Star chart were also discussed!

The pros of this technology are: kids love new ways of learning, it’s hands-on and fun, engaging for students, allows for cool new opportunities.

The cons are: expensive, one student at a time, gaming bias

Virtual Field Trips

Kim, Morgan. T, and Chelsea showed us some cool virtual field trip ideas!

Chelsea showed us a cool virtual field trip to the Zoo for kindergarten students. They can explore enclosures virtually and then use other platforms like Jamboard for assessment and Create Kai XR allows students to create their own enclosure to show what they learned via the tour!

Morgan showed us a virtual field trip to Mount St. Helens for grade 8s. We were able to explore what happened to the mountain and watch a recreation of it. Video representations can be found on youtube. Teachers can create “I wonder” Jamboards or Kahoot quizzes for students to show their learning.

This idea is more engaging than textbook learning, and allows for more opportunities to explore places that may not have been possible otherwise, and is great for visual learners!

Their presentation video:

https://can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DmBJGN2NNdpk&data=05%7C01%7Cmtank%40uvic.ca%7C3fbd6e4832974fac085a08dac1c93327%7C9c61d3779894427cb13b1d6a51662b4e%7C0%7C0%7C638035367124354403%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=o8HHeN2vi0ob0CauTZk1IQmlV4oiffKKjxtsF3EqX1o%3D&reserved=0

Writing a Children’s Book – 8

by

On 9 November 2022

In Free Inquiry Project

Photo by Joe Caione on Unsplash

WOOOHOOO! You are going to be as excited as that dog looks to hear that I finally have ONE sketch to show you! But first, let’s chat a little.

So, with the writing process being complete and edited there is not much for me to do besides wait for more art to come in. This week though, I thought it would be a good idea for me to practice my reading-out-loud skills. I picked up a couple children’s books from the library and forced my boyfriend to sit and listen to me read them. I worked on my tone and my expressions. I know those things are important for students to learn how to mirror and to keep them engaged in a story!

Okayyyyyyyyyy, here is the sketch. I think it is super cute and will work well for my story 🙂

Sketch by Katelynn Somerset

Using Prodigy in the Classroom

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On 9 November 2022

In Weekly Reflections

Made on Canva

Prodigy Education is an educational gaming website that allows students to work on their literacy and math skills through gaming.

My Experience

In class on Tuesday was my first time ever exploring Prodigy. At first glance, I think it is super cute. It gave me some peace of mind when it made sure students were unable to use an inappropriate name by giving them options they have to choose. It was also really cute how I was able to create my own little avatar! I played around with both the math and literacy options. The literacy one was not as fun for me. It felt like there was almost too much instruction. When I ran out of “energy” I had to answer like, 10 questions to get it back and I feel like that would turn students off. The math one though was a lot of fun. You get to battle other creatures and level up. The questions are spaced out more, so I believe it would keep students more engaged. Overall, I really like this website!

What it Has to Offer Teachers

This platform can offer a lot to teachers. I feel it could help students who may struggle behaviourally get their learning in by using a fun game. Another thing I thought of was for students who have a home life where they just go home and are thrown in front of a screen until bedtime. This game is something they could play in that time after enjoying it in class and would help them advance and practice their math and literacy. This platform also allows teachers to take a “break” to catch up on things. It is not just a useless game to fill time, it has lots of educational aspects easing the worry of if the principal were to walk in.

Benifits of Gamifying Math

Math is a difficult and not well-liked subject for many students. But playing fun games on the computer is an “easy” and well-liked thing for many students. Creating a game like this that is fun and helps with math skills is AMAZING. It is an easy way to get students who refuse or really struggle to get their practice in. Lots of students also have access to play this at home, giving them some outside-of-the-classroom practice as well.

Negatives

In my eyes, there are few negatives to this platform. The fact that it is a game can be a turn-off to parents and some teachers making them less likely to give it a try. I know that it is almost always a struggle to transition from playing on the laptops to classroom work, so maybe this is an end-of-the-day or before lunch activity. The last one I can think of is the fact that it is just a website online and there is a potential threat of pop-up ads or it crashing and not working.

Presentation: Using Tech to Support Diverse Learners

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On 9 November 2022

In Presentations

Here is my group’s tech presentation!

Tech Presentations 1 – What Makes a Good Classroom Blog and Inclusive Classrooms!

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On 8 November 2022

In Presentations

What Makes a Good Classroom Blog?

Alannah, Kelly, Lauren, and Cassidy discussed 4 platforms to use as classroom blogs! Class Dojo, Google Sites, Jotform, and Seesaw.

Lauren went over Class Dojo. This site seems super cool and useful. My favourite part is probably the fact that students are able to custom-create their own avatars. Students find joy in being able to show their creativity. It is also a password-protected site which is super important to me. I like how parents are able to have access to their child’s work and what is going on in the class, I wish my parents had that opportunity when I was in school. I will consider using this in my classroom.

Kelly went over Google Sites. Google Sites is something I will most likely use because I am already very familiar with google stuff. On this platform, you can set reminders for students and parents for things like field trips, teachers can post resources for students, and parents have access as well. Kelly also mentioned Classroom Screen briefly and I found this one super cool. You can track students’ noise levels, you can do polls, set a timer, and much more. That is something I would also love to use.

Alannah talked about Jotform. To me, the best part about this platform is that it can become an app. The option just pops up and you can easily add it to the home screen of their computer or mobile phone. I also really liked how it is only one page, which makes it super easy for parents to navigate and use. You can use polls, post reminders, and have parents submit permission forms online, and there are flashcards for students you can add. This is also password protected.

Cassidy went over Seesaw. Seesaw is something that I know is used in SD6 as a way for students, teachers, and parents to stay in touch. Teachers can post student work, activities, etc. You can have more than one class and more than one teacher!

Artifact: https://bright.uvic.ca/d2l/le/233866/discussions/posts/1597386/ViewAttachment?fileId=6686786

Incusive Classrooms

Sarah, Emily, and Morgan. F discussed technologies that can help make classrooms more inclusive!

Sarah talked about virtual classrooms. Virtual classrooms make learning more accessible for all. Students can do their work from anywhere and at any time. Teachers can post assignments online and students can work on them on their own time at their own pace. I really liked how students who may not be comfortable speaking in front of everyone, can create a discussion post and still be part of the class.

Emily went over Immersive Reader. I did Immersive reader for my presentation as well.

Morgan discussed something called NearPod. This platform allows teachers to do live presentations or student-paced presentations. It has things like virtual reality, quizzes, games, and a cool whiteboard feature. Audio submissions are also allowed for students who may struggle with typing or writing.

Artifact: https://www.canva.com/design/DAFQQQW72OY/30_TMyWElbvXFcf8-PpZxw/view?utm_content=DAFQQQW72OY&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton

Writing a Childrens Book – 7

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On 3 November 2022

In Free Inquiry Project

Photo by Jose Pena on Unsplash

This photo is how I am feeling about making this post right now…..

Like I said last time, I finished the writing process (WooHoo) and it is still crazy to me that I actually accomplished this. But, now I am struggling to think of things to say in my weekly updates.

This week, I did work on editing my writing. I read over it multiple times and fixed a few things I didn’t think worked. I had my mum read over it as well because another set of eyes will really help eliminate errors. She said that it sounds super cute and she thinks children will have fun with it! All she did was fix some grammar and changed a bit of the wording. I am now feeling confident in how it all sounds.

Impatiants and Nerves

Before I type this part I really want to emphasize how grateful I am to have a friend helping me with the art portion of this book (cause I suck).

But, it is so hard waiting. I want to have some of the drawings now and being patient is hard for me.

I am also nervous that they will not get done in time and that I will have nothing to show at the end of this.

I do understand that people have lives and drawing pictures for my book is not a priority. I just wish I could be in full control, but this is what I get for not being artistic haha!

Anyways, we will chat again next week!

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