Goals:

• Identify the technological resource applications that enhance learning, support learning theory, and compliment specific classroom experiences.
• Develop strategies for incorporating technological resources into appropriate curriculum and classroom activities utilizing current research on technology to plan for all learners.
• Create and share projects and activities that participants will actually use with students.

K-4 Session One - Focus Questions:

• Why use technology at these grades?
• How do we use technology? For what purposes?
• What changes in your classroom's learning environment would you like to see happen using technology?

TAKING THE TECHNOLOGY PLUNGE Five things I wished I knew when I made my own first leap!  By Brenda A. Dyck

"Programs do not bring reform, practices do.  It is the attitude and implementation of the stakeholders that make all the difference."
Ellen Berg, Turner MEGA Magnet Middle, St. Louis, MO

K-4 Session Two - Investigate resources to provide Engaged Learning and other activities:

ONLINE PROJECTS

The point of online projects is to have your students learn using internet resources in a way that would be very difficult to do without the internet. For example, want to have your students find out about other states? Why not get them involved with children in other schools across the nation to decide which landmark (or city, or national park, or river) in their state is the most important and why. These discussions between kids from classrooms in different parts of the nation (or world!) makes for truly engaged learning. In my mind, this section shows best practices in using technology.

Global School Net's Internet Projects Registry contains on-line projects created by teachers that your students can do with other classes around the world. This "gold standard" (in my opinion) site also contains a search engine to locate the perfect on-line project for your class and a way to receive information of future projects via e-mail (using the Hilites Mailing List. Global SchoolHouse also has a Collaborative Learning  Projects page with "online opportunities for teachers to collaborate, communicate, and celebrate shared learning experiences".  The point is, since your students work with students from other schools in these activities, their motivation will be higher.

KIDPROJ is a part of KIDLINK, "where teachers and youth group leaders from around the world plan activities and projects for students and other kids age 5 to 15 to take part in." This is the home of "Through Our Eyes"  and other internet-based projects where students write for and work with students from other schools. While at the KIDPROJ site, click on Curriculum Ideas and Projects at the left of the page. Research has shown that students put much more effort into such activities than if they are done for others besides their teacher.

Online Activities from Scholastic.com (mostly K-8) has web-based activities and projects. There are lots of quality and engaging ways to learn for your students.

Online Expeditions from Lightspan.com allows your students to accompany explorers and adventures as they go on these virtual field trips.

More Collaborative Learning Projects from Lightspan.com allows your students to write newspaper articles, join other classes in going on field trips, write stories and more!

Project Center from The Teachers.Net Chatboard Network has a variety of projects. While at this site, the Project Center is in the right hand column. Check out the Project Switchboard for discussions on developing your own online project.

EPals.com provides a source of class-to-class and group projects using the internet, as well as lists of classrooms in various countries who would be willing to communicate with your class.

The Virtual Field Trips Site provides "on-line field trips that take you to places that until now you could only dream about, and teach you things you might not otherwise learn."

Internet Projects from the Community Learning Network has seventeen links to internet based projects.

SchoolWorld Internet Education Projects has a variety of internet-based projects and programs for K-12.

MidLink Magazine - "The Digital Magazine by students for students from 8 to 18" has your students doing projects with the results published in the magazine.

Wacky Web Tales are geared for grades 3 and above,  and motivate your students to read and write.

Online Activities contains an extensive list of projects and ideas for all grades. It was created by Dr. Marty Levine, California State University, Northridge.
 

PUBLISHING

Kidscibe allows your students to publish their writing on the internet.

The Young Writers Club allows your students to be published.

Speak Up from the Scholastic Network has a variety of ways to allow your students to publish their writing.

Kidsworld has a writing contest once a month for your students.

Kidnews is a magazine with articles submitted by students.
 

INTERACTIVE LEARNING

Online Activities from Scholastic.com

Art Safari   from the Museum of Modern Art

Boowa and Kwala has games, songs, interactive coloring books. This site is available in English, French and Spanish.

BBC Little Animals

Mo Jo's Musical Mouseum Song Lyrics

CoolMath4Kids for kindergarten

Kid Info Activity Page  has many resources for your students

FunBrain.com has math and grammar games and much more for your students.

FactMonster.com has a dictionary, atlas, encyclopedia and an almanac, as well as games and quizzes.

TEACHER RESOURCES

Cool Units    http://www.coollessons.org/coolunits.htm
from coollessons.org  is a source of units and lesson plans, especially WebQuests.

Make the Link Learning Standards Benchmark Grid Help from the St. Clair County Regional Office of Education.

Activity Formats from Filamentality has some examples of matching the type of web based activity to the goals you have for your students. Another way to look at the kinds of activities is to use the Visual Organizer.
To find a particular activity use the Search the Registry.    Just specify the grade level, etc. of the topic you're looking for and click on the "start search" button.

Research Modules are another way to look at the different levels of activities, all of which still challenge your students to think.

Integrating the 'Net into the Elementary Classroom is a nice summary of six levels of Internet use in the classroom with appropriate links for each from Sarah A. DiRuscio, Forefront Curriculum.

TIP Project Unit Frameworks are quality K-5 engaged learning units from teachers in District 23, Prospect Heights IL. Some of the links used in these projects are located in the second cell at the right here.

Kinder Korner has lesson plans and resources for K-2.

Dr. Labush Links to Learning has nice resources for K-6.

Just for Kids from Learning Page has resources on animals, pets, holidays and more.

Sharp Resources  from Dr. Vicki F. Sharp and Dr. Richard M. Sharp and Learning Page includes lesson plans, instructional materials, online activities and projects, and virtual trips to museums and countries around the world.

Kid Stuff from Kathy Schrock  has activities and resources for students K-8.

Brain Pop Movies are a cool way for 3-8 students to learn science facts.

Funschool.com has interactive games for K-4.

Exemplary Uses of Technology are winners of the Larry Stilgebauer Award presented by the Kane County (IL) Regional Office of Education.
 

K-4 Session Three - Developing or altering a present learning activity based on

• Incorporating Technology as a tool
• Engaged Learning

 

 

The goal is for teachers to build standards-based units or activities that you can actually use with your students.

K-4 Session Four - Evaluate and Plan

Investigate authentic assessment:

The following are sources of rubrics and checklists for evaluating your students' work:

WebQuest Rubric Template and Rubric Collection can be found at this site produced by Education Service Center, Region 20, Texas and teachers in that region.

Assessment Rubrics from Kathy Schrock's web site.

Assessment from North Central Regional Educational Laboratory.

Rubrics from the Staff Room for Ontario's Teachers.

Project Based Learning Checklist from www4teachers and the South Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium - This is a cool site where you can easily build a checklist for or with your kids before they write, do an oral or multimedia presentation or an experiment. They will know what to look for when they self-evaluate their work.

RUBISTAR is also from www4teachers. Using a similar format , teachers can easily build customizable rubrics for or with your students for a wide variety of project types. Please check these out!

Other topics:

Classroom Organization: Nuts and Bolts of Doing Web Based Lessons
Permission Slips
Digital Camera
 

Copyright © 2001 Richard Levine and Cool Lessons
This page may be used for non-for-profit educational use only.
This page was developed to be used by the staff of SS. Peter and Paul Elementary School, Cary, Illinois during a twelve hour workshop for each set of grade levels, Aug. 6-8 and 8-10, 2001. The workshops will be given by Richard A. Levine, Illinois State Board of Education Certified Professional Development Provider #100201.  R. Levine's role is to act as facilitator, consultant, and co-learner/investigator in the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards of Learning Environment, Planning for Instruction, Instructional Delivery and the Core Technology Standards for All Teachers, Standards 1 through 9.
If you have any comments or questions about this page, contact Rich Levine  at coollessons.org