Blog Post #13

Blog Post #13- Technological Tools

Research to find three technological tools that you believe will help students stay engaged with learning in the classroom. These must be tools that you have not heard of or used before. Give a summary of what each of these tools consist of. How do you believe these tools will help students stay engaged?

Answer the question in a post that adheres to the standards found in the ACCRS and in Writing a Quality Blog Post.

WebQuest

 

WebQuest is a website that is great for teachers who use project-based learning in their classrooms. Teachers can create a task for their students to perform called a WebQuest. A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information that learners work with comes from the web. The WebQuest tasks are designed to engage students while also preparing them for the assignments they will have to complete as adult. Students will also learn how to analyze rather than summarize.

A WebQuest must have the following attributes:

• is wrapped around a doable and interesting task that is ideally a scaled down version of things that adults do as citizens or workers.
• requires higher level thinking, not simply summarizing. This includes synthesis, analysis, problem-solving, creativity and judgment.
• makes good use of the web. A WebQuest that isn't based on real resources from the web is probably just a traditional lesson in disguise. (Of course, books and other media can be used within a WebQuest, but if the web isn't at the heart of the lesson, it's not a WebQuest.)
• isn't a research report or a step-by-step science or math procedure. Having learners simply distilling web sites and making a presentation about them isn't enough.
• isn't just a series of web-based experiences. Having learners go look at this page, then go play this game, then go here and turn your name into hieroglyphs doesn't require higher level thinking skills and so, by definition, isn't a WebQuest.

Edmodo

Edmodo is an extremely wonderful tools for teachers to use. Edmodo is an application that anyone can download on to their smartphone, and since technology is in some many people’s lives, Edmodo becomes an easy-access tool as well. Teachers can create an account on Edmodo and create a class section. Edmodo gives the teacher an access code to give to the students. The students can join the class section by creating their own account and entering in the code that was provided for them. Once everyone’s accounts are set up and everyone has joined the class section, Edmodo becomes a group chat tool. Teachers can send out mass text messaged to all of the students in each section to remind them about homework or any assignments that are coming up that will be due. This tool is great for high school and college students, because the older your students are, the busier they are in life. I know that I forget many things throughout my day so of course many other students have this same problem. This is why teachers should use Edmodo so that students will not forget assignments and always have the opportunity to learn and grow.

StoryBots

 

StoryBots is a website for interactive reading. Children are able to create an online account, but only if they put in their parents age and email address. Children can upload a picture of themselves and make their picture the star of the books! The books use the child’s name and make reading fun for children! StoryBots does cost some money ($36 a year or $5 a month), but I believe that the money is worth it so that children can have fun while they read! Along with books, children can also star in videos! On the StoryBots website there are learning videos, ABC videos, activity sheets, and also a section that provides applications that would be useful for teachers and children. There is an educator section that is specifically for schools, and who knows, maybe schools do not have to pay the same cost for access to the website. StoryBots team say, “saw an opportunity to support educators with free innovative and original learning experiences, and to engage them in a dialogue that could help create better, more effective learning tools. Hence, the StoryBots Educator Network was born."