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Zoom!

March 17, 2020 / / 0 Comments

As we move away from face to face classes and experience the fun of virtual classes. I got to learn a little bit more about Zoom today.

In relation to education:

Some Pros could include:

  • Allows virtual instruction
  • Can screen share
  • Can save and record the video
  • Has a whiteboard feature, polling feature
  • Has an online chat option
  • Can mute and unmute
  • Can host up to 100 people
  • Has a free option

Some. Cons could include:

  • Its features are difficult to use
  • Not great video or audio quality
  • Not all students have access to laptops, digital surfaces
  • Not all internet is strong enough for this

In a university setting, I found this too be quite useful given the circumstances. However, I do believe that the face to face instruction and teacher presence is much more beneficial for all learners and various grades. Yes some students may thrive from online learning, but Zoom is difficult as you can only ask private questions through the chat. As such, it doesn’t allow children to get all learning styles of instruction and that one on one aspect that classroom can provide. In desperate measures this is an option and who knows maybe schools will result to this depending on how this continues. However, even with online school such as SIDES for example, there is the option to meet or Skype one on one, which I think is more beneficial than a video conference with everyone for instruction. I do believe this could be a useful resource in certain circumstances. For example, for specific projects this could be very interesting to learn from other teachers or have students ask various teachers from various places or do a collaborative interview where everyone weigh in on your inquiry topic for instance. However, I think for the most part I think it benefits the middle school and high school years as students are further elaborated in regards to communication skills and listening. However through Zoom we as teachers lack seeing the body language and ability to go around the room and help with the process of learning. We also do not know what is going on and if students are actually listening as they are all in different learning environments. As such it may be more beneficial for it to be 1 student and various other people or teachers for learning purposes or projects. As mitigating a classroom of say 25-30 students and taking turns (everyone not talking over each other) is something that is developed through time.  As such, it worked for us as university students, however I would see many more obstacles in the elementary to high school years. It could be possible, but much more preparation would be required.

Building an Art Model

March 17, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Throughout this term, I have talked about the specific benefits of dance and music. However, these extend beyond just dance. The performing arts category and arts model can thus be a way to include various cross curriculars such as dance into the classroom.

According to the following article, Article Arts Method a teacher can follow a specific teaching method such as the Art Model. This model was created by Jacqueline Autard and is based on three characteristics CREATING-PERFORMING-APPRECIATING. This supports the idea of student driven system where the child is at the centre of their learning as they are given the opportunity to explore and create all while learning from others performances and compositions. Children will also learn observation skills and various styles which will lead them to learn communication, collaboration instead of competition and constructive criticism rather than judgment.

Dance and an Art Model can thus help students learn about themselves (teach self awareness) through the idea of emotional literacy. It can also help students understand their body, mind and imagination. This model suggest that teachers don’t just have their students follow but instead they must allow children to explore and create through the idea of modern theory.

Through this model, there is suggestions how to teach dance for example.

Here is a breakdown of a lesson that supports the Art model “Create, Perform, Appreciate”

  1. Welcome
  2. General Activation
  3. Exploration
  4. Composition
  5. Conclusion

 

 

 

The above diagrams and pictures are taken from the research article (Article Arts Method)

 

Group Inquiry 7

March 17, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Group Inquiry #7

Overall, we believe that Kahoot is a fun and interactive game based digital platform that allows students to be intrinsically motivated and successful. The Create, Play, Share motto fosters the idea of collaboration and competitiveness all while supporting learning and using Kahoot as a tool in your classroom. Throughout our inquiry research, we have discovered some of the key aspects children like about Kahoot and how Kahoot can empower our learners and learn from each other as they can also make and share Kahoots among each other. Listening to the students needs and modifying and adapting Kahoots as well as revisiting Kahoots helps learners succeed and grow. It is a platform that helps the diversity of student learners as it includes various features and styles of learning. Please enjoy the Kahoot we have made below! 

How to Create a Kahoot (Step-By-Step) Tutorial: 

Teacher steps / How to Make a Kahoot!

  1. Go to  https://kahoot.com or download the Kahoot app
  2. Pick your role (teacher / student) 
  3. Create an account username, email and password 
  4. Then to create a new Kahoot, press “Create a new Kahoot”
  5. Choose and customize  the style of your Kahoot, puzzle, slide, spelling etc. 
  6. Now choose your style of  question and answers (true or false, poll, closed question, multiple answers, open question etc. 
  7. Then add an image (optional) and insert up to four answers for students to pick from. 
  8. One this is complete, click “Done” and title your Kahoot

Students steps

  1. If students do not have an account visit https://kahoot.it and enter the game password provided by the teacher
  2. If students also want to make their own Kahoots, they will need to follow the steps outlined above (see teacher steps).

Summary: Here is a link of a Kahoot we made based on group inquiry posts 1 through 6: 

https://kahoot.it/challenge/0739897?challenge-id=9dc2f5db-72ba-4a73-8dd6-1fa550f28bcf_1583520213588

(Post by Arnelle and Brittany )

 

Music Blog 5 Preparation for Final

March 16, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Hello everyone,

In preparation for my final blog and video submission, there has been many factors that have been obstacles in the post midterm progress of my learning plan. Therefore this blog, I decided to practice singing and confidence instead of playing the xylophone for the time being. I believe I will try and learn at least the chorus to A Thousand Years on the xylophone.

The following video will demonstrate my progression towards confidence, I also believe that the classroom dynamics change and I would be much less nervous than in front of a video. Anyways, throughout these practices I think that I learned the importance of practicing and scaffolding before putting the 2 playing and singing together. Last time I learnt the song before I added singing. This time I am focusing on the confidence aspect and singing of the song, before learning to play it. That way the song will just come more naturally and I can focus on playing.

Although this was not the original plan, learning in two different ways (starting with singing the song and starting with playing the song) are two ways that could be incorporated into the classroom. One way may work better for a student than another, as such these amendments are very transferable and very much so a learning opportunity.

Please see the following

Music Blog 4 Preparation for Final

March 11, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Hello everyone,

I am back to blogging! After almost one whole month off of blogging, we are back. Unfortunately I would love to say that I have been constantly practicing my xylophone, however some unforeseen circumstances arose and I am was unable to play due to an injury. As such, I will have to make a few adjustments to my plan. This situation is important as it is beneficial to understand how to make amendments for your future students in order for activities to be accessible and inclusive to all.

In regards to my learning plan, I have had to make a few adjustments as I will only be able to play the xylophone using one hand. I would have liked to practice playing the xylophone while alternating mallets even more. However, I have had to make an amendment due to an injury.  Following my midterm update, I was on track with my learning plan and ahead of schedule, this will help since I have now fallen behind schedule. As such, I will still try to learn to Play “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri and possibly accompany my playing with singing as well. However I may only be able to play part of the song due to the time factor involved and my pain tolerance. In order to practice more confidence while singing, I think it is a good idea to switch my focus to that a bit while I recover. As such, in my next blog I will post a video of me practicing singing the song as if I was singing it to my students and then for my final post I will try to focus on playing at least the chorus and singing along.

Stay tuned for more updates coming soon!

 

MinecraftEDU Lessons and Google Science Journal

March 10, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Today we had the opportunity to have Heidi a grade 7 teacher at a local school in Victoria. With the evolution of technology and apps like Minecraft, teachers are able to create lessons that are co-curricular.  As such, interrelating and create lessons that work with various subjects is powerful to engage our students. In the following lesson plan https://education.minecraft.net/lessons/fairytale/  they focus on grade 3-5 and use language arts and digital technology. This allows students to be creative and engaged while collaborating and building (math) in relation to a story (literacy).

Here are a few pro’s and cons

Pros

  • Easy access
  • Inspiring and engage
  • Promotes creativity
  • Promotes teamwork, collaboration and community
  • Connects to various subjects notably math
  • Helps support problem solving and geometry
  • Teaches resource management

Cons

  • Addicting
  • Parents may not approve
  • Distracting
  • Too much screen time
  • Not super easy/ user friendly

Another key program we learned was Google Science Journal. This program allows children to measure light, sound, motion, & atmospheric pressure. As such, it can be useful in many subject areas (music, science, math etc). For elementary it may not be very practical as all students need a phone or tablet that have these features. However it could be very useful for middle and high school. The following link explains how Google Science Journal is useful for Science Fair projects. https://paksc.org/pk/articles/google-science-journal-app-an-excellent-tool-for-science-fair-project-research/

Another key feature is that there is a feature that allows this program to film. Therefore, this is beneficial as there is an ability to record and save your data. Online there are lots of different resources that help empower students to learn using this program.

Here are just some pro’s and cons.

Pros

  • Useful for many subject areas (music, science, math etc)
  • Free
  • Has many resources and tools
  • Measures light, sound, motion and atmospheric pressure
  • Fast and the program does the work for you

Cons

  • Not accessible to everyone as not everyone has a phone/table
  • Too much screen time
  • distracting
  • Not easy for those who aren’t great with technology

Kindermusik Program In Relation to Dance

March 10, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Kindermusik is a program that was founded in Bermuda by Suzanne and has now extended to an internationally recognized program. The program consists of using music (singing, instruments, laughing, storytelling) and movement (dancing). There classes range from O years until age 7. However, with the research that has been done I truly believe a similar program could be implemented for all ages. According to their website (http://kindermusikwithsuzanne.kindermusik.com)  their “award winning curricula and world-class educators provide engaging musical learning experiences during the years most critical to brain development.”

The following diagram is also from the Kindermusik website and focuses on some of the benefits of bringing music and dance to support learning.

As such in relation to some of our teacher education materials and in reference to our learners and learning environment class, many of the needs are met. Notably the social-emotional needs, cognitive and physical needs. In order for a child to be motivated we as teachers need to be aware and consider the Childs emotional development in relation to mental, physical and spirituality. Emotional literacy is thus important as it gives you “The ability to identify, understand, express and respond to emotions, including self-emotions and the emotions of others.” (class notes Ed-d 301,Diana Nicholson 2020). This program and dance in general also supports creativity, which provides children with the opportunity to share and create their own ideas. It also has many other co-curriculars such as language and literacy as well as math. 

Therefore this program really looks at understanding the child as well as meeting the Childs needs and motivating them through movement. As such, it is an effective model to support children’s learning as it addresses so many developmental aspects as well as various learning styles (kinaesthetic, visual, auditive). As a result, it aims to support the diversity of students learners and identities.

Kahoot Post 6

March 10, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Kahoot is known for its competitive nature as uses points to rank participants based on answering questions correctly as well as the speed at which the questions are answered. However, a more subtle aspect of Kahoot is its ability to promote collaboration in the classroom. The collaborative model is found within the idea of valuing student input which thus leads them to success and puts them at the center of their learning. In the following article (https://kahoot.com/blog/2018/03/13/collaboration-classroom-math-teacher-tips/)  one teacher explains his experience with Kahoot and how he started using it simply for a fun break and hadn’t explored many other possibilities until he received feedback from his students.

As such some of the modifications this teacher implemented to make it more collaborative for the students were:

  • Warm up (no point game)
  • Include I do not know as a possible answer
  • Replay Kahoots (to check and reinforce progressions and knowledge)
  • Give more time so students do not feel rushed and want to guess
  • Break up questions with multiple steps

Kahoot can also be collaborative as there are many teachers and students making Kahoots and sharing Kahoot’s with each other. Students building their own Kahoot games promotes collaboration and focuses on the student being the center of their learning all while learning from others. This fosters a strength-based approach as well as it empowers students to be creative and use what they understand to help others.  Also, there is the ability to work as a team/ small groups (this is particularly successful if there is lots of time to answer the questions as it allows discussion among groups instead of rushing). There is also a feature called Team Mode on Kahoot that supports collaboration and this idea of teamwork. This mode gives students time to discuss and then answer. See the following video that explains this mode more in depth.

 

(Post by Brittany and Arnelle)

Dance Teaches Valuable Life Skills

March 7, 2020 / / 0 Comments

School and Education ranges from various learnings and experiences. As such, it is important to incorporate and value the diversity of learners as well as the cognitive, social,  emotional and physical aspects of life and education.

In order for a child to be the centre of their education, we as teachers need to value and meet their needs socially, emotionally, physically and cognitively. Thus, supporting and teaching them a well balanced lifestyle and skills. In resent studies, there has been evidence of dance teaching valuable life skills. Notably, teamwork, empathy, respect, collaboration and cooperation. This is key as dancing is very expensive and many students will only be exposed to arts based programs through school. As a result, it is important that the arts are well supported in our current and future education systems and classrooms.

The following article describes many of these factors in relation to the importance of dance. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/01/learning-empathy-through-dance/426498/

Some facts and numbers that stood out to me was how according to the previous article “66 percent reported an “increased acceptance of others”.” and how the arts funding is decreased in school but rather it should be increased.

The following tweet describes some of the skills dance supports through a visual photo.

Flipping the Classroom and Educational Video Platforms

March 7, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Have you ever had to use online video platforms to help deepen your understanding or to clarify something… I can honestly say that I have used Khan Academy, Ted Talks and Youtube to support and further my learning. The pro’s of theses online surfaces is that they are widely available and if they are being used for educational purposes, one could say that in order for them to be used the child must first be intrinsically motivated as they are choosing to research it more on their own time. They are also useful as they help students learn from various sources. As such, if a student doesn’t understand, they can seek a new explanation.

Pro’s

  • New perspectives / different teaching techniques and experiences
  • Self directed / self paced = promotes intrinsic motivation
  • Student centred
  • Lead to new discoveries / help research ability
  • More 1 on 1 time with the teacher
  • Personal

Cons

  • Not always widely available/ easy to find :lack of ressources
  • Distractions
  • May not be at the proper level, may include subjects not directly related or too advanced for current classroom lessons.
  • Student lacking motivation, may feel lost
  • Personal curriculum design= more planning and specific/ need to know students
  • Some students may require more hands-on and active activities

Here is a Ted Talk by the creator of Khan Academy, Salman Khan and how video is used to reinvent education.

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