Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Continuing my GAME Plan

I have been discovering many useful ideas for using technology in my classroom by using fellow colleagues as a resource. I have also discovered that I have been a self-directed learner without even knowing it! Meeting with my colleagues and discussing education is something that I would do regardless of my goal. My Walden colleagues have proved to be just as resourceful as meeting in person with co-workers at my school. I think that the only way that I need to adjust my action plan is by doing some personal research as well and not relying solely on the word of colleagues. I have done some minor research on some pieces of technology, however, I think I need to take it a step further and actively research available lessons using the internet as aid. So far I have found a lot of great internet based programs that are useful for writing book reviews, however, I still am searching for a discussion forum that I can use for my students. I am looking for a discussion forum that looks similar to the Walden discussion board but does not require students to use an email as a login. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know!

5 comments:

  1. Francesca,

    Here is a website that lists several sites for book review projects. I am not sure if some offer the added discussion forum that you are looking for, but it's worth checking into! I think students would really enjoy this new take on the traditional book report. Writing a review to be published on the Web will definitely increase motivation for writing and promote meaningful discussions among students.

    http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic87.htm

    -Jennifer

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  2. Francesca,

    I think that by using a combination of resources and talking to people, you can find out a lot of great information. I would listen to suggestions and then research them on your own. There is so much information out there that sometimes it's hard to know what is good and what isn't. I'm glad there are a lot of people out there that you can get advice from!

    Christy

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  3. Thank you both for your insights. I have been speaking to many Walden colleagues as well as other educators within my district. It has been extremely beneficial to see what they find. Someone from our class actually gave me a great resource that did not come up in my hours of searching on my own!

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  4. Francesa,
    I recently did an online book review project with my kids. When we were working on writing the reviews, I found the following website really helpful: http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/bookrev/index.htm

    The kids then published their reviews on a wiki. If you'd like to have a look at their work, the site is: www.leewoodmiddlebookreviews.wikispaces.com

    Good luck!

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  5. I just took a look at it and it looks great Melissa!

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