Monday, September 24, 2012

Blog Assignment #4

The first graders create their own read-along audiobook, also known as a podcast, with Miss Silvia Tolisano!
Langwitches: 1st Graders Create Their Own Read-Along Audiobook

In Langwitches: 1st Graders Create Their Own Read-Along Audiobook", it is very interesting to know how 1st graders, or any student is intrigued by technology. Langwitches is a blog by Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano, a World Language teacher, Technology Integration Facilitator and 21st Century Learning Specialist. The first grade got to record their own podcast and write their own scripts. This promoted a new and fun learning experience! The podcast is a great way to promote teamwork as well! They were read chapter by chapter as they wrote the script and were taken out of the classroom to record them. A little booklet was made for other students to follow as the podcast played. It is also great that there is a special sound at the start of a new chapter to help those who are lost. As they listen to themselves, they are aware of their own voices and individuality. In the posted results, most of them wanted to re-record themselves and experimented with their voices to make it funny or intense! Giving students the opportunity to explore something new can create new learning experiences, give them a sense of self-awareness and go beyond what they think they could do. The podcast can also be a way to improve the students reading, writing, comprehension and listening skills!

The podcast is a great and fun way for students to learn! I am kind of excited for our own podcast project. I am sure I would want to re-record myself many, many times before I think it is "right"! I think we will all have fun with it like the 1st graders did. I am sure we will all be aware of how we really sound like. When we talk and hear ourselves, it's actually different from how we really sound when others hear us. It is an interesting discovery when I first heard myself in a recording. I will definitely apply this into my future classroom. I am sure all the students will have fun!

The first graders are eager to create their own podcast with Miss Silvia Tolisano!
Podcasting With The First Grade

In Miss Silvia's blog post, Podcasting with the First Grade, she tells us how a podcast can be a fun and wonderful learning experience for elementary kids! After listening to the second graders podcast about animals, the first graders were interested in creating their own podcast! They were excited about gaining exposure and audience from the outside world, experimenting with their voices, using technology and stepping onto new learning platforms! They were also excited to place their podcast into "other people's computer and iPods". She read "Vacation under the Volcano" by Mary Pope Osborne from the Magic Tree House series and engaged in discussions with the students to come up with ideas on what to put in their podcast. They decided to create an interview between two characters of the book, Jack and Annie. The boys played Jack while the girls played Annie. A script was written for the students to follow. Each one of them had a chance at being recorded! While recording was in session, students that were not being recorded were reading or doing other classwork. What was amazing is that the students cooperated, behaved, and were patient and eager to learn more! They were also pointing out mistakes Miss Silvia had missed. There were a lot of engagement and interactions going on! This activity also allowed room for boundless creativity!

It is amazing how a podcast can help enhance a student's development, strengthen their abilities, improve their reading comprehension, expand their learning capabilities, and allow for creative and many more! This is definitely a superb activity to do with children of any grade level. A podcast can also teach them about current technology! It is always good to prepare students for the world especially in the technological world. We are always advancing in the modern world. It is a benefit that students learn about technology. This is a must-do activity in a future classroom! This can bring the entire classroom together. No one is left behind.

Joe Dale teaches us how a Podcast can be a benefit in a classroom and how it effective it is!
The Benefits of Podcasting in a Classroom

Joe Dale created an awesome post and video on the benefits of podcasting in a classroom. Joe Dale strives for technology in education, is an independent consultant for many organizations such as Microsoft, Skype the BBC, The Guardian and etc. He is also a host for various education forums, a speaker, game designer and a blogger. In his video, he shows us examples of how a podcast can be a benefit. A podcast can allow students who are sick or absent to catch up with the work without having to be in the classroom, record a lecture for reviewing instead of having the teacher speak again, or incorporate it into an activity. Because it's on the internet, anyone can access it at any time without having to bother people. You can learn at your own pace! This caters to the different ways a student learns. Like Joe Dale says, podcast allows creativity and innovation! In the video, we also learned about "vodcast", basically a podcast where the students can incorporate visuals for others. The activities that incorporate a podcast expands the use of technology, promotes team work, improve reading & writing skills, improves comprehension, is fun & interactive, and a new learning experience! The students are engaged and eager to learn. They can also experiment for themselves. Allowing students to take control and "teaching" others is also a good experience. Because they are having fun, it can be memorable! We always remember the good times in our life! A podcast can also show parents what their children are doing at school! This can also show parents that technology is not necessarily a "bad" thing.

It is important in this day in age that we all learn about most technology and how to apply it into our classrooms and our life. There are more benefits than we think. A podcast can help students study, gain interactive skills, and improve their way of learning. By bringing fun and innovative things into the classroom, it engages students! And because it's a recording, students can always go back to it for a review. A podcast is definitely worth implementing into a classroom. I cannot wait to work on our own podcast because we will be learning something fun and new. I also cannot wait to see what other classmate’s podcasts are like! Let the creativity flow!!

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