Virtual Pond Dip Voicethread

Week 8

I watched and made recorded comments on the voicethreads of Andrea, Trisha, and Rebekkah.

I think implementing my science activity idea would have several upsides in a classroom. First of all, the Virtual Pond program could be explored by the students individually, giving them some freedom in what order they do things, what information they choose to focus on, etc. It allows them to seek after what they find most interesting in preparation for the final project. It also combines visual and textual elements to benefit different kinds of learners.

On the downside, students could get distracted with other computer or internet activities if they are not fully engaged in this program. If some students are faster readers, typers, or generally better at using the technology, this could result in them finishing early and then getting bored with waiting for everyone to catch up (unless they choose to explore more of the extra links, which can be quite fascinating).

Virtual Pond Dip VoiceThread

Week 7

My technology-enhanced science activity will involve students using the "virtual pond dip" resource to learn about various microorganisms. During the main part of the activity, the teacher will take on more of a supervisory role, allowing students to explore the technology and take charge of their own learning.
• Firstly, the teacher will guide students through a brief lecture/discussion about what microorganisms are, and what role they can play in our environment. Students will be allowed to make comments and ask questions.
• The teacher will then transition them into the next part of the activity by leading them to the computers and then through to the "virtual pond dip" program. The teacher will instruct the students to read and explore the information given about each of the microorganisms in the “jar”. They will be advised to explore some of the additional links provided for certain microorganisms, and they will also be asked to make notes (using a Word Processor) on things they find especially interesting or important (copying and pasting not allowed).
• Specifically they will be asked to make note of the following things:
- How the different shapes, sizes and structures of the microorganisms compare to each other
- What characteristics of the different microorganisms might help them fulfill their individual roles?
• Students will then be free to explore the program on their own.
• After students have had adequate time to explore and make notes, the teacher will then lead a discussion on some of the things students may have learned in their exploration, specifically focusing on the two questions listed above.
• As a follow-up assessment, students will be asked to further research one of their favorite microorganisms and present a 1-page report/poster.

1. We will focus on the grade 6 Science area, Standard 5, Objective 1 (observe and summarize information about microorganisms).
2. The pedagogical measures used will include observing, classifying, and acquiring and processing data. These will specifically be accomplished through reading text, taking notes, viewing images/objects, and discussing. I feel that these things work well for the content area because they encourage students to not only take in information, but to also make sense of the information. They will also help them make connections between bits of information, compare and contrast microorganisms, and understand concepts about microorganisms more effectively than if they just listened to a lecture.
3. The technology used will include the “Virtual Pond Dip”. This is a good fit for the content area and pedagogy because it provides both visuals and texts for observation, as well as plenty of information to process, classify, and discuss. It provides a way for students to take charge of their own learning and exploration.
4. The representation produced by the technology is both visual and textual. This will serve to meet the objective by allowing students to make observations about microorganisms without having to go to an actual pond. It will allow them to make comparisons about basic bits of information provided through text. The representation will meet the needs of those who are more visual learners rather than auditory learners.

Week 6

For this week's PLE assignment, I viewed the virtual tour projects of Andrea, Trisha, and Katie.
I think implementing a virtual tour could have many benefits in the classroom. Firstly, it allows students to take on a more independent role of exploring locations and doing activities individually. It also allows them to explore global locations in a fun, exciting way. And since basically the whole globe is available for viewing, it opens the door for many creative activities that call for contrasting different global locations. Doing a tour also allows students to learn through many different tools or activities. For example, you could attach a photo, video, or a link to additional information to enhance student learning.
However, a virtual tour could also have a few downsides. For example, this kind of activity may not allow for group work or collaborating with others. A way to counter this would perhaps be to have a group discussion or collaboration after participating in the tour so students can share what they explored and learned. Another downside is if many students have trouble viewing the tour or using the computers, it could be hard for the teacher to attend to all of their needs at once. Similarly, some students may feel less confident using a computer than others.

My tour takes you to some key locations from the era of the American Revolutionary War, including the location of the Boston Massacre, the approximate location of the Boston Tea Party, Independence Hall in Philadelphia, PA, and the approximate location of Washington's Crossing of the Delaware River.

Planning Virtual Tour

My virtual tour will address the grade five Social Studies content core, standard two. The virtual tour will mainly serve to fulfill the first objective of standard two, because it will allow students to “see” and more fully experience some of the places/situations that played a role in the timeline of the American Revolutionary War. I chose to do a virtual tour on this topic because I love history, particularly the history of the United States, and I was excited to view some of these locations myself. I feel that Google Earth is an appropriate and exciting instructional approach to use for this curriculum standard; as opposed to some other approaches, this gives students a chance to bring some of these locations and situations to life rather than simply read about them in a dry textbook.

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Intersection of State St. and Devonshire St., Boston, MA (location of Boston Massacre)	According to our class discussion, and after reading the supplementary google material, write a journal entry as a person who witnessed the event. Consider these questions: Were you involved? Whose fault was it? Why do you think this was an important event?	Historical/personal accounts of the event to read
2. Independence Wharf, 470 Atlantic Ave OR Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum (near location of Boston Tea Party)	Watch the video showing a reenactment of the Boston Tea Party	Boston Tea Party reenactment Honolulu (Google videos)
3. Independence Hall, Philadelphia, PA	Record your thoughts on how this area may have looked during the period of the Revolution. What things may have looked the same/different? After doing this, view the accompanying illustrations depicting the area at that time.	Illustrations/pictures of area (Google images)
4. Washington Crossing Historic Park (Delaware River)	Beginning from this location, determine how far Washington and his troops may have had to travel across the river to reach NJ.	Ruler tool on Google Earth