Mini-Course on Sensibly Integrating Technology and 21st Century Skills in the First Grade Classroom

For my final project in W531, I have developed a three lesson mini-course for first grade teachers on Sensibly Integrating Technology and 21st Century Skills.  This course is most appropriate for those teachers who may not feel comfortable with technology and those who are new to the first grade level.

Below are links for the sequence of lessons.  I have also added these links to the top of my blog

Introduction

Lesson 1 Part 1

Lesson 1 Part 2

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Final Reflections

Thanks for viewing, and may your laptop battery live a long life, your cables not get twisted, the fan on the overhead you've been hiding in your classroom never die, and may your Nook stayed charged long enough to read the final chapter.

Image credit: <http://p8cdn4static.sharpschool.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_229000/Image/Departments/PD.png>

SAMR and My Digital Toolbox

First of all, SAMR is another one of those buzzwords (or buzz-acronyms, I suppose...) that I had never heard of prior to taking W531, Technology for Teaching and Learning, but it's definitely one that will influence my teaching practices from here on out. SAMR is a ladder-like model that describes the progression of technology integration in the classroom. This model was researched and developed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, and seems to be one of the most commonly used technology integration models. I've included one of Dr. Puentedura's graphics of his model for your reference, as my purpose here is not to define and explain the model, but to discuss my potential usage of it. I really liked this blog post from Hooked Innovation that describes SAMR as less of a ladder, and more of a swimming pool. When you are new to swimming, you don't generally jump in the deep end of the pool, you start in the shallow end, and gradually work your way further out as you get comfortable.  I found this vision of the model to be rather reassuring-this doesn't mean that every lesson that isn't in the Transformation end of the model is an automatic failure.

So, as I thought of using SAMR to influence the technology integration in my future classroom, I began to think of the challenges that K-2 teachers, in particular, face when targeting the Modification and Redefinition stages of the model, especially in classrooms with 30+ students.  After all, most of these young students are new readers and writers, and require more assistance.  Applications and programs that can be independently used by older elementary students like StoryBoard That, require the student to be able to read directions and write/spell, so much more adult assistance would be required for primary ages.  I've been searching for programs and apps that target those Transformation stages that can be used by the younger kids, and I've found a few to add to my Digital Toolbox, which you can see on my Pinterest board, here.  Not all of the programs and apps in my Digital Toolbox hit the Transformation targets, but sometimes it's just nice to dip your toes in, and keep your head above water now and then.  Luckily, I did find several fun things that will have me paddling towards the deep end, as well.

I developed a rubric for use when identifying potential tools to add to the toolbox.  The criterion are concerns that I think are common among K-2 teachers in public schools.  You can see my rubric below, and as you view my Pinterest board, you will see that I have scored each entry according to the rubric guidelines.

My hope is that I will continue to add new tools to my Toolbox that will suit the needs of K-2 graders growing up in our 21 century world.  

*SAMR image is the work of Dr. Ruben Puentendura, Ph.D and can be found on his website http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/

What Does the 21st Century Elementary Classroom Look Like?

     Buzzwords.  Every few years, there are new buzzwords in teaching.  Just a few I've heard since I became a teacher would include: whole language, differentiated instruction, cooperative learning, progress monitoring, and data driven instruction. One of the newest buzzwords, at least for me, is 21st Century Learning.  I'll admit, this is one I wasn't really familiar with, so I dove into this week's W531 class readings with a true purpose-what is this, and how do I do it?

    P21's Framework for 21st Century Learning helped address the "what is it" part of my question.  21st century learning goes beyond the traditional 3 R's of reading, writing, and arithmetic to address skills students need to live and work in our digital world of today.   Students need to learn Life and Career Skills, which can include flexibility, accountability, and leadership.  Beyond this, students need to develop a sense of global awareness in our world that is constantly shrinking due to technological advances.  The Learning and Innovation Skills of critical thinking, creativity and collaboration are also added to the list of things that need to be taught in today's classroom.  The ASCD position statement told me that we need to "educate students to be successful in a complex, interconnected world."

     As the confusion started to clear, I began to wonder what a classroom of this sort looks like.  Particularly, what does an early elementary 21st century classroom look like?  This question led me to do some additional research. As a Generation X'er who has one foot in the field of the Digital Native, and one foot in the field of the Digital Immigrant, I turned to my old friend, Google.  After reading a great article on EdTechReview, and another on Edutopia, I had a clearer picture.  21st century classrooms, must include the usage of computers and other technologies, not as just a substitute for a pencil, but as a means of research and solving problems in new ways.  These classrooms have a much greater emphasis on collaborative and adaptive learning.  As an educator, I am seeing a lot more of this happening, and there are many students who need to be taught how to work collaboratively.  I imagine this is a role the elementary teacher can take, as well as being a facilitator for the more independent, hands-on student led work that will need to occur.  Students are required to take responsibility for their learning in this type of classroom.  They are expected to be actively engaged and accountable.  I was excited to find out that we are already doing lots of these things at the elementary school level, but we've got a ways to go to change some of the outdated teaching and learning practices we still use.  I'm excited to continue this study and improve my teaching skills to educate the future.

References:

ASCD. (2016). 21st Century Skills. Retrieved from: http://www.ascd.org/research-a-topic/21st-century-skills-resources.aspx

ATCS. (2009-2012). Assessment and Teaching of 21st Century Skills. Retrieved from: http://www.atc21s.org/

Goertz, Patrick. (2/27/15). 10 Signs of a 21st Century Classroom. Retrieved from:
 http://www.edutopia.org/discussion/10-signs-21st-century-classroom

P21. P21 Framework for 21st Century Learning. Retrieved from: http://www.p21.org/index.php

Saxena, Saomya. (12/20/13). Top 10 Characteristics of a 21st Century Classroom.  Retrieved from: http://edtechreview.in/news/862-top-10-characteristics-of-a-21st-century-classroom


Below is my rather sad attempt to illustrate my idea of the 21st Century  Classroom using Storyboard That.
Please click graphic to enlarge and read.