Tier 2 Course Artifact: Adding an Online Element to the Traditional Classroom
Gallery Walk
In this group of tools, the one that is a good candidate for adding an online element to my traditional classroom is Edmodo. It is free and easily accessible to my students. The students are already familiar with the program as not only do I use it, but many of the other teachers at our school utilize it. It is also a secure online tool that nobody else except those in the class can access.
Objective: Retell a story using key vocabulary/structure phrases in writing in Spanish.
For this type of lesson, I usually start with three target phrases that I want my students to acquire throughout the series of lessons.
The first lesson uses gestures to help students recall vocabulary. I model gestures as I say the vocabulary until the students are able to gesture without my modeling it when I say the word or phrase in Spanish.
The second lesson is a basic conversation where I use the new phrases, but only expect students to respond in the conversation with basic answers and not necessarily be able to produce the target phrases.
In the third step, we create the story. Students become actors as we create the story collaboratively. I ask questions to guide the story, but students provide the details of the story as we move through the story. Periodically throughout the lesson, we stop and I have students orally retell the story to a partner in Spanish. I then call on random students to retell that portion of the story.
After class, I type up a written version of the story and post it to Edmodo. It is then available to students who were absent to read so that they have some familiarity with what we did in class. For homework, I have them read the other class’ story prior to our next class. When they come into class, I have a set of pictures/drawings that represent the story from the other class that they read at home on Edmodo. Individually using the pictures as cues, they then retell the new story in writing in class.
Objective: Retell a story using key vocabulary/structure phrases in writing in Spanish.
For this type of lesson, I usually start with three target phrases that I want my students to acquire throughout the series of lessons.
The first lesson uses gestures to help students recall vocabulary. I model gestures as I say the vocabulary until the students are able to gesture without my modeling it when I say the word or phrase in Spanish.
The second lesson is a basic conversation where I use the new phrases, but only expect students to respond in the conversation with basic answers and not necessarily be able to produce the target phrases.
In the third step, we create the story. Students become actors as we create the story collaboratively. I ask questions to guide the story, but students provide the details of the story as we move through the story. Periodically throughout the lesson, we stop and I have students orally retell the story to a partner in Spanish. I then call on random students to retell that portion of the story.
After class, I type up a written version of the story and post it to Edmodo. It is then available to students who were absent to read so that they have some familiarity with what we did in class. For homework, I have them read the other class’ story prior to our next class. When they come into class, I have a set of pictures/drawings that represent the story from the other class that they read at home on Edmodo. Individually using the pictures as cues, they then retell the new story in writing in class.
Example of this period’s own story and then the other class story for them to read
Class story from this class period
Class story from the other class period
Self Reflection
This item is the one that I chose from Tier 2: Adding Online Elements to the Traditional Classroom. I chose this item because Edmodo is such an incredibly useful tool for any kind of classroom - brick-and-mortar, blended or online. What I like best about Edmodo is its accessibility and ease of use for teachers, parents and students.
Students like Edmodo as it gives them reminders of due dates, they can quickly contact the instructor, or even participate in discussions with other students. It enables students to access information, assignments and due dates among other things from home. No more excuses that they forgot the deadline! Another great benefit of adding Edmodo to a classroom is that students can also directly turn in assignments through Edmodo. Having the electronic version saves paper and keeps them all in one easy to manage place for the teacher.
I found over time that Edmodo was a fantastic addition to my brick-and-mortar courses. It was incredibly beneficial to students who had missed class or just needed extra practice. Students regularly posted to their class Edmodo pages enabling me to see who was participating in the activities posted on the class page. Students expressed the benefits of having access to many resources from home, something that was not as readily available to them prior to the addition of Edmodo to their course. Students were able to access Edmodo 24/7 throughout the entire school year. Parents appreciated having a window into what their children were learning in class and also were aware of resources available to students for extra practice. Assignments like the examples above were posted for student use approximately every two weeks of the entire school year. Each time we did a similar activity I posted it to Edmodo for student access. The assignments are still available to students as their classes are still "active" even though I don't have them in class anymore at their request.
At my brick-and-mortar school, teachers were strongly encouraged to use Edmodo with students for a variety of different activities. When observed administration noted that I provided reinforcement activities and extra help for students online that they could access from school or home through the use of Edmodo. The types of activities provided also allowed me to differentiate for individual students outside of the classroom. With 30-40 students in the physical classroom, at times differentiation was a challenge. This online component helped impact my ability to target activities based on individual student needs more effectively.
If I were to go back and change this specific use, I would incorporate ways for students to interact online in the target language. They could do this through a discussion thread, asking each other questions or even adding new details in writing to the story or telling what happens next. I see more uses for differentiation through posting multiple activities that are at varying degrees of difficulty. I can also post assignments and assign specific tasks to students based on ability and educational needs. Edmodo has now added a variety of different apps that are free or for purchase that can enhance the kinds of activities available to students through their class page. I plan to spend time reviewing a variety of these apps so that they can be included in my courses. I also plan to incorporate an Edmodo page for the Virtual High School Spanish courses that I will be teaching in the fall, to provide students with another resource for improved success in their course.
Students like Edmodo as it gives them reminders of due dates, they can quickly contact the instructor, or even participate in discussions with other students. It enables students to access information, assignments and due dates among other things from home. No more excuses that they forgot the deadline! Another great benefit of adding Edmodo to a classroom is that students can also directly turn in assignments through Edmodo. Having the electronic version saves paper and keeps them all in one easy to manage place for the teacher.
I found over time that Edmodo was a fantastic addition to my brick-and-mortar courses. It was incredibly beneficial to students who had missed class or just needed extra practice. Students regularly posted to their class Edmodo pages enabling me to see who was participating in the activities posted on the class page. Students expressed the benefits of having access to many resources from home, something that was not as readily available to them prior to the addition of Edmodo to their course. Students were able to access Edmodo 24/7 throughout the entire school year. Parents appreciated having a window into what their children were learning in class and also were aware of resources available to students for extra practice. Assignments like the examples above were posted for student use approximately every two weeks of the entire school year. Each time we did a similar activity I posted it to Edmodo for student access. The assignments are still available to students as their classes are still "active" even though I don't have them in class anymore at their request.
At my brick-and-mortar school, teachers were strongly encouraged to use Edmodo with students for a variety of different activities. When observed administration noted that I provided reinforcement activities and extra help for students online that they could access from school or home through the use of Edmodo. The types of activities provided also allowed me to differentiate for individual students outside of the classroom. With 30-40 students in the physical classroom, at times differentiation was a challenge. This online component helped impact my ability to target activities based on individual student needs more effectively.
If I were to go back and change this specific use, I would incorporate ways for students to interact online in the target language. They could do this through a discussion thread, asking each other questions or even adding new details in writing to the story or telling what happens next. I see more uses for differentiation through posting multiple activities that are at varying degrees of difficulty. I can also post assignments and assign specific tasks to students based on ability and educational needs. Edmodo has now added a variety of different apps that are free or for purchase that can enhance the kinds of activities available to students through their class page. I plan to spend time reviewing a variety of these apps so that they can be included in my courses. I also plan to incorporate an Edmodo page for the Virtual High School Spanish courses that I will be teaching in the fall, to provide students with another resource for improved success in their course.