Day 12: Going on the Road

A successful presentation starts with a one sentence summary about what your topic. Care about your message and seem excited to share it. Establish credibility by being prepared and knowledgable about your presentation. Develop rapport with the audience and watch your body language as you interact with them. Tailor the presentation according to what the situation calls for, but allow for audience engagement. Communicate confidence, control, and enthusiasm because the audience mirrors your feelings and emotions. Watch great speakers in order to learn their body language and presentation tips. Videotape yourself presenting in order to evaluate and improve your delivery. "Be quick, clear, and gone - you'll be the best they've heard lately."

Day 11: Portfolios and Assessment

Student portfolios have their advantages and disadvantages. Among the advantages are that students understand their own learning process, it increases their accountability, and it shifts the teacher's focus to individual evaluation rather than comparative ranking. Some disadvantages include that it requires additional time to plan, especially with younger students. There is a need for extra support to direct students on what to include and how to access special equipment. It requires additional time to plan/update but is beneficial in the long run.

I would seek technical support in order to maintain/store portfolios properly. My students would need help selecting meaningful artifacts and working with peers to evaluate their work. I would invite outside viewers to view student electronic portfolios each semester. This would put accountability on both the students and I to grow as learners.

Day 10: Electronic Portfolio for Students

We gain a better understanding of a student's ability by looking at a collection of their work rather than a final grade. A learning objective should be clear in order for them to demonstrate a vivid record of what they are able to do. Portfolios demonstrate work in progress because student work is always improving. Teachers can drive their instruction better when student needs are identified from this kind of assessment. Students receive the support they need to become successful learners.
I found three sites most helpful: KidPub authors, Marci Turner's, and Susan Silverman's. All sites showcased student published work and supported classroom instruction. Collaboration within the community is what I found most remarkable. Everyone was learning from one another, and Marci was blogging even before it was invented.

Day 9: Electronic Portfolios

Often students know little about how their work is evaluated and see assessment as something done by the teacher. Electronic portfolios gives students ownership to "tell their story. It motivates students to be actively engaged in the selection and expression of their achievements. Students feel a sense of control and it helps them to understand their own learning. Rubrics allow students to reconsider or resubmit their work on the basis of the criteria. Students can apply what they learned into new contexts because the process encourages deep thinking about active engagement.
Adding hypertext links,video, and audio are a great enhance the portfolio. If every teacher at school began an electronic portfolio with their students, students could have a collection of their K-8 experience at their fingertips. Student motivation would skyrocket in the pride of their work.

Day 8: Professional Teaching Portfolios

It's true. When teachers examine their practice, their teaching improves. You start to self reflect about your areas of strength and standards that you'd like to become more accomplished in. You set future goals and begin to measure your growth as a learner. A teaching portfolio is a perfect way to showcase your effort and achievement. The collection of work you gather over time can help you assess your effectiveness and examine yourself as a learner and educator.

My students have taken ownership in selecting work and artifacts to share at student led conferences. They've been involved in the assessment process by self reflecting on their growth, too. I'd like to incorporate (student) electronic portfolios in my class this year. But I'm not really sure about the management piece? Any ideas for 2nd grade?

Day 7: Tips for Presentations

You're confident presenting if you're well rehearsed. Coming across as honest and eager to help the audience is probably what will sell your presentation. The article suggests singing the presentation to yourself as a means of rehearsing, I think that's a great idea! Rehearse what you're going to say and how you're going to say it during down times such as showering or taking a walk. Deliver your message in an interesting way that's natural, confident, and inspirational. Share a presentation that will help your audience fix a problem or save them time with an issue.

Concluding a presentation can often be overlooked. Deliver a strong finish by making eye contact or sharing an analogy/story that will piece all of the benefits together. In the end, inspire enthusiasm by reiterating the valuable information they can walk away with.

Day 6: Multimedia Peripherals

I learned many tips for photographing digital photos from these articles. Capturing natural activities as opposed to poses seems to make more sense. Taking lots of pictures gives you more opportunities to capture the right moment. I especially appreciated the pictures with action and real emotions. Their personalities were captured in a relaxed and natural setting. It was a good idea to vary the position of people in a group photo. It changed the focus from a more uniform look, to a fun photo.

The photo class integration piece was helpful, too. I'll try the autobiography lesson where students compare themselves from the beginning of the year to the end. What a great way to measure social and intellectual growth! Students can self reflect and set goals for themselves. 

Day 5: Using Fonts, Clipart, and Photos

That phrase about "keeping it simple" is consistent through all of our articles. The fonts, clip art, and photographs are no different. Fonts should be soft on the eye, six to eight words per line, and follow the 24 karat rule. Clip art and photos should be relevant in order to support the presentation and have a dark/neutral background. The basic idea being that the audience is left with a good impression and not overstimulated with too many features.

Today's class on Photoshop gave me some direction about the fonts and types of adjustments I want to make to my photos. Playing with the brightness, contrast, saturation, and resolution was fascinating to me. I have a whole new respect for this feature.

Day 4: Multimedia & Copyright

Multimedia is using the computer to present something with text, graphics, video, animation, and sound. It's using several media tools to communicate to an audience.

I appreciated the information provided in the copyright/fair use guidelines articles. A safe role to take is to assume that all works are protected and seek permission to reproduce or display someone's work; to give credit where credit is due.

I had considered reading from a children's book for my podcast, but after reviewing these articles, I think I'll change my topic. The restrictions listed in percentages of text and graphics seems overwhelming at this time. I want to stay within the limits of reason, even if it is for educational purposes.

Day 3: Storyboards

I'm still deciding on a topic for my electronic portfolio. I've visited former EDT 546 student sites
in hopes of sparking some ideas that would be relevant to my curriculum. The last technology class I took was over a decade ago, and I'm a bit worried to say the least.
Tonight's reading on storyboarding has given me some direction. I need to be clear on my vision and concept. Once I do that, I can begin to break down the elements into workable pieces. I'm glad to hear that keeping it simple and communicating simply is one of the rules. I'll write brief notes tonight and expand on my ideas as I piece the frames together. I think I'd like to use PowerPoint to create a storyboard. It seems the most user friendly at this time.
I need to keep in mind that learning involves risk taking and stepping out of your comfort zone. However, I don't mind being asked "How are you coming along?" by an experienced intern.

Day 2: Presenting to an audience

I listened to a fantastic speaker last week at a Reading Conference. Her powerpoint presentation was memorable because she knew her content, her slides were relevant to her audience, and she delivered it in an engaging manner. I definitely walked away feeling that her presentation was worth my time.

In thinking about her effectiveness to deliver a good presentation, I ask myself, "How I can I tailor my multimedia presentations to fit my audience best?" A presentation to a second grader would look very differently than a presentation to parents. But the underlying factor is relevancy to whomever I present to. If I take the time to prepare information, that information better get transferred and applied. I want people to walk away remembering what I said and using it somehow.

Day 2: Constructivism

Constructivism reminds me of best practices for students and teachers. It's a philosophy of how the brain says we learn best. Through hands on investigations, problem solving, communicating, and reflection. Teachers motivate students by making learning relevant to their lives. What is it that you want to learn? What procedure could you take to reach your goals? Let's work together as a team to share our ideas and learn from one another.

One powerful aspect of constructivism is questioning. Asking open ended questions is an area I strive to improve on this year. I can nurture their ideas by listening to them reason and allowing them to drive their instruction.

Technology is definitely a way to foster a constructivist environment. It allows for all the best practices that were mentioned above. I am so excited to be a part of this class which will help me to become a better teacher for my students.