Welcome parents, friends, and family of Ms. Grady's first grade class! We started this blog to not only ask for help, but to keep you all up to date with our latest exciting project. As a class, with help from the PTA, we are embarking on our Fantastic Fundraising Journey! We want to share this adventure with you and hope you will join us in our journey.
Children and technology can often raise questions for parents. Much of the technology aimed at children is purely for entertainment value. Let me assure you, there are many exciting educational uses for technology as well. Although there are many resources for educational games, computers and technology can provide our students with so much more. Being a Special Education classroom there are many ways technology can help our students from ease of communication, to the ability to focus on content rather than only penmanship for writing assignments, to valuable life skills, to a simple clear explanation of ideas, to reinforcement for a job well done. Incorporating technology in the classroom can also increase productivity, gain and hold students' attention, and increase motivation ((Roblyer & Doering, 2010). Technology can also give students opportunities to experience things that might not otherwise be possible like taking a street tour of London on Google Earth.
Our
Wish List
Our
Wish List includes several classroom computers as well as a SMART
board. Computers would allow students to explore different countries, compose writing assignments, engage in educational activities in a variety of subjects, keep track of their progress, and read books online. All computers will be equipped with appropriate site blockers and students will be monitored when using them to ensure safety.
A SMART board is like an interactive white board. It allows the teacher's computer to be hooked up to the screen so students can see me type, explore, and experience word processors and the internet. It is also hooked up to a document camera which takes live feed of any document I put below the camera and displays it larger than life. This allows students to see many things from how I form my letters when printing to how to properly count manipulitives. This is not only helpful for our students who have vision issues, but helps cut down on time. If it is possible to teach the entire class how to properly write the letter 'q' where they all can see this leaves more time to focus on individual goals. A SMART board also allows the "magic pen" (or stylus) to write, draw, erase, and save our KWL charts, class brain storming sessions, instructions for common centers. This allows us as a class to record our learning and be able to recall it for review within seconds while displaying it on the screen. Previously these types of things were written on easel paper, which was more difficult to see and store, or on the white board, which had to be erased.
I realize this is all very different than what we experienced in school. I encourage you to please click on some of the links to find out more information:
SMART Board
Ideas for SMART Board in a SpEd Classroom
Do 2 Learn- a website catered toward students with disabilities with activities ranging from emotions, to social skills, to, of course, academics
I know we are all busy, but I do hope we can all work together to raise funds to increase educational opportunities for our students! Please feel free to leave comments or ask questions through this blog or by email. Also, if you have any websites or online references you have found helpful you would like to share with me or other parents, please include them in the comments!
References:
Webster, Jerry (n.d.) Tips for Using a Smart
Board in the Special Education Classroom. Retrieved from: http://specialed.about.com/od/tipoftheweek/qt/Tips-For-Using-A-Smart-Board-In-The-Special-Education-Classroom.htm
Do 2 Learn (2012). A Resource for Individuals with Disabilities. Retrieved from: http://do2learn.com/
Roblyer, M. D., & Doering, A. H. (2010). Integrating
educational technology into teaching. (5th ed). Allyn & Bacon. Boston, Ma.
SMART Tech (2012).
SMART Board interactive whiteboards. SMART Technologies Inc., Retrieved
from: http://smarttech.com/SmartBoard
