My 21st Century Classroom

 

Welcome to Second Grade!

Welcome to second grade! My name is Megan Nies. I am attending Edinboro University for early childhood and special education.  As a future teacher, it is my job to maximize student learning.  I plan to learn along side with my students, and work as a community in the classroom.  As a future educator, I must inspire learning.  Every student will feel safe and successful in my classroom.  This page is a layout of my future twenty-first century classroom.  Below is a video of what I believe is important a future educator and what my students will do in my class. 

Introductions:

In this classroom design, I am a first grade teacher in a general education classroom at Neason Hill Elementary school.  My classroom consists of twenty two students. Out of the twenty two students, twelve are boys, and ten are girls. Sixteen are Caucasian, three are African American, one is Hispanic, and two of my students are special needs students. One of the students is Autistic, and the other student is AD/HD.  Because I do have two students who are special needs, many accommodations need to be made in my classroom.  As a teacher, I must modify my lessons to ensure all of my students will be successful.  I will have different types of technologies in my class to support the special needs students, along with modifications I must execute in order for the students to learn to their full potential. 

Setting

Above is a picture of one ideal classroom setting.  I organized my classroom to be clean, neat, organized, and to facilitate learning for all students.  Because I personally am not a fan of rows, my desks will be grouped together.  The picture represents one way of organizing the desks, which is in groups of two.  I plan on switching the seating arrangements frequently to ensure that all students are working together and in different groups, so everyone feels included and a sense of belonging.  My desk will be in the back, so if I ever am at my desk I have a view of the whole classroom and the students while they are at their desks.  On my desk I have a Mac Book, and beside my desk I have a Xerox copier and printer to help meet the needs of all my students.

 The picture shows two round tables, which will be used for group work and self exploration.  The round tables have storage units in them so the students will have access to any materials they may need while completing the activities.  I also have two large storage cabinets, which will hold the materials for dramatic play, toys for recess, and any other materials the students may need to encourage the learning process and self exploration.  I also have a computer cabby, which will hold the laptops that we will use for some lessons and to meet the needs of the special needs students.  In the front of the room is a projecting screen.  I will use the projection screen for many different reasons.  The projection screen allows the content to be in larger print for students who need it, and also allows for different methods of instruction.   Beside my desk in the back of the room is a rug for the morning meeting, circle time, reading time, or if the students need a “cool-down” period.  There is also a bookshelf beside the rug for students to choose books of their interests. Beside the book shelf to the left is a mobile white board so I can move my lessons around the room as needed. To the right of the rug there is a puppet theater for dramatic play.  To the right of my desk is an art easel for students to color, paint, or draw on for self expression.  Because I am teaching a first grade class, I believe that play is vital for young children, as well as self exploration and self expression.

I believe that it is extremely important for parents to be as involved in their child’s learning process as often as possible. I will have an open door policy, which means parents are welcome in my room at any time.  Because I encourage parent participation, my room is neat, organized, and decorated with the students work.  I will be learning with my students on a daily basis, and every person in the classroom will know what is expected of them and the daily procedures. 

Integrations

My classroom will be a twenty first century classroom; therefore, technology is vital to the learning process.  My students will be using technology throughout their lives, so it is important to introduce different technologies and teach the children the proper way to use them.  By incorporating technology into the lessons, the students will have more opportunity to self explore, be creative in the learning process, and work together to solve problems and complete assignments. This website provides more information on assistive technology and how it is used in an inclusive setting. 

I will have many different forms of technology, but a few I will be sure to have are I-pads, smart boards, laptops, projection screens, and talking word processors and calculators.  Incorporating many different types of technologies into the class allows for the classroom to be networked.  Some students have problems with math, writing, or fine motor skills.  By incorporating different types of technologies every students needs will be met.  There are important areas in education that technology must support; such as: connecting students and teachers inside the classroom, publishing student and teacher work locally and globally, connect students and teachers outside the classroom, connect with experts around the world, and collaborate with others to create and share knowledge.

Connecting students and teachers inside the classroom is crucial.  Smart boards will be instrumental in connecting students and teachers inside the classroom.   With a smart board, my students can show me they understand the content of the lesson hands on.  My students can explore and use the smart board, and we will learn from each other in the process.  Laptops will also help connect my students and myself inside the classroom.  By giving the students the opportunity to use their own computers, but all be exploring the same webpage or document allows the students to work hands on with the laptops; but, we will all be exploring the same content. This gives the students the opportunity to be independent; however, at the same time we will be working together. With the use of a projection screen, I will be able to show the class their peers’ accomplishments.  I will be able to put the assignment on the camera, and we can discuss the assignment and the accomplishments of each students work.   As a class we can also work together on worksheets and activities with the projection screen (or document camera). 

Publishing student and teacher work in the local community and around the globe is also important.  As I stated earlier, I believe that it is important for families to become involved in the learning process as much as possible. Laptops give students the opportunity to publish their own work locally and globally.  If I have my own personal webpage, and students have access to the webpage, they can publish their work for their families and the social media to see. As a teacher, it will also be my job to publish my students work.  By having a professional twitter, face book, webpage, or blog I will be able to post students work, my work, and our ideas for the community and the internet to view.This is an important and effective way of sharing knowledge and ideas.

Connecting students, teachers, and families outside of the classroom is also extremely important.  Giving the students I-pads to use throughout the school year makes communicating outside the classroom effortless. Some students do not have access to computers at home.  If a student misses a day of school or is confused about an assignment, he or she can get on their I-pads and access my webpage, or look at the agenda that we will write in our I-pads. This will promote communication and ensure that students, parents, and teachers are on the same page. By creating my personal webpage, and giving students and parents a way to access it, I will be able to post weekly or monthly newsletters, important notes, upcoming activities, fieldtrips, and assignments that the students have completed either individually or as a class. With access to I-pads and laptops, this would be possible. 

Blogging is also an effective way of communicating with families and experts arounf the world.  

Connecting with experts around the world is important for getting new ideas, sharing knowledge, and staying up-to-date in the educational world. If my students have access to different types of technology such as I-pads, laptops, and smart boards they will be able to access different websites and information independently.  As a teacher, if I have a professional twitter, face book, and a blog I will be able to stay up-to-date on recent happenings, have access to different ideas for lessons and activities, and be able to share my own knowledge with my colleagues.  It is important for me to follow and connect with experts so I can be certain I am teaching my students the most recent information and providing them with different learning opportunities.  By connecting with experts around the world I am guaranteeing my students receive the best possible education while keeping learning exciting.

It is important for me to provide opportunities for my students to create and share knowledge with others.  With the use of smart boards, I-pads, laptops, projection screens, and talking word processors and calculators the students will be able to do so. If students have the opportunity to create their own work and then share the creation with either the class or a group of peers, they will feel a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.  By collaborating with their peers, students can learn from each other.  If a student does not completely understand how to work a program on the laptop, or how to use the smart board, with the help of peers the student will gain knowledge and collect ideas from one another.  It is my job to provide opportunities through technology for my students to create their own products together or individually, collaborate with each other, and share different experiences. This is possible through all of my different technologies, and this is how meaningful learning takes place. 

Assistive Technology

This is Katy.  Katy is autistic, and certain adaptations need to be made to promise she receives the best possible education.  Katy has trouble reading and writing and gets very frustrated.  With the use of a talking work processor Katy is able to show me she understands the lessons and retains the information without always printing.   Allowing Katy to take exams on her I-pad or laptop gives her the chance to be successful and levels the learning field for her.  Katy is able to collaborate and participate with the class using her assistive technologies.  She can share her ideas and thoughts with her peers and myself.  The projection screen also helps Katy tremendously.  The projection screen shows the material in larger print allowing Katy to see and comprehend the content better.  By providing Katy with different opportunities to complete assignments ensures she will be successful. 

This article explains the advantages of I-pads and computers for children with autism.    

Feedback

Annotated Bibliography


"Assistive Technology in the Classroom | Helping Challenged Kids Get the Most from         Learning."Education World: Assistive Technology for Challenged Kids. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

"Google." Google. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

"The Easiest Way to Create Floor Plans." Create Floor Plans, House Plans and Home Plans Online 

         with Floorplanner.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

"The IPad: A Useful Tool for Autism." Squidoo. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2012.

"Top 100 Education Blogs." OEDb's Online College Rankings: The Best Online Universities. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2012.

Self-Reflection

I feel as if I have grown tremendously this semester.  I learned the importance of technology in the classroom, and that I must incorporate technology as much as possible to meet the needs of my students and to prepare them for the future.  I have taken many risks in the last semester.  I created a twitter account, a blog, embedded pictures, links, and videos to the blog, made videos, used YouTube, used a Mac Book in some detail, and made my personal video, among many other things.  At the beginning of the semester I was very apprehensive about some of the risks and assignments I would be taking and completing.  I had never used twitter before this class, and now I love it.  This class also introduced me to blogging, which I found very enjoyable.  The most difficult task that I feel I have completed so far was making a video with my voice and pictures.  I do not have a Mac Book, so I had to explore and discover a way to make a video for the project, and this took time.  I became frustrated, annoyed, and doubtful; however, when I completed the video I felt a sense of pride and relief – I worked outside my comfort level, which is something I realized I had not done very often.  I now feel more comfortable taking risks and exploring new ideas and tools.  As a teacher I will be taking risks every day and teaching my students the importance of taking risks and working outside their comfort levels.  I feel more confident as a learner and future educator, and I feel confident teaching my students the importance of exploring.  I will encourage my students to go above and beyond so they can continuously be learning and discovering. I understand that I will learn something new every day with my students, and we will work together to achieve goals.