“Student engagement is the product of motivation and active learning. It is a product rather than a sum because it will not occur if either element is missing.” -Elizabeth F. Barkley
When planning my lessons, engagement is always a key factor. One way that I engage my students is by using technology tools. In the following lessons, a variety of technology tools are used to engage students with their learning. These lessons and tools exemplify different ways and subjects to incorporate simple technology with a younger grade level.
In the lesson below, students are exposed to authentic pieces of pictures, letters, and videos of the Civil War with the assistance of technology (Bergeron Whole Language Theory). The students not only read text, but also navigate around websites to locate timelines, videos, photos, and text about the Civil War. Once they learn, students compose their own written pieces to show their knowledge using timelines, photos, and a writing piece. Based on those three assessments, I clearly got a good grasp of the understanding each student took away from the war.
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In the lesson on the left, students are engaged with research and writing, two topics difficult for many fourth graders. By providing multiple media sources, students are active in learning and then changing writing from pencil and paper to a blog site, excitement and motivation blossomed. My struggling writers also flourished with this because the struggle of spelling was eliminated providing more confidence in the content of their writing. Assessment of content became more authentic because the challenge of spelling and grammar is assisted to every single student. <--Global Inquiry Research Lesson Link v--Blog Post Link |
Another way to engage students, without a specific lesson, is by using a website that provides a safe thread for students to interact outside of the classroom. Google Classroom also allows for assigning of homework and projects which eliminate the paper and keeps all items in one place, which helps students who struggle with organization. My class loves having Google Classroom and it has made homework more meaningful. Below are a few pictures to show the effectiveness of this website.