Unit 2 - Assignment 1 - Blog on Digital Media
As I began this assignment, I logged into Discovery Education my traditional way and searched for Evolution of Stars video. I chose this topic because it is one that students cannot picture, relate to, or remember; even with my excellent story telling abilities, graphic organizers, and interactive demonstrations. Students lacked familiarity and the ability to comprehend the life of a star because they do not get to interact with the material and it is too abstract to understand happenings measured in light years for distance and billions of years for age! However, it is one of the most visually appealing items that I get to teach, I just cannot animate it for them. I decided to retrieve segments from the video section, and just so happened to stumble upon this, a Science Techbook.
Easy to navigate, I was able to find more than just videos. Units and chapters are organized and available for the taking and include more than just traditional resources. There are lesson plans, materials, teacher resources, five minute prep activities, and assessments. The tools for this website make it easy to integrate into your own classroom. After locating a resource, with a click of a button, it can be shared via social media or selected for online classrooms that you have set up. Virtual classrooms can easily be differentiate by ability. The nicest application is that they are set aligned with Pennsylvania State Standards.
The two digital media resources that I have selected are traditional classroom resources, but easily integrated for a classroom that is 'plugged-in'. The first resource is an article on The Life Cycle of a Star. It is a very quick read and can be adapted into an assessment very easily by using the websites Writing Prompt Builder tool. Traditionally, a teacher would print the article and have students respond via paper and pencil. With the Writing Prompt Builder, students could submit their work virtually and paper free! For lower ability classes, this same article could be viewed on an Interactive White Board, and the class as a whole could read, annotate, and highlight. Online MindMaps could be created in place of a traditional writing prompt.
The second resource is a video on Extreme Stars. The video player gives the teacher the power to show the video in one entire setting, segments, or the ability to select certain clips. Videos at Discovery Education can also be assigned to particular virtual classrooms as a preemptive step to a lesson.
Teachers have the power to deliver the content in unique ways that there are millions of ways that students could demonstrate their mastery through a variety of products. Not only is availability, ease of creating unique lessons, and amount of resources and media some of the best assets of the online classroom, but the greatest feature is that with this type of classroom setting we are able to reach all students abilities and increase participation through a 'plugged in' interest. We not only need to meet the demands that all students have the right to learn in their own way, but equally indulge and power our students with the way of the future to prepare them for careers.
References:Discovery Channel, (2010). How the Universe Works: Extreme Stars. [Full Video]. Available from http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
Life Cycle of a Star. [Reading Passage]. Available from http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
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