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Unit 5: Connecting PBL, STEM, and Technology

Student voice and student choice are extremely important. It is important that students know they can connect to their own lives, and choose topics or projects that relate to them and their interests. John Dewey’s Triangular model is a great way to look at what education should be today. It ties in Project Based Learning, STEM, and Technology Integration. These three components are the way the world is headed, so it is extremely important to incorporate these from a young age. The article goes on to explain that “technology” was not always what it is today. Back in the 70’s technology was still included in education, but in the form of compasses, cameras, and other “equipment” (Gorman, 2014). It is interesting to reflect back and notice that those tools WERE and ARE actually forms of technology. Times have changed drastically and it is so important to stay on top of all of the changing technologies and pass that knowledge onto our students.  While watching the video by Ruben Puentedura
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Unit 1 PBL Blog Exemplars

  After reviewing the PBL resources, I learned many things. There were several similarities between the three examples. The role of the teachers were all very similar in that the teachers served as facilitators to the students. The teachers helped with prompting questions, but for the most part the students were the leaders of the lessons and/or activities. The teachers were all enthusiastic about the lessons and really showed how the skills they are applying make sense in the real world. Each teacher did a great job of striking interest from the little kids to the older kids. The teachers all were able to make these Project Based Lessons cross-curricular.  In all three examples, the role of the students was to lead the lesson. The students were all very excited and engaged. The teacher allowed the students to take on the roles to be the scientists, architects, or the leader stepping up to further knowledge and relate concepts to real life.  The examples all showed that students were e
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Unit 1: PBL Exemplars (G. Morgan)

After reviewing the PBL resources, I learned many things. There were several similarities between the three examples. The role of the teachers were all very similar in that the teachers served as facilitators to the students. The teachers helped with prompting questions, but for the most part the students were the leaders of the lessons and/or activities. The teachers were all enthusiastic about the lessons and really showed how the skills they are applying make sense in the real world. Each teacher did a great job of striking interest from the little kids to the older kids. The teachers all were able to make these Project Based Lessons cross-curricular.  In all three examples, the role of the students was to lead the lesson. The students were all very excited and engaged. The teacher allowed the students to take on the roles to be the scientists, architects, or the leader stepping up to further knowledge and relate concepts to real life.  The examples all showed that students were eng
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Utilizing Genius Hour or 20% Time (Learning Activity 8-2)

Benefits of Genius Hour or 20% Time Genius Hour or 20% time can be integrated into what you are already doing as mentioned in the article it was intertwined with a nonfiction unit.  It is flexible, so every teacher can make it work for them Example: some may use science/social studies time once a cycle to incorporate it, or some may use a special block to complete it, or some may integrate it right in with their normal routine  It is inquiry-based, therefore it is promoting higher-level thinking skills which promotes lifelong learning It ites in with standards The site offers tips and letter ideas to reach out and explain the project   Two potential hurdles and how they can be addressed  There are just some students who are not self-motivated and may struggle getting started on a project like this/may struggle with coming up with ideas The site offers some tips on how to approach students that fit this category. I also feel that breaking the project down into chunks would help students
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The Pandemic factoring into the use of Zoom/Google Meet (Learning Activity 7-5)

Before the Pandemic I can honestly say I never used Zoom or Google Meet before. Since the Pandemic, I used Zoom a handful of times and Google Meet more than I can count. Last year once March 13th came around and schools were shut down, we had meetings weekly with our virtual students as well as with my team teachers. The faculty meetings and team teacher meetings were held on Zoom, but the student meets were on Google Meet. There are so many benefits of having a tool right on hand to connect with others. You can share screens, show your face, present awards, teach lessons, and so much more.  Having both in-house students along with virtual students poses a challenge at times. However, tools like Google Meet make it easy to allow virtual students to still be “with” their classmates. Moving forward I will continue to use Google Meet for weekly virtual meetings, when collaboration is needed between in-house students and virtual students, and for mini lessons with students.  Over the summe
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Twitter in the Classroom (Learning Activity 7-2)

I honestly had getting a professional Twitter account on my “should do list” forever now. I have not taken the plunge. I feel that I do a good job of getting information out to students and parents through Google Classroom and REMIND. Sometimes I ponder whether having too many different places for people to look would be overwhelming. Five Pros: Social networking in an educational setting Sharing ideas and collaborating with colleagues A source to get information out to parents/families  Easy interface  Links to many other resources/websites Five Cons Too many platforms for parents and students to check Potential to be hacked  Potentially someone following me that I would not want to know about my students  Potentially getting retweets or posts on my feed that I would not want parents/students to see Coming from a low-income school district, it is possible some parents do not have a twitter account to see information that I was getting out anyway   Professional Growth in Education  I c
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Podcasts in the Classroom (Learning Activity 6-2)

Here is the link to the podcast I chose. There was not a “share” option, so I just copied the link. I hope this takes you to the correct spot. It is 2 min. Called “Outer Space”. I chose to go through Google Podcasts. This has been something I wanted to check into for a while now. I chose to go through Google Podcasts. This has been something I wanted to check into for a while now. The reason I chose this podcast was more for a student example. I would love to do something similar to this when we do our space unit coming up in science. I think the kids hearing another kid do a podcast would be refreshing. They often only have examples from me.  I searched a few different podcasts. Nothing I was searching really seemed appropriate for 5th graders. I tried finding something with testing motivation. I thought that would be good leading into the PSSA testing weeks that are approaching. I was unable to find anything. Let me know if any of you have anything short, and motivational to share
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