Tech in Education has come A LONG WAY since I first started teaching in 2003. For one, I took a course in college called "Computers in Education"... Yeah - desktops and, for us lucky ones, laptops! No iPads or hints of the incredible evolution coming our way! Thankfully for us "old-timers" EdTech Teacher and many others have breathed new life in how we educate our current generation. Even in the last eight years we've seen vast improvements and ideas for tech integration in our classrooms. But what exactly could tech integration look like? I will highlight just two of the apps I use fairly regularly in my classroom and how my students utilize them. Of course, there are MANY other activities you could use them for! I must also add - don't underestimate their creativity & capabilities even as young as Kindergarten! They've shown me how much more they are capable of than I originally thought!
Another BONUS of using ChatterPix Kids and Toontastic 3D, as well as a large host of other apps, is being able to "App Smash" with Seesaw. I use Seesaw for a host of reasons and ways! More on that in my blog post about Seesaw and the HUGE benefits I've reaped since incorporating this digital journal into my class and their families!
First, let's reference the SAMR model. The model was developed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, Ph.D. to help educators integrate technology into teaching and learning. The visuals serve as a kind of road map that guides the educator to the ultimate destination, which is redefining teaching and learning. There are four main levels to the model, not meant to be thought of as a ladder. There are many places to research the SAMR model further. Here are some cheat sheets in the meantime...
Next, below are two of the apps my second graders independently engage with fairly regularly as well as the lesson ideas I've created to provide an avenue for their work. I've included a FREEBIE for the Toontastic 3D app!
My students use ChatterPix for small research projects! Each month for morning work, they can choose to complete a thematic-topic research project. For example, in September the topic is apples. The topic for October was bats. The topic for February is groundhogs. Of course, the kids can also choose to research a topic of their own interest and write a short report. I give them a recording sheet with five bullet points for them to fill in. My students used to use Kiddle, Ducksters, or similar. Now they use PebbleGo and PebbleGoNext both designed by Capstone Learning for their research. If you have used it yet, I HIGHLY recommend it! I'm so grateful my school invested in it. The website reads the articles to the kids, and it's extremely well-organized in my opinion.
Below are two examples of research done by my students. Typically I don't allow the kids to change the filters or add stickers on ChatterPix Kids, but...
Take your students' word problems and story-telling to a very engaging level! I use Toontastic 3D for (relative) ease, but I've also used PuppetPals app in the past. I primarily use it for creating word problems, though it is truly meant as a story-telling app. The big caveat with Toontastic 3D is laying out expectations from the get-go as well as letting them explore the tools before giving them an assignment. I give my students a sheet with visual directions, though it is fairly intuitive. I imagine using Toontastic 3D would be harder with students younger than second grade working independently, but I could be wrong. Refer to what I said earlier - never underestimate their skill level!
I always give my students a script/story arc and goal for their word problem. This helps when they are moving their characters around during their recording of the word problem. I also ask that they keep the background music OFF or REALLY LOW so that it isn't distracting. Again, this is where giving them "play time" with it can be really beneficial!
Click on the picture below to download the FREEBIE!
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