Technology Supported Field Trips

The following post originates from the Innovative Practices at ACDS blog. It is offered to present a few ideas on how field trips can be enhanced through the use of technology. 

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The Second Graders joined with their Fifth Grade buddies to take part in Ms. Tacktill's series of art and technology field trips. This group went to the Smithsonian American Art Museum contemporary art exhibition. As part of Ms. Tacktill's art literacy and appreciation curriculum, the students went through the exhibit stopping at each piece to share their reactions with each other. The Fifth Graders jotted down the responses into their iPads. 

A second learning opportunity had the student teams revisiting the art to view it a second and third time for further reflection. Along the way the Fifth Graders used their photography skills to take photos of the art and of their buddy. They would go on to import the photo of their buddy into an art app on their iPads. They then drew inspiration from the sculpture and mixed media paintings to digitally paint backgrounds around the photo of their buddy. 

The Second Graders looked for pattern repetition in the art as they recently studied it with Ms. Tacktill. They then used iPads loaded with a photo of a portion of one of the patterned paintings to expand the patterns. You can see examples of their creative work above and below. Nice work Second Graders!

App Smashing

Combining two or more apps to do more than each can do on its own is at the center of app smashing. Read a super blog post which is also where the above infographic comes from. 

French and Spanish Language Resources for the iPad

Our Web Resources for Learning site has several sites that provide lesson and app ideas for our French and Spanish teachers. Take a look at the iPad Support page for a full listing. Here are a few specific ones. 

• French Apps with Applimini: Apps connected to European iTunes store so look to search for them in US store
• French Apps for Kids: An elementary teacher shares helpful apps
• French Apps at Thinking About Syncing: Reviewed French apps
• Fun for Spanish Teachers: A blog for elementary Spanish teachers. See her blog roll down the right side for other bloggers.
• Teaching Spanish: A blog with many lesson ideas
• The French Corner: A blog with many tech resources 

WebQuests

We can provide very structured and guided inquiry projects called WebQuests to support the PYP emphasis on inquiry and students being independent and active learners. WebQuests are online research expeditions built by teachers that put the students, working in groups, into roles to find information from specially selected sites and books as they attempt to solve a real problem. The students working in teams analyze, curate and then use the information to create a project to demonstrate their understanding. WebQuests are NOT Internet scavenger hunts with students just going through a list of links. True WebQuests have the students performing in the authentic roles of historians, economists, mathematicians, etc. The culminating project is usually a performance task in which the students present their findings while playing their roles, or apply the learning to produce a product. 

Supporting examples: 

• ColonialQuest
• Solar Explorers  
• Middle Ages Quest
• AfricaQuest

To learn more about WebQuests, experience a WebQuest about WebQuests with their creator, Dr. Bernie Dodge. Developing the several web pages that comprise a WebQuest takes some time up front, but the results can be impressive as students become very engaged as they really do “own” their learning. It can be used year after year with new classes of students, sequencing important instruction online instead of onto photocopies. WebQuests can also be the mechanism to deliver a full unit of study.

ICL Supported Thinking Routines

In Making Thinking Visible, Ron Ritchhart, Mark Church, and Karin Morisson help readers understand the power of thinking routines to guide them to develop cultures of thinking. They define cultures of thinking as “places where a group’s collective as well as individual thinking is valued, visible and actively promoted as part of the regular, day-to-day experience of all group members.” (Kindle version 4357-65) The authors go on to explain that they use the word “places” to note that cultures of learning take place in boardrooms, meeting rooms and not just the classroom.

To support the thinking routines, a Thinking Routines section was created for our Web Resources for Learning Web site to share how technology can be used in the classroom to support and at times enhance the use of the thinking routines as you use them to reach the learning goals of your lessons. An important purpose of the routines section is to connect to the authors’ point that cultures of learning also can take place outside of the classroom. In this case the "place" is a virtual learning space where students and teachers interact. Thus, you will find tools and practices here that support blended learning which helps build cultures of learning by using online tools where students can work individually and in groups outside of the classroom.

ICL and Curation

Curation of information is an important part of the Information and Communication Literacies (ICL) program. We skill our students to find information and analyze it. But what do they then do with the information? Where do they put it? There are several tools such as Google Docs, Noodle Tools and several others where students can curate their findings. 

For more information on curation in K-12, take a look at the article "Why Curation Will Transform Education and Learning: 10 Reasons".

Visual Note-taking (Sketchnoting)

Our students live in a media rich world. They think in images, video, and sound while constantly making neural connections. The iPad empowers students to draw, audio record, insert images and embed hyperlinks to information sources all in a very personalized way. This is where visual note-taking (also called sketchnoting) comes in. We can expand note-taking choices beyond just text recording by guiding students to use mind maps, colors, shapes, images, digital grouping by dragging and dropping objects, and using connecting lines to record their thinking. Talk about individualizing and personalizing student learning! Here are a few resources to help paint the picture of visual note-taking. 

Select the image to see larger version outlining Three Things To Remember with Visual Note-taking

Supporting sites: 

• Sketch Notes 
• Grade 3 Example  
• Sketchnoting by Kathy Schrock
• Sketchnoting slideshow by Sylvia Duckworth
• Teacher’s Narrative 
• Visual Note-taking by Nicki Hambleton
• Wes Fryers’ Blog Dedicated to Working with Media

Image Sources: Visual Note-taking  | Visual Note-taking 3 Things

Using Video to Communicate the Culture of One's Classroom and School

Primary School International Week

As teachers we employ multiple methods to communicate with the parents of our students. Over time, parents gain understanding of our classroom culture. One way to support this process of building understanding is by creating and sharing videos. Whether it be your classroom or whole school, videos are a wonderful way to paint the picture of our learning communities. Don't forget that the Web Resources for Learning has a page dedicated to using videography in our classrooms. 

Blended Learning Language Support

There are many individual language learning apps that one can use with his/her students on the iPad. There are also two online resources that support blended learning with students working in and out of school for language learning.

The iTalki site is a provider of individual language learning. One signs up for the service and works with a tutor. The Duolingo for Education platorm really provides whole class support with each student having his/her own account.  

Image Sources: iTalki   Duolingo

Multiple Intelligences Approach to Assessment

Becky Rosenberg, our PYP Coordinator, put together a chart listing multiple intelligences assessment tasks that students could perform for the upcoming Grade 2 Life Cycles unit of inquiry. Giving students choice and multiple means to make their thinking visible is definitely supported through MI and Universal Design for Learning.

ICL and Art Integrated PYP Unit of Inquiry

PYP unit that includes art and ICL integration. 

Learning 2.0 can be described as student-centered learning designed and facilitated by teachers using a variety of instructional strategies including web tools and social media collaboration. At my school of Washington International School (WIS), Learning 2.0 is integrated into the PYP curriculum and Project Zero pedagogy through the Information and Communication Literacy (ICL) curriculum. Below is a chart of the differences between Learning 1.0, and Learning 2.0 instruction. Looking at Learning 2.0, here is one educator's view of a modern teacher's profile. 

Chart Source

Digital Portfolios

Portfolios have been around for a long time and for good reason. They offer a truly authentic way to help students, teachers and parents see student learning develop over time. One obstacle though, is simply the management of all the paper and ownership of the portfolio year after year. eFolios take care of the paper and management problems. As our students create more and more digital work to communicate their learning, it makes sense to have them house their portfolios on the web for easy access. eFolios provide a platform for instructional strategies, especially questioning, to guide students to use higher order thinking skills as they reflect about their learning. eFolios also offer educators a place to document their work and professional learning over time. Here are a few resources: 

• Digital Portfolios in the Elementary Classroom and Fifth Grade
• Dr. Helen Barrett's Electronic Portfolio site rich in resources
• eFolio Rubric from U of Wisconsin-Stout
• Reasons for Digital Portfolios
• Teacher eFolio Examples: Andrea Smith| Kim Cofino | Margaret Carpenter

Field Trips

Field trips can involve four stages of learning for our students. ICL can support all the stages. In Stage 1, we can provide books, articles from databases, Web sites, videos and when visiting museums, a review of its Web site. Carefully crafted questions help students use research skills to begin their understanding of what they will experience during the field trip. By building their foundation knowledge, they are able to make the most of their time on the excursion. 

During Stage 2, the students take their trip. This is when they can experience the roles of photographer, videographer, reporter, and/or subject matter expert who gathers information. Student learning can be amplified when they work individually or in teams to use cameras and/or iPads to take photos and videos. They can play the role of reporter being video recorded to explain museum exhibits, give details on a site they are visiting, etc. Internet connected mobile devices provide students instant access to further information as questions come up during the visit. Stage 3 of the learning occurs when students return from the trip to begin processing the information they gathered. Technology supports collaboration when using information storage and storyboarding resources like Google Docs, Mindmeister, and Padlet. Stage 4 engages the students to report their learning depending on the teacher assigned assessment. 

Connecting students to other societies through geography can be supported through tools like Google Maps and Google Earth so check the next section on "Geography Connections". 

There are so many museum Web sites that offer rich student learning opportunities. Here are a few resources:

• Project Mash to Connect Museums and Other After School Learning Opportunities
• 77 Online Museums
• SmartHistory of Art thought the Ages
• Smithsonian Quests Inspiring Students to Explore, Connect and Learn

A few possible projects and tools to support field trips:

• Connected Classroom which provide virtual field trips via Google+
• Creation of a Virtual Exhibit using student recorded images and video to display them with tools such as Google Earth and Sites. Take a look at several examples using a variety of presentation tools. 
• Documentary using student recorded images and video of their in person visit or online visit
• Newscast using student recorded images and video of their in person visit or online visit
• Online or In Person Presentation of a field trip using Tool from our Presentation Technology Matrix
• Take Google Photo Sphere photos with Bubbli app on iPad/iPhone or Google Camera app on Android to contribute toGoogle Views
• Pull image of art from the museum collections in Google Cultural Institute for virtual tours that students can create within the Web site

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Web Learning Tool for Reading

We are making strides to support blended to virtual learning with the use of Xtramath and Dreambox. One option for reading that follows the same model of students having individual accounts is the Raz Kids online reading tool. It uses adaptive technology so that students can hear stories read to them or read them while selecting keywords to hear them. Student progress is measured via reading comprehension quizzes. Teachers and parents have access to the records. 

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