"Technology on the Oregon Trail"
In the article "Technology on the Oregon Trail", Vera Williams talks of her lesson plan on the Oregon Trail for Social Studies and how she differentiated instruction by involving technology. Williams had many students receiving special education and struggling readers, so the need for differentiated instruction was necessary. She provided the content to the class by using a PowerPoint presentation, and within this template were the added tools for engagement. The slides provided audio support for those students who were at lower reading levels, so that they could hear the words and follow along visually. Williams also modified the reading material within the "historical fiction unit plan", in order to match the appropriate reading levels of her students. The PowerPoint included pictures and web links to enhance student engagement throughout the presentation/lesson. She also included an animated icon that traveled the Oregon trail along with the students. This icon captures students attention and allows them to imagine they are traveling the trail along side the animation. After the lesson was taught, Williams had her students blog and "WriteBoard"their reactions, prior knowledge, new knowledge, and any further questions and/or comments. She then had the students reflect on their peers blog postings.
I love the resources used throughout the lesson to involve ALL students, and the collaboration aspect at the end of the presentation. The use of PowerPoint with audio support and animation is key to an actively engaged Elementary/Middle school classroom. It is very important for teachers to remember to reach every student by determining their needs and offering support/extra help. The audio support for the struggling readers is a great idea because following along with audio and being able to see the words helps to aide in understanding concepts of print and the learning of sight words.
The "Communication and Collaboration" (a and b) standards were utilized in this lesson plan. The ISTE NETS under "Communication and Collaboration" state that students, "interact, collaborate, and publish..." and communicate with a variety of audiences. This lesson allowed the students to communicate with the teacher, each other and people on the web within their blog posts. The other standards touched upon involve the teachers use of technology in the classroom and it's effectiveness.
Hi Haley!
ReplyDeleteI remeber learning about the Oregon trail in school and hand making a trail we could pretend to follow. However, I think the way this teacher taught the lesson is much more engaging. The students get to use a wide varitey of materials and actually playing the game helps them feel like they were there. I also love how she used tools in order to reach all of her students and the different levels they are at. As a teacher, I hope we are all able to do this so everyone can learn and participate.