As many of you may or may not know, here at Obaratone's sound studio, we hold the senior citizens of the world in high regard, since they have been here longer than we have and definitely know a lot more than we do. Though many young people nowadays think they know everything and have experienced all there is to experience by the time they're 20, a 10 minute conversation with an elderly person will change their views very quickly. For a proposed lesson that can be done with students, I found this simple one on the SLICE website about conducting interviews with elderly people about their lives:
Students enrich the lives of senior citizens by developing a relationship with a senior and creating a biography/timeline of the senior's life. Students research major historical events that took place during the seniors' lives and document them on the senior's timeline.
Now originally, this lesson was pointed towards younger students in the elementary range. But very simply, we could take this and make it geared towards the older kids, too. The interview remains the same. The students ask the seniors about their lives and maybe some important historical events that may have happened during their lifetime. For example, any war they fought in, the Cold War times, and just life in general. Old people love to talk about how things were always better when they were young. So ask them! Then the students could write a paper comparing firsthand accounts to documented resources. Or something along those lines.
Now I know what you're all thinking (especially since it's part of our assignment. Or perhaps I can read your mind...): "Obaratone, how does this relate to inquiry in social studies?"
Glad you asked. As far as the benefits go, according to our Mind Map, this is very student organized. The students pick the old person they want to interview and they ask the questions to them. The teachers can just monitor and make sure everyone is asking appropriate questions and staying on task (though it could be fun to listen to the elderly rant. And you could learn a lot.) I think the best benefit of all is that it will get the students interested in history. Instead of reading some boring text, they can actually listen to how things happened according to these firsthand accounts. I've always said that the people are the most interesting part of history. Well these senior citizens are living history! What a perfect way to get kids involved in learning their history! As far as the inquiry method, it's very straightforward and follows the method great. Students explore and interview, then they discuss it with their interviewees and each other, then they apply it to historical documents or resources and see how the stories compare. Going further, the students can take what they learned and maybe help them in their own lives. And what about the best examples? Well it is very hands on! The students learn firsthand how things may have happened through someone's eyes, not just the textbook.
Now you might be (or should be) thinking: "Mr. Obaratone, this is all fine and dandy, but what are some of the challenges to this amazing lesson?" Well, my friends, you are in luck. Because I knew you were going to ask that, I have come up with some ideas. Inappropriate questions that the students may ask, senior non-cooperation, uncomfortable students around old people, and just incorrect information all can play a role in this assignment. But fear not! This assignment can be done, and I am confident that the students involved will be on their best behavior for the old people. Remember what FDR said: "We have nothing to fear except fear itself." Ask the elderly about this quote and FDR himself! Now if you'll excuse me, the sound studio has some recording to do. Just let me crank the record player...
Monday, September 28, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Rage Against the Machine? No, Rage With It!
Welcome again to Obaratone's sound studio, where I'm sounding off again on technology in classrooms! This is a very important topic related to the future of our children, and here at the studio, we're all about kids! In doing some research, I found an article by Roschelle, Pea, Hoadley, Gordin, and Means, talking about involving technology in classrooms. They write about how classrooms and lessons need to be centered around technology and using it to its fullest extent. They focus on four main fundamentals that are needed to improve learning: active engagement, participation, frequent interaction, and connections to real world context. All four of these points are essential in turning the classroom from a chalkboard-based snoozefest to a inquiry-based learning smorgasbord! In fact, I can give you a real world example of how we can use these four simple things, along with technology, to make the best of a social studies lesson.
Picture this: I'm teaching a lesson on the Civil War. I split the class into two halves, label them North and South. I appoint positions to several students (Lincoln, J. Davis, Grant, Lee, etc.) and have them do research on each of these individuals. I assign lessons asking what each president, general, whoever else, thinks about certain policies according to what research the students did online. They will have everything at their advantage, including speeches that the real people have written, pictures, old newspaper articles, and whatever biography websites that are legitimate they can find. A more personal use, and something that can be done with higher level students, is have the students who are assigned generals study the generals they personify and map and plan battles. There are many sites out there that offer interactive battle plans and maps that show the different formations and how they play out. There are many things that can be done with this type of strategy. How do the four techniques apply within this lesson? I assign the students roles and give them specific assignments. That means they are responsible for their specific part. It gets them involved in doing research related to finding out more details about a certain person or people (citizens in Union and Confederacy). This type of assignment really gets them involved in the most interesting part of history: the people. People in history are so interesting, and when you assign a student to become someone in history, they have to learn about that person, and therefor can really delve into history and become a part of it. Student interaction is important in social studies. When technology is at your fingertips, when it can give you all the information you need to know about someone, you have to use it. They wouldn't be able to get this using just books. There are only so many books in relative distance that can be used to someone's advantage. But the internet is always there! You can go anywhere and find anything you want! Ditching the blackboard and embracing the computer can be a great thing. Now the question I pose to you is can this lesson actually be done and with what range of grade levels can it be used? I know it involves a lot of research and individuals doing specific things. I think this can be a really great activity, but of course, I am open to suggestions. Just leave your comments at my Gettysburg Address.
-JPO
Picture this: I'm teaching a lesson on the Civil War. I split the class into two halves, label them North and South. I appoint positions to several students (Lincoln, J. Davis, Grant, Lee, etc.) and have them do research on each of these individuals. I assign lessons asking what each president, general, whoever else, thinks about certain policies according to what research the students did online. They will have everything at their advantage, including speeches that the real people have written, pictures, old newspaper articles, and whatever biography websites that are legitimate they can find. A more personal use, and something that can be done with higher level students, is have the students who are assigned generals study the generals they personify and map and plan battles. There are many sites out there that offer interactive battle plans and maps that show the different formations and how they play out. There are many things that can be done with this type of strategy. How do the four techniques apply within this lesson? I assign the students roles and give them specific assignments. That means they are responsible for their specific part. It gets them involved in doing research related to finding out more details about a certain person or people (citizens in Union and Confederacy). This type of assignment really gets them involved in the most interesting part of history: the people. People in history are so interesting, and when you assign a student to become someone in history, they have to learn about that person, and therefor can really delve into history and become a part of it. Student interaction is important in social studies. When technology is at your fingertips, when it can give you all the information you need to know about someone, you have to use it. They wouldn't be able to get this using just books. There are only so many books in relative distance that can be used to someone's advantage. But the internet is always there! You can go anywhere and find anything you want! Ditching the blackboard and embracing the computer can be a great thing. Now the question I pose to you is can this lesson actually be done and with what range of grade levels can it be used? I know it involves a lot of research and individuals doing specific things. I think this can be a really great activity, but of course, I am open to suggestions. Just leave your comments at my Gettysburg Address.
-JPO
Sunday, September 6, 2009
The Wiki, the Blog, and the Podcast - The Movie (sort of)
In this next installment of Obaratone's blog, we look at some wikis, blogs, and podcasts that can be beneficial for students studying in social studies area. Before I begin, let me say that there are many resources out there that can be used, but these are some that I felt really let you in on how this technology can be used.
The blog that stood out to me was the LJHS blog (http://ljhs.wordpress.com/). This blog was created for an 8th grade social studies class. I thought this one was very well done by the teacher. The main thing you notice when you first open the blog is the video of the movie The Matrix. The teacher explains underneath it that the movie is being used in a lesson on philosophy and thought. Under that, he has lessons from that class and lesson that the students used in class. This is useful in a few ways: the students can always go online and get the lesson; the parents can go on and follow along if they wish so they don't ask any questions about what exactly their kids are doing; and other teachers can go on and get ideas if they want them. The blog also has helpful links on the right side to other teachers' blogs and historical websites. It also has the Twitter feed from the class if the students want to join Twitter and follow the class. Overall, a great way to integrate technology into the classroom and make the learning meaningful. The students can interact and cooperate with the teacher actively.
The wiki I found very helpful was a simple thing. It can be found at http://www.academicblogs.net/wiki/index.php/History . Basically, it's a list of history blogs that are being maintained by teachers or other academics. If at any point you want your students to find a blog of history or to try and find other positions on certain topics, the students can peruse this wiki and search through the blogs that are there. It also list other wikis that may further explain the blogs or topics. This is good for student research and also for teachers who want to find other opinions about history. This can also give students good ideas about a wiki of their own or how technology can be useful in classrooms.
The podcast I found comes along with a slew of podcasts . The specific podcast I am writing about is called Great Speeches of the 20th Century. The only drawback is that it does cost money to listen to all of the podcasts. If teachers can get a hold of this, however, it is a great way to have students interact firsthand with speeches. The teacher could have the students listen to the speech and then come up with their own opinion or reaction to the speech they heard. The great thing about this is that students would not have to read the speech and then think about it. They get to experience it like people would when the speech was first done. You can gauge their reactions on listening to it, which would be more beneficial then a reading reaction. That's not how the people first heard it did it.
These are just a few resources that I found on the internet. Of course, there are many more that can be used as well. All of these things inhibit meaningful learning. The podcast allows the students to interact firsthand with the speech in an authentic way. The wiki has students intentionally looking for other blogs and sites for their own research and learning. The blog allows students to cooperate with the teacher and be active within the class. These are all great ways technology can be integrated into the classroom. The students will love making a wiki about the class or other topics! Just make sure your wiki page is not written by the students.
-JPO
The blog that stood out to me was the LJHS blog (http://ljhs.wordpress.com/). This blog was created for an 8th grade social studies class. I thought this one was very well done by the teacher. The main thing you notice when you first open the blog is the video of the movie The Matrix. The teacher explains underneath it that the movie is being used in a lesson on philosophy and thought. Under that, he has lessons from that class and lesson that the students used in class. This is useful in a few ways: the students can always go online and get the lesson; the parents can go on and follow along if they wish so they don't ask any questions about what exactly their kids are doing; and other teachers can go on and get ideas if they want them. The blog also has helpful links on the right side to other teachers' blogs and historical websites. It also has the Twitter feed from the class if the students want to join Twitter and follow the class. Overall, a great way to integrate technology into the classroom and make the learning meaningful. The students can interact and cooperate with the teacher actively.
The wiki I found very helpful was a simple thing. It can be found at http://www.academicblogs.net/wiki/index.php/History . Basically, it's a list of history blogs that are being maintained by teachers or other academics. If at any point you want your students to find a blog of history or to try and find other positions on certain topics, the students can peruse this wiki and search through the blogs that are there. It also list other wikis that may further explain the blogs or topics. This is good for student research and also for teachers who want to find other opinions about history. This can also give students good ideas about a wiki of their own or how technology can be useful in classrooms.
The podcast I found comes along with a slew of podcasts . The specific podcast I am writing about is called Great Speeches of the 20th Century. The only drawback is that it does cost money to listen to all of the podcasts. If teachers can get a hold of this, however, it is a great way to have students interact firsthand with speeches. The teacher could have the students listen to the speech and then come up with their own opinion or reaction to the speech they heard. The great thing about this is that students would not have to read the speech and then think about it. They get to experience it like people would when the speech was first done. You can gauge their reactions on listening to it, which would be more beneficial then a reading reaction. That's not how the people first heard it did it.
These are just a few resources that I found on the internet. Of course, there are many more that can be used as well. All of these things inhibit meaningful learning. The podcast allows the students to interact firsthand with the speech in an authentic way. The wiki has students intentionally looking for other blogs and sites for their own research and learning. The blog allows students to cooperate with the teacher and be active within the class. These are all great ways technology can be integrated into the classroom. The students will love making a wiki about the class or other topics! Just make sure your wiki page is not written by the students.
-JPO
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Technology in Classrooms? Yes!!
Technology is such a cool thing! Everytime I step into a classroom in the high schools, I always look around to see what kind of technology is being used. It is such a vital thing to have in today's classrooms. If technology has advanced so much in the last fifty, twenty, even five years, why are teachers so bent on using the same teaching methods that have been used for the last hundred years? There is so much information to be had out there on the internet! So much can be used in classrooms to help teach the students! I don't understand why teachers are so afraid to use technology? That means any technology. I know a lot of people are overwhelmed by it or get scared because there is a lot of technical gobblety-goo that turn people away. But even the most simple thing like showing a picture on the board or a map or video or anything like that will be som much more helpful in teaching.
Students are very visual people, and they learn a lot by what they see. If that's the case, then why aren't teachers using more visuals in their lessons? Is it because they want to focus so much on reading texts and books and papers? There are lots of texts and papers online. Even then, students find reading boring. It's something that we all know. Yet teachers are trying so hard to make the kids read so much that it overwhelms them. I agree that reading is a must and everyone needs to learn how to read simple things. But as teachers, shouldn't our first priority be to have the kids learn? We are still teaching them as teachers if we use a video or other visual to help teach them. It just may not be in text form. And there's nothing wrong with that.
Social studies in general can be very boring. I know, I was a history major. Using video or visuals can be very helpful. I think everyone has gone through the history class in high school that showed the opening scene in "Saving Private Ryan" or the D-Day scene or whatever. How much did that help in realizing how devastating the war was? Kids are always riveted by these things! Why aren't more teachers using it? Why does it always have to be books? Yes, books are great and I love them, too, but everyone gets tired of reading. And if kids are not reading because they are tired or overwhelmed, then we are not doing our job as teachers to TEACH.
Embrace technology! These kids today grew up with a laptop in their crib! This is the generation of Twitter and Facebook and texting and MySpace and whatever other social site is out there. They know technology, and they know it well. They never even played a Nintendo 64! And that is a shame. The November textbook backs this up by saying that kids don't ever remember a time without cell phones and the internet. Embrace it! They will understand easier! They like technology! Now is finally time for teachers to start, too. Your students will thank you. With a Tweet.
-JPO
Students are very visual people, and they learn a lot by what they see. If that's the case, then why aren't teachers using more visuals in their lessons? Is it because they want to focus so much on reading texts and books and papers? There are lots of texts and papers online. Even then, students find reading boring. It's something that we all know. Yet teachers are trying so hard to make the kids read so much that it overwhelms them. I agree that reading is a must and everyone needs to learn how to read simple things. But as teachers, shouldn't our first priority be to have the kids learn? We are still teaching them as teachers if we use a video or other visual to help teach them. It just may not be in text form. And there's nothing wrong with that.
Social studies in general can be very boring. I know, I was a history major. Using video or visuals can be very helpful. I think everyone has gone through the history class in high school that showed the opening scene in "Saving Private Ryan" or the D-Day scene or whatever. How much did that help in realizing how devastating the war was? Kids are always riveted by these things! Why aren't more teachers using it? Why does it always have to be books? Yes, books are great and I love them, too, but everyone gets tired of reading. And if kids are not reading because they are tired or overwhelmed, then we are not doing our job as teachers to TEACH.
Embrace technology! These kids today grew up with a laptop in their crib! This is the generation of Twitter and Facebook and texting and MySpace and whatever other social site is out there. They know technology, and they know it well. They never even played a Nintendo 64! And that is a shame. The November textbook backs this up by saying that kids don't ever remember a time without cell phones and the internet. Embrace it! They will understand easier! They like technology! Now is finally time for teachers to start, too. Your students will thank you. With a Tweet.
-JPO
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