Digital Stories, this is the way to go!!!!!!

The old saying that "A picture tells a thousand words," is truly a reality with the onset of digital storytelling, just image you can relay events of your life without having to say much. I know,with this discovery , teaching story structure could be more interesting for the pupil, not to mention also easier on the teacher. I admit it would take a bit more work than than traditional instructions , but one must look at the benefits of using this as a strategy. One advantage that clearly comes to mind is that of motivation, I believe that digital story telling will pique the interest of children in topics that would usually not interest them. It would encourage critical thinking ,especially in the realm of the actual photo -taking, since the pupil would have to develop an "eye"and appreciation of their surroundings. It would also involve other skills such as story board development, brainstorming, discussion, sequencing etc. components of the cognitive element of reading.
Digital books would encourage the struggling reader to participate, since the soft-ware used is very friendly and would assist him at all stages of the project. Honestly I can't wait to try this in my classroom, even it means sourcing the materials/equipment needed myself. Our system is sourly lacking, since this type of technology would improve the grades of those children falling under 30%.

Yeah !!! E-books.

I would personally like to thank the creator of e-books, this tool is quite comprehensive, it can serve several masters and and yet maintain its true quality ,that of engagement. one of the many masters that it serves is that of the child. due to the nature of the tool, children of all ages will find theses texts appealing, they would be attract to them because of their colour, their sound and the ease in which they can be manipulated. Secondly, once children are properly guided , they can create their own books, this feature allows children to have a voice, since the topic, content,pictures,and sounds are of their choosing, in simple terms, E-books give children automony. which leads to my third point, which is that of motivation. E-books are excellent tools that would allow children to experience intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivation.
In the case of the second master, the teacher, E-books are easy and effective instructional resource, which can be used to each all of the "fab-five" elements of reading. As an educator, it is imperative that the pleasure principal of e-books not be the only factor, that is to be considered in their us. E-books like a regular text ,must be carefully drafted with a fix objective in mind, must be relevant to its intended audience and finally must be related to some requirement of the school curriculum.

IT AND ICTS

I am still adapting to the concept of technology in the classroom. However while doing research for my web 2.o paper I came across The Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) Standards and Effectiveness Unit (SEU) (http://www. standards. dfee .gov. uk) belief about the teaching of IT in School. the following assumptions were made

• It should offer pupils the opportunity to develop IT capability including their knowledge and particularly an understanding of how to select an prepare information. this to me hinges not only on the pupils but on the teacher as well.
• It should help pupils develop their skills in using hardware and software to manipulate information during the problem-solving process. Here we are being asked to have some fundamental skill s not only in the handling of the software, but also to some degree be literate in solving minor hardware problems.
• It should support pupils in their ability to apply IT capability and ICT to the use of Language and communication. Again there is the need for the students to have some degree of IT ability.
• Finally it should provide pupils with the opportunity to explore their attitudes towards ICT and the advantages and limitations. it is therefore important that we expose our charges to all the elements of web 2.0 technology.
• As teachers we must assist them in gaining the knowkedge so that they can empower themselves .
  

Assistive Technology

I read the articles that were assigned to us to create a storyboard, these articles compromised of information that I found to be quite informative . The item of news that struck out , was the concept of using E-books as "Assistive Technology" which according to the IDEA-The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004, is "any item, piece of equipment ;or product system, whether acquired commerically or off the shelf, modified or customized, that is used to increase ,maintain or improve, the functional capabilities of a child with disabilities."

It is therefore my belief that any form of technology simple or complicated can indeed enhance any child ability to learn. I suspect the fear that most teachers have is in the application of the these technologies. I truly realize that as teachers we must not use the tools being taught to us in in our ICT class as just another course in which to pass ,but rather we must understand that these tools must become second nature to us if we are truly to be of service to the nation's future generations of learners.

here I have placed a link to a video that demonstrates a strategy where students are allowed to take charge of their comprehension of text.

A Seattle school uses a technique called Reciprocal Teaching that’s designed to improve reading comprehension.
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid30687306001?bclid=0&bctid=5545222001
peace.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeR4yvnfOFA


I believe it is important that we have an idea of what students think about literacy, the above video tells us what they consider to be literacy, what they believe is missing in the school system, the different types of literacy and the roles they play in the lives of the students. Please pay close attention to what is being said. As reading specialists we must aim always to listen to the voices of our charges.

peace

mapping

The use Inspiration to create diagrams and documents is definitely a plus for any student. there are several benefits that can be derived from creating a concept map. 1. It allows students to identify the main ideas in a passage. 2. It allows to to clearly identify the links /details that would suppoert the main idea. Due to the layout it would allow them to brainstorm ideas that further support those already given the text. It allows them to create a visual structure of their ideas, while allowing others to have inputs.
As a teacher It can be used as an instructional tool, in which pupils are allowed to see the flow or sequencing of ideas. It can be used as a model which students may follow to structure their thoughts, thereby gaining meaningful insight into what they are reading.