Module 3

            I really enjoyed reading this chapter! I think it is very important to connect with the classroom and with the community, and especially with the parents. A quote that I really related to, which was on page 30, was “learning isn’t just “doing more school”…” and I think a lot of kids begin to think along the lines that school is just work, especially when they get older; this is because they are not getting the attention they deserve and they are not being mentally engaged enough in the classroom. I know that even now, in some of the courses I am taking, I feel that way; there is too much work and not enough discussion about the material that I think of the class as a chore, and not a learning experience. That’s why I really like the set up of this course! We have plenty of time to go through the material, really process it, and state our thoughts on it. And by commenting on our group’s posts, it feels very interactive.

 I also think it is important to get families engaged in their child’s school life, because without encouragement from home, a lot of kids begin to lack motivation and excitement about what they are doing. I know that when I was in elementary school, I would always seek approval and encouragement from the adults in my life, and when I did not get a positive reaction, it really affected me in a negative way. So, I think connecting to the children and connecting the children and their parents/guardians to what is going on in the classroom is extremely important. So, I really liked the ideas that this chapter put forth.

            I thought that the digital story telling was a very interesting way to get the children interacting with each other and getting to know more about their classmates. When I was in elementary school, we didn’t have very advanced technology, so we could never do anything like this and I am excited to try it out when I do my VoiceThread. I think that digital story telling can boost confidence in children, because especially when children get older, they grow a fear of public speaking. Therefore, by doing an activity like VoiceThread, they can do all the talking beforehand, so they won’t get as nervous when they are introducing themselves. I also think that once they see their teacher’s own presentation, they will be excited to do their own. I can only imagine the other storytelling possibilities that could come out of projects such as this.

            One thing that I was skeptical about was the use of VoiceThread to document friendships and learning experiences as the year progresses. I think that it is a good idea, but I think it should extend beyond VoiceThread alone, especially because VoiceThread is a yearly (or monthly) subscription, so those memories are only up for a little while. (Though I do not know that much about the VoiceThread technology, this is just how I understand it from the text and from the documentation that was presented to us.) I think that the teacher could make a slide show of these photographs that could be burned onto CDs or emailed to parents at the end of the year, so the children will be able to keep them for longer. I also think that decorating the classroom with personal photographs of the children would be a very good way to make the environment more friendly and welcoming as the year progresses.