Thursday, June 6, 2013

Terminal ends "week ten"

  
All My Dear teachers ,
  The pilot is calling you to fasten your seat belt as it is our final destination
And the journey named "Building Teaching Skills Through The Interactive Web "  is  about to land .



The terminal

By the end of the tenth week ,  my current journey of knowledge on Building Teaching Skills Through the Interactive Web ends. How sad  I am to pack my stuff to leave . here is our final distention  trying to summon my force again to recall what I learned and to pass the gained knowledge on to my students . ten weeks of hard and challenging tasks enriched me well and  Paved the way to be well-equipped . lets talk about them in brief :



0-      In week zero  ,previewing the course material , paves the way to  know rubric in order to evaluate our works on this course ; and learnt about rules for successful discussions .
1-      On the station of  week one  ,    Introductions and orientation to the course, was a chance to know how to  create an academic blog  . I have launched    my official reflexive blog . http://balbadry.blogspot.com/
2-        Week two station  ,   The ABCD learning objectives framework and effective web searches ,   was beneficial to know how to write objectives  to the ABCD style .
3-      In week three, Oral/aural skill-building websites and bookmarks with Delicious, was a chance to create my Delicious account to archive my favourite web sites for sharing  .Also the article  about The Employment of CALL in Teaching Second /Foreign Language Speaking Skills was more than perfect . 
4-    In week four station  , was about writing/reading web sites and technology-enhanced lesson plans. I explored how to master these skills through 3 steps identify ,understand and integrate . also   I have collected  some web resources to   develop and adapt students' integrated skills speaking, writing, listening and reading skills carefully.
5-      In week five ,    Project-based learning, WebQuests, and rubrics was a distinguished one to know  much more  about  PBL. and  explore more sites to know about project based learning.  Also When students work together on project teams, they learn to collaborate, communicate, and resolve conflicts. Cooperative learning and character development supports the social and emotional development of students  .

    6- in the station of  week six , Student-centered large classes and interactive  PowerPoint, was my favourite one as I  learned   how to deal with    Tools like ( interactive PowerPoint) and SMART Board   which   has a big effect on the students .
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnx3ZWJza2lsbHN3aWtpc3ByaW5nMjAxM3JvYmVydHxneDo0ZmU4MGFjZGEyMWJlZDI2

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnx3ZWJza2lsbHN3aWtpc3ByaW5nMjAxM3JvYmVydHxneDo1ZDYyYmRjMzk0YmJjNWU1
7-     Week seven Station ,  Learner autonomy and the one-computer classroom, was full of air bumps .
I read about technology and how it foster different learning styles and how to use  a Padlet to post their ideas . There is a relation between "LEARNER AUTONOMY" and "MOTIVATION " is to Increase student motivation by actively promoting learner autonomy . As for how to connect one computer to other computers at the class via free software. By using one CPU I can link between it and with other screens for every student to share and submit instructions I gave . THE CONTROL of all theses screens are mine . using a free software .


8-          week eight ,Teacher resources online. Project drafts due to partner. In this week I got a treasure box of resources for creating online activities . I was very much eager to try them all. It is free and simple to use . I created a blog for my classes "grade four"

http://sanabisfourthgrade.blogspot.com/ 

      you can see part of my students using his USB flash in his father's           car to listen a song about animals
                then he reflects what he has learned in front of the class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_FxESQi7hA&feature=youtu.be

Also I made my First draft and there was a  peer review by my partner and comment for each other .


9- Before the last station nine ,Learning styles: technology connections. Final Projects due Friday of week 9, was  unforgettable and challenging   I gained from the articles I read that there are 8 types of learners.  And The Multiple Intelligence including eight kinds of intelligence.  Also,I mentioned  kinds of activities which develop each stage of the student's intelligence . Armed with technology , teachers can ensure they provide enough variety in the activities they use.
At the end  I uploaded my final report after rephrasing it   .



10- Our last station , week ten ,  was to some extent comfortable and motivated .I had to point out my current level of technology integration and my expectations for my future levels . I managed to create a blog for my classes  I could not do previously     . Now we are in touch with my students and their parents even after the end of the second semester  . I was happy to see the fruits of my success are ripened . 

http://sanabisfourthgrade.blogspot.com/

At the end of this reflective blog , a big thank you letter  for my Instructor , Mr.Robert Eliot , who guided , instructed , and helped all of us during this online course . I also hope to meet all my classmates in another running contest for the seek of knowledge .  
REMEMBER  It is never too late to learn  and   You are never too old to learn.


BEST WISHES
BELAL ELBADRY



 








Friday, May 31, 2013

week 9





Dear everyone,

Here we are in week nine .The time is already running out and how sad I am to miss my colleagues ideas and opinions . I suggest to create E-blog or communicate through Face book to be in tough and share our posts . 
What I learned & What I applied
 

This week I've read an article entitled .  'Learning Styles and Strategies'  by Richard M. Felder and Barbara A. Solomon.
-What I gained from the article that there are 8 types of learners.
1-Active Learners
2-Reflective Learners
3-Sensing Learners
4-Intuitive Learners
5-Visual Learners
6-Verbal Learners
7-Sequential Learners
8-Global Learners




These are kinds of activities which develop each stage of the student's intelligence . 
Linguistic
-word games -reading games -show and tell -using puppets -crosswords/ Anagrams
Musical
-Songs - Action rhymes -chants
Logical –mathematical
-word puzzles -Reading puzzles -numbers puzzles -ordering


Spatial
-shape puzzles -drawings -learning from videos@CD-Roms - Painting using computer softwares (Paint, Adobe Photoshop, AutoCAD) -Cameras (digital, webcam, camcorder) -Give them a Padlet of pictures,a You tube video, an album in picasa


Bodily –kinesthetic
-TPR -physical activities -songs &games - dancing


Musical
-Songs -chants -action rhymes -CD player, mp3s with headphones -Various websites of videos (Youtube, DailyMotion) -Computer with microphone, speakers, and earphones


Interpersonal
-pair work -group work -peer teaching -surveys -interviews


Intrapersonal
-reflection (blog) -project work -creative writing


Naturalist
-Classifying -nature projects -sorting

The Multiple Intelligence Check list as described by Berman , includes eight kinds of intelligence.


1-linguistic Intelligence e.g a learner with a good vocabulary , a good reader or like crosswords
2-logical- mathematical Intelligence e.g a learner who is good at using computers , is good at problem solving
3-spatial Intelligence e.g learner who enjoys drawings ,using pictures,charts,diagram
4-kinesthetic Intelligence e.g a leaner who learn through manipulating ad moving objects or games
5-musical Intelligence e.g a learner who learns well through the use of chants,rhyme and songs
6-interpersonal intelligence e.g a learner who learns well from pair group or team work activities .
7-intrapersonal intelligence e.g a learner who is a good self –evaluator and likes to reflect
8-Natural intelligence e.g a learner who is good recognizing patterns in things .


Armed with technology , teachers can ensure they provide enough variety in the activities they use.

 -I likes this site  much more by Barbra prashing entitled  Learning Styles vs. Multiple Intelligences :





Barbara Prashnig points out the differences between these two revolutionary approaches to teaching and clarifies the confusion which often exists when classroom teachers attempt to introduce new strategies 






     My main modalities are  visual , kinesthetic, auditory earning styles which is  important for me to be applied in the class room . I found that in an average class of adults , twenty-nine percent will be mainly visual learners , thirty-four percent auditory and thirty-seven percent kinesthetic . As for my classes especially the children ages 5 to 9 comes through the hands, eye and ears so the physical world is dominant at all times . see my blog I applied in  the class room http://sanabisfourthgrade.blogspot.com/ .


I went over my draft project and completed it. I would appreciate it if you could post your comments. Here is my Final Project .
See the link  
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnx3ZWJza2lsbHN3aWtpc3ByaW5nMjAxM3JvYmVydHxneDo0NWVmOWU2MWRkZGY5YjFh


Regards,
Belal

Monday, May 27, 2013

week 8





Dear everyone,

 This week was full of challenges especially for me as I had a lot of tasks to do .
What I learned & What I applied
  
In this week I got a treasure box of resources for creating online activities . I was very much eager to try them all. It is free and simple to use .

1- I created a blog for my classes "grade four"

http://sanabisfourthgrade.blogspot.com/ 
because I want to promote my learners' autonomy with respect to choosing and sharing resources for an assigned listening presentations.
the blog has many tasks to be done according to their individual differences .
 

2-  I made an online survey for my students using google docs and by SurveyMonkey!.
the aim is to know their opinions  about the course we taught this semester  at school . 
-http://www.google.com/insights/consumersurveys/create/questions/edit?survey=6dnxy6fjcgty2
-http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/FP396KD
3-  I made a simple cloze exercise for my students using  hot potatoes.
http://uk3.hotpotatoes.net/ex/103798/PQJJLQSK.php . Hot potatoes is a real fun and easy, moreover it enables  me to save your work both online on the website and offline on myPC.
4- I tried toolsforeducators.com it’s a very attractive as you can design the activities accompanied with pictures  . to make and print teaching resources with pictures or classroom materials for kids. They are simple, but beautiful, versatile and powerful.
-http://www.toolsforeducators.com/wordsearch /getResult.php
 
5-  A wonderful website  I used  for making quizzes with a final evaluation
http://www.proprofs.com/quizschool/user.php?login=balbadry&view=userquizzes


My goals are to  :
• Make your students independent of the teacher
• Help the learner to become independent and become his/her own mentor
• provide students with the tools to be able to learn on their own
• make your students part of the decision making about classroom activities.










 A special thank  for Mohmed Nasr who was distinguished in his nice project dealing with speaking skill . How happy i am to share with his valuable ideas .

Regards,
Belal.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Week 7



Dear everyone,
What I learned & What I applied
 This week I  learned  new things :

(LEARNER AUTONOMY- ONE-COMPUTER CLASSROOM / PADLET )

It is time to Collect Student Ideas Using Padlet

you can share me with your ideas about your project 

  http://padlet.com/wall/pboa467eb9/wish/9938817

 

 

 

 I taught my students how to create a Padlet and to post their ideas . 


LEARNER AUTONOMY


I go through The ELT JOURNAL entitled " Learner autonomy" by Richard Smith
                                          
I liked Holec 's idea that the participants did not necessarily, at least have the full capacity (competence) to take charge of decision-making in all the areas normally determined by an institution, teacher, or textbook


 

MY point of view :

There is a relation between "LEARNER AUTONOMY" and "MOTIVATION " is to
-Increase student motivation by actively promoting learner autonomy through
a. Allowing learners real choices about as many aspects of the learning process as possible.
b. Handing over as much as you can of the various leadership/teaching roles and functions to the learners.
c. Adopting the role of a facilitator.

“I never teach my students. I simply provide the situations in which they can learn.” Einstein

My goals:
• Make your students independent of the teacher
• Help the learner to become independent and become his/her own mentor
• provide students with the tools to be able to learn on their own
• make your students part of the decision making about classroom activities
The role of teacher in developing learner autonomy:
• model role
• moderator
• facilitator
Useful web applications:
• Voicethread
• Vocaroo
• wikis
• Tutorials (http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com, http://technology4kids.pbworks.com/w/page/34922427/tutorials)
• Moodle
• Audio boo


“Seeing is believing… Or seeing is knowing..?”

I’ve heard people say that “attention is the currency of the 21st century”…

Is it a eye-opening to realize how deep and connected language is?
 




One Computer Options

 Everything has it advantages and disadvantages. The pros to having computers in the classroom far outweigh the cons.

For me if I have one computer in the lab I can create a good and cheap method . By using one CPU I can link between it and with other screens for every student to share and submit instructions I gave . THE CONTROL of all theses screens are mine . using a free software 
As for how to connect one computer to other computers at the class via free software. 

I tried teamviewer program and it worked .
  http://forums.mazika2day.com/t153818.htm
It is more than perfect , but if you have one pc and others screens with out a CPU you can see these links to get benefit.
http://www.bramjnet.com/vb3/showthread.php?t=1003966


 
  Regards, 
Belal

Sunday, May 12, 2013

week 6


Dear everyone,



What I learned & What I applied

This week I  learned   how to deal with    Tools like ( interactive PowerPoint) and SMART Board   which   has a big effect on the students .I knew alot of
Why I use Smart board .

At my classroom there are some shy pupils .Children who are shy tend to become engaged in learning when it comes to working with Smart-Boards. A Smart-Board is made up of a computer, Smart-Board software, an interactive whiteboard and a projector. "With a touch of a finger, students can control applications; navigate the Internet; and write, change, move around and save content SO THE SHY PEOPLE CAN SHARE AND JOIN US .








I started working on my technology  using the smart board and attractive powerpoints  in my class and
HERE are SOME Changes made
 At the beginning of my e-lessons, I was prompted by one of my students to reflect on the importance of using smartboard and e-lessons . He was very happy to use it and interact with it  so I praised and encourage him immediately  .


So why a smart board or a presentation are more effective ?
-in brief , I think it is the best way to be creative , innovative   and engage about what I did .I also feel that teachers will have less classroom management problems because Smart-Boards keep students stimulated and interested.  When students are comfortable using technology at an early age it becomes easier for them to understand more and more.
As for the large classes I learned intersting ideas 
These ideas are:
1- Get Students' Attention
2-Direct Students' Attention
3-Don't Overload the System
4-Give Students Opportunities to Review and Apply.


A "thank you letter" to all participant who support me with new ideas  and created nice presentation .

Helpful sites 

To make the PowerPoint made Easy - Make 3D Effects in Minutes
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93ubF7zJiCo
10 magic secrets to great Powerpoint presentations
 http://www.examiner.com/article10-magic-secrets-to-great-powerpoint-presentations

Best,
Belal

Monday, May 6, 2013

week 5




What I learned & What I applied


Week 5 has been a challenge , a blessing and  exhausted one .

As for PBL
This week I have learnt much about  PBL. Susan  Gaer gives details at her website. I am still  exploring more sites to know   about project based learning.
   


From the figure ,Students will be actively engaged in various projects and educational pursuits, while at the same time learning the essential components 

Moreover, the introduction of stories into English listening courses can improve students' general morale, and show that the language is not just as a subject of study, but can be a source of enjoyment and recreation.
Trace Effects and Language Practice sections.


 
exhibition of students' own projects

When students work together on project teams, they learn to collaborate, communicate, and resolve conflicts. Cooperative learning and character development supports the social and emotional development of students



pair work



As for The Role of Rubrics  

 in Advancing and Assessing Student Learning

A rubric is a multi purpose scoring guide for assessing student products and performances. This tool works in a number of different ways to advance student learning, and has great potential in particular for nontraditional, first generation, and minority students. In addition ,rubrics improve teaching, contribute to sound assessment, and are an important source of information for program improvement. 



I've also found WebQuests shared on Zunal and QuestGarden which may be relevant to my students and their examination .
I invited my students to  download and exchanged  projects among each other

Moreover, the introduction of stories into English listening courses can improve students' general morale, and show that the language is not just as a subject of study, but can be a source of enjoyment and recreation.

 This is my humble site   http://questgarden.com/158/97/5/130505111041/
  
this is a kind OF Interactive 3Dadventure game .it is an audio visual material in teaching and learning which motivate them to listen ,speak and react  happily  you can download it freely 
you can see the trailer on
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxg-KTJY-RA


Regards,
Belal