Niche Activity

http://illuminations.nctm.org/

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

Illuminations

 

The Illuminations site includes a large amount of online math manipulatives for grades K-12. Examples of manipulatives include pattern blocks, adjustable spinners, bar grapher, and an equivalent fraction machine. 

The website includes a search feature so you can search by grade level and key word. You can also search for lesson plans by grade level and topic and the lessons include use of the online manipulatives. You can also search by specific standards. The manipulatives are really easy to use and move around. 

I found this site by searching for online math manipulatives. I currently teach 4^th grade and have a Smart Board and I wanted to find manipulatives to use in on it. This site provides a large amount of resources that I’m looking forward to using on my Smart Board.

I think teachers could find this tool very helpful. They could display them on their Smart Boards for a whole group or a small group to interact with. They could also have students use the manipulatives individually on their own computer in the computer lab. They could use the pattern blocks to design a picture, enter data to make a graph, and play one of the games with a partner. This also would be helpful if these particular manipulatives don’t come with your current math program. They are free to use so teachers/schools could save money by not having to order the real manipulatives.

One drawback is that the manipulative/game is small on the screen. If I were able to make changes, I would make it so that you can enlarge the manipulative to fit the entire screen so it would be easier for students to see.

All reviews of this site were extremely positive and had nothing negative to say. Reviews of this site called it a “gold mine” of math resources and said that it will help students develop 21^st century math skills.

Social Networking Activity

The social networking activity that I would like to use with my 4^th grade students will involve discussing the students’ heritage. In our social studies book (Social Studies Alive!), chapter 3 discusses the people that make up our nation. It discusses the different groups of people and their contributions to our country. These groups include Native Americans, Asian Americans, African Americans, European Americans, and Hispanic Americans. I would like to create a social network so our class could communicate with another class, preferably a class in another country (if not, another city in the US would work fine). On this social network, students would post descriptions of their heritage and what countries their ancestors came from. They can discuss family traditions, holidays, and the contributions that their ancestors have made. The Ning site will allow them to post pictures. They can scan old photographs and draw pictures. My objective will be for students to learn about other cultures than their own and gain an appreciation for all of the groups of people that make up our country.

I will use the program called Ning (www.ning.com). The reason that I chose this site over other sites is because this site gives you the ability to create a private network. I will be able to decide who can join and the students’ posts and comments will remain private. This site works like a wikispace and social network in one. Students can make posts about anything and others can respond. Students can also scan in pictures and attach them to their posts. This would be a great way for students to share work with one another. Students will be able to access this site from home, so that will give them more time to work on the project. I considered using a program that students are familiar with, such as Facebook, but I was concerned about security. The students would have control over who they are “friends” with and could invite anyone they wanted to the network. I want to be in control of who is allowed to join.

One problem I foresee involves student etiquette while communicating with each other. I plan to prevent this by discussing in advance with my students how to show respect while on the internet. I will ask the teacher of the other class to do the same. Another problem involves the students getting confused with the program and having difficulty using it. I plan to help students with this by offering them extensive tutorials on the site before we start the project. I will create user guides for them so that they can try to solve the problem themselves if they get stuck.

Social Networking

Reading Revolution

http://dllb123sglobaleducation.ning.com/

I think this site is a great example of how to use social networking in the classroom. I like how students from different areas of the country can communicate and discuss with each other. Students love social networking, so I’m sure they would be really motivated to participate in an activity like this. In this particular activity, 5^th grade students from an inner city and suburban environment discuss books and share their writing with each other. For example, both groups of students read the book Marley and Me. They shared their thoughts on the book as well as their personal connections with each other. I like this activity because it’s more interactive than using a regular website or email. Students can create profiles and can develop their own unique personalities. Students could access this site from home and be able to write responses on their own time. The only thing that concerns me is that this network is open to the public and anyone can access it and read the students responses. I think you can create private networks through Ning so that the students’ privacy is protected. If I were to use a social network in the classroom like Ning I would make it private so that only the students could access it.