Keeping up with the times can appear to be costly, but it can also be a lot more effective! Today we started off by comparing the program Board Maker, which is used to make pictures for PECS, with Pic Collage and Proloquo2go. I am not familiar with Board Maker, but I have seen some visual schedules that have been made using Board Maker. I had no idea the amount of time it required to make an individual card, 15 mins! 15 minutes might not seem so bad, but when you are making 50 cards, it could be a very long process. You have to find the appropriate picture, print them off, cut them out, glue them on card stock or construction paper and then laminate them It can also be very time consuming for the child who is using these pictures as a communication system. If the child has a large amount of pictures, it could take a long period of time in order him/her to find the necessary pictures to convey the message. When using an app such as PicCollage for a visual schedule, it can be created in a just few minutes. It can be customized to the individuals preferences, i.e. colours, pictures, size.
Proloquo2go is another app that can be used a communication system. It allows the user to create several communication boards containing folders and buttons. You can adjust the complexity as the individual becomes familiar with the program. It allows you to customize to individual preferences, i.e. colour, pictures, voice. When experimenting with this app I found it to be very easy to operate. For $189.99 it would save a lot of time and it would be something that students would enjoy using on their iPod touch or iPad as opposed to carrying around a binder.
Click here to read more information on PECS.
Pic Collage is a free app that can be used in a variety of ways. As Barb said "it's uses are only limited to your imagination." I love the fact that pictures can be found and inputted in seconds. It is very fast and easy to use and manipulate. You can change the backgrounds, make your own, import them from the internet, add pictures, text, stickers, which can be easily altered for different students. Pic Collage benefits teachers because it's easy to use! It is also very visually appealing to students as you can personalize individual schedules and create activities that are geared towards an individual student and their interests. I know I loved using Pic Collage myself! I think it is something that my students would really enjoy. There are many uses for Pic Collage. Some of the ones that were presented in class today by different groups were:
-Labelling diagrams
-Visual schedules
-Book reports
-Graphic organizers
-Seating charts
-Venn diagrams
-Journalling
-Addition & Subtraction
-Skip counting
-Sequencing
Below are some of the activities Maureen and I created using the Pic Collage app.
The last app that we explored today was Book Creator. This app allows you to create your own books on the iPad. You can add your own pictures or pictures from the internet, text, video, music and your own voice. These ibooks can be shared with your friends through email and iTunes. They can also be published in ibooks and shared.
-Labelling diagrams
-Visual schedules
-Book reports
-Graphic organizers
-Seating charts
-Venn diagrams
-Journalling
-Addition & Subtraction
-Skip counting
-Sequencing
Below are some of the activities Maureen and I created using the Pic Collage app.
Healthy Snack Sort- We used a t-chart from the internet as our background. We labelled one column as good choices and the other column as unhealthy choices. We copied pictures from the internet and put them at the bottom of the screen so students would be able to sort the pictures into the correct group.
Clothing Sort- For this activity we copied pictures of clothing from the internet. There is also list of each article of clothing on the left. Students can move the pictures and words around to match the picture with the correct word or vice versa.
Place Value Mat- We used a place value mat as our background for this activity. We also copied pictures of base ten materials and grouped them at the bottom of the screen. Students could make specific numbers by placing the base ten materials on the place value mat.
Life Cycle- We used a life cycle template as our background. We copied pictures from the internet of each lifecycle stage of a frog. Students would be able to put the pictures in the correct order.
Writer's Workshop Ideas- We used this web template as a background. For this activity students could write their name in the middle and they could brainstorm ideas about themselves to include in the areas outside their name. This would be a good way for students to generate a list of writing ideas.
Book Creator
5 ways to use Book Creator in the classroom:
-Social Stories
-Dictionaries
-Picture Books
-Journalling
-Informational Texts
Ruben Puentedura's Blog
Ruben Puentedura's blog contains a wealth of information focusing on education and technology. It is certainly worth taking a look. Below is a video entitled Technology in Education. It introduces SAMR and other models that Ruben uses in his work.
Within the video the SAMR model is what stood out to me. Substitution, Augmentation, Modification and Redefinition. Substitution is at the bottom of the model, "tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with no improvement." Augmentation is the second level, "tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with functional improvement." Modification is the third level, "tech allows for significant redesign." Redefinition is the top level, "tech allows for the creation of new tasks, previously inconceivable."
When it comes to my school and where we stand within the SAMR model, I don't think we fit into one particular area as a school. I think it pertains more to individual classes and the interest the teachers have in using the technology and the accessibility. We don't have a wealth of technology, therefore it makes it difficult to use it effectively. We have a computer lab, a netbook trolly, two iPads (which are inaccessible), two mimio teaches , a class set of ereaders and grades 4-6 classes have mounted LCD projectors and three or four netbooks. I am fortunate enough to have an LCD, a classroom computer, three netbooks and the mimio teach in my class. A class set of iPads would be a dream, but we have to work with what we have. When trying to figure out where I would fit in this model, I couldn't pin point one place in particular. I felt as though for different activities I have assigned, they fall into different areas.
In order to get teachers to the redefinition level of technology I think there are many things that need to be in place. First of all, the technology needs to be available and accessible. More importantly, teachers need to be inserviced on the technology that is being implemented. When I was at the FETC conference, one of the messages that really stood out to me was, the dump method does not work! If technology is dumped into a school, it will rarely be used or used effectively. Teachers need to be provided with some time to learn the capabilities of the technology within their school. Technology can be very intimidating to people and we need to make sure that we are keeping up with the times.
The website Model Me Kids provides some great information about video modelling.
When it comes to my school and where we stand within the SAMR model, I don't think we fit into one particular area as a school. I think it pertains more to individual classes and the interest the teachers have in using the technology and the accessibility. We don't have a wealth of technology, therefore it makes it difficult to use it effectively. We have a computer lab, a netbook trolly, two iPads (which are inaccessible), two mimio teaches , a class set of ereaders and grades 4-6 classes have mounted LCD projectors and three or four netbooks. I am fortunate enough to have an LCD, a classroom computer, three netbooks and the mimio teach in my class. A class set of iPads would be a dream, but we have to work with what we have. When trying to figure out where I would fit in this model, I couldn't pin point one place in particular. I felt as though for different activities I have assigned, they fall into different areas.
In order to get teachers to the redefinition level of technology I think there are many things that need to be in place. First of all, the technology needs to be available and accessible. More importantly, teachers need to be inserviced on the technology that is being implemented. When I was at the FETC conference, one of the messages that really stood out to me was, the dump method does not work! If technology is dumped into a school, it will rarely be used or used effectively. Teachers need to be provided with some time to learn the capabilities of the technology within their school. Technology can be very intimidating to people and we need to make sure that we are keeping up with the times.
Social Stories and Video Modelling
Social stories and video modelling are great ways to teach students social skills and positive behaviours that can be easily understood. Social stories should always focus on the behaviour or skill that is being targeted, not a behaviour that is unacceptable. Using the app imovie would be a great way to create some social stories. The stories could be individualized with personal pictures, recorded voices and text. By using imovie, the social stories could be very meaningful for the individual.
The website Model Me Kids provides some great information about video modelling.
For more information on Carol Gray and social stories click here. The video below also gives a brief introduction to social stories.
No comments:
Post a Comment