You may be asking yourself ...what is creative thinking?
Well! Creative Thinking is a relaxed, open, playful approach to thinking about a topic. This can require some risk-taking. Creative thinking skills may involve approaches such as:
- Looking for many possible answers rather than one.
-Allowing yourself to make wild and crazy suggestions as well as those that seem sensible.
- Treating all ideas as if they may contain the seeds of something potentially useful.
- Allowing yourself to doodle, daydream or play with a theory or suggestion.
-Making mistakes!!! and learning from what has not worked as well as what did.
WHAT DO CHILDREN THINK OF CREATIVE THINKING?
Focusing on the importance of Media & Digital Literacy in the classroom
Media and digital literacy is important for the student's of today's society since they are being educated in an environment where digital technologies are advancing at a fast pace, creating most learning around the use of technology especially in the classroom environment. Student's need to be familiar with technological aspects such as digital literacy, internet safety, social media use etc. and how to use technology in an appropriate manner.
Once student's are familiar with the idea that technology can be used for educational purposes and not just for entertainment purposes, this is when the fun can begin!
There are many resources in which student's can benefit from the use of technology for their learning.
Some available resources for student's & teachers include:
Reading Resource
Language Resource
Math Resource
What does it mean to be a "Digital Native"?
A "digital native" is a person born or brought up during the age of digital technology and therefore familiar with computers and the Internet from an early age. The digital tools that are reshaping our economy make more sense to young digital natives than to members of older generations.
The student's of today's generation are "digital natives" who are being raised in the age of digital technology and benefit from use of technology to learn within various subjects. As educators it is important for the use of technology for educational purposes to be introduced in an appropriate manner so that student's are not afraid of using technology but rather intrigued to learn about how it can be used to change the world.
Today's lesson on ANALYZING ADVERTISING
Today's lesson focused on "analyzing advertising" within the classroom, which focused on concepts such as "The 5 P's of Advertising" and the ways in which students will be educated about advertising and online media use.
What is "The 5 P's Approach" you ask?
The 5 P's approach addresses questions such as:
Our assignment for media literacy regarding this topic was to analyze some ways in which advertising is used to persuade the viewer. The first activity I had completed was (1) Create a magazine that features YOU. Our goal for this assignment was to apply design techniques to sell our message to our intended audience.
What is "The 5 P's Approach" you ask?
The 5 P's approach addresses questions such as:
- What product or service is being pitched?
- Who is the potential purchaser or intended audience for the product or service?
- What persuasive techniques are applied to the message?
- Where is the pitch presented (magazine, online, newspaper, TV, film)
- How is the product 'packaged' or presented?
Our assignment for media literacy regarding this topic was to analyze some ways in which advertising is used to persuade the viewer. The first activity I had completed was (1) Create a magazine that features YOU. Our goal for this assignment was to apply design techniques to sell our message to our intended audience.
The magazine cover I made for this activity is called Creative Critters!
The website I used to create this magazine cover is called Big Huge Labs which was suggested by our professor to use. The intended audience for my magazine would be the viewers of my blog, that is why I related the theme to creativity! I specifically made the blog for students so that they would be able to look at ways in which student's have used creativity in their work and to have some inspirations!
However educators could also use this magazine as well for a reference tool when looking for activities to incorporate into the classroom in terms of enhancing creativity.
The website I used to create this magazine cover is called Big Huge Labs which was suggested by our professor to use. The intended audience for my magazine would be the viewers of my blog, that is why I related the theme to creativity! I specifically made the blog for students so that they would be able to look at ways in which student's have used creativity in their work and to have some inspirations!
However educators could also use this magazine as well for a reference tool when looking for activities to incorporate into the classroom in terms of enhancing creativity.
DIGITAL LEARNING HOROSCOPE
The second activity I have chosen for this assignment was to take a test called the Digital Learning Horoscope.This test looked at my beliefs about the importance of teaching media to students in the classroom. Once I had finished the test it broke up my results into categories that described my beliefs and teaching practices.
What did my results tell me?
You are a DEMYSTIFIER
What did my results tell me?
You are a DEMYSTIFIER
- You want your students to develop transferable critical thinking skills by "pulling back the curtain" on how media messages are constructed.
You are also a PROFESSOR
- You want students to gain knowledge by using media and technology to advance learning goals.
You are also a WATCHDOG
How will the insight I gained from this test change my thinking?
The results that I have received from this test are relative to what I was initially expecting from the views I have on media and technology in the classroom currently. The ways in which I think about media and technology in the classroom and teaching practices have definitely been reinforced by this quiz and the titles that I have been given, allow me to feel even more confident about my views now.
What can I do with this information?
I am now able to investigate the tools which will be useful within the classroom during my teaching practices with media and technology. I am able to share this information with other's and the beliefs that I stand by regarding this topic. I am able to now feel confident and reassured about my choices with using technology and media in the classroom and how it will affect my students learning experiences.
- You're passionate about helping students appreciate the economic and political contests of media and technology as complex systems that shape our everyday lives.
How will the insight I gained from this test change my thinking?
The results that I have received from this test are relative to what I was initially expecting from the views I have on media and technology in the classroom currently. The ways in which I think about media and technology in the classroom and teaching practices have definitely been reinforced by this quiz and the titles that I have been given, allow me to feel even more confident about my views now.
What can I do with this information?
I am now able to investigate the tools which will be useful within the classroom during my teaching practices with media and technology. I am able to share this information with other's and the beliefs that I stand by regarding this topic. I am able to now feel confident and reassured about my choices with using technology and media in the classroom and how it will affect my students learning experiences.
WEB 2.0 - EDUETO
The modern classroom is very different from the classroom environment years ago in terms of the way students learn.. Children are involved with technology in many ways throughout their lives and are now becoming familiar with using it within their classrooms to produce work at a young age. The tool Edueto is a useful tool that can be used within the classroom to create a wide variety of learning and inquiry experiences from the teacher and the students.
Below you will find more information that will go into detail about how Edueto can be used by yourself and your students within your classroom environment.
ACCESS - Edueto is an online web 2.0 tool of its own which can be accessed through the login that you will create from the html link Edueto. Edueto requires the teacher of the classroom to set up a classroom account along with a private account for each student to use which helps with tracking individual progress as well as group collaboration. This site can be accessed from any computer which is great for students to use at home as a study tool as well as for the teacher to use while they are at home planning for lessons!
ANALYZE - Edueto is a web 2.0 tool which I have not used or have seen used within the classroom environment so it is very new to me. Learning about new software and how it can be used to enhance the classroom environment through a technological perspective is something that inspires me as a future educator. Some questions I had asked myself while encountering Edueto were...
- Is it user friendly?
- is is possible to differentiate content using this software?
- will it benefit each and every student in the classroom?
- are there any privacy settings? and if so, what are they? (student safety comes first!)
- will this tool benefit my classroom as a whole?
The teacher is allowed to differentiate content by having the accessibility to create questions which cater to the students needs and to allow students to access each of the tests that are created individually. I personally believe that this tool will benefit each of the students in the classroom because it will provide them with a resource to use while focusing on their study content for their tests and quizes.
The privacy settings that are attached to this site involve the student logging on to the website through their google account which would be set up by their teacher. While using their google account they are allowed to customize the settings so that their information is only being shared between themselves and their teacher. This site offers a variety of ways in which it can be used across the curriculum and is able to be modified to accomodate each students needs which positively makes it a beneficial tool for the classroom as a whole!
CREATE - Edueto allows the creation of the classroom environnent online to be in the hands of the teacher, however with collaboration could also be used by the students to create questions. Depending on the exercise that is being create for the classroom the teacher and students can focus on a variety of exercises including;
- Quizes - multiple choice questions
- Gap Filling - fill in the gaps text
- Matching - Match corresponding items
- Writing - Essays, analysis, discussion
- Sorting - sorting items into groups
- Equations - Mathematical equations
- PicTag - Picture tagging
- Sequence - Sorting items into sequences
- Geometry - Basic shapes and calculations
- Survey - classic investigative questionnaire
REFLECT - I believe that Edueto is a Web 2.0 tool that I would find useful within my classroom in terms of tracking individual student process (and having an online record of it). I also think that this tool is useful in allowing the content to be delivered to students in a multitude of ways to help them understand what they are learning and how to connect the information to real life situations.
TAKE ACTION - Edueto is an online tool that from my perspective has not been utilized by educators yet, however with the sharing of information from one educator to the next could be very useful. There is the ability to reach all grades from grade 1 to post secondary so a multitude of educators can use this program to reach their students and provide concept material online. I also believe that if teachers were to use this program within the classroom and have students connect online with their parents at home, their would be higher involvement within the classroom environment and home environment as a whole.
Digital Storytelling in the Classroom
What is digital storytelling? Why is it important? Why would I want to include this instructional technique into my teaching practices? What will the students gain from using digital storytelling? Will the students be interested in digital storytelling? How willI know if I am teaching digital storytelling accurately? These are just a few questions, which I came across when I asked myself the question “how might digital storytelling be applied to my teaching practice?”. I first needed to question myself as to whether or not I understood what digital storytelling was, and if I would be able to explain digital storytelling to my future students in a way that attracts their eye and brings them interest. What do I think digital storytelling is? I believe it is the ability to change and enhance a written story by using visuals as well as audio techniques to bring about different moods and perspectives to the story being told. In a millennium where technology surrounds everyone and anyone everywhere and anywhere, our stories are being revolutionized from the average paper and pen story to the digitalized storytelling where words come to life through picture and sound. We can see the advancement of technology every year as the global companies such as Apple and Microsoft are coming out with apps and educational tools which are becoming more and more familiar with the education community. In previous years before the 2000 millennium, technology within the classroom was commonly seen as a distraction or as a way to access information through the Internet. As a student within the years of 2003-2011 I remember using computers strictly for creating documents on Microsoft applications such as Word or PowerPoint, or being allowed to use the computer for Internet purposes to search new information. Within today’s classroom technology is seen as a tool, not only a tool that can be used to find new information but a tool which can be used to create information from a student perspective which can be represented in a variety of magnitudes. One of the tools, which I find to be increasingly fascinating, is the use of the “green screen” which can be used to create the Hollywood effect that students are always looking for when producing their own video productions. The green screen “chroma key” effect can be used within the classroom and specifically digital storytelling to create meaningful, immersive curriculum connections that enrich the language components of digital storytelling and the media products which are being used in the process. When students are using the green screen technique within their digital story creations there is a multitude of ways in which students can use video editing tools as well as apps to enhance stills-on-stills, video-on stills and video-on-video productions to create that real-life effect. One of the tools I find useful while creating green screen still-on-stills of my own was the application from Apple called “iMovie”. This application allowed me to take my photo I had created on the green screen, choose ANY photo I wanted from the internet then place myself in that photo to create a scene from a digital story that I could have created. (The photo’s I created are shown below) Other then using green screens to capture digital storytelling there are a variety of websites and applications that can be used such as “YouTube” and “QuickTime” to share one’s digital story with others. Ideas for digital storytelling within the classroom that teachers may be interested in may include docudramas, interviews, tableaus, puppetry etc. As you can see from the list that I have included here alone, most of the lessons which can be created around digital storytelling are cross-curricular and can provide and include information form a variety of subjects including science, visual art, drama, dance, language etc. When students put in the time and effort behind their digital storytelling to create a story, which is rich in detail and acts as a “script” for the Hollywood magic that they are creating, there is an interest that is created wit the aid of technology. Now that I have described what digital storytelling is and how it can be incorporated into lessons to meet curriculum expectations, I would like to elaborate on the question, which focuses on “why will concepts relevant to digital storytelling enhance teaching and learning with/about media and digital literacies and digital citizenship?”. As mentioned above it is clear that within the new millennium creating a story with a piece of paper and a pencil is not enriching when students are used the fast paced environments around them outside of their educational environment. While students are learning about digital storytelling and the process that it takes behind creating ownership of the work you have created and shared into the online environment, students are focused on the importance of their digital literacy behind their work as well as the digital citizenship they must take when sharing their finished products. With digital storytelling teachers are allowing students to show their use of effectiveness when mastering technological skills, their inspirations of creativity when using technology as an imagination amplifier and the wisdom they have generated when seeing how to evaluate technology and the impacts it is able to have on a large community in a variety of contexts. During my placement within my grade 6 junior class I was not able to witness any involvement with digital storytelling being used within the classroom. Within our Media and Digital Literacy class however there have been a variety of uses and techniques outlined to guide digital literacy within the classroom that I am confident I will use in my future teaching practices. While using digital storytelling within the classroom I feel it is important to make sure students are aware of their digital literacies as well as their digital citizenship so that students are aware of the contribution they are making. Once students are aware of the importance of digital technology in their learning and how it can enhance their learning experience than it will be used to it’s fullest potential. Green Screen Creations! |