PODCAST NOTES FOR OUR FIRST 1 OUT OF ALL 3 OF OURS:
As guardians and friends of my first grade student, you might of noticed them gathering garbage items over the past couple of days. Don't worry! This is all part of our recycling unit and will eventually lead to new and improved recycling system at our school and eventually to our community.
So far students have learned how to safely search the web for answers to "what is recycling" and "what can be recycled." The information they received was then presented on a group poster .They've also collected data on recycling in various households, inputted the data into Excel and created a graph based on the data collected.
The use of digital tools such as a computer and programs such as Excel are starting to occur because they are essential features of the environments in which todays students are living and learning. I'm starting to move away from the so-called "traditional teaching" and toward a new vision of instructional design. All of which will benefit your student!
I'm getting students comfortable with working in teams, accessing and analyzing information and to think creatively to solve problems. My goal is for them to see the big picture and to work on projects and assignments that relate to real-world problems and experiences.
If students come home frustrated, do not worry. Not all answers come easy and that is good! I want students to really have to be creative in their thinking and this takes time. Encourage your students and perhaps you will learn something too!
P.s. the music we all need to use is under the free music website she has posted as a link in our module, the song is under broadcast 1 and its called NEED TO KNOW
ReplyDeleteEven though this project is for your students, I urge you to not only encourage them but also participate in the project with them. What I mean by this is take the information that your children are bringing home and incorporate them into your lifestyles. As stated earlier, your students know what items can be recycled and what items can be reused immediately. They also know how to reduce the amount of energy that is being used in the home. By doing simple things like turning the water off while brushing their teeth, turning off lights, televisions and unplugging electrically devices that are not being used. They are making the world a better place to live in for the future. As you make the changes in your households the students will be required to note those changes as part of the project and compare the results that they have with their follow classmates. Some of the things they will have to do is takes notes on things like how many trashes bags were used in a week prior to creating the recycling system at home and how many are used now? Has the electric bill or water bill gone down since the start of the project( here they can write the difference in the amount of units used each month that is stated on the bill please do not send them with the dollar amount of your utility bills that is you private information) and also what are some of things you were able to immediately reuse and how did you reuse them. I know this may seem like a lot of work for you and your student but I have no doubt that you are capable of making this project be one of the most successful learning experiences they have. I don't need to remind you that learning is not restricted to the classroom, I know that you are more than willing to help your students learn simply based on the fact that you are here today supporting them. And I thank you for the support that you are currently displaying it means the world not only to your students but to me that the rest of the staff here.
ReplyDeleteOk I will write my podcast about composting and try to have a little conclusion for our three part podcast. Are there any specific concepts from the book I should use? I feel like you guys already covered the ones I was thinking of haha.
ReplyDeleteHello, as you know our students have been learning all about composting. We have researched what materials can be used and what the benefits are for composting in several settings. As a small scale effort we are encouraging each family to begin their own small compost pile at home, and have sent home the necessary information to help you get started. On a larger scale, we have begun a school compost pile to help minimize lunch food waste and landscaping debris such as lawn clippings and dried leaves. Every three to four months we will use our finished compost to enrich flower beds and for other landscaping purposes.
ReplyDeleteOur students have been using several forms of technology throughout this lesson to learn about composting and communicate with others in an effort to help the environment. We have gone on virtual field-trips to visit recycling centers, and have been communicating with a 2nd grade class in China about our recycling system.We have been discussing our weekly progress as a troubleshooting strategy and have developed several small ways to improve our system.
We plan to continue our research and use new forms of technology to improve our recycling system and share our findings with others. Thank you so much for your support, we hope you have been enjoying our project as much as we have!