Blog Post 14

Blogs are very important in the educational setting. They serve as a line of communication between the parents, students, and the teachers. If teachers update there blog daily, then parents have a way of knowing what is going on in the classroom. Teachers can post class activites as well as homework. Students can longer use the excuse that they left it at school. I would love to give students the option of commenting on the blog, but my administration will not allow this. They feel that inappropriate comments may somehow find there way on the blog resulting in trouble for all involved.

Blog Post 13

The ease in setting up the blog stands out to me. Creating my Typepad for school seemed much more complicated. It was very straight forward and walked you through the steps. Linking files was very simple. I also like the ability to add favorites sites and a question on the side panel. The program also has a variety of templates in which to choose.

Blog Post 12

I think blogs are very important in the educational setting. This is the first time that I have used blogger to create a blog. I use Typepad in my classroom. I was surprised at how easy it was to set up and monitor. I like the ease in which you can link assignments. I also like the ability to have stationary items on the sides. I learned that blogs are a very useful tool in education.

Cubing Activity (Blog Post 11)

We have read so much about enriching and challenging our kids thorugh project based learning. Teachers need to create activities that foster the use of higher order thinking skills and encourage cooperative learning. I have assigned a project within each unit--some are individual and some with a group. For the unit on equations and inequalties students are to create a cube with a group. Each side of the cube has specific requirements, but they have the ability to showcase their creativity. As students create prblems for each side, the level of difficulty increases as well as the components. When students are finished creating their cube, they will swap it with another group. Not only do they enjoy the collaboration but also get reinforcement of the concepts.

Cubing Activity

Project Based Learning

The focus of my group is motivating students to achieve by using real life business examples. If students can see when and where they will use the concepts taught in class they will be more inclined to concentrate and truly master the standards. My students were fortunate to see the construction of an ampitheater being built on the school campus. They spent the class period finding out the importance the Pythagorean Theorem has in architecture. They were able to share their knowledge and help with the placement of some of the boards. Students then completed two formative activities displaying their knowledge of the concept: a Comic Life and an Excel spreadsheet. Students were then asked to create a 3D model representing the Pythagorean Theorem.


PBL Plan

Comic Life Example
Comic Life Handout
Comic Life Rubric
Excel Example
Excel Handout
Excel Rubric
3D Model Examples
3D Model Rubric

Survey

Article

Reflection
It was amazing to see the learning that was taking place in my classroom. Students were able to make the connection between the concept and the real world. They were able to answer the infamous question, "When will I ever use this?" If only Home Depot can build something on our campus every year to help the students see the importance of the concept. Although my school is located in East Cobb County and the majority, if not all, students will go to college, we have some choice kids from West Cobb County who will not go to college. The discussions that went on between the students and the men who were building the structure reinforced that you do not have to go to college in order to use math; math is all around us. Students enjoyed taking the knowledge gained and creating their own model. I am looking forward to implementing this project based lesson plan each year; of course, modifying it based on the needs of my students.