TerraClues

When teaching students about the world around them, Web 2.0 tools such as Google Earth have revolutionized geography instruction, offering interactive and meaningful virtual experiences.  However, to my knowledge, Google Earth lacks a mechanism for providing self-paced instruction, requiring a teacher to provide structure for a lesson involving this powerful tool.  It also does little to connect students' understanding of geography to historical significance.  TerraClues is a great Web 2.0 resource that offers greater flexibility and, like Google Earth, has the capacity to expose students to the geography of the world.

TerraClues guides students in a GoogleMaps scavenger hunt in which the user must decipher clues in order to reach the correct destination.  By following a series of these clues, the user will arrive at the final destination, having gained a better understanding of where the places are located, as well as how the locations are related to a central topic.  This is a powerful tool for teachers who are striving to raise their students' awareness of geography while teaching students a content-related lesson.  For instance, while teaching students about the arrival of colonists to America, a teacher could create a TerraClues scavenger hunt following the journey of those colonists.  This would raise the students' awareness of the geographic origins of the colonists in England and their journey to America where they ultimately settled.  Another great benefit of this tool is the opportunity to provide differentiated, self-paced learning.  Leveled TerraClues scavenger hunts could ensure that learning is scaffolded according to the students' prior knowledge.

Wordle

Wordle is a popular Web 2.0 tool that is becoming more and more common in elementary classrooms for its ability to create colorful, interesting word clouds.  Word clouds can be used for a variety of purposes, in both whole group, small group, or individual learning experiences.  A wordle might be used as a tool for collecting content-specific vocabulary words (see example below), a classroom resource displaying character traits/juicy adjectives/writing topics, or as an assessment tool for checking a student's understanding of big ideas in a lesson.

Wordle is a free resource to teachers, offering a kid-friendly and colorful alternative to paper and pencil when brainstorming.

McGraw-Hill Virtual Manipulatives

Any elementary math teacher can tell you the value of math manipulatives.  Hands-on learning engages children, encourages problem solving skills, and has the potential to support learning.  As our students become more immersed in an increasingly digital age, sustaining their interest in math may become more challenging.  Virtual manipulatives, like those offered by McGraw-Hill, are a great option for teachers who are interested in integrating Web 2.0 technologies in their instruction.

The McGraw-Hill Virtual Manipulatives toolkit contains dozens of interactive web tools that support math instruction.  The toolkit includes just about anything you might find in a well-stocked elementary math closet (it certainly has more tools than the math closet I use at my school!), including base ten blocks, bucket balance, clocks, connecting cubes, currency, geoboards, spinners, and more.  The toolkit also includes workmats, offering blank worksheets or games students can use.  The possibilities for this Web 2.0 tool are endless and it is a powerful option for teachers who are interested in integrating more technology.

Introductory Blog

Welcome to my ET630 blog!  As I complete the course "Digital Communication in the Classroom" I will update this blog with descriptions of Web 2.0 technologies.