My 21st Century Classroom

Welcome

                                                               

Hi! I am a student at Edinboro University in Northwestern Pennsylvania. My major is Early Childhood/Special Education. I want to be a teacher so that I can make a difference.

                        

                                                           


                                                       



My future plans are to continue to learn as I teach. I feel it's very important to seek updated information regarding education. By being informed on all aspects of education, it will help me be the best teacher I can be for the benefit of my students.

 

My Classroom 

I teach in a rural area of northwestern Pennsylvanina. The school consist of 170 students in Kindergarten through sixth grade. Sixty percent of the students receive free or reduced lunch. I am teaching the first grade in a general education classroom setting. In my classroom, there are 18 students (all of the same race). Of those 18 students, 8 are boys and 10 are girls. I have one student, Tommy, that is hearing impaired. He has unilateral hearing loss (loss of hearing in one ear). Here is a picture of Tommy:

Tommy

                                                          

Here is how my classroom is currently set up:


I sometimes refer to this website to help with setting up my room. I find it very helpful that students share tables together rather than individual desks so that they can rely on each other for assistance and share ideas with one another. I also find it useful to have 5 computers in the classroom for students to access during free time or for them to use to gather information in an efficient manner. I also recommend creating a quiet area within the room. That is why I have a circle rug with beanbag chairs; using shelves to separate the area from the classroom gives students a place to read with no distractions. I am very seldom at my desk during the school day and for parent/teacher conferences, I prefer to meet at the kidney table. While greeting parents for the conferences, I always ask the parents where they prefer to sit and most always they choose the kidney shaped table.


We use a smartboard in the classroom. The children love to use the smartboard to practice their math. I feel it motivates them and it also helps them develop presentation skills in front of their classmates.

Our district also uses a web-based program called edline. Edline allows teachers to display students grades and assignments. I can also post spreadsheets and reading material.

I will sometimes post help-sheets on blackboard for the students who may struggle in a certain area. The help-sheets will give the students extra assistance in areas they may be struggling in.

We recently started using Skype in our classroom. We have been communicating with another first grade classroom in China. We've learned a lot about their culture and we love to tell them about our culture. We also share things that we have in common. The students are very excited and amazed at this latest technology in our room! This is a great video to watch about Skype in the classroom:

I also love to check out other education professional's blogs on blogger. I am able to explore ideas to implement in my classroom. I love to search this database: 100 top educational blogs. It is such a great way to exchange ideas and sources.

Assistive Technology

I also use assistive technology for Tommy. It is a Sound Field System called Phonic Ear. It is a voice amplifier to help make my voice clear and loud. This seems to help him understand what I am saying without me raising or straining my voice. This also provides a better listening environment for the whole class.

Self-Reflection

I feel I have definitely been pushed out of my comfort zone when it comes to technology. You can see from my very first blog until now. I am not afraid to be creative now and to play around with all the tools available to help express my thoughts. I have expanded my knowledge about social media and the resources available through collaboration. But I am amazed at what new skills I have developed because of that. I now know how to use the technologies that are available to me, improve my skills and increase my knowledge of being an early childhood teacher. I know now, instead of struggling to create new and interesting ways to teach my students, I will turn to the vast technology resources available to me. I am excited to know that I have now enhanced my "skill-bank" for teaching in the 21st Century!

Annotated Bibliography

Digital image. Justbeads. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Dec. 2012.

<http://www.justbeads.com/user/books.cfm>.

Digital image. The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/>.

In US, 16 Million Children in Poverty | US Daily Review. Digital image. In US, 16

Million Children in Poverty | US Daily Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://usdailyreview.com/in-us-16-million-children-in-poverty>.

Local Family Activities. Digital image. Events, Camps, Classes, Programs & Drop-In

Schedules. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012. <http://www.chatterblock.com/>.

Maggies Hope. Digital image. Maggies Hope RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://www.maggieshope.org/about>.

Professional Children's School. Digital image. Professional Children's School. N.p., n.d.

Web. 07 Dec. 2012. <http://www.pcs-nyc.org/>.

"RANDOM THOUGHTS." RANDOM THOUGHTS. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://hamsandwich66.blogspot.com/>.

Slices of My Life. Digital image. Slices of My Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://valeriemosley.blogspot.com/>.

Stock Photos by Stockfresh - Buy Royalty Free Images and Vector Illustrations. Digital

image. Stock Photos by Stockfresh - Buy Royalty Free Images and Vector Illustrations. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012. <http://stockfresh.com/>.

Sucrose: Infant Pain Reliever. Digital image. â€“ Functional Performance Systems

(FPS). N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012. <http://www.functionalps.com/blog/2012/02/02/sucrose-infant-pain-reliever/>.

Welcome to Spartanburg School District Two. Digital image. Welcome to Spartanburg

School District Two. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2012.

<http://www.spartanburg2.k12.sc.us/>.

Feedback