Aim…snap…flash…PICTURE TAKEN! Seems simple, right? Yes but this process is very wrong.
Taking a picture is not as cut and dry as it may appear; there’s an art involved in doing so in order to obtain the “perfect photo”.
Kodak. com offers some helpful tips that everyone should know when attempting to take a photo. Below is my interpretation of such.
1) Take the picture at the same level of the object. – If the object is a child who is 2' tall, do not stand at your height 5’ 7” and look down to take the picture; simply bend your knees and stoop to the level of the object being photographed.
2) Be wary of your back ground – your background should be plain enough not to detract from the real focus of the picture.
3) When taking pictures outdoors it is wise to use your flash- this aids in minimizing the appearance of shadows.
4) Get as close as possible to the object being photographed- do not stand too far from object.
5) Some objects are better photographed in a vertical direction.
6) Before snapping your picture be certain you have the correct focus.
7) The rule of thirds- this relates to what part of the image the human eye is readily drawn to. It provides a background for photos and allows the photo itself to relay a story.
8) It is wise to know the distance your flash can go up to, so you would be aware of how close you can stand to the object being photographed.
9) Pay attention to the light. The darker the object, the more light may be necessary.
10) You dictate the position, style, line up of your photo. Step out from the mundane “form a line and say cheese pictures”; instead a semi-circle may be more suitable.
11) MY OWN RULE: Most importantly, HAVE FUN DOING SO! ENJOY THE TASK!
Now that I’m aware of all these useful tips, I am armed with camera in hand and ready to be the best “photo-take-outer” I can be!
Friday, July 23, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
What about writing?
Reading and writing go hand in hand!
“Mastery of content is not only demonstrated through reading but through writing." Integrating writing with reading enhances reading comprehension because the two are reciprocal processes.” Knipper and Duggan in “Writing to learn across the curriculum: tools for comprehension in content area classes” offer a repertoire of writing strategies that content area teachers can put into practice throughout the reading process to strengthen students' comprehension and extend their critical thinking. Such as learning logs, journals and fast writes. Writing to learn engages students, extends thinking, deepens understanding, and continues the meaning-making process.
Writing across the curriculum can bring about the positive results. By applying different writing strategies to the classroom situation students can become more engaged with the subject matter. They tend to understand the information and concepts more deeply, students can remember ideas longer and apply that learning in new situations. Teachers can use writing to prompt thinking, to facilitate discussions, to enhance concepts, to assess both formatively and summatively, and for reflection purposes. Some strategies include: “fast writes” which help students organize and state what they are thinking at the moment; “journals”, which either simple or complex, can also help in this area. Dialogue journals can be a great way to increase fluency in writing and work with the class content. “Learning logs” are similar in that they are done during class time and may not necessarily be graded.
The concept of writing to learn is indeed an important one. Through the use of the strategies by teachers, students who exhibit difficulty reading and writing can interact with expository text in a more meaningful way. Writing is just as important as reading!
“Mastery of content is not only demonstrated through reading but through writing." Integrating writing with reading enhances reading comprehension because the two are reciprocal processes.” Knipper and Duggan in “Writing to learn across the curriculum: tools for comprehension in content area classes” offer a repertoire of writing strategies that content area teachers can put into practice throughout the reading process to strengthen students' comprehension and extend their critical thinking. Such as learning logs, journals and fast writes. Writing to learn engages students, extends thinking, deepens understanding, and continues the meaning-making process.
Writing across the curriculum can bring about the positive results. By applying different writing strategies to the classroom situation students can become more engaged with the subject matter. They tend to understand the information and concepts more deeply, students can remember ideas longer and apply that learning in new situations. Teachers can use writing to prompt thinking, to facilitate discussions, to enhance concepts, to assess both formatively and summatively, and for reflection purposes. Some strategies include: “fast writes” which help students organize and state what they are thinking at the moment; “journals”, which either simple or complex, can also help in this area. Dialogue journals can be a great way to increase fluency in writing and work with the class content. “Learning logs” are similar in that they are done during class time and may not necessarily be graded.
The concept of writing to learn is indeed an important one. Through the use of the strategies by teachers, students who exhibit difficulty reading and writing can interact with expository text in a more meaningful way. Writing is just as important as reading!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
E-books.
I read this article given to us by our lecturer. I found it quite insightful…So, I decided to BLOG about it by doing an overview of said article.
An overview of the article “Using E-Books to Promote Vocabulary Development”
Higgins, Norman and Laura Hess
“The effectiveness of any instructional program depends on how it is used, for what purpose it is used, and with whom it is used.” (Higgins, Norman and Hess)
This statement is fitting especially when it comes to the use of e-books. “Most electronic books can read whole stories, phrases and individual words aloud”. Many of these e-books have “added multimedia enhancements...to promote reading achievement”.
Several investigators have sought to compare the effects of print and e-books on reading achievement. Matthew 1997 reported that “children who read...electronic books performed significantly better on story retelling than a matched group who read printed books, but there were no differences...on a story comprehension test.”
Lipson and Wixson (1996) provide guidelines for promoting vocabulary development, which includes:
• relate an unfamiliar word to a known synonym
• use the unfamiliar word in a different context, and
• ask the reader to define the unfamiliar word in his/her own words
It remains to be seen if these guidelines can be implemented with e-books as well as the effects of doing so.
The authors used these guidelines in their study in conjunction with “the animation features of e-books” to determine the effectiveness of selected vocabulary-building activities on learning and retention of unfamiliar words.
To conduct the investigation the authors used a third-grade class of 10 boys and 12 girls. 6 boys and 5 girls in the control group and 4 boys and 7 girls in the experimental group using “The New Kid on the Block: Poems by Jack Prelutsky” (1993).
Results of the investigation.
The results confirm the effectiveness of supplemental vocabulary instruction together with the animations in an e-book yet the author question their practicality and efficiency. They concluded that the supplemental activities are not difficult to implement and the efficiency could be improved if the same results would be attained when the adult worked with more than one child at a time. Further research must be done on the correlation between effectiveness of activities and number of children participating at the same time.
An overview of the article “Using E-Books to Promote Vocabulary Development”
Higgins, Norman and Laura Hess
“The effectiveness of any instructional program depends on how it is used, for what purpose it is used, and with whom it is used.” (Higgins, Norman and Hess)
This statement is fitting especially when it comes to the use of e-books. “Most electronic books can read whole stories, phrases and individual words aloud”. Many of these e-books have “added multimedia enhancements...to promote reading achievement”.
Several investigators have sought to compare the effects of print and e-books on reading achievement. Matthew 1997 reported that “children who read...electronic books performed significantly better on story retelling than a matched group who read printed books, but there were no differences...on a story comprehension test.”
Lipson and Wixson (1996) provide guidelines for promoting vocabulary development, which includes:
• relate an unfamiliar word to a known synonym
• use the unfamiliar word in a different context, and
• ask the reader to define the unfamiliar word in his/her own words
It remains to be seen if these guidelines can be implemented with e-books as well as the effects of doing so.
The authors used these guidelines in their study in conjunction with “the animation features of e-books” to determine the effectiveness of selected vocabulary-building activities on learning and retention of unfamiliar words.
To conduct the investigation the authors used a third-grade class of 10 boys and 12 girls. 6 boys and 5 girls in the control group and 4 boys and 7 girls in the experimental group using “The New Kid on the Block: Poems by Jack Prelutsky” (1993).
Results of the investigation.
The results confirm the effectiveness of supplemental vocabulary instruction together with the animations in an e-book yet the author question their practicality and efficiency. They concluded that the supplemental activities are not difficult to implement and the efficiency could be improved if the same results would be attained when the adult worked with more than one child at a time. Further research must be done on the correlation between effectiveness of activities and number of children participating at the same time.
Monday, July 5, 2010
A bit about (concept) mapping it out!
Concept maps have always held a certain measure of appeal to me. I remember as a child being taught to construct essays by firstly creating “a map” of my ideas. This has stuck with me; so much so, that I often employ this concept as an aid in helping my students become more efficient writers.
Concept maps are indeed very intricate tools. They are visual representations of connections among concepts. Concept maps can be used as a valuable learning strategy to aid in the enrichment of thinking and learning skills in our students. Apart from the obvious use, that is, using Concept maps to present ideas, the article; The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them by Joseph D. Novak & Alberto J. Cañas Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition has shed a measure of new light on Concept maps to me. It made for a very interesting and insightful read.
Concept mapping permits a conversion in the ways in which learners as well as teachers can map out the information that they that they have come across. The idea of Concept mapping is not solely limited to that of an activity used merely to brainstorm but it may assist students in navigating through complex domains of knowledge. Concept mapping tools can be engaged as a “hands-on” approach in the classroom to enhance the learning process. Teachers’ may also use concept maps as a resource for providing information about students’ understanding.
The implementation of new approaches to teaching or learning has often been met with some measure of resilience. This at times result in the use of “sticking to what we know” that is, traditional forms. We as educators must not be afraid to try out new ideas, new approaches and see what works best for our students.
Concept maps are indeed very intricate tools. They are visual representations of connections among concepts. Concept maps can be used as a valuable learning strategy to aid in the enrichment of thinking and learning skills in our students. Apart from the obvious use, that is, using Concept maps to present ideas, the article; The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them by Joseph D. Novak & Alberto J. Cañas Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition has shed a measure of new light on Concept maps to me. It made for a very interesting and insightful read.
Concept mapping permits a conversion in the ways in which learners as well as teachers can map out the information that they that they have come across. The idea of Concept mapping is not solely limited to that of an activity used merely to brainstorm but it may assist students in navigating through complex domains of knowledge. Concept mapping tools can be engaged as a “hands-on” approach in the classroom to enhance the learning process. Teachers’ may also use concept maps as a resource for providing information about students’ understanding.
The implementation of new approaches to teaching or learning has often been met with some measure of resilience. This at times result in the use of “sticking to what we know” that is, traditional forms. We as educators must not be afraid to try out new ideas, new approaches and see what works best for our students.
Monday, June 28, 2010
"Blogging in the classroom"
Reading and writing through the use of computers has permitted a change in the way we think about literacy and learning (Vacca and Vacca). According to Vacca and Vacca; “Digital texts and media make possible for interaction with texts in ways not imaginable a short while ago”. To help capture and maintain students’ interest and by extension, encourage opportunities for interaction with technology outside the classroom; as well as use what they already know, teachers can now try to capitalize on students digital immersion to embrace reading and writing skills. One means of accomplishing this is via the social tool of blogging. Blogs are “interactive and collaborative.” (G. Jones 2005) Blogs can be used as a medium to facilitate knowledge sharing, reflection and debate as well as act as a vehicle for self expression and self empowerment. (Blood 2007)
Blogs can be implemented to enhance reading and writing skills. It can be employed in a variety of ways:
• To teach vocabulary- students can encounter new words in the process, in doing so their vocabulary can broaden.
• To promote peer learning/teaching - in commenting, reading and making posts, students can both teach and learn from each other.
• To foster a sense of creativity and ownership- students feel a sense of pride knowing that their work is being ‘published’ and read by others
• Helps develop expression - with constant practice students are better able to express themselves in a way that may not have been possible in the classroom environment.
• Foster critical thinking skills- In creating a blog; students have opportunities to create their own topics and source material; this can foster critical thinking.
There are always limitations which one may encounter in an attempt to implement new ideas. These may include:
• Time constraints - both for the teacher and student. Sufficient time may not be readily available to the teacher to continuously read posts and make comments on said posts.
• Availability of resources- Internet access as well as access to a computer may not be readily available to students and teachers to perform this task. There are many schools without computers and Internet access; some children may not have the tools available in their homes.
• Technological know-how/skills (both teacher and student) - Both parties may lack the skills necessary to partake in the activity.
Blogs can be implemented to enhance reading and writing skills. It can be employed in a variety of ways:
• To teach vocabulary- students can encounter new words in the process, in doing so their vocabulary can broaden.
• To promote peer learning/teaching - in commenting, reading and making posts, students can both teach and learn from each other.
• To foster a sense of creativity and ownership- students feel a sense of pride knowing that their work is being ‘published’ and read by others
• Helps develop expression - with constant practice students are better able to express themselves in a way that may not have been possible in the classroom environment.
• Foster critical thinking skills- In creating a blog; students have opportunities to create their own topics and source material; this can foster critical thinking.
There are always limitations which one may encounter in an attempt to implement new ideas. These may include:
• Time constraints - both for the teacher and student. Sufficient time may not be readily available to the teacher to continuously read posts and make comments on said posts.
• Availability of resources- Internet access as well as access to a computer may not be readily available to students and teachers to perform this task. There are many schools without computers and Internet access; some children may not have the tools available in their homes.
• Technological know-how/skills (both teacher and student) - Both parties may lack the skills necessary to partake in the activity.
Monday, June 21, 2010
MY READING REALITY
- As the child stood in front the class; with his reading book in hand, I could see the discomfort in his eyes, his face contorted; he scratched, he fidgeted; he seemed unable to find the page of the reading lesson. …Unknowingly to me, all of these “antics” were made because of his inability to read which came as a shocking surprise.
- I sent a note home to a parent one afternoon; the next day as I arrived at school, the parent was there waiting on me. I was a tad concerned as to why she was there because nowhere in the note did I ask to see her. As our conversation ensued…it was revealed that…she was unable to read, she could not even read the note I sent home for her.
Reading has always been one of my passions; and for a while I think I existed in a fantasy world by holding the assumption that this was the same for many others. When I became a teacher, I assumed that students would perhaps share this same passion for reading that I possessed. Unfortunately, such was not a reality as I soon discovered.
Fresh out of teachers’ training college placed in my second school, I was eager; in fact, I was VERY eager to put into action all that I learnt. However, this enthusiasm soon dwindled when “the real” situation of my classroom was presented. Many of the 6 and 7yr old children who sat before me could not even spell their names! Many of them could not read, few of them belonged to homes where both parents could read. This was all new to me. I didn’t know what to do! I had no idea where to begin. However, I am never one to give up! I tried many new strategies I found online and slowly engaged my students’ interest but this was not sufficient.
The teaching of Reading is no easy task. Having little to no training in the area of direct literacy instruction I sometimes felt powerless and I too became overtly frustrated when attempting to teach these students “the basics”. This is why I decided to become a reading specialist. It is my hope that to some extent I can help expel this daunting reality; so that in our classrooms there will be readers, motivated readers!
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