Teaching a color through rhyme

ICT and Pedagogy are the two alternative tools for teachers and learners.

Alternative tools as those that have traditionally been used as tools in the classroom:
the teacher, the board, the chalk, the textbook, the pencil, the workbook and the
eraser. In settings both with and without ICT equipment, the pedagogical stance that
propels the work can be the same. The pupils can either be treated as passive receivers
of established knowledge or they can be looked upon as active participants in creating
or constructing knowledge. This latter view represents the main perspective of sociocultural
theory. The classrooms in this research were guided and framed by the theory
of project work in which teachers viewed pupils as active learners using language as a
tool in their working processes (Berthelsen et al., 1987).

Possibilities and Challenges Searching for Information

The dialogue rendered below shows how pupils can come up short when trying to
find information on the net. When the pupils at Bridgeford School were working on
the topic ‘buildings and settlement in their local community’, some of them tried to
find a map of the area they were working on by searching the net. Rebecca, Jenny and
Lisa are sitting in front of the computer screen trying to find this map. Before this
brief exchange, the pupils have been trying to find maps at the computer for a while.
Rebecca starts:
Rebecca: Tour-map, write, scroll to the top again. Tour-map + Trondheim, write that.
Jenny: No, it doesn’t work (Jenny has done exactly what Rebecca told her to do, but
no map pops up on the screen).
Lisa: There has to be a tour-map for sure.
Rebecca: Do you know what? We’ve used a lot of time just to find a map.
Lisa: Yes, but when we’ve found it, then we’ve got it, you see. Try to write ‘Statens
vegvesen’ [Public Road Administration] + map.
Jenny: Okay (she sounds a bit resigned, but writes the words that Lisa has suggested).
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Advantages and disadvantages of using ICT 595
Lisa: You have to write Trondheim then, there’s a ‘Statens vegvesen’ [Public Road
Administration] in all municipalities.
Rebecca: I’ll go and look in an atlas (she gets up and walks away from the group).
Jenny: Oh, it’s so difficult to find maps, like (they have still not managed to find a
map). Do you know what? We can draw one (Jenny has tried Lisa’s suggestion,
but fails to find a map).
During this conversation, the pupils work together trying to help each other. According
to Mercer (1995), they are working at both the cumulative and the exploratory level.
The pupils make suggestions that they share with each other, and they inform the
others in the group about different ways of conducting their search. One of them also
tries to encourage the others to continue the work, and in addition argues for how they
should continue their search for information. In this way the pupils can develop their
methodological competence as part of their holistic development, a process that
includes gathering information. Thus, the dialogue can enhance learning (Bakhtin,
1981, 1986; Vygotsky, 1986/2000). On the other hand, the pupils did not find what
they were searching for on the net. Actually, the pupils ended up drawing a map
together.
According to Wegerif (1997), the mastering of complex interfaces is a common
problem when using open-ended software. Such a problem may also cause the pupils
to focus more on mechanical, procedural matters rather than on tasks they are to
solve, as in the Concept Kate game (Phillips & Scrimshaw, 1997). When searching on
the net, the pupils encounter problems that force them to use alternative tools, such
as a pencil and paper. In this way the interface turns out to be a hindrance to the
pupils’ activity in trying to solve the task. This shows that the pupils must learn search
techniques where the use of ICT can then be an advantage. This means that teachers
also have to learn to use the ICT equipment if they are to manage to help the pupils
exploit the possibilities it can offer.
In other situations, it could also be wise to advise the pupils not to use ICT in their
work. At Cooper School, the pupils were working on a project called ‘Emigration
to America’. While most of the pupils in a lesson rush to the computer lab, one of
the pupils said a little sardonically: ‘I can’t find my grandma on the internet’. The
pupils were trying to find some material for the topic. Obviously this pupil believes
that he can obtain more information for his topic from his grandmother by talking to
her face to face than on the internet. It turned out that many of the pupils encountered
problems finding the information they needed on the internet (Postholm,
2003). Thus, this project shows that not all information is necessarily found on
the net and that alternative tools, such as human beings, may be better sources for
gathering data.

The Moon Bear's Dance

Benefits of ICT in the classroom

General benefits

·         Greater efficiency throughout the school.

·         Communication channels are increased through email, discussion groups and chat rooms

·         Regular use of ICT across different curriculum subjects can have a beneficial motivational influence on students’ learning.

Professional Development on Media Literacy

Integrated Lesson Plan on Math

Mathematics Lesson Plan

Name of the school: Lango Middle Secondary School.

Class: III ‘C’                                 Class strength: 29            Date: 14/08/2017

Subject: Mathematics             Period: 3^rd and 4^th                          Time: 80 minutes

Topic: Polygons (Chapter 5, Geometry)

Teaching Skill/s in Focus: Giving Instructions to Organize Learning Activities

Previous Knowledge of the students: students have an idea of different shapes like triangle, square, circle and rectangle.

Teaching/Learning Materials: Different shapes of polygons, example: rectangle, rhombus, trapezoid, square, pentagon, hexagon, laptops and projector.

Teaching strategies: Demo cum Lecture

Life Skill Values: Critical thinking

Lesson objectives: By the end of the lesson, each child will be able to:

1. tell what a polygon is after the teacher’s explanations.
2. name seven polygons and talk about their characteristics correctly after the activity.
3. fill in the table about its edges and vertices of each polygons appropriately after the learning activity.

Lesson Revision (3 minutes)

Gaining attention

Teacher: Ready to rock!

Students: Ready to roll!

Teacher: Good morning children! How are you all?

Student: Good morning Madam! We are all fine and thank you.

Revise on the previous lesson by asking some questions. (I will pose the question, wait for sometimes and then point out the child’s name so that everyone in the class will be engaged in thinking of the answer). Example

• What are the shapes that we have learnt in the previous class?
• Can you name any shapes that you find in our classroom?
• What shape does your classroom door represents?

(As the students name the shapes, I will make a list on the computer and show it on the PowerPoint).

Lesson Introduction ( 5 minutes)

Teacher: Ok children today we are going to learn about “Polygons.” (Show the topic on the power point)

Do you have any ideas about polygons? Discuss in your group for 1 minute. (Rally Robin)

POLYGON-in ppt

Let one from each group share “what is a polygon?”

Then I will say, ok children! You all tried your best. Now let us see what are polygons?

Lesson Development (10 minutes)

Gaining attention: Class!Class!…..yes!yes!

After that I will show the following polygons on the Power Point.

I will explain to the whole class about the above definition. I will also teach them like rectangles, squares, triangles, trapezoids, rhombus etc are all polygons. All 2D shapes are polygon except for the circle because circle is not made of straight lines.

Polygons have three characteristic. They are;

  So these are the three main characteristics of the polygon.

Again I am going to explain about its faces, vertices and edges one by one by on the PowerPoint.

Example:                                                                                    

                                                                                   

I will also let children come up with more examples as different shapes have different numbers of faces, edges and vertices.

Teach some of the non-examples of the polygons. Show a chalk box

                                                               

                          

A chalk box

                                                       

Is this a polygon?  (Expected answer is no)

Explain like:

The box is not a polygon because it is not a flat shape.   

It is a solid shape. It is a 3D shape.

                                         Cylinder

 

Cylinder is also not a polygon because firstly it is not made of straight lines.

You can see curve line on the top and at the bottom. Again it is a solid and 3D shape.

Note: All these above shapes I will show it on the power point and do the explanation verbally.

Activity Direction (2 minutes)

• Now we are going to do an activity.
• I will show the table on the power point.
• You are going to copy the table in your notebook.
• Count and fill in the table about its edges and vertices.
• I have done one example for you all.
• For this activity you will get 20 minutes.
• You are going to do it individually.
• After that you will exchange your book with your shoulder partner and check.

Checking the understanding of the Instruction (1minutes)

• What are we going to do? (Pose the question, wait for a few seconds and call a child’s name).
• How many minutes do you get to do an activity?
• Are you going to do it in a group or individually?

Activity 1: Individual Activity.  (20 minutes)

Name of polygon	Number of sides (or edges)	Vertices ( points)
Triangle	3	3
Square
Pentagon
Hexagon
Heptagon
Octagon
Nonagon
Decagon

Monitoring: I will move around the groups and help needy students in carrying out their work smoothly.

Follow up activity (3 minutes)

I will tell children to exchange their note book with their shoulder partner and  cross check their answer with the answers given on the power point.

Activity 2: Group Activity.  (27 minutes)

·         I am going to divide you in groups of 3.

·         Each group will get one laptop.

·         You will do turn wise.

·         First  to desktop

·         Open Microsoft office word.

·         Draw any five polygons and color it.

Monitor: Here I will move from group to group and help children to follow each and every instruction step by step. I will also check each and every group whether they are following it correctly or not.

Extended Activity (7 minutes)

Instructions:

·         Now choose any one of the polygons

·         Show its face, vertex and edge with an arrow.

Monitor: I will move around and help needy ones.

Lesson Closure (2 minutes)

Ok! Before we close our lesson let us reflect on what we have learnt in this period. I will call any of the students and let them tell what they have understood from today’s lesson. After that I will summarize the lesson by saying:

1. A polygon is a flat shape, made of straight lines and lines are closed.
2. There are three characteristics of polygons :

a.       It is flat

b.      It is made of straight lines.

c.       Lines are joined or closed.

Homework [Textbook]

• Do question number 8 and 9 on page 105.

        Thank you students and see you tomorrow.

                                                           THANK YOU