Technology as a Tool to Differentiate Instruction

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Technology as aTool toDifferentiate Instruction
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Content Objective Participants will become
familiar with strategies and ideas to use
technology to meet the academic needs of all
students with a specific focus on the gifted and
talented.
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• Language Objective
• Participants will
• Discuss the benefits and challenges of technology
• Categorize and share websites in a del.icio.us
  account with gifted cluster teachers to meet the
  academic needs of gifted and talented.

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What is Technology?

• Computers
• Software
• Internet
• Digital cameras and camcorders
• Robotics
• Scanners and Document Cameras

• SmartBoards
• Audio-visual (movies, podcasts, etc.)
• Voice recorders iPod with recorder
• AlphaSmart word processor
• Other . . . .

What do we have in our toolbox?
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Why Technology?

• More than ever, individuals value the importance
  of technology changes in education.
• Knowledge economy
• nearly 90 percent of the upcoming workforce will
  utilize computers within their working
  environments
• Experiences outside school are already
  differentiated through technology they are
  fully engaged in learning.

How Does Avondale Measure Up?
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Think - Pair - Share
Benefits
Challenges
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Benefits

• Streamline student learning
• Motivating/engaging
• More personalized flexible
• information available on almost any interest they
  have

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Challenges

• Difficult for teachers to adjust (paradigm shift)
• Difficult to keep up (fear of unknown)

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Knocking Down the Barriers

• Start Small
• Digital Natives (Prensky) can be a resource
• Model being a learner
• Learn from them
• Shows learning new things is not threatening

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Engage Me or Enrage Me!
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Technology Meeting their needs

• Readiness
• Interests
• Learning Profile

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Del.icio.us

• Setting up a resource network
• http//del.icio.us/foxroxaz
• Instructions (Link to how to here)

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How do I start?

• Daily/Weekly Starters
• Interactive Activities
• Internet Scavenger Hunts
• Technology enhanced projects
• Webquests
• To name a few

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What can I do daily or weekly?

• What's the weather forecast?
• This day in history? (Current events)
• Who's birthday is it?
• What happened in history?
• How is the stock doing?
• Brain Teasers
• Word of the Day
• Check out Daily on my delicious for lots of
  ideas.

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How can I connect to each subject area?

• Connect to reading, writing, math, science,
  social studies, art, music, health and physical
  education.
• Check out the district resources
• my del.icio.us of the Web folder for lots of
  ideas.

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What project would help me reach outside my
classroom?

• Share through surface mail, email, web, blogs,
  wikis, and more.
• Teacher Tap Online Collaborative Projects.
  Brainstorm projects that involve connecting with
  another classroom.
• Check out teacher tap the district resources
• my del.icio.us of the Web folder for lots of
  ideas.

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How can I promote the love of learning through
technology?

• Learn, just for fun
• Ask questions, seek answers, allow flexibility
• Use the teachable momentwithin reason
• Go to 42eXplore.
• Go to Teacher Tap Virtual Field Trips and
  Museums
• Consider ways to create the "teachable moment" in
  your classroom to go beyond the standards.

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How can technology help students solve problems?

• Design activities that include
• Introduction/Topic/Scenario
• Task or Activity
• Process or Procedures
• Web Resources
• Product/Outcome/Conclusion
• Go to Teacher Tap WebQuests or the district site
• Design a simple WebQuest in Microsoft Word.

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How can my students share their projects with
others?

• Artwork
• Poems and Stories
• Science Projects
• Oral Histories
• Timelines
• Biographies
• Go to Literature Ladders and Teacher Tap or the
  district site. Identify a project you might join.

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Looking back

• How does this help me with gifted learners?
• Use technology for anchor activities
• Individualized practice of skills (Independent
  study)
• Learning centers
• Creative projects

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Quadrants

• Begin to think about ways to give students
  choices
• Tier activities by readiness, interest, learning
  profile
• Consider stations/centers
• Consider learning profile testing

Quadrant 1 GP flashcards Tech Animal Legs IP
Create and illustrate a 1 digit x 1 digit
multiplication problem.
Quadrant 2 GP Multiplying with cubes. (graph
paper) Tech Table Mountain IP Write the
equation and illustrate a 2 digit x 1 digit
multiplication problem.
Quadrant 4 GP 3 digit by 2 digit Tech Mad math
or Amble web IP Project- to demonstrate a
multiplication equation at least 2 digits by 2
digits (be creative)
Quadrant 3 GP 2 digit by 2 digit activity
sheet Tech Mad math or Amble web IP Project
create your own IP Challenge yourself
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Lets revisit

• Daily teaching
• Projects
• Anchor Activities
• Extension Activities

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Evaluation Homework

• Try

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Backdrops - These are full sized backdrops, just
scale them up! - Can be Copy-Pasted out of
Templates for use anywhere!
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Technology the Learning Profile
Projects/ Activities