Recent Changes

Teachers Connect
Thursday, July 16.17. Agenda will Friday, July 17.18. Meeting will
Proposed Agenda follows -
Purpose :

Teachers Connect
Group Members we will need to brainstorm ideas for our first meeting. I've created a list of ideas but would appreciate input from all to help plan the final agenda. As we plan we need to think about the purpose of our meeting, objective, community members, and activity items, and the timelines for each activity item. Group member should post suggestions between 1 PM and 6 PM Thursday, July 16. Agenda will be finalized Friday, July 17. Meeting will be held July 19 at 12 Noon.
Proposed Agenda :follows -
Purpose :
To create collaborative agenda to share integrated science and technology ideas and

Teachers Connect
activity item. Group member should post suggestions between 1 PM and 6 PM Thursday, July 16. Agenda will be finalized Friday, July 17. Meeting will be held July 19 at 12 Noon.
Proposed Agenda :
Purpose :
To create collaborative agenda to share integrated science and technology ideas and

Science & Technology Integration Question 1
There are several challenges that teachers face with trying to integrate science and technology in the classroom.

1. Resources: Many teachers are not provided with the tools needed for integration. This is mainly due to budget constraints/funding...a problem in most urban/inner city schools. My first two years of teaching 4th grade science were extremely difficult because resources were scarce and the school did not have a lab. I had to fund projects and with the high prices of technology equipment, I simply could not afford to integrate. The most technology that I used during my first two years was an overhead projector. I had only one computer in my class.

2. Professional Development: Many teachers are not trained on how to use technology to enhance learning. They are not proficient in MS OFFICE, may need SMART Board training, or have limited knowledge on how to find interactive websites such as Study Island, etc. Providing professional development relates to the above mentioned challenge...BUDGET!

3. Time Constraints: Often times science is not a major focus due to the grade level taught. When it is taught, esp. at the primary level, it is taught at the basic level because reading, writing, and math are the key subjects that teachers tend to focus on...after all, science is not tested until the 5th grade. Third grade teachers focus on Math & Reading, while 4th grade teachers concentrate on Math, Reading, and Writing. Science often takes the "back burner." This is unfortunate but it happens! It takes time (often more than the 45 minute planning period) to prepare a fully integrated science and technology lesson. Some teachers are not willing to put in extra time to make this happen. One way to solve the time constraint issue is with master scheduling. First the intructional leader should assess to see what the needs are of the school. The master schedule should reflect addressing those needs.

I could go on, but to me, those are the major challenges with integrating science and technology.

Teachers Connect
Group Members we will need to brainstorm ideas for our first meeting. I've created a list of ideas but would appreciate input from all to help plan the final agenda. As we plan we need to think about the purpose of our meeting, objective, community members, and activity items, and the timelines for each activity item.
Purpose :
To create collaborative agenda to share integrated science and technology ideas and
Community Members : Carla Ferraro, Catherine Dunn, Lyndsay Richardson, Carlos Lewis
Activities :
mission statement (30 minutes)(due July 19)
a. Brainstorm list of key words that should be included in mission statement
b. Each member create vision/mission statement
c. Share statements created
d. Create final vision and mission statement
plans, etc. (30 minutes)(due July 20)
a. Submit format suggestionsat wiki page should look like
b. List suggestions for types of resources/information that should be included on wiki page (for example : lesson plans, tests, etc)

To create collaborative agenda to share integrated science and technology ideas and
correlate agenda with 3rd Grade Science scope and sequence.
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Objective :
To provide feedback about how we can use wiki page as an online forum for sharing ideas. Design of wiki page and information shared should help faciliate science lesson planning for teachers.
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GradeGrade Level : 3rd Grade,Grade
Faciliator : Hewett Richardson
Lyndsay Richardson, Carlos Lewis
Activities :
mission statement (30 minutes)
a. Brainstorm list of key words that should be included in mission statement
b. Each member create vision/mission statement
c. Share statements created
Create final vision and mission statement lesson plans,
3. etc. (30 minutes)
a. Submit format suggestionsat wiki page should look like
b. List suggestions for the types of resourceresources/information that should included on wiki page (for tests, etc)
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Catherine Dunn, 3rd Grade Teacher
Lyndsay Richardson, 3rd Grade Teacher
Purpose of thiethis Wiki :
See video created by Common Craft to help you understand the wiki concept :
http://www.commoncraft.com/video-wikis-plain-english

Hewett Richardson, 3rd Grade Teacher
Carla Ferraro, 3rd Grade Teacher, Science and Math, Grade Level Chairperson
Carlos Lewis, FormerFomer classroom teacher 1st-4th grade, Asst. Principal Intern
Catherine Dunn, 3rd Grade Teacher
Lyndsay Richardson, 3rd Grade Teacher
Purpose of thie Wiki : To provide an online learning community where teachers can share creative ways to integrate science and technology in the classroom. Please feel free to share "hands-on" labs, special projects, fun ideas or lessons plans in which you have integrated technology and science...or maybe you would like to ask those in our wiki group to give suggestions for how to integrate science/technology for an upcoming lesson or lab. To join discussion go to "Connecting Science and Technology" page.
See video created by Common Craft to help you understand the wiki concept :