DFI: Computational Thinking

 

I think that supporting learners from diverse backgrounds is so important in order to empower students with their learning. I have several students in my classroom that use a Chromebook supplied by the school as their family is unable to afford one. If we didn't supply these Chromebooks then they would be at huge disadvantage.

I've also had feedback from my students about what they enjoy doing on their Chromebooks in the classroom and what they don't enjoy. I now have the challenge to use certain programmes that they like using in order to try and hook reluctant learners!

Computational thinking:
I have now realised that my students aren't as digitally fluent as I thought. They may be quite competent in using one aspect of google but not in others. Students have recently made goals in order to become more fluent in other areas.

After DFI I feel so much more confident in my abilities to be able to show students how to use various google aspects and how to move to the next level of learning.

It was really interesting having time to explore the Digital Curriculum. I need to look deeper into this and will also share it with other teachers at school.

DFI: Devices

 

Listening to Dorothy this morning helped me to realise that regularly practicing learning via a google meet with students during class time is something that I hadn't thought to do. It's a great way to identify students that have barriers and to help them so that all students are confident and ready to learn digitally from home if need be.

Rewindable learning is so valuable for children that are absent as they can do their learning from home. This is something that I am yet to implement. At the moment students that I know will be absent I send paper based work home for them to complete. I love the idea of children making recordings of the teacher explaining how to do something and then sharing that with others.

I have not spent much time on a Chromebook and when students have issues I try and wing it to find remedies. Spending a decent amount of time using one today was great. I now feel confident in finding my way round and I'm sure I learnt some tips and tricks that most of my students don't already know! 

Getting the chance to practice with Screen Castify was fun! I created a slideshow along with videos explaining the learning for each slide during our 'create' time today. I'll be using this in the classroom tomorrow and I'm sure many kids will benefit from the video support.

DFI: Enabling Access Sites

 

The discussion around connectivity this morning was inspiring in that we are based in a relatively small school on the West Coast but we can readily connect with any Manaiakalani school in New Zealand. We share the same learning pedagogy (learn, create, share) and learning platforms which creates a real sense of community.

This learning community is helpful especially where schools use visible learning. It has helped me in my digital teaching journey as I can access many suitable learning sites and get ideas on what is visually appealing and easy to use in our classroom learning site. 

Having a decent amount of time to look at other learning sites has helped me realise how important it is to use a site that is both visually appealing and easy to find your way around. Sharing our sites with our bubble group also helped me to really think about what we already use and how it can be improved.

I learnt that there is a student dashboard which was something that I was unaware of! I'll have a better look at this with students tomorrow and see if it would be beneficial to regularly use in the classroom.