Technology in MY classroom!

During this summer I had a position at in my hometown daycare called Back to Basics. By the title of the daycare it is easy to assume that technology was not a staple in the everyday instruction. As I began to fall in love with this daycare I started to think of more and more ways that I will change the way my classroom was run. One of those changes will be the integration of technology.
The owner of the Daycare opened an amazing opportunity for me when letting me have my own classroom at the age of 19. She gave me the ability to design the curriculum and classroom in any way I pleased and I found it so intriguing to have a blank slate. When I look back now I realize how little technology was actually in my preschool classroom. We had one computer in the room that I never even turned on during the day because there was no way to have every child involved in that little activity.
As my classes are starting to develop ideas of technology in the classroom I begin to put together many more possibilities for that classroom. Many of the students in my class had computers at home and were extremely familiar with them yet never had them in the actual classroom. One of the videos we recently watched for class made the statement that all students lives are revolving around technology, why aren’t our classes?
One of the biggest things I would want for my classroom when I started back up after graduating would be to get the students more familiar with computers and use them inside the classroom more often. One of the computer teachers from my elementary school was discussing how they were giving away the old computers from the lab because they got bran new ones so even an opportunity like that would get these kids attached to technology in a much easier way.
A point that I’d like to stress is one that my boss planted in my head the first week I was there. The only reason the daycare is called back to basics is because she did not want her daycare to go into technology overload where computers were doing more for the children then the teachers. She loves the idea of having the teachers on the ground interacting with the toddlers and the preschool teachers reading books out loud to the students. I agree with her idea and but I also believe that education can be enhanced by technology without being overtaken.
Something that I was introduced to this year was the world of audio books. I LOVE them! I had the children sitting in the circle on the carpet and a student would sit with the book and show his classmates one page at a time while the story was read to them. This empowers that student to share a story with his classmates and also focus on when the sound comes to turn the page. If that’s the only technology I have had in my classroom so far, I can’t wait to explore other areas.

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I find it fascinating how many little things I never think of until they are brought to my attention and I realize that they could create a great deal of change and transitions in my life. I always knew that technology was advancing and that it was always progressing but the idea that it would affect my life as a teacher never really crossed my mind.
I always assumed that teaching was one of those occupations that could never be outsourced. The possibility to sending our children to China to be taught was impossible, so I just assume picking education as a major was the best job security possible. But when you place technology into the picture the possibilities pertaining to the responsibilities of teachers could be lightened drastically.
I remember when I was in elementary school and we went to computer class every week. I always just related these machines to a school activity until my family actually got one at home. Then I was concerned more in class about what these machines could actually do for me. When the article “Do something Disruptive” Stated that computers are less affective until there is one they can relate to at home I completely agreed because that was my life experience.
As I transitioned through highschool I realized how much my life was actually revolving around technology. When the power went out on a stormy night it was like someone had ended the world for every teenager in my town. When the video of Pay attention presented the idea “Since your students already know how to use the technology, why aren’t you using it to teach?” I actually had the lightbulb turn on.
My teachers in highschool never caught on to the craze of technology. After watching this video it brought to life so many ideas I had never realized. So many students from highschool fought the dozing nods by distracting themselves with something to do while normal instruction was going on in the classroom. As a teacher how can they not realize that their students will never comprehend this material if something to test them on it. Then again these teachers could have the same ignorance to technology as I do. I never really connected some of the ideas that the Pay attention video was portraying.
These videos and articles brought so much more desire for me to learn about technology because I realize that if I don’t, the world of education will move on without me. I will bore my students with the hope that traditional learning styles will spark their attention when so much technological stimulation is happening outside of the classroom. I am not going to fall behind.

First Blog!

  At this point in time I have no idea what I am actually doing with this blog. I am hoping, at least, that this shows up somewhere on the page that I have created. That is all for now.    Jennie