GAME Plane Reflection Week 8

Looking back at my GAME plan and the goals that I set for myself, I am very satisfied with the final outcome. My 2 goals were to integrate creative lesson plans using technology and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness. I have accomplished these goals with confidence and am very happy with the outcomes. Not only did I incorporate creative lessons using technology, but I also got to use my Unit Plan lessons that I created in Week 7 in my classroom to see if they worked.

Not only did I accomplish my GAME plan goals, but I learned so many more activities and ways to incorporate technology into the classroom. Technology is really a great tool when dealing with differentiated instruction. It gives so many different options and tools to students that have different learning abilities. One tool that I find to fit the needs of most students is Voice Thread. The students have options on how they do it. They can either record their information or they can type it. Depending on what kind of learner they are, they can choose which one best fits their need.

After taking this course, and becoming more familiar with the different technology programs and tools that are out there, I will make it a point to incorporate technology into every subject area. My students love learning different things on the computer. According to them they don't think the computer is actually learning. They think its play time. So as long as they are learning while "playing" then I am doing my job. Of course I will always monitor the students as they "learn and play". This course has really got me excited for more technology interaction.

Using the GAME plan with Students

After going through the GAME plan process of setting Goals, taking Action, Monitoring progress toward achieving goals and Evaluating whether the goals were achieved and Extend your learning to new situations, (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009) I have learned a lot. I really felt that the GAME plan kept me on track of meeting my goals. I could always look back at the goals I set and alter them depending on what I felt needed to be done. I didn't want to let myself down by not achieving my goal, so continually looking back at my goals was motivation to successfully achieve them.

The GAME plan process would be very beneficial with students. If they can set there goals early and understand what it takes to meet their goals, they will be more likely to take action on how they are going to go about achieving their personal goals. Does anyone have any good ideas for lower elementary in creating their GAME plan for the NET standards?

Cennamo, K., Ross, J., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Revising my GAME Plan

At this point I don't feel as though my GAME plan needs to be revised. I feel very strongly about my progress and success of my GAME plan and integrating technology into my lessons. I really like how the book Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach has broken down the chapters into content area specifics and how to incorporate technology into each separate content area. Since I teach 2nd grade, it was very helpful to me to see how it is used in a variety of the content areas since I teach all of them. I really enjoyed learning different ways to incorporate technology into the social studies curriculum, because sometimes, I find it harder to get good solid lessons for social studies. This has given me some really good ideas.

My two NETS-T standards that I chose were:

• Teachers promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.
• Teachers design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

I really feel like with all the technology integration that I am incorporating into my lessons the standard of promoting, supporting, and modeling creativity and innovative thinking is really coming to a head. The students are getting so excited about the use of new technology. I don't feel as though I am quite ready to add new goals, but I will extend my previous goals by adding in another form of technology. I would like to try and incorporate digital cameras within in my classroom. I guess this could be considered a new goal or an addition onto my previous goals. I would need to find some good lesson plans that involved digital cameras. That can be on my next GAME plan.

All in all I am really please with myself on how I approached my GAME plan and how I have achieved my goals. I was definitely a self-directed learner. "You are self-directed anytime you learn a new skill or pursue more information about an intriguing topic, sparked by something you read or heard." (Cennamo, Ross, Ertmer (2009)

Cennamo, K., Ross, J., & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Evaluating my GAME plan progress

Well, I can finally say that I think my GAME plan is almost mastered. I have my students using the slate board daily. They are using it to solve math problems, edit sentences with grammar and correct end punctuation, drawing life cycles in the correct sequence, and creating their own t-charts of living and non-living things. It is amazing what technology does to the atmosphere of the classroom. When the students are using the slate board, they know that their are rules and that if they break any of the rules and aren't working as a group or a team, they lose their privilege to participate using the smart slate. Technology engages the students on content area that with paper and pencil was boring to them.

I have not quite mastered using the mimio bar and finding lessons that go a long with it. One reason is because I am still waiting for one to come available to keep in my classroom, and two I haven't had the time to learn how to use the smart slate as well as the mimio bar. Our school uses the program microsoft OneNote to communicate and share different lessons and activities, so slowly people are adding their own personal templates that they created or found to OneNote for us to use with the Mimio bar. I am hoping that soon I will get the chance to integrate the Mimio bar into my lessons and use it with my students for interactive activities. "As a self-directed lifelong learner, you'll be able to respond to the rapid and continuous technological changes that inevitably will occur during your professional career, keep your skills up-to-date, and better meet the needs of your students today and in the future."

In order to master my GAME plan I am going to have to adjust my goal of finding lessons for the Mimio bar and strictly stick with lessons that go along with the smart slate, since that is the tool I have available right now. Availability is key with technology in our school. Our school is so large that it takes awhile to be "my turn" with using the different technology tools.