Reflections

One of the most important things I learned while teaching this unit is that I can handle technology better than I thought I could.  I was really pleasantly surprised at how well the project came together. This whole process has been quite an experience.  I have learned how to use many new tools (and am still learning many). I realize that I have to continue to explore and create new lessons/units in order to continue what I have started.  Although, I must admit that I have been frustrated at times throughout this experience, I have enjoyed this process and feel that I have gained a great deal of knowledge.  It has made me a more informed student and teacher of technology.  

 For the most part this unit went smoothly. However, there are always those moments of distress when something goes wrong. We didn’t realize just how long it was going to take to insert the buttons on all of our cards in hyper studio and how long it takes to scan their drawn art work. We also could not anticipate that all the time we spent recording the voices on the cards, would be all mixed up and some even lost.  The children were a bit disappointed about that, but we are still in the process of planning a time to re-record their voices.  As all teachers know flexibility is a major key in being an effective teacher.  I believe that when you use technology you have to be even more flexible for moments when you don’t have any control over a given situation. I spent a lot of time figuring things out by exploring myself.  This to me is something I really am happy about.

 Finally, seeing the excitement and dedication from our students was the best reward we could have been given.  They really learned so much and are so proud and excited about what they have accomplished.  To celebrate Earth Day we are presenting our project to our whole school in an assembly and also inviting our parents to come in and learn about our wonderful unit on problem solving.  Our school web site and our local cable station will allow our community to access to this very special and rewarding unit.  I