ABC 15-16

This week’s extra credit is based on an article my professor found that talks about technology use in a kindergarten class. Here is the link http://fb.me/MaEj0R2b

In this article the authors talks about all of the ways technology is used in a kindergarten classroom. The author mentions not only iPads, but students using skype and a Flip camera. Right away the fact that kindergarten students were using iPads was of interest to me. The article mentions how students use the iPads for games and for educational purposes. I love the idea of students being able to use these, but I also know that the money for them is not always available. I think it is great to integrate this form of technology, but I hope this doesn’t take away from the handwriting and books that we need to learn. I know we are heading toward a digital world, but kids need to learn the basics somehow, and we need to make sure they are getting more of that in grades like kindergarten, and then just supplement with the technology. 

Another thing the article talked about that I really enjoyed was how the students were able to use the Skype program. I have used this before, so I know how exciting using something like this can be. The classroom in the article used it in many ways, one being that they could skype an author and have them read a book to them. I thought this was so incredible. I know students love it when I read to them, but I can’t imagine how excited they would be if someone in a different place was able to read to them. The fact that they are watching someone up on a screen are able to interact with them must be a neat experience. I think what I liked the most about this was they were able to ask the person questions and get immediate answers. The class also used skype to do math problems. I had never thought of this before, and I thought this was a great way to get someone who doesn’t really like math involved. Math on a paper can be overwhelming or boring, but adding this level of technology is something I think all students would enjoy using. 

Overall I thought the article was very interesting, and it was fun to see all the ways this teacher used technology in her classroom. And while I loved seeing the technology, I also loved that the teacher still uses “activities of yesteryear” as the article calls it so her students are able to learn in that way. Using both new technology and old methods is a great way to keep students wanted to learn and involved.

Council, J. (2010, November 15). Flip, Skype, and iPad find everyday usage in Lisa Boeglin’s class at Scott Elementary. Evansville Courier & Press. Retrieved from http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/15/technology-in-the-classroom/