21st Century Teaching and Learning

STEAM Lesson

My favorite lesson...the STEAM Lesson! This lesson was SO much fun, and my students loved being able to show their creativity. In my steam lesson, we read the story, The Lorax by Dr. Seuss, and built our own truffula trees! We began with a prediction chart, and all the kids were able to predict how many "blocks tall" their truffula tree would be. 

Next, my students predicted even further what their truffula tree would look like by drawing a picture. All the creativity and imagination that shined through their drawings was amazingly unique! I even kept a few ;)

Finally, we built our truffula trees out of math blocks and put fuzz balls at the top! I was amazed at how tall some of the kids got their truffula tree to stand. They were very determined! For assessment, I used a digital storytelling app that recorded the kids' voices telling the story of how they built their truffula tree and why we should take care of trees/how trees help the environment. It was a wonderful learning experience for them, and for me. Dr. Seuss is one of my favorite authors, so it was refreshing to reread a story from my childhood, and introduce it to a new generation in a way that they understood the central theme of the story while having fun and using their math/engineering skills!

Math Lesson

For my math lesson this semester, I focused on the relationship between numbers and cardinality (the ability to recognize that the number 5 can be represented by 5 objects {blocks, turkeys, etc.}) Before I began my lesson, I read the book "10 Fat Turkeys" and played the video "5 Little Turkeys." Reading the book and showing the video allowed my students to start associating the numbers we count with to actual objects, or in this case, turkeys. 




Next, we moved to stations. I set out several turkeys with a number on the belly. The students had to read the number and count out how many "feathers" they had to put on their turkey. I used clothespins for feathers to incorporate some physical movement, and also to make this station activity seem like a fun game! 

After that, I brought out my sensory bin full of fuzz balls. I used water bottles that had feathers and eyes glued to them as our "turkeys." Each student got a turkey. I verbally told the students how many fuzzballs to "feed" our turkey, and they had to individually count each one to put in the water bottle. The kids loved this activity because they got to feel the fuzzballs and have their own "turkey to feed." Finally, for my assessment activity, I had the students glue feathers onto a construction paper turkey and write the amount of feathers they glued. It was amazing how three little activities really livened up their motivation to learn! All I had to do was make it fun ;)

Integrating the ARTS in the Early Childhood Classroom

Here is a link to my project on integrating the ARTS in the Early Childhood Classroom! I loved this project--it allowed me to research such useful and interesting information about different learning types and answered some real questions that I had about my future classroom and all the different types of learners that I would encounter! Everyone is different, so that means everyone learns differently; but, that's what makes us beautiful!

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1OolalA3_IuUckrepmbbpRJnajUOFSU0H-J8v4nnJPlo/edit

"Master Appster"

Here in the 21st century, we all know what apps are. We use them every day! For this project, I researched an educational app called Seesaw. I found tons of great information! It is only one example of hundreds of apps that are wonderful to use in early childhood education. 

Seesaw is… 

Seesaw is an app that stores and displays student and teacher portfolios. Teachers can post summaries of their lessons, introductions to new lessons, and much more. There are tons of interactive games that are included on the seesaw app, like matching games, sight word strategies, and practice with shapes and colors. Teachers can even create their own games to go along with their classroom lessons! Students are also allowed to post things on seesaw, and they can have their own learning journal to show off all their hard work. Seesaw impacts student learning by creating a fun, energetic learning environment while incorporating and introducing technology in the classroom. Seesaw for students is like a mini blog and online classroom all in one!  

Seesaw allows students to be aware of their digital footprint online! https://www.iste.org/explore/articleDetail?articleid=809 

Collaboration: Seesaw provides a way for teachers to capture students' growth and learning over time in the classroom, and provides a way to share this with families. https://iteach.kennesaw.edu/blog/posts/old_school_meets_new_school.php 

Creativity: Seesaw appeals to different learning styles! There is a place for the visual learner, the auditory learner, and even the hands on learner! Here is a link to seesaw in action: https://web.seesaw.me/classrooms/ 

Critical Thinking: Seesaw allows students to connect real life situations to learning experiences! Students can update their portfolios by completing assignments online! http://schoolsubscriptions.com.au/the-importance-of-connecting-classrooms-to-the-real-world/ 

Communication: Seesaw enhances student engagement and facilitates communication by using an online platform! Students can share, comment, and like posts on seesaw. Teachers can monitor student activity. Seesaw gives students a chance to communicate with their teacher and fellow students online. https://help.seesaw.me/hc/en-us/articles/207576603-How-do-I-use-Seesaw-Blogs- 

This link is a tutorial on the basics of how to use Seesaw. I hope this post provided you with a great tool for your classroom! I know I will definitely be incorporating Seesaw into mine! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l231B9sk_nI 

Welcome!

Why I Chose to Become a Teacher

Welcome to my blog! My name is Allie Cantrell. I am currently a student at Jacksonville State University majoring in Early Childhood/Elementary Education. This blog will serve as a platform to showcase my journey in the elementary education field! I am so excited to begin my career as a teacher, and I can't wait to start making a difference in little learners' lives! Here is a little bit about why I chose to become a teacher:

Growing up, I was always around my mother's classroom. She is a special education teacher for elementary grades kindergarten through sixth grade. I always said that I would never become a teacher, even though everyone that I knew said I should. I went through my whole high school career planning to go to college to be a writer. I would still love to write a book one day, but what changed the course of my life was when I was asked to be a tutor my senior year. I dreaded being a tutor, because I was so scared that I wouldn't be able to help my student understand, or that they would suffer bad grades because they weren't getting any help from me.  This fear now fuels me as a future educator, because I never want to prevent a child from learning, even if I have to step out of my comfort zone to help them understand better. I spent the first few weeks teaching and mentoring, and I still remember the moment that my student brought back their first "A" on a test. They hadn't made anything above a "C" all year. I was as excited for them as if it were me that made the grade. Then, I knew that I had a passion for teaching and for helping children learn and grow. I spent the rest of senior year going back into my mother's classroom and observing. Although some of my doubts resurfaced, I could never shake the feeling that this was where God was leading me to be. I chose to become a teacher because I loved the feeling of helping someone learn. I couldn't imagine a career other than teaching that would challenge me as much as teaching will, but that will also fulfill me as much, if not more. I want to make a difference in a child's life, because I know how important it is for our world and our future to inspire and create lifelong learners. I want to invoke the desire to learn in my students, and help them keep that desire for as long as they can, no matter what the world throws at them. 

Thank you for keeping up with me and my posts! I am so ready for this adventure as a teacher-in-progress!