Prompts

We chose this lesson because we felt it could be a great opportunity for students to gain a deeper understanding of the lives of Panda Bears. Children in America don't have that many opportunities to see and learn about Pandas because they are not indigenous to our region. In addition, Pandas are an endangered species, and therefore don't have habitats in many zoos near us.
 * 1) Why did you choose this lesson?**

The design of the new lesson plan incorporates many technologies added to the original lesson plan. These include skype, e-pals, youtube video, picture slideshows with sound (animoto), and the live panda cam. The goals of the redesigned lesson are to give students a chance to explore different meanings of the text by using the technology we integrated. We hope students will be able to access internet resources independently after this lesson as well as be able to make connections between the text and the real world.
 * 2)Define new lesson plan design/goals of lesson**

The web 2.0 tools we incorporated into our lesson to potentially improve it include: skype, e-pals, youtube, animoto, and the panda-cam.
 * 3)Which tool or tools did you choose to incorporate into this lesson to potentially improve it?**

We chose to include the Animoto slideshow to show students what panda bears and their habitats look like. Since this is a first grade class, there is most likely students in the class who have never even seen a panda bear before. We chose to include E-pals because it is a great tool to use to connect students with other students around the world. Students in different countries have the ability to tell about things they know and want to know. In this lesson, the students in our first grade class may have never seen a panda bear or have never learned much about them. Therefore, the students in Ann's class in China can talk to our students about pandas. We chose to include Skype because it is also a great way to connect people around the world. Skype can be very effective for students of all ages because the students can put a face to the name of the foreign student they are connecting with. Children in first grade who may have not been exposed to much technology in the past will be amazed by what they are able to see and learn through Skype. We chose to incorporate the PandaCam into our lesson in order to give our students the chance to see a real, live panda bear. We were amazed that we have the ability to watch every move a panda bear makes in its habitat. This is a chance for our students to experience seeing panda bears as if they were at the zoo. It is as if the panda bear is right in front of them. We wanted to connect our lesson with the world that our students are living in today using a youtube video. A new baby panda has just made its debut, and we want our students to be able to see it in action!
 * 4)Why did you choose this tool(s)?**

//National Educational Techology Stanards (NETS)// 1: Facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity: b. Engage students in exploring real world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources. 2: Design and develop digital-age learning experiences and assessments. a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity. GLE-R-1-7.1 obtaining information, using text features (title and illustrations) GLE-R-1-7.2 using explicitly stated information to answer questions GLE-R-1-7.4 generating questions before, during, and after reading RIPTS-8.3- use technological advances in communication, including electronic means of collecting and sharing information, to enrich discourse in the classroom and the school
 * 5)What standards were you using to guide your decision on this? NETS?**

By incorporating technology into this lesson, our students will be given various opportunities to connect with people and places around the world that are more familiar with Panda Bears. It also gives teachers the opportunity to introduce students to modalities of learning they may have never experienced to further answer their questions on their KWL chart, which they will be assessed on. This is a great way for teachers to differentiate instruction and to level the playing field for all students.
 * 6)Do you feel this will improve your teaching? If so, Why?**

Incorporating the different technologies into the lesson plan will help students learning by allowing differentiated instruction such as visual, audio, and multi-sensory learning. Also, by connecting with experts and their peers, students will be able to get a more authentic learning experience. As Richardson (2009) stated, "The web also has the potential to radically change what we assume about teaching and learning, and it presents us with important questions to consider...I think most importantly how can we as learners begin to take advantage of the opportunities these tools present, so we may understand more clearly the pedagogies of using them in the classroom" (p. 5). Overall students can greatly benefit from the various learning environments presented to them from this lesson.
 * 7)Do you feel this will help improve students learning? If so, how and why?**