Technology can be a powerful tool for communication and learning if used properly within the classroom. Recently a teacher told me, “If teachers aren’t using Seesaw, they are really missing out!” Whether is it Seesaw or another Learning Management System, the ability to share learning with families at home, peers and teachers, is a strategy worth trying.
In my new role as Reading Specialist, I am able to see many different ways in which teachers in a 1:1 iPad district use technology in a meaningful way.
One fun way to integrate reading, writing and art is through app smashing. In a first grade classroom that I was recently in, the teacher read Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. The students then talked about verbs. The teacher wrote down the words that students brainstormed on the board. She then took the following picture and uploaded it to Seesaw explaining the lesson to parents at home:
After the brainstorming a lesson on verbs, the students were asked to take a leaf and create a picture of a “Leaf Man” and show him acting out one of the verbs of their choice. Students then wrote a sentence about their “Leaf Man” using the verb of their choice describing their picture.
Then came the fun part. App smashing! Combining two apps at once! The students opened up ChatterPix and and took a photo of their picture. They read their sentence as if they were the “Leaf Man” talking.
It turned out like this:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7Qn0VtlsYbSYVZqR3BUWVcyajQ/view?usp=sharing)
Student says: “I’m throwing a ball.”
The students then downloaded their video to their camera roll, and uploaded it to Seesaw to share with their families and teacher.
What a powerful way to learn about verbs in a meaningful way! Read-aloud, art, writing, reading and technology, all rolled into one. Now THAT is a powerful lesson!
To learn more about app smashing, check out our NOW Classroom books!