Sunday, March 14, 2010

Ready-Made Lesson Plans



 WHAT IT IS

     Lesson plans are detailed descriptions of the course of instructions for individual lessons. There are many websites that provide lesson plans that can be utilised in the form of valuable educational software tools. Lesson plans are primarily developed by the teacher to guide class instruction. By doing this, you will agree that planning the material is more difficult than delivering the lessons.  Thanks to ready-made  lesson plans, this job becomes a hundredfold easier....'tsk...tsk'....





USES/RELEVANCE TO CLASSROOMS

Among  the numerous websites that provide ready-made lesson plans as the perfect educational software tool, Lesson Planet and Teachers.net are the most popular. These websites provide lesson plans that are relevant to our curriculum in Trinidad and Tobago. As an example, lets explore a lesson plan about the earth's atmosphere which is available on the  Teachers.net website. Required materials are outlined, detailed descriptions  about the topic are related and a hands-on activity is integrated with real life scenarios. It can be seen that the approach to the lesson is in conformity with the requirements of the Ministry of Education in the sense that it focuses on the holistic approach of curriculum delivery. 
     The instructions are easy to follow and this is a valuable asset more for inexperienced teachers, but experienced teachers have the advantage of saving countless hours of lesson planning. As can be seen, approaches are varied  and attractive, and again this conforms to the diverse and dynamic requirements for delivery of our local curriculum. 
     Most of the ideas  incorporate concrete materials that are easily sourced and cheap, yet appealing to the classroom environment. The required approach to lesson delivery involves the concrete aspect initially and this fact will make presentation easy, cost-effective and efficient.
     There is always a lesson plan available regardless of what intelligence group a student belongs to. Games, Music and Physical Education factors are all incorporated in various lesson plans which are created by experienced and qualified teachers.
     


      

      The following hyperlinks you to websites and videos that provide additional resources for comprehensive lesson planning strategies. Enjoy the ride...this is definitely the pathway to time-saving, ease of practice and quality presentation of lessons.







Youtube - LessonPlans For Teachers. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpSGoBJWyiY

Teachers.net - TEACHERS Education resources, Teacher chat, lesson plans, teacher jobs. Retrieved March 14th. 2010 from
     http://teachers.net/

Lesson Plans (teachers.net). Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://teachers.net/lessons/

Lesson Planet - find Teacher-Approved Lesson Plans quickly and Easily. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.lessonplanet.com/

Lesson plans: the earth's Atmosphere (elementary,Science). Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/1437.html

YouTube - teacher May Lesson Plans. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yN1SYsEucc&feature=related

Teachers.net - Master Teachers Chatboard. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
    http://teachers.net/mentors/master-teachers/

YouTube - Running A Day Care Centre: Lesson Plans for Day Care Teachers. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTdAg3fnhBY&feature=related

Primary School for Teachers. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.primaryschool.com.au/free-teacher-resourcesresults.php?strand=Lesson%20Plan%20Templates&grade=General

YouTube - Painting Tips: Art lesson Plans with Paint Markers. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPywiZeKhk8

YouTube - Phys Ed Planners : Teacher's Guide to better planning. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJ2-aF8EY8k

YouTube - Interactive Lesson Plans and Teaching Resources on Promethean Planet. Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bq0RyunVwaw

The Lesson plans Page - Over 4,000 free Lesson Plans! Retrieved March 14th, 2010 from
     http://www.lessonplanspage.com/



SITES I COMMENTED ON
























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Saturday, February 20, 2010

Welcome to the World of JJ and Friends Phonics...FastForward



DESCRIPTION

JJ and Friends Phonics FastForward is an Educational Software Scheme that was created to enhance the reading abilities of students between  the age group of three to eight years inclusive. Apart from the software instructional DVD's, the package also includes attractive Animal Alphabet Charts, Activity Booklets and Story Books. 

The software kit has proven to be very successful with students in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean as indicated by the many volunteered testimonies posted on the website.




USES/RELEVANCE TO CLASSROOMS
Peer Learning is strongly emphasised with the  JJ and Friends Phonics FastForward  as children who have already benefited from the phonics programme are the presenters of lessons on the DVD's. This is particularly important since most children are seen to relate to and be comfortable with learning in a fun environment with other children of their age. The software is also noteworthy for its focus on the teaching of values such as sharing and teamwork which are adequately handled in the storybook section. The musically inclined individual will also be pleased to know that sounds, alphabet, vowel and word building are comprehensibly presented on two CD's in an environment of song and dance. With most Educational Software available concentrating on the American an European markets, JJ and friends Phonics FastForward shines here with the fact that Trinbagonians and the wider Caribbean are given the opportunity to experience learning that they are culturally familiar with and also appeals to them in a holistic way.



In addition to the Educational Software Capability of JJ and Friends Phonics FastForward, there also exists   a local T.V. series with the same theme. This reinforces the children's awareness of the characters of the series becoming positive role models for them. There is also an an active Fan Club where children can get involved and take their reading awareness to higher levels.

In summary, the producers of JJ and Friends Phonics FastForward are committed to providing educational and entertaining programme schemes, focusing on varying aspects of the child's development and the promotion of Caribbean Culture as a vehicle for learning.


REFERENCES

Welcome to JJ and Friends creative and innovative children’s programme with Caribbean rhythm. Retrieved
      February 20th, 2010, from http://www.jjandfriendstt.com/index.html

Contact us JJ and friends. Retrieved February 20th. 2010, from
      http://www.jjandfriendstt.com/ContactUs.html

JJ and Friends Television Series. Retrieved February 20th, 2010, from
     http://www.jjandfriendstt.com/TVSeries.htm







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Sunday, January 31, 2010

Educational Technology (also called learning technology) is the study and ethical practice of facilitating, learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources. An example of an Educational Technology Software is described and discussed below.


WORD MUNCHERS 2008 SOFTWARE

Students in Grades K-8 practice reading skills as they journey through outer space in this engaging program. The software is ideal for students who struggle with reading or grammar skills and need reinforcement or for those who want extra practice to sharpen their skills.

THE FUN, QUICK-PACED SOFTWARE FOCUSES ON FOUR MAIN CATEGORIES:

Letter Recognition, Phonics, Vocabulary, and Grammar, which cover skills including consonant and vowel sounds, rhyming words, all eight parts of speech, prefixes, and suffixes. All skills are tied to national standards and are correlated by grade level. The software includes a Teacher's Guide with complete game play instructions, a chart showing each skill's correlations to national standards, a research and standards page, and a complete list of all words used in the software by grade level.

GAME PLAY:
The student chooses a category and a level to start the game. The goal is to "munch" all of the correct answers on the game board. The student is challenged with moving the Muncher around the game board in order to select correct answers by munching them while evading the Troggles. The student is rewarded with captivating animation as he or she earns points. Players aim to earn enough points to be included in the Hall of Fame, which lists the top 10 scorers.

OPTIONS AND ADAPTATIONS:
Skills progress in difficulty level from kindergarten to fifth grade. Students can play independently by selecting any category and level. Teacher options allow adaptations for individual needs. All directions are voiced and appear on the screen and can be repeated at any time during game play. Rollover audio for each word tile allows greater adaptability for struggling readers. A tutorial is available for every skill in the program. Teacher controls and assessments are also included.



               I had the pleasure of playing the older vision of Word Muncher called Word Muncher Deluxe just before adding this blog. The software was bought for my little sister some years ago and has proven to be very helpful in teaching concepts of Language Arts. Children gain a sense of independence as they manipulate different aspects of the software to their satisfaction. The colours and animations are attractive to children and will encourage them to continue to participate in the game. It gives children the opportunity of having pre-knowledge of Language Art concepts even before it is covered in the classroom. Topic enrichment is another benefit of this software as students gain greater understanding of work already taught to them.

            Schools that incorporate this software in their teaching and learning strategies have a good chance of improving students’ performance in Language Arts. Educational technology such as this can transform the teaching environment for both teachers and students especially in developing countries.

          Word Munchers Deluxe can be downloaded at the following site:

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