Primary Podcasts Part2

This blogging really lends itself to generating a lot of wonderful ideas. It sure beats having team meetings since I can be doing this in my pjs!

Anyway, I was thinking of the fun we had making our own podcasts. Searching for the right background noise, writing and rehearsing the script and cracking up at our mistakes made it fun rather than "work". Can you imagine the fun kindergarten students would have adding sound to their stories?

This could be another idea.... play sound clips for the students and have them generate a script to go with it. The students could select the setting of the story with the sound clips and build upon a class story. Each component could be written in writing centers and then played in segments (as a true podcast should be) or played all together. Either way it could be a lot of fun.

Primary Podcasts

After reading a few posts on podcasts I do think it could work for the primary grades. Kate suggests using a "Reader's Theater". I think it would be fun to have the students read longer stories but post podcast "segments" (similar to a chapter) daily. The audience would "stayed tuned" daily to see what happens. It also presents itself to making story predictions.

Another approach could be taking the student's writing (or a class story) and present that in the same way (read short segments daily). The students would find this to be very motivating-inspiring quality writing...do I sense an authentic problem brewing??????

Flip Cameras

I am enjoying reading all the clever ideas out there regarding the many uses of the flip camera. Next week my students are reading their first "published" books. This will be a wonderful way for me to experiment with our camera and the children will love to see and hear themselves on T.V. I hope to inspire the students to write better stories this way.

Video Versions

Thanks Kate for inspiring me to use the flip camera in the classroom! I plan to use it in a couple of different ways. First idea (which I thought of last year, but never implemented) is to tape the students during their Reader's Theater. I plan to tape them daily hoping to inspire them to practice more and speak more clearly.

Another idea which would require some editing (here's my video editing lesson plan idea). I plan to video tape the students planting their bean seeds during our upcoming plant unit. Once the seeds start to grow, the growth progress will be recorded. After enough footage, I will edit the recordings and speed it up to show seed to plant in continual growth! Could be very cool!

Kindergarten Blog Ideas

I am having some thoughts about incorporating wikis and blogs in my kindergarten room. I certainly will need adult support, but it may be a doable thing after all. I was thinking of creating a blog for our upcoming plant unit. The students could blog about the planting procedure and document the changes they witness with their own bean seeds.

Another blog thought was given by Sharon and Virginia. My kindergarten students could blog about their fears, questions and concerns about entering the first grade. The first grade students could respond to the blogs and put the kindergarten students at ease. Both of these ideas seem very doable to me.

Wiki WHAT???

I have enjoyed searching around the blogs, trying to get some ideas for kindergarten wikis. So far, I am at a loss for these young learners. I love Sharon and Kate's ideas about creating videos and posting. Perhaps I could have the students share their learned science knowledge (from the units of study such as 5 Senses, Life Cycle of Plants, etc.). I could record this information in a wiki and perhaps make a follow-up video. I really am at a loss here...any thoughts out there for 5 and 6 year olds????

Teacher Blogs

Keara posted an awesome idea about creating a teachers' blog. I am apprehensive about blogging with my kindergarten students, but I can see this being very useful. Teachers could collaborate units, themes, or any other helpful information. I imagine there are many teacher blogs available, I just haven't searched them out since blogging is so new to me. Does anyone have any teachers' blogs (kindergarten or primary) they can recommend?