Sunday, February 10, 2013

Blog post # 4

This week we were asked to read and/or listen to podcasts. The first podcast I listened to was the Flat Stanley Podcast. I remember reading the book Flat Stanley by Jim Brown as a kid. It's a great book to inspire adventures for kids. Through the use of Flat Stanley these kids are learning while still having fun. This activity will likely be something they will always remember. When you are listening to them, you feel like they are right in front of you telling you all about their adventures. My favorite was, Jasmine, who chose London, England as her adventure. As she was describing Big Ben and Buckingham Palace, you can almost imagine those places in your mind. I also liked the girl who chose Alabama as her adventure. It was cute how she said "Roll Tide!" You can tell the students really like their teacher. She is one who is there for the most important reason, her students.

The next podcast I listened to was 1st Graders Create Their Own Read-Along Audiobook. I think this is a unique idea. The students were taken out of class in small groups to be recorded. Each chapter ending was followed by a special sound. This helped students who had lost their place. I was amazed how interested the students were with tracks, dead air, sound clips, moving clips etc. The students showed real emotion and really seemed to be into creating the podcast.

Next, I watched/listened to The benefits of podcasting in the classroom. I agree with the opinions stated in this video about podcasting. When a student is sick and unable to attend school, a podcast is an excellent way to for them to keep up with the assignments and/or lectures. As the video stated, students today have never lived in a world without personal computers or the use of technology. Podcasts allow students to learn in a way they are use to. Creating and uploading podcasts is an easy process. This makes it an easy and effective tool for everyone. Podcasts are also a way to get parents involved in what their children are doing at school. Students are prompted to use creativity and innovation through the use of podcasts.

For my podcast, I see that the use of inflection, fluency, and pitch are very important when recording.Your podcast will not be inviting if you use a monotone voice. Everyone must be prepared before recording or the podcast will just be chaos.

2 comments:

  1. Laura, I really enjoyed reading your post. I didn't listen to the benefits of podcasting in the classroom podcast, but reading your podcast helped me realize some positives to podcasting in the classroom. Parents being involved with what the children are doing, if a child misses a class, and that the students are used to the technology, therefore being comfortable with it, are all really good reasons.

    I also agree that if you are monotone in a podcast people will probably not want to watch or pay attention, just like if you have a monotone teacher. Its hard to focus if the person is monotone and never adds any excitement to their lectures.

    GREAT JOB!

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