Ms. Sheena Ryant has been teaching 4th grade at North Springs since 2005. She had 5 years of experience in an ITEC classroom, prior to the 1:1 roll out this year. She became Nationally Board Certified in 2010 and has been a part of the STEMS program for 2 years. She believes that if technology is used effectively, it can be vital learning tool in any classroom.
From one of her students:
"Some types of technology we been working on with technology are Tagxedos, Windows Movie Maker, Flip cameras, and Chromebooks. Tagxedos is a website where you can type different words and turn it into a shape with any kind of color and font. We made a Tagxedo with our 2013 goals. With Windows Movie Maker you can make movies with sound and pictures. You can add different effects for the pictures and make the pictures have color. We made a Windows Movie about an explorer and the French and Indian War. Flip camera is a small camera where you can take pictures and videos. We used the Flip cameras to make a 13 Colonies Regional video and a French and Indian War video. A Chromebook is a laptop with Google Chrome. We use the Chromebooks almost every day. We use it for typing assignments. Our whole class works with all kinds of technology everyday and it’s fun!"
The School ITS, Nikki Allman also adds the years Ms. Ryant spent in an ITEC classroom has prepared her for the 1TWO1 roll out. She is not afraid to embrace the new technology options out there. Her students are challenged to create unique presentations for the content they learn in Language Arts/Social Studies. This allows students to have an opportunity to show what they know, instead of relying on just assessments. Within the first month of getting the Chromebooks this year, her students were creating documents, sharing, and organizing with the peers and teachers. She has jumped right into other Google Apps for Education. Ms. Ryant's first project using the Chromebooks this year was with Google Drawing. She never worked with the program, but envisioned her students using the Chromebook to publish their imaginary country and her students successfully created detailed countries. Chromebooks are not the only piece of technology utilized in the classroom. Her students have created various types of movies, from Paper Slide movies to documentaries using Windows Movie Maker Live. Her students continue to benefit from engaging, collaborative, and creative activities. 
Ms. Ryant has done a great job of embracing the uses of technology in the classroom. Her students are definitely engaged in the work that Ms. Ryant has designed for them using technology. Great job!
ReplyDeleteDr. "H."