Description: Students were put into groups and given bags on M&M's. They were given the task of finding how many M&M's there were of each of the five colors of the candy in the bag. The teacher had them record the information and taught them how to use a spread sheet to find averages of the number of a certain color per bag of M&M's. He taught them how to use the sum and average functions in Excel. He also taught them how to use the chart wizard to create a bar graph of the information that they entered into the spreadsheet. They then printed the graphs that they created. The instructor teaches the students the importance of representing the data accurately and drawing accurate conclusions about the data from the graphical representation of the data. The students learn that the data collected is more accurate when more samples of data are analyzed. A guest comes into the classroom to teach the students to question the conclusions that they make to make sure that their conclusions are plausible and accurate.
How I would modify this lessons to adapt it to my classroom: Since I would use this in my math classroom I would not need to do much editing to make this work for a certain grade level. I would like to use a presentation similar to this in teaching students about percents and how to figure them using a cross multiplication system. The students would do the same thing that the instructor in the video had his students do, but I would add on a percent section to the project in which the students would have to figure out what percent of the total amount of M&M's were of a certain color. The students would then use Excel to make a pie graph with all the colors represented with the respective percents according to the color of the M&M. I would have the groups of students find the average percent for each color of M&M and make a class pie graph that represented the average for the class.
I really liked the way that the instructor put the project together and I would really like to do something similar to this in my classroom one day and make it a little more complicated for a higher grade level.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Netiquette
My Netiquette Rules for my students are located at:
http://docs.google.com/View?id=df6gtvhd_2fqxkbbhk
Happy Reading!
http://docs.google.com/View?id=df6gtvhd_2fqxkbbhk
Happy Reading!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
The Jigsaw Method of Classroom Instruction
The jigsaw method is a means of instruction that promotes cooperative learning in small groups. Cooperative meaning that each student plays a vital role in the learning process and that all students are needed for everyone to get a good grade.
The jigsaw method can be used in almost every classroom situation. If a classroom had only five computers, a way that a teacher could use the jigsaw method is to have one member from each of the groups working at the computer at a time. Essentially, the group of students at the computers would comprise the "expert" group for whatever topic the group was given. These students at the computers could be given a list of websites from which they would have to pull facts about the given topic. Then this "expert" group would meet together and discuss their findings just like they would normally do.
An advantage to this method is that the part of the way it works makes every student needed. An example was given in the reading where one student didn't like another student and therefore tuned out him/her. This doesn't work with the jigsaw method because every student has a different piece of the metaphorical puzzle and each piece is equally important. It would be impossible for a student to do well on the test given if he/she didn't have all of the pieces of the puzzle.
A disadvantage to the jigsaw method is that the group may become dominated by one student who is competitive and wants to monopolize conversation. The method does not really permit this since each student is a valuable resource for the rest of the group on their given subject. Another disadvantage could be students who refuse to work as a group because they don't like another person that is in their group. This can be solved with a quick trip to an administrator's office.
The jigsaw method can be used in almost every classroom situation. If a classroom had only five computers, a way that a teacher could use the jigsaw method is to have one member from each of the groups working at the computer at a time. Essentially, the group of students at the computers would comprise the "expert" group for whatever topic the group was given. These students at the computers could be given a list of websites from which they would have to pull facts about the given topic. Then this "expert" group would meet together and discuss their findings just like they would normally do.
An advantage to this method is that the part of the way it works makes every student needed. An example was given in the reading where one student didn't like another student and therefore tuned out him/her. This doesn't work with the jigsaw method because every student has a different piece of the metaphorical puzzle and each piece is equally important. It would be impossible for a student to do well on the test given if he/she didn't have all of the pieces of the puzzle.
A disadvantage to the jigsaw method is that the group may become dominated by one student who is competitive and wants to monopolize conversation. The method does not really permit this since each student is a valuable resource for the rest of the group on their given subject. Another disadvantage could be students who refuse to work as a group because they don't like another person that is in their group. This can be solved with a quick trip to an administrator's office.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Google Apps for Educators
Three Google Apps that I would use in my classroom are the Book Search, the Custom Search Engine, and Knol. The book search is a Google app that allows a student to search a book for a quote without having to spend a lot of time flipping through pages unsuccessfully. The custom search is an app for teachers that allows them to narrow the search parameters for their students so that they don't have to go through a lot of web pages of useless information in order to find one web page with useful information. Knol is an app that allows students to publish work that they have completed to give the student a real, world-wide audience.
These three apps are definitely useful in a classroom setting. I would have my students use these apps in research mainly. I would assign a research essay and have my students find information using the custom search engine and pull supporting quotes from books and novels. Once finished with the research essay, students could each post their essays on the knol to be read and peer reviewed by other students. This is also a place where Google Docs could be used. The essays could be processed in Google Docs with a classmate assigned to peer review and edit the essay. Peer review is a classroom tool that is very helpful to students writing and incorporating Google Docs is an excellent way to do this.
These three apps are definitely useful in a classroom setting. I would have my students use these apps in research mainly. I would assign a research essay and have my students find information using the custom search engine and pull supporting quotes from books and novels. Once finished with the research essay, students could each post their essays on the knol to be read and peer reviewed by other students. This is also a place where Google Docs could be used. The essays could be processed in Google Docs with a classmate assigned to peer review and edit the essay. Peer review is a classroom tool that is very helpful to students writing and incorporating Google Docs is an excellent way to do this.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Letter to Parents
Dear Parents:
This letter is going out to all parents of students in the district. It is specifically geared towards parents of children who have special needs to make the parents more aware of the laws that apply in this situation. There are three pieces of legislation that are important to the education of children with special needs: the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Assistive Technology Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a piece of legislation that was passes in 1990. The main focus of this act is to prevent employers discriminating against people who have disabilities but are very capable in whatever they are trained in. This act also states that the employer must provide assistive equipment that is needed to a person with a disability as long as this does not prove to be a hardship on the business. You may be wondering how this applies to students in a classroom. Well, this act is the reason that we have regulations on wheelchair accessibility and school districts providing assistive programs to children with disabilities. For more information please refer to the blog of my colleague, Will Wardwell, or my previous post on the ADA.
The Assistive Technology Act (ATA) is an act that states that each state is entitled to a grant that will fund an Assistive Technology Act Project or Program. Aptly put in by my fellow teacher Heather Davis, “The Projects in each state do numerous things for thousands of people, including providing services to people who have disabilities throughout their entire lives. With no age limit on the act, the smallest kindergarten child to the oldest senior citizen can both receive the help they need.” This act is here to provide students with special needs with the equipment that they need in order to be successful. For further inquiry, please refer to the blogs of: Janelle Ottersberg , Tanya Rush, and Jocelyn Stearns.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act provides regulations for the education of students with special needs. The main purpose of this law is best stated in the words of fellow teacher Crystal Fronk. She states, “This is a law by the federal government of the United States that says that all children within a state, that are eligible with certain disabilities must have a free and appropriate education available to them.” This law has been passed so that children with special needs will be given the best education possible with the tax payers’ money, the same opportunity that all children in America have. Please see the blogs of my fellow teachers for more information about the IDEA: Crystal Fronk, Jessica Burns, and Jia Acree.
As a teacher, I do my best to apply these laws in my classroom. I always want to make sure that children with special needs are treated respectfully by me, my fellow teachers, and all the students. I always make sure that these students have the equipment and resources that they need and I always fight to make sure that they are given the best education possible. These students with special needs deserve a great education just as every other child in the United States does. It is my goal to make this happen.
Thank you ,
Rylee McClellan
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Americans With Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990’s main purpose is to prevent discrimination of a person based on disability. The Act states that if a person with a disability is just as qualified or more qualified than a person without a disability, the person with the disability shall be given an opportunity equal to that of the person without a disability. Since the term “disability” can be ambiguous, the Act defines what it means to have a disability and goes on to outline a rule for employers and a list of actions that would be considered discriminatory to a person with a disability.
The ADA defines the term “disability” as: “(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of such individual; (B) a record of such an impairment; or(C) being regarded as having such an impairment” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act further goes on to define the phrase “major life activities” as: “caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, working, functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act also states that activities considered to be “major life activities” are not limited to this list. There may be other activities that are major life activities that are not listed in the Act.
The general rule that was passed with this act states: “No covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act also goes on to define the phrase “discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability” in a series of points. These points are as follows: 1) an employer cannot put a person with disabilities into a group that would have a negative effect on the opportunity or employment status of that person because of a disability, 2) an employer cannot participate in a contract or agreement with a labor union or subchapter of that sort that would place the person with a disability in a position of discrimination that is prohibited by the subchapter , 3) an employer cannot employ methods of administration that would promote discrimination on the basis of disability, 4) employers cannot discriminate on the basis of a known relationship between a person and a person with a disability, 5) employers will make reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities, 6) employers cannot use standardized employment tests to prevent people with disabilities from qualifying for employment, 7) an employer must use tests that will accurately show the skills of a person with disabilities. (The Americans With Disabilities Act)
Works Cited
The Americans with Disabilities Act, Http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/ada.html § I, V et seq. (1990).
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990’s main purpose is to prevent discrimination of a person based on disability. The Act states that if a person with a disability is just as qualified or more qualified than a person without a disability, the person with the disability shall be given an opportunity equal to that of the person without a disability. Since the term “disability” can be ambiguous, the Act defines what it means to have a disability and goes on to outline a rule for employers and a list of actions that would be considered discriminatory to a person with a disability.
The ADA defines the term “disability” as: “(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities of such individual; (B) a record of such an impairment; or(C) being regarded as having such an impairment” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act further goes on to define the phrase “major life activities” as: “caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating, sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, working, functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act also states that activities considered to be “major life activities” are not limited to this list. There may be other activities that are major life activities that are not listed in the Act.
The general rule that was passed with this act states: “No covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment” (The Americans with Disabilities Act). The Act also goes on to define the phrase “discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability” in a series of points. These points are as follows: 1) an employer cannot put a person with disabilities into a group that would have a negative effect on the opportunity or employment status of that person because of a disability, 2) an employer cannot participate in a contract or agreement with a labor union or subchapter of that sort that would place the person with a disability in a position of discrimination that is prohibited by the subchapter , 3) an employer cannot employ methods of administration that would promote discrimination on the basis of disability, 4) employers cannot discriminate on the basis of a known relationship between a person and a person with a disability, 5) employers will make reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities, 6) employers cannot use standardized employment tests to prevent people with disabilities from qualifying for employment, 7) an employer must use tests that will accurately show the skills of a person with disabilities. (The Americans With Disabilities Act)
Works Cited
The Americans with Disabilities Act, Http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/ada.html § I, V et seq. (1990).
Saturday, June 13, 2009
About Me
I am Rylee Ann McClellan. I was born on October 15, 1989. I am currently majoring in Music Education and Secondary Mathematics Education. I play the violin and the viola, the viola being my major instrument and favorite of the two. I work at Hartz Music in Meridian where I teach beginning to advanced violin and viola lessons to students of all ages. My youngest student is 2 and my oldest is retirement age, I never asked what her exact age is. I am a sophomore in credits and will be a junior when I'm finished with summer classes but I just finished my second semester at Boise State. I am a graduate of Kuna High School. I moved around a lot in high school and I also attended Highland High School in Pocatello and Idaho Falls High School in Idaho Falls. I come from a very blended family. My parents are divorced and both remarried to spouses that had children from previous marriages. Because of this I have 12 siblings, not all of them are full but all are considered siblings. I am number eight; there are seven older than me and five younger. The oldest is 29 and the youngest is 3. My favorite color is pink. My favorite movie is The Italian Job. My favorite candy is Trolli Sour Gummy Worms.
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