Technology Kinergarten Style

I’ve been teaching Kindergarten for the past 4 years in West Vancouver.  Every year I fight the powers that be to include more technology into my classroom.  We have very limited classroom time but even less time in the computer lab.  I’m on maternity leave this year and just found out that the students did not get a regular  time!!  I fully support incorporating technology into the classroom as early as possible.  In the past I have found that the students that have difficulty in reading and printing are able to produce work they are proud of.  Technology also gives these students the opportunity to shine in an area where others may not.

Technology isn’t going away and the children love using computers.  I’ve found that as the years go on the students get more tech savvy and at younger ages.  Strommen and Lincoln explain that as technology has changed in our environment from TV’s to computers the teaching environment has not changed and is in desperate need of catching up. 

Children’s traditional classroom tools - pencils, notebooks, and texts - are still vital. But for children to assemble and modify their ideas, access and study information, they are inadequate. Computers, video, and other technologies engage children with the immediacy they are used to in their everyday lives, and bends it to a new pedagogical purpose.   (Stolmenn/Lincoln)

I feel that schools need to catch up with society in the use of technology.  Teachers who are fearful of computers need to step up and seize this opportunity to reach students at all levels.  Technology is here to enhance learning not destroy it.  If technology is used properly it it not just teaching typing and word processing but computer programing, collaboration with others (within school and world wide), and allowing for creativity and self expression.

I found a great website that explains ways to incorporate technology into all Kindergarten curricular areas.  I’m tired of going to the computer lab with the students and only using Kid Pix and Zoombinis.  I realize there is a lot that can be done with these programs but I am also looking to expand how and what I teach in the computer lab.

http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/primary/curriculum.html

http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/news-by-subject/research/?i=53593

http://www.playfulefforts.com/Archives/Papers/EUS-1992.pdf

http://courses.wcupa.edu/fletcher/english121/projects/10b/jessy.htm

 

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Very Fuzzy Field Study Questions

Well here I am finally sitting in front of my broken laptop, as Joshua is finally down for a nap and I’m not trying to fly out the door to work.

I’m interested in a couple of areas for my field study

1)  How to increase communication between parents and teacher and, what are the benefits?

2) How does using hands-on materials assist the kinesthetic learner in learning literacy?

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