Promothean ActivBoard

http://www.procomputing.com/pdfs/research/Research.pdf

Impact on learning in the classroom:
- average improvement of 17%, and when used 75-80% of time increase was 29%
- improvement in math and science
- girls benefit more than boys, but both had positive attainment
What I learned:
- for special ed students there was an increase in student management, fine motor skill development, classroom participation, focused time on task, on time assignment completion, student collaboration, behavior, and attendence
- ELL students also had significant increase in reading and math
Question:
- What about the children who need additional services for mobility, etc that can have a hard time reaching the board?  Are there interactive tablets available?

What I learned re: SmartBoard

1. The computer program does not like me.
2. It is an awesome tool - if I can ever learn how to use it.
3. I really need to get more computer savvy.
4. I still need to learn how to manipulate this.  My goal is to be as smart as Chelsie!

Reflection #1: Creative Teaching Strategies in the Special Needs Classrooms | Diigo

What: Check out this resource for some simple games: Creative Teaching Strategies in the Special Needs Classrooms Diigo

So What: The Special School District of Saint Louis County has taken the iPod and made changed it from a distraction in the classroom to a major resource.  Parents were sent home training information explaining how iPods can be used for building vocabulary skills and reading comprehension.  In addition, teachers added video and audio lessons onto the students iPods for the students and parents were able to access at home.  The teachers also interpreted stories using the iPod as a video portfolio. They were able to shoot video of themselves and the students performing a specific skill and then send it home to the parents.  The iPods  also serve as a replacement for written communication logs between staff and parents. By recording a simple voice memo, teachers can quickly record messages about each student. These messages can then be downloaded from iPod and saved for future references.


Now What: Ok, I am so out of touch with this.  I must figure this out!!  I don't even know how to use my daughter's iPod for music, let alone all this other stuff!!  I feel old!!

Demographics

Student Class Enrollment	Males:     13                                                  Females:13
Grade Level(s) in Your Class	1st through 4th
Subject(s) Taught	Math, Reading, Writing, Social Studies, Science, Technology
Demographics:
School Socio-Economic Status	12.6% of free and reduced lunch
School Location	___Urban     __X__Suburban     ___Rural
Describe relevant aspects of your School & Community that influence and/or impact teaching & learning. (Examples: curriculum, reform models, school focus, community partnerships, community support level)	The classroom that I have is a Special Education Contained Learning Center (CLC).  There are 26 students, split equally between males and females.  Northshore School District has maintained high standards for technology with the availability of a wide array of technological tools for both the students and the teachers.  All classrooms at Moorlands have ActivBoards, both document and digital cameras, as well as a few computers available in each classroom for student use.  My particular class has three in which the students can access at various points of the day.  In addition to the classroom computers, the children have access to the computer lap at the school.  In order to maintain a relationship with the parents, I require that all parents volunteer in some aspect.  Some may help after school doing anything from grading assignments to organizing classroom activities. I have three parents that volunteer on a weekly basis in the classroom.  One for Reading Groups, another for Science and one that comes on a varied schedule.  In addition, I encourage all family members, including grandparents, to assist in the classroom throughout the year.  I find that this helps to make the education of the children a community effort.  Special services offered for my students are Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, as well as General Education Inclusion. Moorlands student demographics are fairly typical for Seattle’s Eastside region.  As of 2010/2011 the school had 579 students with 53.9% of those being male and 72.0% Caucasian, 11.2% Asian, 11.7 Pacific Islander, with the rest of the students primarily Hispanic and African American. As Northshore School District filters the special needs children from other home schools to Moorlands, they have a special education rate of 11.4% for a total of 66 students, with an additional 22 students with 504 accomodations. Northshore School District in general does not hire teachers on an either emergency and/or conditional certificate.  Therefore, Moorlands does not have any teachers with these restrictions.  All of the classes are taught by teachers meeting NCLB highly qualified (HQ) definition.  The majority (63.6%) of Moorlands 33 teachers have Master’s Degree with an average experience of 14.9 years.  With the high level of experience, the environment provides for a wealth of knowledge with a variety of opinions and styles in which one can prosper from being around. With high standards for technology the district has maintained availability of a wide array of technological tools for both the students and the teachers.  All classrooms at Moorlands have ActivBoards, both document and digital cameras, as well as a few computers available in each classroom for student use.  My particular class has three in which the students can access at various points of the day.  In addition to the classroom computers, the children have access to the computer lap at the school. Moorlands is located on Finn Hill which merges Kirkland, Bothell and Kenmore.  This school is located on the border between Northshore and Lake Washington School Districts.  There area is made up of a high population of middle to uppoer class families living in single family residences.  In addition, there is a strong presence of Boeing and Microsoft executives within the area.  As expected by the parents, the school district has and continues to pass various levies and bonds to fund the advancement of technological education for the students and teachers.
Classroom  Mobility *your classroom	__0__% of student turnover within the school year
Race/Ethnicity *your classroom	___2.9_% Black                                                __7.6__% Hispanic         __72__% White                                               ___0.3_% American Indian  ___0.5_% Asian/Pacific Islander                         ___5.4_% Multiracial
Spoken Languages *your classroom	__91.5__% English as a first language  __6.5__% Fluent in English as a second language  __2__% English-language learner
Identified Special Student Needs (List any types of specific learning disabilities and/or gifted/talented students and the number of identified students ) *Your classroom	26 Students – all on IEP’s 4 Apsergers 1 Downs Syndrome 2 Autism 12 Autism Spectrum 3 Behavior 4 Mild Learning/Health Impared

Demographics Write-Up

Demographics Write-up

NETS

NETS-S:

3. Technology productivity tools

NETS-T:

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity