Week 32: Exploring the World of Multimedia

Homework for the Teacher
Today’s focus is very simple: Give students time to explore, explore, and explore some more. The activities are designed to introduce students to a wide range of copyright-friendly multimedia sources before jumping into the planning phase of their projects. This takes time and it is barrels of fun for everyone. So, pull up a chair with your students and explore, too! We can’t expect students to "imagine the possibilities" if they don’t have some experience with the nuts and bolts of multimedia beforehand. Students can waste valuable instructional time floundering around on the Web if they don’t know what’s available and where to find it quickly. The TK Multimedia Diner puts high-quality, safe sites right at their fingertips.

Utilizing technology and its multimedia capabilities can absolutely mean the difference between "glowing success" and "getting by" where most students are concerned. If students who go on a field trip are given video or digital cameras to capture images for an upcoming multimedia project or simple report, they will be actively seeking out information for the duration of the trip. Take advantage of the benefits of multimedia to turn otherwise boring assignments into high interest adventures! As always, move students beyond the traditional search for factual answers and into higher arenas of thought by modeling how to:

• ask probing, real-world questions
• inquire about phenomena or issues that matter to them
• compare and contrast
• make a decision
• solve a problem

Bookmark the famous TK Multimedia Diner for all your classroom multimedia needs!

Here’s an outrageously fun idea that is cheap, easy, and places YOUR students’ photos right on the Web---ready to be popped into a slideshow with a few simple clicks! (We are using Wal-Mart for this particular example, but you can apply the idea to any store with a photo center.)

You see how easy it is to get pictures online with the Wal-Mart idea above, right? Now think about how the entire multimedia process is made more meaningful when students generate their own artwork, take their own pictures, shoot their own videos, etc. At Pics4Learning, a site with thousands of copyright-friendly images for education, you can upload images taken by your students. Students will be proud to know they are making a contribution that benefits people all over the world. It’s easy. Try it!

Reading Strategy Spotlight
Empower! Help students use a variety of "fix-it" strategies to repair comprehension breakdowns independently. Listen to students describe their reading problems and then respond by modeling techniques to address the problems. Ellin Keene and Susan Zimmermann, authors of Mosaic of Thought, describe reading problems that go beyond the failure to decode words and understand their meanings. Refer to their chart, on pages 201-204, to understand the more subtle features of reading obstacles and to see examples and practical classroom solutions for each of those problems.

Student Activity Sheet
Download a sample Reading Conference Form developed by Cheryl Sigmon to assist you in the identification of your students' reading obstacles.

BBs: Weekly Nuggets of "Best Practices" and "Brain Research"
Download music with 60 beats per minute for your classroom.

TechKnow Disaster Preparedness Page
Printable Computer Skills Mini-Posters & activity sheets for those times when the network crashes or equipment is unavailable. You can print a different page each week.

Check your progress with information and computer skills.

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