Day 5- Tues., July 10th, 2012.

Being excited about Apps and sharing our Blog presentation took our presentation longer than we anticipated and we went over time... sorry folks, thanks for staying with us!

This brings to light an issue I have with learning this new great technology- although apps are awesome and easy to use, it takes time to play and explore them.  Time...something there never seems to be enough of; always needing/wishing I had more time to read, to write, to surf the net for leisure, and of course to explore this rapidly changing world of technology.

I have an iPhone and I am certain I do not know at least half of what it is capable of doing or what I can download to have it do. My downloaded apps are limited and mostly involve helpful gadgets like flashlight, level, maps, etc.

LD Presentation- students with diagnosed LD have average or above average intelligence, but have difficulty learning in one specific area.  This disorder affects acquisition, retention, understanding or use of verbal and/or non verbal information and interferes with oral language, reading, writing and mathematics.
Of the apps featured, I can see myself using is called Reading Comprehension- for $1.99, I think it would be a great app to use in small groups, guided reading groups, and for differentiated instruction because it is interactive, easy to use and there are many stories for students to read so repetition is not a worry. I like that this app includes speech selection! This app can make a student become an independent reader and I can use it as an assessment tool.



Disruptive Technology Presentation- The awesome thing about their presentation is that all Apps are free. *On a side note they used a service called Sribd to embed power point presentation into their Blog- so happy they shared that with us!*
I can see using the app in the classroom as I am teaching or working with/assessing in small groups or one to one. I can talk into my device and have Dragon Dictation write notes of what I am saying. This will be great for helping me write observations and communications I have had with students at report card time.




 
The other app I like is Math Tappers. This is a great math game app that is allows various subject areas in mathematics (for lower to upper elementary) that it self monitors and corrects as they go. It allows students to work independently with it. I could use for assessing, for extending work after completing a task, during free play time, and during work centre time.


Reluctant Writers Presentation- a process as intricate as the reading process

 I like the Writer's tool box app because it provides questions for students to answer to help enhance their writing, the downfall to this app is that the student has to have advanced reading skills, so this would be more beneficial to upper elementary and Jr./Sr. High school. This app includes lessons which is great for a small group who may need more instruction on a skill but the entire class does not.



Reluctant Readers-  The Pictella app was mentioned in this presentation, for the third time today, which shows how versatile this app is and how useful it can be for all types of learners. Good readers get better with more reading practise, reluctant readers are not going to get better without practise, but who wants to practise a task that is difficult and not enjoyable?!

This is why I like the ABC pocket phonics app- looks like a video game, which is appealing to reluctant readers. This app teaches the sound each letter makes, how to form the letter and then how to string them together to make words. I like how its focus is on the sound the letter makes, not the name of the letter.



I had a very intense AhhHaa moment today in class today... We were discussing and viewing the very intricate and complex task analysis of the reading process; the prof. asked us to pull up the task analysis we already began earlier in the course so we could add/edit it. Problem was I could not find mine... I started it a few days ago... I know I pressed save... I don't see it anywhere...panic set in.

As we were discussing all the processes that come into play and factors that are to be considered when getting ready to, and stay engaged in, the reading process I realised I was not able to read the notes on the screen. I posses the necessary skills for being able to read, but I was not able to apply them in that moment because I could not concentrate and was emotionally upset. All I could think about was where did my task analyse go? Because I was so highly emotionally charged I began to feel uncomfortable in my chair, I couldn't ignore the noise of the truck backing up outside and then started having flashbacks to when I last worked on it...I pressed save, didn't I?

After some frantic searches and some googling, I was able to find and open my task analyse and then, as if by magic, my reading abilities came back to me! I could now read and comprehend the words on the screen. Although I still felt uncomfortable in my chair I was able to filter out the outside noises and stay focused on the task at hand. A great example of putting theory into practise.