Doller

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 * Learning Style Reflection **

After taking the learning styles survey, I have found that I am a Visual/Verbal learner. I learn information better when I read it and see it for my own eyes, rather than listening to something or doing a hands on activity. When taking notes in classes, I like to organize them in a certain manner that is helpful to me. I put them under headings, use bullets and different colors, and even sometimes make charts or graphs. I find that these are more effective in helping me remember the information and when I do this I can better recall the information. Whenever I have a test to study for, I make index cards which is extremely helpful to me. One thing that survey mentioned to be effective that I would like to try, is leaving sticky notes around places I'd see and pass frequently that have information that needs to be memorized on it. That way I can visualize where I saw it and what it said and remember it better.

I think that it is very important for individuals to know what type of learning style works best for them so they can use certain methods to help them study and learn better. I know that since finding this information out, I know which ways are effective and which are not, so I know which ones to use when studying.

** CAST Assignment ** In completing the learning styles survey, it was confirmed to me that I am a visual/verbal learner. For the most part the survey confirmed that I am using effective study habits for my learning style. However, o ne thing the survey suggested that I would like to try, is leaving sticky notes around places I'd see and pass frequently that have information that needs to be memorized on it. That way I can visualize where I saw it and what it said to remember it better. Overall, I was pretty impressed with the CAST website. I feel that it had a lot of useful information that I would like to implement in my classroom. The website was set up very nicely and was extremely organized which made everything easy to find and very clear. It was also very thorough; it covered multiple aspects that are essential to a proper education. I think the CAST website is a very important resource for teachers to use. In the electronic version of **Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age** I found the information about bottom-up and top-down processing very intriguing. This information can be incorporated into my classroom by realizing that not everyone is going to perceive information the same. I might show the class a picture and half might perceive it one way while the other sees it a different way. In realizing that this discrepancy might occur, I can prepare myself for these differences and be open to different interpretations. Previously, I never considered the different methods for processing information and often would only see it one way but now I know better. I enjoyed these two activities that I participated in. I gained insight to myself that I feel more comfortable presenting with other people standing up in the front of the room with me than if I was by myself. I feed off of others’ confidence and gain confidence during my presentation when I see that my audience is engaged in the presentation. I feel that this approach to developing differentiated instruction is very practical and will be very useful once I am in the classroom. I feel it is extremely important to implement these tactics in order to have a positive and successful learning environment for all students. A teacher needs to vary their teaching methods to be effective for all students. It is valuable to realize that each child is different and learns differently so in order for a teacher to reach each and every student they must have multiple methods of teaching and be able to differentiate their instruction. I would be interested in knowing firsthand accounts from teachers of how differentiated instruction has benefitted their classroom. There is no doubt in my mind that it is extremely beneficial but I would love to find out which methods are the most effective and teachers would recommend to others.

** Assistive Technology **

From visiting the websites and viewing the videos, I learned that assistive technology is any item that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability. I used to think that there were specific pieces of equipment that were considered assistive technology and only those items. I never really realized that assistive technology can be considered any piece of technology that aids a student with a disability to learn. I was also unaware until now that assistive technology must be provided by the school district with no cost to the family. I am impressed with the portable communication device called DynaMyte. The purpose of this device is to provide a way for students with communicative disabilities to communicate. I feel that communication is such a huge part of life in everyday society and those students who have a disability which prevents them from communicating are at such a loss. This is why I am so impressed by this portable communication device; it plugs students with communicative disabilities back into everyday life. DynaMyte gives students a way to initiate, respond, and converse which is extremely important for success. Technology gives students with diverse learning needs the potential to be just like everyone else, like those without diverse learning needs. Technology has expanded so greatly over the years and allows people to achieve almost anything. To students with diverse learning needs, technology is life altering and means the world. It gives them to potential to live a life they probably never imagined and could never achieve without the presence of technology. When I was in high school, I worked as a camp counselor one summer. I had a student in my group who had difficulties hearing. In order to accommodate him, I had to wear a microphone attached to my clothes so that he could hear what I was saying better. To me it wasn’t a big deal at all and did not inconvenience me in the slightest bit. I thought it was really cool that something so small to me could make such a big difference in someone else’s life. From this assignment, I will carry with me the notion that the smallest tweak of something could make the greatest difference in someone else’s life. Just like I mentioned earlier, to me wearing the microphone was no problem but to my student it was life changing. It is important as a teacher to be able to make these accommodations for my students or else they have no chance of succeeding. Whether they are big or small, the changes need to be made and once they are, the students involved will have the greatest potential to succeed.

[|Behaviorism Glog]

** Whaling Virtual Field Trip ** I really enjoyed this virtual field trip through the whaling industry. I found this assignment to be extremely informative and fun. I learned a lot and enjoyed myself all at once which made the task less troublesome to complete. I think this is a great attribute since I feel that students learn more when they are engaged in the assignment and want to complete it. I would love to integrate this use of technology into my classroom especially since it is so difficult to plan actual field trip in today’s society. I think it is important for students to find out information for themselves rather than just having the information thrown at them in a lecture which is another reason why I would love to use virtual field trips in my future classroom. The early settlers found out about whales from Native Americans and inherited whaling technology from their European forebears. The Wampanoag inhabited the New Bedford area in colonial times. The Quakers later settled in New Bedford and controlled the whaling industry. This ship was made from bark but also had cedar whaleboats for davits and iron lookout rings for spotting whales. This ship made thirteen whaling voyages in total. The sailors got to the whales in the water in whale boats and brought the whale down with a harpoon. Once the whale was killed it was lashed to the side of the ship and the whale blubber was separated from the carcass in strips. Then the whale blubber was boiled in the tryworks which could be found on the ship’s deck. A typical whale voyage could last years. Sailors did not live luxurious lives. The sleeping quarters were cramped, dark and smelly, and were shared among humans, rodents, and insects. Despite the harsh conditions, the shifting of the boat in the water made it more difficult to sleep. To pass the time sailors mended their clothes, wrote poems and songs, made mortars and pestles, and salt and pepper shakers. Scrimshaw is the type of art in which crew members carved and scratched decorations on sperm whale teeth. Whale teeth were also used to make eating utensils and pie crimpers. Sailors ate salt beef and pork with hard bread or some preparation of flour or meal and tea or coffee without any milk. Also, they drank water at extremely high temperatures. I think in order to be a successful crew member on a whaling ship a sailor must be laid-back, disciplined, and emotionless, to deal with being without their family for such a long time. I certainly do not think I have what it takes to be a whaling ship crew member. There was an instance in which a woman sailed on a whaling ship as an assistant navigator. The ship owner’s, Captain John A. Cook, wife suffered from a severe mental collapse which led to him being removed from command of his vessel. After a year of no significant improvement, he commissioned the building of the //Viola// and his wife accompanied him. Blue whales were hunted for their blubber. Krill are shrimp-like creatures. Blue whales grow to more than 100 feet in length. Its tongue weights 4.4 tons. Frederick Douglass’ real name is Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey. He changed his name so it would be harder for slave traders to find him. New Bedford is where Douglass worked as a laborer unloading whaleships for George Howland, in the brass foundry of A.D. Richmond, and at the oil works of Joseph Ricketson. He emerged with a new career as champion for the freedom of his people on the national stage.

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These Disney images were taken from Google Images in the public domain.

Final Reflection “Exam” In today’s society, technology is ever changing and many struggle to keep up or even try to resist the changes. However, I feel that the constant advances cannot be completely ignored. I am one of those people who have tried to resist each new piece of technology that comes out and there have been times everything has turned out ok but there have also been some circumstances in which I was completely left in the dust. Unfortunately, these times I have been left behind was when I tried to ignore technological improvements in the classroom. I do not own a smart phone but I do not feel as if I am at a loss without one, I don’t own an iPad and I’m ok with that but I cannot live without my laptop, the internet, and email; all of which are essential in a classroom. Those are even just the basics; classrooms need projectors, maybe even SMARTboards, and computers for their students along with calculators, all of which are some form of technology. I feel it is important for teachers to keep up with the current technology. I feel this way since their students are fluent in these new forms of technology and respond best to what they are familiar with. For the benefit of the students I feel that teachers should be kept up to date with technology. ** My beliefs on technology have certainly changed since the beginning of the semester. At the beginning of this course I didn’t feel that technology was essential to learning; I viewed technology more as a supplement than a necessity. However, at the end of this course I feel that technology is more important. I still don’t feel that classes should rely solely on technology but I do feel that the many benefits of using technology most definitely outweigh the negatives of using technology such as when technology fails us and does not work. Now, I feel that I will be using much more technology in my classroom than I had previously planned. **