Computers and the internet to teach math

All I have to say for this is YESSSSS!!!!!!
For most people, math is the hardest concept to understand and I think any way you can get someone to be engaged in it is phenomenal.  I was the odd child who would love to just sit and do math problems all day.  Literally, math and physics homework was my favorite time.  I understand that I am an odd duck by saying that.  That's why I think using the internet is great for kids.  One site that I have found helpful for middle school children is space kids...
Even just something as simple as a pocket calculator can make math so much easier for kids.  Remembering all of those math facts is just something that is not realistic anymore.  Yes, you do use math on a daily basis, but as an adult who has a smart phone, I ALWAYS have a calculator with me.  Why shouldn't a student have that same accessibility?
Another thing about math is that it is hard to "imagine".  You need to physically see the sides of the triangle that you are trying to measure.  Going back to the interactive smartboard, you can put up a triangle and arrange it so the students can see what they are measuring.  This makes the material come alive to a student who may not be able to draw or picture a triangle with side a=46 inches side b= 58 inches and they have to find side c.
The iPad has revolutionized math for young learners. There are so many games and even fast fact apps that make learning math so much easier and more fun.  Just by adding fun colors, graphics, and sounds math suddenly become less boring.
Practicing writing math facts over and over again is hard for some students who cannot write very well.  But with technology and keyboards, the students can type in their answers so there is less confusion between a 1 and a 7.

Tech to support UDL and Differentiated instruction

I like the definition of Differentiated Instruction in this book: teachers recognizing students' varying background knowledge, readiness, language, preferences in learning and interests; and to react responsively...its intent is to maximize each student's growth and individual success by meeting each student where he or she is and assisting in the learning process/  I think this fully embodies differentiated learning in all of its capacities.
The simplest definition of UDL is that it accomplishes three things

1. provides multiple means of representation
2. provides multiple means of expression and action
3. provides multiple means of engagement

Multiple means of representation is needed for students with sensory impairments and can be done in a visual manner  It can also be done with auditory lessons as well.  One of the greatest tools I have seen is an interactive whiteboard.  As it is connected to a computer, it makes the visual aspect of learning so much quicker and simpler.  Being able to SEE a galaxy in a far off place makes a lot more sense than reading about the positions of the stars.  One thing that I wish I would have had as a kid would have been electronic versions of the textbooks.  I started using them finally in graduate school and could drastically see the difference in my learning style by doing so.  

Multiple means of action and expression in a classroom looks like an art gallery with posters, murals, shadow boxes.  Or it can sound like a music room with jingles and raps describing a time in history.  Multiple means of expression and action takes away from the normal pen and paper assessment and focuses more on the main idea of the topic rather than a writing component.  I was lucky enough throughout school to have been in the honors/AP track which understood that we were all different learners and allowed for us to turn in basically anything we wanted as long as it got the story across.  Looking back, I feel for those who were not in those classes and had to stick to 5 page papers of US History.  

Multiple means of engagement is my favorite of these areas.  I DESPISE lectures.  I cannot sit still while someone stands up front and talks from slides.  I have to engage myself in other ways which looks rude and I feel bad.  But in order for me to pay attention, I need multiple areas of my brain engaged.  In college, I would have to have Sudoku puzzles with me at all times in order to keep focus in my early morning lectures.  I understand that in a class of 300 it is rather difficult to keep us all engaged, especially anatomy at 8 o'clock in the morning.  But the few times the teacher got us up and moving to learning exactly what muscles we were moving when throwing a ball for example were things that I remembered perfectly on the test.  I know that I am a kinesthetic learner and I need the physical movement to understand.  In the book, they mention the various levels of text for Shakespear in Classical Comics.  First of all, putting sonnets into comics is probably the best idea ever for kids.  It helps them follow the natural pauses in the sonnet that otherwise run together.  Second of all, it comes in different levels of text from original, plain, and quick.  This can help the struggling learner start with the quick text to get the general idea, then move up to the plain to gain more vocabulary.  Finally, they can move up to the original once they have a grasp on the main points of the story.  I know we had a version of one of the Shakespear books that was original text on one side, and then plain text on the other.  This helped when you were stuck on phrases or just got caught up in the lyrical flow of the words.  

In the book, they talk about wiki blogs which i think are a great tool for older kids.  It gives them a sense of ownership for their knowledge.  They have a chance to contribute to the whole class learning.  

First Day

Today was my first day in preschool! I was wonderful, scary, and exciting all at once.  Thankfully, today we only had two students in the early toddler room so it was pretty easy to get a handle on things.  One of my kids is very attached to her mom and is lucky enough to have her working next door in the nursery.  Unlucky for me, she is right next door and the child tends to sneak away to go see momma.  This will probably act as the most challenging.  The other little boy is very verbal and surprised me with how much he knows already!

Can't wait for day number 2