Gamification: Yay or Nay?!

Hey ya'll! What's goin' on!

Today, were going to be talking about Gamification. So, first off, what is Gamification?

Gamification is defined as: the application of typical elements of game playing (e.g., point scoring, competition with others, rules of play) to other areas of activity, typically as an online marketing technique to encourage engagement with a product or service.

The best Gamification website I have seen is Digital Passport! Digital Passport is an amazing resource for teaching kids on how to be safe while exploring the Internet. Digital Passport is a game through Common Sense Media in which student's are able to play a series of games and levels on the website! Teacher's are able to print out lesson plans,worksheets, and enhancement materials for each game. 

My personal belief is that Gamification is "just a fad". However, I can see a good list of pros and cons for each. In my classroom, I may use some games, especially those like Digital Passport. But, I could also see myself not using games too much just so my student's do not have too many distractions.

But, I would love to know, what do ya'll think about this?!

How Student Learn: Visual or Conceptual?

Hey everybody! What's poppin!

I hope you are all lovin' this fall weather...except it has been a little to warm for me as of late!

So anyway, in my mind, one big thing that teachers are always exploring, and debating about is not only how students learn, but is it to be more visual or conceptual.

For me, when I was a grade school student, ad even here in college, I see myself as being a visual learner with a very big spotlight on hands-on-activities. I need to be able to either literally see or mentally see what is going on. And, it does not matter what subject it is. Then, for me to really grasp the concept, I MUST have a hands-on-activity(s). I cannot sit in a lecture for an hour and a half and be able to walk away fully remembering what we went over and the professor talked about. Lecturing, student or teacher view, can get very boring and overbearing which becomes hard and stressful on students.

As a teacher my goal will be to provide a place where student's are learning in a variety of ways. Because I most likely will be teaching student's under the age of ten, I do not think that student's should know how they want to be taught and how they learn best. At this point in their academic career, I believe that they need to be exposed to every single different learning aspect. But, we also need to remember that 6-10 year olds, do not have the longest attention span, so therefore a ton of lecturing (although, sometimes it is necessary) will not be useful.

I believe that rewards can be very useful, but at the same time, I think they can be just as hurtful and abused. Rewards should not just appear, and at some point "rewards" cannot be physical things. A student cannot and will not learn how to be a decent human being if they depend on rewards. At some point, the things that are being rewarded must become a natural thing to do, rather than just doing it to get a reward. My strategies when I have my own classroom is to have a reward system. For example, Miss Hayes Bucks! Every time a student exemplifies exceptional academic or personal responsibilities they can earn a buck. Then maybe at the end of the week or month, each student can "cash in their bucks" to receive a small prize. But, all in all, I do think rewards are necessary for motivation. They just cannot become abused and over used, either.



via GIPHY

Interview Time: Let's Talk About Twitter, Pinterest, and Blogging?

Hey guys! Today's blog post is going to be a bit more serious than some of my other posts. However, I can promise that it will be just as engaging and exciting! So, here goes!! Imagine you have graduated from college in the year of 2020 with a BA in Elementary Ed/Special Ed. You are going to interview for your first full time position as a fourth grade teacher. The interviewer then says: So, we are living in a world of technology, how do you stay current and up to date on new findings and classroom ideas? For me, personally, I stay up to date through twitter. I do not have a personal twitter account, however, I do have a professional twitter account. I use my twitter to follow people and places like Kahoot!, other teacher's, other districts, and profesional education websites. Twitter is a great way to be notified when certain things come out. When the latest tech gear is announced and even how to use it. As for classroom ideas, I typically turn to Pinterest. Pinterest has thousands upon thousands of ideas for classrooms for every age, every learning ability, from math all the way to bulletin board ideas. When I get an idea in my head, I will turn to Pinterest to figure out the logistics of it. And, so you can stay up to date with me, I blog! I use blogger.com to express my ideas, itnterests, and communication with parents,student's, and other teachers! I post a lot of information regarding my classroom and what my future classroom would look like with technology. So, all of that being said, I would love if you would check out my twitter, Pinterest, and blog!!



 Twitter: My Twitter!

Pinterest: My Pinterest!

Blogger: My Blogger!

Interview Time: Let's Talk About Twitter, Pinterest, and Blogging?

Hey guys! Today's blog post is going to be a bit more serious than some of my other posts. However, I can promise that it will be just as engaging and exciting! So, here goes!! Imagine you have graduated from college in the year of 2020 with a BA in Elementary Ed/Special Ed. You are going to interview for your first full time position as a fourth grade teacher. The interviewer then says: So, we are living in a world of technology, how do you stay current and up to date on new findings and classroom ideas? For me, personally, I stay up to date through twitter. I do not have a personal twitter account, however, I do have a professional twitter account. I use my twitter to follow people and places like Kahoot!, other teacher's, other districts, and profesional education websites. Twitter is a great way to be notified when certain things come out. When the latest tech gear is announced and even how to use it. As for classroom ideas, I typically turn to Pinterest. Pinterest has thousands upon thousands of ideas for classrooms for every age, every learning ability, from math all the way to bulletin board ideas. When I get an idea in my head, I will turn to Pinterest to figure out the logistics of it. And, so you can stay up to date with me, I blog! I use blogger.com to express my ideas, itnterests, and communication with parents,student's, and other teachers! I post a lot of information regarding my classroom and what my future classroom would look like with technology. So, all of that being said, I would love if you would check out my twitter, Pinterest, and blog!! Twitter:

Pinterest:

Blogger: http://aah001.blogspot.com/