Technology Use in the Classroom

EDES 6359

Natalie Lozano

Loyola Marymount
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iPad Applications

1. Raz-Kids
2. Epic!
3. Explain Everything
4. Spelling City
5. Starfall
6. Plickers
7. Socrative
8. Seesaw
9. Kahoot!
10. Class Dojo
11. Bloomz
12. Too Noisy Pro
13. Bouncy Balls
14. K-3 Sight Words
15. Find the Words
16. Aesop’s Quest
17. Scholastic Reading Timer
18. Word Magic
19. My Word Wall
20. ESGI

Technology is a key component to helping students become successful 21​st​ century world

leaders. In order to equip my students with the necessary skills essential towards building digital

literacy, I have explored many different ways to incorporate technology into all aspects of the

school day in my first-grade classroom, especially with iPad applications. With one-to-one

access to iPads, I am able to facilitate differentiated instruction through a variety of applications,

particularly in reading. The applications, ​Raz-Kids a​ nd ​Epic! ​give my students digital access to

read fiction and informational texts that correspond to their independent reading level. They are

also able to listen to the texts on the application with headphones, and electronically answer

multiple choice and short answer comprehension questions. With access to this application inside
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the classroom and at home, students can build their fluency and comprehension skills within the

context of reading.

I also use ​Explain Everything​, ​Spelling City​, and ​Starfall t​ o help differentiate instruction.

I have used, ​Explain Everything,​ as a digital alternative to a paper copy of a guided reading book,

in which I was able to download the guided reading text to the application. Students even had the

opportunity to annotate the text as they were reading on the iPad through, ​Explain Everything.​

Spelling City ​is aligned with my student’s spelling stage through words their way, which gives

them a digital way to practice reading and sorting words within their spelling stage. ​Word Magic

is also a helpful tool in helping with phonics skills through the engaging puzzles and games

students can interact with to fill in missing letters of words. ​Starfall ​is an interactive way to help

support students phonics skills, especially for those students in need of intervention, through fun

and engaging games. Reading comprehension skills are also practiced through the use of the iPad

application, ​Aesop’s Quest​, in which students are read stories by a character named Aesop the

ant, help navigate his way through different stories by answering questions.

By the end of first grade, all students are expected to know their first 100 sight words.

This can be a challenging task, especially for students that are in need or are in need of

intervention. Applications that help give my students repeated exposure to and practice in

automatic word recognition are crucial in my professional practice. These applications include,

K-3 Sight Words,​ ​Find the Words,​ and ​My Word Wall​. ​K-3 Sight Words ​allows for students to

engage in practice with words that they are unable to sound out. In addition, ​Find the Words​,

helps students practice reading their sight words through a fun word search. ​My Word Wall,​ goes

a step further and not only allows students practice with reading sight words, but also gives
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opportunities for students to practice writing different words through the application. ​My Word

Wall​ was also designed to be friendly towards ELL students or students with special needs.

In my classroom, technology also plays an important role in reading instruction within

the scope of data driven. End of lesson formative assessment data is frequently collected and

analyzed through the application ​Plickers.​ The digital program ​ESGI​ also helps me progress

monitor students in their foundational skills, including number sense and automatic word

recognition. Organizing, analyzing, and tracking data with these applications in addition to

Socrative,​ ​Kahoot!​, ​Seesaw,​ and ​goformative.com​, allow me to best meet the needs of my

students in a fast and efficient manner.

Technology is incorporated in a meaningful way to allow for my students to be engaged

through a positive learning environment that encourages students to read. The application,

ClassDojo ​and ​Bloomz,​ are fundamental tools in building effective management in my classroom

to ensure that my classroom is a safe environment where everyone can learn and grow in their

reading skills. Other programs that contribute to this aspect of student learning include, ​Too

Noisy Pro​, ​Bloomz​, and ​bouncyballs.org​. I also use the ​Scholastic Reading Timer​ to hold my

students accountable to their daily reading in the classroom and at home. Not only do these

applications and programs help my students develop a deep love for learning and reading, but

they also support their growth as digital citizens in the 21​st​ century.