Welcome to 5 Ways Technology Projects Engage Reluctant Readers

Get presentation materials, share ideas, and discuss concepts shared in this session by joining our Edmodo group with the code:

6ei7op
For more information or assistance with Edmodo, please visit the Tech Tent in the courtyard.

5 Ways Technology Projects Engage Reluctant Readers

Rita Oates, PhD ritaoates@aol.com www.ritaoates.com President, Oates Associates roates@corp.epals.com www.epals.com VP, Edu Markets, ePals

Overview
Reluctant readers gain confidence with these five proven technology activities and digital projects, some offered at no charge from ePals, Smithsonian Institution and others. Well have time to share other resources during the session, so think about what YOU recommend to others. Explore these resources further on your own and adapt them to your classroom.

1. Weekly free email with nonfiction content from Smithsonian via ePals
Weekly emails Two reading levels:
gr. 4-8 (4.1 readability) or gr. 9-12 (6.1 readability)

Four different nonfiction topics

Science, social studies, the arts, fun facts

Sent to you or directly to your students, if they are using ePals SchoolMail Smithsonian staff generate text, links to Smithsonian activities and sites Students can write/post reactions and comments on moderated site

Sign up for Smithsonian email extras

Weekly Smithsonian emails

Link to more Smithsonian content

Respond in ePals Forum on email topics

2. Journalism Center: News Now

http://journalism.epals.com Nonfiction content in multiple areas including science and world events Use for nonfiction reading for gr. 4+ in science with current news, general nonfiction content Opportunity for students to write and post their work for worldwide reading audience

3. Authentic Reading and Writing with Pen Pals

Can collaborate, student to student, and learn about each other Write, read with peers Elementary student writing is lower level readability than most of whats on the internet ESE students can be paired with ESOL students in China, S. Korea, Turkey, etc. and their simple language will be prized as easier for level 1 students

www.epals.com 800,000 teachers 200 countries 29 million users Policy managed Teacher supervised

TRUSTe certification of child privacy

We'd like you to meet our ePals from Brazil

Mrs. Russell's First Grade Glenwood Elementary Vestal, NY

Here is our class from Sao Paolo, Brazil

School: EMEIF "Terezinha do Menino Jesus Porto Wu" Town: Santa Branca State: Sao Paolo Country: Brazil

Our school in Brazil has trees and grass.

Our square is being rebuilt. Our town has many hills!

Collaboration across the Digital Divide: New York Middle School Students and ePals in Botswana

What do you like to do after school?

A story of global connections that transcend socioeconomic status, culture and place.

Students from the Guangxi School, China

A story that embraces shared language and cultural awareness.

Collaborating with Their California ePals from a Gr. 12 Basic English Class

These teachers have worked together for eight years.some projects are just a few weeks or months!

Email Improves Reading and Writing Test Scores

State standardized test scores from a Newark Public Schools 4th grade class show significant reading and writing improvement through twice weekly use of email letter writing with fellow classmates and a peer classroom in Italy.
http://www.epalscorp.com/about/news/press_feb08_06.html

Dialog among fourth graders

From Italian boy: What kind of edifice is your school in? +++ From girl in New Jersey: I want to get a dog. I want a boy dog. I will call him Bruno. Next email from girl in New Jersey: We went to the pet store. I got a girl puppy. Her name is Heidi.

Response from girl in Italy: Why did you get a puppy? You said you wanted a dog.

Most Popular Long-term Matches

#1 English as a Second Language teachers outside an English-speaking country want to pair their students with students in English countries #2 Teachers of foreign language want to pair their students with native speakers (i.e., teacher of Spanish wants to have Spanish speakers in Mexico)

4. Project-Based Learning
Free to use, adapt Developed jointly with National Geographic Also feature great teacher-created projects International School in Pudong, S. Korea
UN Day Grade 4, Mrs. Smith ESOL class in S. Korea

Two First Projects Teachers Enjoy Using

Collaborative Projects

Winners were announced in early February.

26

Learning Centers Connect and Engage Students in Collaboration Around Content

27

Common Core Implementation Center Supports Literacy for All Teachers

29

 Choose a project for collaboration:

The Way We Are Digital Storytelling Join a teacher-created project

How to Start

Find a partner class to communicate with

Invite several; dont wait to be invited! Or join an existing project led by a teacher

Sign up students for free SchoolMail and weekly Smithsonian email extras Ask students to read online in Journalism Center, digital magazines Encourage students to read/write in online forums, in Journalism Center

Teacher-created projects
The Lady or the Tiger NY + Sweden, gr. 8 Road Safety, multiple classes in project designed by Israeli ESL middle school teacher Gr. 1-2 students in Colorado with ESL students, gr. 1-2, in Beirut, Lebanon

NY-Swedish class exchange

Vestal, NY middle school language arts students Students in ESL in Sweden Both read The Lady and the Tiger Write friendly letters Write ending to story Read and vote on best endings

The Lady or the Tiger by Frank R. Stockton (18341902) 00:15:45 Use audio to listen to Source: Gutenberg e-text #396 story while reading it [mp3@64kbps - 7.5MB] [mp3@128kbps - 15.1MB] Public domain text and [ogg vorbis - 11.3MB] audio Read by: Alice

Vestal, NY-Sweden email of Introduction

Vestal and Swedish students read The Lady or the Tiger and wrote their own endings (Swedish student)

ESL project from Israel: Road Safety

Colorado Gr. 1-2<->Beirut Gr. 1-2 ESOL

Cheryl won Microsoft Innovative Educator USA 2010 for this project; went to PIL world finals in S. Africa and Prague

Cheryl Arnett and Rawya Shatila Sunset Elementary School and Makassed Khalil Shehab School Digital Stories: A Celebration of Learning and Culture See Cheryl and Rawya's project description and video See student work

Microsoft Partners in Learning

Teacher from West Palm Beach: Todd LaVogue

5. Print + Digital Magazines/Apps Target

Age, Interest, Reading Level

Print + Digital Magazines for ages 6-9 From ePals Carus Publishing

Ages 9-14: US History, nonfiction

World Culture, Science: Ages 9-14

Stories, Science, Environment: Ages 3-6

Spanish-language Childrens Magazine: Iguana

Print (digital too) Focus on American students speaking or learning Spanish Sample issue:
http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/f050f37c

6. Bonus: Studentcreated
Culturepedia

Read what students create Add your students work

Webinar 2/27 with Dr. Rob Furman

Motivating the Reluctant Reader Through Technology: 25 Resources
Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013 4PM Eastern Time Presenter: Dr. Rob Furman, principal of South Park Elementary School near Pittsburgh, PA, and author of Instructional Technology Tools: A Professional Development Plan. www.instantpresenter.com/edwebnet9

View archived webinars at edWeb.net

Please share your ideas for working with reluctant readers and technology!
Rita Oates, PhD ritaoates@aol.com www.ritaoates.com Twitter: @ritaoates

Thank You!
Please share your feedback on this session by scanning the QR code below with your smartphone or tablet. The evaluation URL can also be found in Edmodo with group code

6ei7op