Metric Mass Video- 4th Grade Math SOL 4.10

As an introduction to Metric mass, the students used this video to help them learn about measuring mass with metric units.  This video was created by my student intern and she created it in Smart notebook and recorded it using her Mac computer. 

My students really enjoy learning with these videos and it has really improved the differentiation in our classroom.  Enjoy it and use it to help in your classroom.

Handbreak- Free Download

Thanks to one of my wonderful technology experts in Radford City, I learned today that I can use my Mac to create my app videos and then convert them to MP4 format using Handbrake a free download!  I have been creating them on my PC converting them through Format Factory and then transferring them to my Mac for syncing.  This is a great discovery!  It just reminds me that there are so many wonderful things out there and that there are so many ways to achieve the same outcome. Check out Handbrake with the Youtube video below.

Comparing Decimals 4th Grade Math SOL 4.4c

My students have been learning to compare decimals. I teach this math skill just like you teach putting
words in ABC order; line the numbers up by the decimal point and then compare the numbers from left
to right.  This video helps the students be reminded of those steps as many times as necessary.
It also includes a guide practice activity and is self checking at the end. Videos such as these are so helpful for my students!

Whole Class Response Ideas Using Two Apps

I am constantly looking for ways to get my entire class to respond to answers so that everyone is involved in the learning and so I can quickly assess the learning. I have found 2 apps that help with this all student response strategy: The Flashlight app and Doodle Buddy.
FLASHLIGHT APP: My class uses the free Flashlight app (link below) to show the response to a question.  The app is really easy for the students to set up to show different colors on the screen.  For a lesson on ounces and pounds, if ounces was the correct measurement for an item then the students showed green, if pounds was the correct measurement then the students showed red.  This way the teacher can check the students' answers quickly and quietly and everyone is responding.  The flashlight can be set to show many different colors so there is the possibility of many different responses.


Free Flashlight App

DOODLE BUDDY: Another app that can be used as a response system is the Doodle Buddy app (see link below). Students can respond with short answers on this app.  They use their fingers to write an answer and then hold it up for me to check.  This is really easy to check if the students write large and if the answers are short.  Of course there are many others ways this app can be utilized. This app also allows students to create texts or draw pictures, add in "stamps"... There are many other uses for this app other than the idea listed here.  Check it out! Send me your ideas through comments on this post!  

Doodle Buddy App

Freddy Fraction 4th Grade Math SOL 4.3

My class has been studying fractions for several weeks now.  At the beginning of our study I taught the students several fraction apps including the Freddy Fraction app.  At that time, the information about fraction and decimal relationships was basically unknown to the students. Today one of my students was using that app again and became very excited because the information now made sense to him.  He played it for 45 minutes and was upset when it was time to put it away.  He wrote that the app was challenging yet fun and he wished he could play with it longer. Seeing his learning progress so quickly just through the observation of when he first used the app until today was so rewarding.  It was also exciting to see his enthusiasm for learning through something as simple as an iPod app.

Click here for Freddy Fraction Link

Reading Motivation and Skill Review 4th Grade Language Arts SOL 4.5

 My students used many story apps today to practice some reading skills that we have been learning this year.  To begin this review lesson I showed a book on the Kindle app that is downloaded on my computer and shown on the Smartboard. After a review of the skills conflict/resolution, genre and paraphrasing  the students were allowed to go to any of the following apps and find a story.  The apps they could access for this activity were as follows: Read Me Stories, Andersen Fairy Tales, Fairy Tales, Fairy Tales Andersen, Fables Part 2, Happy family, Snow Queen, The Angel, Thumbelina.

The students were to then read the story of their choosing and complete the following activity about the story:

Conflict, Resolution, Genre and Paraphrasing Review

The story I read is 

                                                      

The conflict in the story is

The conflict was resolved by

The genre of this story is
Paraphrase the plot of the story

This activity went so well.  The students were motivated to read different genres and they continued to read more stories after they completed the assigned activity. The iPod was such a motivational tool for them in Reading.

Using the iPod as Inspiration for Writing

Today my intern had a wonderful writing lesson where the students were learning to write a story of sequential directions. They began by writing a story about how to tie a shoe.  After discussing all that needed to be included and practicing with this simple task, she had them write a paragraph about how to use an app that they enjoy on the iPod.  The students were to begin turning on the iPod, finding the app and then continuing from there.  She asked them to pretend they were introducing their grandparent to the iPod and how to use a particular app of their choosing.  It was a difficult writing task for some, but a very unique way to include the iPod in a writing lesson. 

Same Sound- Homophones- 4th Grade Language Arts SOL 4.8

The app "Same Sound" that was created in the RU Games Lab is wonderful for introducing students to a variety of homophones. In this app the students have to decide which homophone should be used in a sentence to make it correct.  As the students used this app, they were asked to make a list of the homophones they saw. Afterwards, they discussed the new homophones introduced to them through this app.
An extension activity would be to use the new homophones in sentences and illustrate them to show an understanding of the meaning of the words.
My students have used this app several times and are always fascinated by
the new words found here. It is appropriate for grades 3-6.