50 Ways to Integrate Technology

1. Assist students in organizing information
2. Assist teachers in planning lessons/units/themes
3. Illustrate school's goals or plan for Parent-Teacher Organization
4. Illustrate instructional goal links to testing expectations
5. To show what each grade will be teaching and how units fit into the larger picture of curriculum for the whole school
6. Assess student learning
7. Show integration of different topics across the curriculum for a unit, lesson, or long-range plan
8. Present difficult material in a step by step manner
9. Plot summaries
10. Create cause/effect/solution diagrams to resolve social issues within the classroom
11. Book design elements
12. Illustrate digestive system
13. Local government diagram
14. Defining new terms
15. Introducing a new concept
16. Note-taking organizer
17. Detailed processes (how to add polynomials etc.)
18. Creating storyboards for Powerpoint presentations
19. Comparison activities
20. Historical cause and effect
21. Cycles (recycle, weather, etc.)
22. To construct a food chain
23. Map of where items are stored in desk, trapper, or locker
24. Library orientation
25. Language Arts - character descriptions, plot movement, action that leads to the climax
26. Math-to teach algorithms (especially division)
27. Math-problem solving because it is non-linear
28. Create instructions for games
29. Create picture charts that students can follow if they are communication impaired. Kids can follow picture symbols such as the symbols found on the Mayer-Johnson Boardmaker software.
30. Help study for a test.
31. Classroom organization chart with associated responsibilities
32. How to/step by step for learning new software
33. Developing a course or workshop
34. Planning a WebQuest
35. Documenting job responsibilities
36. Planning a Web site
37. Personal professional goals
38. Concept maps to send home to parents to help explain a unit so they can help their children study/review
39. Assist cooperative groups in defining projects and dividing job responsibilities.
40. Faculty/district - responsibilities of committees
41. Flow charts for behavior plans for either the classroom or a specific student
42. Similarities between different units through the use of the same structure in the graphic organizer.
43. A tool for students to identify when they do not understand information and identify the where the breakdown is in their comprehension.
44. To add more depth in a compare/contrast lesson, for example, identifying the important variables by color-coding or other visual element, and then deciding if the variable is the same or different in the two objects of study.
45. Showing relationships.
46. Procedures to follow during an emergency drill such as a fire or storm drill;
47. Lab procedure explanation
48. To present lab conclusions and highlight important concepts (especially prior to completing a written explanation)
49. In foreign language classes create an organizer that shows the English word on one side and the foreign language word equivalent on the other side with pictures as hints.
50. When studying a poem, in the center concept list the name of the poem and the connecting lines contain phrases from the poem. The sub concept explains the words in the phrase and the literary technique used such as personification.

Teaching Through Technology

http://www.ecb.org/ttt/index.php

This Web site provides a database of ideas for curriculum-based technology use in the classroom. Access to information about the teachers and projects that have been featured in the series is provided by grade level, subject, or the type of technology used.
To view the video clips, you need QuickTime Player, a free application.

Podcasting Tips

http://engage.wisc.edu/podcasting/teaching/index.html

Instructional Goal /Podcast focus
Prepare or motivate learners for learning new content
1. Arouse interest and curiosity about a new topic to increase learner motivation
2. Inform students of the learning outcomes or benefits of learning new content
3. Influence feelings and attitudes about a topic prior to a lecture or reading assignment
Recall and integrate previously learned material with new content
1. Explain the connection between what students have previously learned with new content to be presented in a lecture or reading assignment
Provide high-level overviews
1. Prior to presenting a new topic, provide a general overview as an advanced organizer
2. Before teaching a complex skill or procedure provide a mental framework from which to approach it
Provide a lead-in to an assignment or learning activity
1. Discuss in more detail what you expect of students from an assignment and how you suggest they best approach it
Elaborate on and further explain a complex concept
1. Explain nuances and intricacies of a difficult concept, principle or abstract process
Provide learning guidance and strategies for understanding new content or solving problems
1. Provide coaching and advice on learning strategies or approaching certain problem solving tasks
Provide content to encourage analysis
1. Provide a stimulus for students to react to or reflect upon for deeper analysis
Provide some variety in the learning environment
1. Bring in other people’s viewpoints
Student projects & assignments
1. Students create their own podcasts


Coming up with a good message design strategy for a podcast requires creativity. The approach you use to communicate your message is what makes or breaks your podcast from a listener perspective. Monologues, interviews, dialogues and other approaches used in radio broadcasting are all examples of design strategies. A few message design principles are provided below.
Frame your content into a problem or challenge and explain how that problem or challenge can be addressed.
Obtain voices of other experts you've interviewed about specific topics of interest to students in the course.
Use a case story that illustrates a key topic or learning goal.
Share a personal story. You’re an expert in the field and likely have a wealth of experiences that may not fit into a lecture.
Capture dialogs with opposing viewpoints. This is often done on radio and television talk shows.
Keep the length of a podcast short. Most experienced podcasters recommend a program length anywhere between 3 and 15 minutes.