Oct. 30th (Technology Across the Curriculum)

In class assignment

Last time - worked on technology for curriculum areas.

- This time - look at tech supports for disability areas. When you are working with kids, there are no blanket areas. Looking at the issues tonight. Have to think about the specific thing for their student. There are a few websites for younger kids and more severely handicapped.

Software searches:

- http://www.assistivetech.com:591/chartsonline.htm (Search for STAGES levels for software)



- In terms of teaching students cause and effect - teaching them "click and hold, click and

release"

Language readiness

-http://closingthegap.com/ go to Resource Directory About the Resource Directory Can I search the Resource Directory on-line.



Even if you have a student who is very severly impaired but older you want to make sure that all graphics are age appropriate for them.

Reflection: Class was going well until the earthquake! Yikes! My group and I had generated many great ideas for assistive tech ideas to help students with cognitive delays. I found that it was sort of difficult at times to generate different ideas than the ones that we had listed for our other group project since some of them intertwined with ones that could be of use for a student with cognitive delays.

Oct. 23rd (Research and Application: Technology across the Curriculum: Inspiration)

* Intel book - you should already be on Module 4/5 for Unit Plan.
- For your Wiki - and you have little ones - you should set up your Wiki based on parent
communication.
I. Graphic Organizers
A. For SH and preschool/infant don't hear about graphic organizers at all. (Terminology
wise). Mind Mapping.
- There are lots of ways of doing graphic organizers that you can teach in the classroom.
**B. Inspiration
- A way to make a graphic organizer pretty easily. You can go to www.inspiration.com and
use it for 30 days for free. You can save it as a jpeg (picture).
- Graphic organizers can be pictures, sounds - if you don't have it on your computer, you
can use Word. If you have Office 2007 you can save it as Dot.x but only Office 2007 will
be able to read it.
- Graphic organizer - the one that will create tonight will go with the theme of the unit that
have been working on for the project at the end of the semester.
*****Graphic organizer websites*****
1. http://www.readwritethink.org/
http://www.graphicorganizers.com/
http://www.eduplace.com/ (Houghton Mifflin website)
http://teachers.teach-nology.com/index2.html (Gives for preschool and early childhood
ed a bunch of stuff).
http://cmap.ihmc.us/Index.html (Graphic organizer tool/concept tool)
http://www.internet4classrooms.com (has really cool Daily dose of the web - cool
websites to check out)
http://www.factmonster.com
**** Don't discount homeschool websites - there are a ton of resources!
- To create a graphic organizer - can do rapid fire- everyone gives an idea and will be
creating a graphic organizer. Teacher will type in all the ideas
- Can create using Word or Inspiration - check out kidspiration at school too.
- Great to use for 50 States
For Word: Can use ovals to format graphic organizers
II. Unit Project
- You want it linked to state standards.
- What will you title it?
- Something catchy, something serious
- What topics and reference materials will be researched on the Internet?
-What's your project
- What other resources will you need?
- You need to think of that in your unit plan
- Questions to Answer
- Is the unit plan student centered?
- Want it as interactive as possible
- What 21st century tool will you use?
- Outline of project requirements?
- What's the plan?
-Resources for students
- Daily activities
- Prompts for discussion and open-ended tasks
- Links and descriptions of appropriate websites
-Models of student work
- Resources for homework assistance
- Classroom announcements and news
-Design Elements
- When you create a website
- Photographs
- animations/charts
- Scanned illustrations (student works,etc.)
*** - On a website - you want to have the most important info on the top part. If have to scroll
down, then not going to work.
**** You're graphic organizer needs to be tied into what you did your lesson plan on that you turned in last week. It's similar to what we turned in for the class assignment tonight. Has to be based on the concepts that are/were written in the lesson plan -unit plan.
The unit plan, the graphic organizers, everything will tie in together for the assignment due at the end of the semester.
*** Next Week:
- Covering things over the Intel Binder
- Covering technology for curriculum
- Graphic organizer assignment - don't need to write a blurb on that. Sharon will open the assignment up and how it fits into the lesson that turned in last week. If you got the graphic organizer turned in already and it was already uploaded then you don't need to turn one in for next week.

Reflection:
Question: How can you use graphic organizers to support student learning?
It was interesting and fun to play around with the graphic organizers. The Word one was a little hard at first to play around with but the end product was neat. As we were discussing Inspiration - I realized that I do have kidspiration at school and never realized it! That is very neat so all I need to do is play around with it at school before having my students use it.

Question -
I use graphic organizers already in my classroom to teach my students the writing process - using what we call a "Star Chart " graphic organizer -one arm for each separate idea. Students generate ideas for each arm. It is a great way for students to organize their thoughts as well as how to write 5 full, complete paragraphs.
- Graphic organizers will also come in handy when my students start designing their Power Point presentation on their 50 states to organize their thoughts and ideas.

October 16th

I. Assistive Technology
A. Assistive Tech. doesn't have to be the latest and greatest. Your mandated to be adequate.
Has to be research based. It was ruled in the courts that all you have to do is provide just
what is necessary
II. Student Environment The Tasks The Tools
What are there special needs and special abilities? The SETT framework is almost like an
SST for Special Needs kiddos. You need to think about - be very specific in terms of the
physical environment when planning
- Materials and the equipment that all students have access to.
a. Things that students have access to on a daily basis
b. What about the attitude? Need to think about the people who are going to be responsible
for your student in their classroom. Are they willing to change and to accommodate your students.
- You can divide personnel into 4 quadrants - Lower Left - Unwilling,
Able but unwilling - those are the ones you go to administrators; Willing and Able -
B. Tasks
1.What are the expectations for kids their age in those environments. What's everyone else
doing in the environment.
C. Tools -
What do you need to consider , what different kinds of strategies need to be considered and
tried?
D. How can the student try out a proposed intervention system in the environment that they
are to be. If you are going to try out a SETT scope you have to do the intervention (the
practice) in the environment where the intervention will take place.
- IF going to try it out could but this in the IEP (extended trial period to determine the
advocacy of this intervention. Can say will meet in four months, etc. whatever you need
and reassess the intervention). You can come back and revisit. Nothing is carved in stone.
III. Class Assignment
A. Review - If you are finding something for a particular age or grade level, how frequently
do you look at it before they do it?

B. Tonight being asked to look at interventions based on curriculum
- How do you help students determine what's factual and what's not when using websites?
a. Model critical thinking - teaching students not taking things at face value.
b. How to find verification of information
c. Provide a checklist - could be a picture checklist.
d. Limit what students find on the internet.

C. Oral Language/Speaking
a. Looked at stuff they were most familiar with. If you're going to collaborate with others
- you're going to use the things that you are the most familiar with.

D. Math
a. Found the most useable both for teachers and students - EdHelper.com - for resources
and worksheets.

Useful websites:
- National Library of Virtual Manipulatives ttp://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html
1. All divided by k-2, 3-5
- A plus math
- Texasat.net
- RAFT - over aross by the County Office of Ed.
- Can actually get refurbished computers for $50.
- If it is a district policy that you can't bring computers into the classroom that were
personally owned

E. Language Arts
- http://www.internet4classrooms.com/
- http://www.makeyourowncomics.com/
- PVC - u joint pipe for kids to be able to read aloud to themselves. Whisper Phone
- Make your own low tech tools - laminate from the laminator machine (from the
beginning)- can do a three hole punch and put it in front of the binder.
- Glue stick - can glue to make into a post-it-note. hole punch and put it in the front.
- Magnifying
- Can do text to speech on a Mac OS 10 for free (can find and download)
- PC can do Read Naturally can get that for free (can find and download)
- PDF Aloud

*** Alphasmarts - no longer exist =( Have a new one called Neo's

Converting tapes to cd - download amadeus - but is on Mac OS

F. Science
1. High Tech - usda.gov, national weather service, Scope on a rope, google earth, google lit trips Rainforestmaps

2. Low tech - kidsperation
- tape recorders
- listening to radios
- recipes
- kitchen supplies

Interesting websites
http://www.internet4classrooms.com/
http://www.shodor.org/interactivate/ (math website - all great online activities)
http://www.rainforestmaths.com/ (have to make sure you have the right flash players for your
kids to be able to do these activities).
http://www.schooltr.com/
http://www.iloveschools.com/ (similar to donors choose)
http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html
** For students who have difficulties moving a mouse - eye/mouse coordination if you want them to do something - giving them a game - such as Bejeweled - gives them a big target and helps them practice.

** For kids who are learning how to type - using two fingers to type - can get programs such as write out loud program or use text to speech. If you have kids with visual problems what can you do to modify the keyboard? Can use stickers. Most of the time - if you have a yellow background and blue lettering can put on the keyboard makes it easier to type.

On screen keyboards - within the microsoft operating system - you can get an onscreen keyboard and all students have to do is use their mouse to create type for them.

- Sticky keys - will not type more than once if students are holding keys down over and over again.
- Next time it will be based on disability. Completely different paradigm.

Reflection:
How do you think, how can you as a teacher - for some with limited tech in the classroom, how can you provide the right tech support for students in your classroom?

I think that I can provide the right kind of tech support by looking at what resources I have at my disposal such as low tech/no tech supports such as slant binders, pencil grips etc. I would also consult with the OT that we have on campus if I need assistance trying to provide support a student. I currently support my students by constantly assessing my classroom teaching practice as well as assessing how well students are understanding what is taught in class and modify, modify, modify anything and everything.

* Sharon, when I posted my assignment for this week, I noticed that my worksheet ended up on two pages instead of one. I had added a few things to the lesson plan and had not realized until after the fact that the worksheet ended up on two pages instead of on one. Oops!

Oct. 9th

Research and Application: Creating Catalysts for Social Growth and Learning
I. Amanda Baggs
- In My Language
- If she didn't have access to be able to type - we would never know how intelligent she is.
She is diagnosed as a lower functioning autistic person. Since she has access to the
computer and voice output so that can communicate with us in our language.
- Are we thinking about using technology with students - are you trying to get them to think
more like us?
Assimilating into our culture?
Are you trying to get them to speak in our language?
** Infinitethinking.org - another good website/blog to look at.
II. Second Life
- No holds bar virtual reality.
1. There are lots of people with disabilities who are in Second Life
2. It's a virtual world. There is an island in Second Life for Education
- Can sign in.
- There are age restrictions for kids.
- You can trade second life dollars for real money.
- You get to customize everything, you name it you can find things on there.
- Can sign up for a basic account for free.
3. Myspace - check online to see if students are on there. Can email Tom and let him know if
something is fishy with what a student has posted online about themselves.
4. Tapped In (Tappedin.org)
- People in offices.
- They have discussion groups just for special ed. if interested.
- You can log in to Sharon's office and log in as a guest. Have to click on Sharon E.
- For those of you who teach middle/h/.s. set up a firewall, can do a running discussion.
- Good for students to do assignments, etc.
- For some kids, this will enable them to socialize with others without having personal
contact.
- This is a research project by SRI International. Has been around since 1996.
- If you are doing this with your students you get to see everything that they do.
- Pepperdine University pays quite a bit to have their own building on the Tappedin
campus.
- This is another virtual world.
III. Reasons for talking about virtual realities
- Some way to create social changes.
- How can you use the tools that you have at hand to be self advocates, to be aware of their
abilities and disabilities, to use resources to lead an independent life.
- Miccah video - goes to Oakland University north of Detroit.
- Community college districts within this area diveed up the disabilities so they don't have to
service all disabilities.
Next week's assignment- Cooperative lesson plan involving students and technology.
Do assignment on population that we are working with.
- Has to be a cooperative lesson plan.
-Using cooperative groups based on whatever technology that you have available to you -
low - tech (pecs) but not No tech.
-Design lesson plan so that it isn't just a group activity - has to be a lesson that shows a group's
positive interdependence on themselves.
-Pick an activity for 2 (2 is a group) - so they are working together to create something using
the technology that you have on hand.
** Written out like a real-lesson plan.
- Follow how it is written in the Intel binder.
- Place your assignment in the folder on Idisk next week.
** The only problem you might have is with the ELL or Gate kids when they talk about
differentiation is easy especially with sp.ed.
- When you open up the unit plan on the Intel disk, you can delete the pic. don't need to keep it
in there.
- In your blog for tonight, include the url for the wiki - put that in the unit plan as well.
- Have to be working on a unit plan for your population. - Not due until the semester.
** Part of it is a presentation to the class (via powerpoint) to the class.
** Next week - one plain 'ol cooperative lesson plan due next week.
IV. Chapter 4
Pg. 33 Components looking for in lesson plan located on that page.
- Direct teaching of social skills.
- Want to see - universal design - how kids can do things to show that they understand - want to see that you are incorporating some universal design aspect within your lesson.
*** Does not have to be APA format!
- Pg. 37-Pg. 41 - format your lesson that way.
******PBWIKI URL - http://mawinee.pbwiki.com/ ******
Email address - mawinee@yahoo.com
V. How can you use technology as a social skills tool?
- Making choices - to appropriately communicate their needs.
- All of the examples involves social interactions. When you have autistic kids it has to be a
very controlled, very deliberate lesson.
- When designing a social interactive lesson between two students, have to think of points
a,b,c. Especially with students who are autistic as well as the more severely handicapped.
- It is possible that there is a light at the end of the tunnel for students who are severely
handicapped. It's okay - give them the chance, time, opportunity - do this assignment for
real - something that you will be able to use later on and now. Build on their strengths and
that they can be an expert - set it up so that students can be an expert when doing this
cooperative social skill lesson.
- Assignment says to use a software program that is on the approved list. (See green sheet).
Finding more resources for software programs etc. go to: Http://seilts_edit241.blogspot.com
A. If going to frogguts.com -there is no way for the program to go from text to speech.
B. The virtual body - it reads the text to them. Narration - gives them a guided tour.
- Game - get to build your own skeleton
- Cool website - good for elementary, kids with print disabilities, as well as in English and
Spanish.
- Problem with games for physically impaired kids is that they have to have good fine motor.
- PowerPoint that can use in the classroom.
Reflection:
Again, I learned a lot in class this night. There are a lot of tech. resources that are at my finger tips and I am very excited to access them as well as try to implement some things at school. - Once we are finally hooked up to the Internet. I think all of the interactive and visual things that I saw in class tonight such as the virtual body website were easy to use as well as neat for kids!
Watching the video on Amanda Baggs was also interesting and it really goes to show that when people have access to technology, the possibilities are endless. I am hoping that by incorporating more technology into my class, my students will become more inspired and see technology as a cool part of school!

Assistive Tech Visit

For the Assistive Technology visit, I went to the tech. center at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library at SJSU. The person that I talked to at the center was very informative as well as very helpful. Here is what I learned:
1. The main goal of the Assistive Technology Center is to teach students how to become more
independent but there are people who work at the center who are there to help.
2. The main disabilities that the Assistive Technology Center normally helps with are students
who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing or Visually Impaired.
3. The AT center has many different programs loaded onto each computer to help students.
A few examples are:
- Adobe PDF read-aloud, Screen reader/screen magnification (some
computers have a program where a person can hold up a piece of paper to a specific magnifier that is attached to the computer and the print will be projected onto a TV
screen (CCTV).
- Voice Recognition
- Reading Machines
4. The AT center also has two specific rooms - one designed for Hard of Hearing students and
one for Visually Impaired students. Students have to request these rooms in advance.
- "Hard of Hearing room": This is a sound proof room. Students are able to go in there and
turn up the volume as loud as they wish and will not bother anyone.
- "Visually Impaired" Room: Where the screen reader, screen magnification, as well as the
Closed Circuit Television is.
5. Other interesting facts that I learned:
- For students with disabilities, there is a specific process that they have to follow in order to
have access to the Assistive Technology Center.
A. These steps are:
- Proof of disability
- See one of 5 counselors that will help him or her be on the right track for graduation.
- Each semester students have to sign up with the DRC in order to get a specific user
code allowing them to access the computers at the AT Center.
(This is a way of informing SJSU and the DRC that the student still attends school).
- The AT center is located on the 2nd floor of the library.
- The center is a very quiet as well as academically focused. One interesting thing that was
pointed out to me was that the center was very cold. The reason for this was because of all
the technology (i.e., computers, printers, etc.) that run in the center generate a lot of heat.
In order to prevent them from overheating, the temperature is kept at a very cool level.
- In addition the center being academically focused, everything that goes on at the center is
kept extremely confidential and all computers are cleared of students work files at the end of
the day.
I found that the AT center was very interesting. I never realized that SJSU offered so many resources for people with disabilities. Being an elementary school teacher of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing, I was glad to see that a college such as SJSU offers support for students with disabilities once they graduate from high school and go on to college. Up until this point, I never truly thought about what resources students might have access to once they leave the K-12 school system. As we had discussed in class this past week, I think that it is extremely important that as teachers, we teach our students how to advocate for themselves, even at the elementary level so that they are better prepared when they graduate from high school.

Oct. 2nd

* Assistive Technology discussion:
If you're teaching h.s. or middle school, teaching students who are coming out of K-12 system
teaching students how to advocate for themselves. Please include the students in the decision
making process so that they are more sufficient once they get out into the "real-world".
When you are looking at the really neat things, be careful what you are investing your money.
*** For assistive tech. you want the least intrusive.
*** Papers - when you get paper back - if it was 7pts. or lower, you need to re-write and follow APA format to a T.
* Excel spread sheets - will include additional comments, ...
Excel is review from 2 weeks ago.
I. Freedom Machines/ Hello Friend
Danny Glover - talking about being in the lowest reading group in 2nd grade - and how he felt marked - he knew he could never climb out of that hole. Another student asked her mom, how can everyone be perfect and I'm not.
- Most Special Education teachers leave their jobs within 5 years. How do you want to leave your mark on students to plant a seed? For altruistic and selfish reasons. Using Assistive Tech./ Tech. you can do a whole lot you want students to be as functionally responsible and independent as they can be. Wanting kids to be positive attributes to the community. Kids who are not successful- end up in group homes, jail, or
II. Excel spreadsheets
Looking for: Comments in appropriate cells (To add comments - go to insert - click on
comment (can add a comment in the comment box).
Auto filter (Go to data, click on auto filter) will show the tabs and can
re-arrange alphabetical order, etc.)
Condional formating - looking for yellow, red, green (To do the formating-
1. Hi-light cells that you want to use for conditional
formating. Click on (less than) first/add number, go
to (format) to color code. Next, click on (add) to add
more colors.
Worksheets - labels on them (On the bottom)
****ICDL.org**** International Childrens Digital Library: Books in 34 different languages
Reflection:
As a teacher, I have the highest expectations for my students. I view them as being Deaf only and that they should not be treated any differently than any other student on campus. I have a few students who's main disability is not deafness and I do make modifications and accomodations for them.
For my students who are just deaf, I have very high expectations for them such as that most will go to college, succeed in school (K-12) to the best of their abilities, and know that they can be successful at everything that they try. I realize that with most of my students, people in their lives tend to enable them, to do things for them, or feel sorry for them just because they are deaf. In my classroom, my students know that they are expected to act like any other student on campus i.e. raising their hands when they need something, not yelling across the room to get my attention, working cooperatively with others, turning in all homework on time, as well as following all school rules on the playground. With my 5th graders, if they need an interpreter for an outside function, I want them to start learning how to advocate for themselves. I had one student last year who was taking a hip-hop class after school and need an interpreter. It was brought to her parents's attention that an interpreter would be provided if the student needed one but the parents said it was not needed. When talking to the student, I discovered that she could not hear what the instructor was saying some of the time and did indeed need an interpreter. Unfortunately because she did not mention it to her parents, there was nothing I could do for her.
To answer the question of how do I want to leave a mark on my students, I want them to feel confident both with academic skills as well as social skills. I also want them to become model citizens as well as teach them to be able to advocate for themselves. I also want them to know that whenever they have a problem, they can always come and talk to me.
For class tonight, since I missed the last class, learning Excel was interesting but I think I got that down. As for the paper, ULD assignment - I need to get updated materials on APA! I have an old Allyn and Bacon book on writing styles that is clearly outdated!