Williamsme1's Blog

While reading this article, I noticed that one of the barriers teachers have when teaching social studies, is the way in which the information is presented in the textbook.  I can really relate to this, because even though I was reading on grade level, some of the information presented in the textbook, to me, seemed to be  written in another language.  I could read the vocabulary and language used in the textbook, but I did not fully understand or comprehend the meaning or inferences of the words I was being asked to read.  I can fully understand how this would be a barrier for students and teachers.

Giving the students specific websites to do research is a great way to prevent students from accidentally viewing inappropriate or even misleading information about a particular topic.  It also cuts down on the actual process of having the students find reliable information about their topic, and gives more time for the students to actually do reasearch about their topic.  This also helps students who are not yet computer-savvy to understand the components of a computer and the functions of the internet.  Give students time to do this.  If you do not give students enough time to manipulate the keyboard, mouse, internet features, etc., they will spend more time trying to figure out the computer and less time researching.  Having students share their research findings, in my opinion, is one of the most helpful tools.  They are not only sharing information they collected, but are listening to their peers and gaining more information about the topic.  I absolutely want to use blogs in my classroom.  The 21st century is all about the internet, so why shouldn’t classroom teachers adapt their teaching to join the rest of the 21st century?  It is a reality.  Students in elementary school do a lot of their game playing, communicating, and homework on the computer/internet.  Times have changed, and teachers must change their ways of teaching to adapt to the changes in the world.  Students who are not exposed to the internet and all of its benefits, will eventually fall behind in society.  Blogs are also a motivator for students.  Students who know their work is going to be published on the internet for their classmates to see, will take more time and do better quality work because of that factor.

I really enjoyed reading about how the Pirate unit was presented to students.  I absolutely love the idea of a Dictionary for Piratical and Nautical Terms.  Pirate lingo is not always the easiest to understand.  In order to teach students about pirates, and give them accurate historical information, words used during that time period are part of it.  Having students develop their own dictionary for piratical and nautical terms, to me, is key in helping them learn about pirates and have fun doing it.  A Pirate-Diary Notebook is also a great way to engage students while learning about pirates.  Finding out what students know, or think they know, about pirates before you start the unit will help you, as the teacher, clear up any misconceptions or information that is not true in its entirety.  For example, people who have seen movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean or Hook, may have misconceptions about pirates.  Pirates are often misrepresented in movies, and students need to be given accurate information when learning about pirates.  However, the article states, “Pairing fiction and nonfiction is an effective method of enhancing students’ reading comprehension, boosting students’ interest and engagement, and expanding their knowledge and imagination” (Frye 16).  I totally agree.  Students do not just want to know facts.  They want to hear stories about pirates, and not all the stories they read should be just factual.  I feel that the stories they read should be historically accurate, but the story within the history should engage readers.

The activities described in Swashbuckling Adventures on the High Seas are really quite helpful.  I feel that all the activities listed are engaging and will help students understand and process the information.  Double-Entry Diaries will also help the teacher get inside the minds of his/her students.  I think that it is very important to give your students engaging books to read.  Having students read books that are not interesting and engaging, will often discourage children from reading books.  I also like the idea of a data retrieval chart.  Being able to have students organize their information while they are studying a unit, will help them understand the material and be able to pull it all together at the end.