Blog Post # 4

Langwitches

Podcasting is a brilliant way to engage children in the classroom. I was thoroughly impressed by the first graders that were Langwitches introduced. As I was listening to the first graders, I couldn't help but to smile. These children are engaging in a type of learning that I was never introduced to. What really impressed me was the way that Ms. Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano taught her second grade students how to learn Hebrew. The students recorded their own voices in Hebrew to tell the story of Purim and the teacher out the script out of order so that when the students went up to the smartboard they can put them in order. It's a way for the teacher to test their comprehension level of the language. I thought that this was just amazing. If I had this opportunity I would probably be fluent in Spanish by now.

I love the Flat Stanely podcast. It is a great way for younger students to learn about the world around them. The students recorded their voices to tell the short story about how Stanley became Flat Stanley and how he was mailed around the world because he could fit into an envelope. Next the students were flattened! They were so excited that they got the permission from their parents to be mailed too. These students were mailed to Tokyo, Antarctica and even to Alabama where she learned to say Roll Tide! In order for these students to do this project, they had to go home with the help of their parents and do a little research about the location on where they were being mailed to. This is a great for students to engage in critical thinking and to learn how to work with others.

There are many benefits to using podcasts in and out of the classroom. According to Joe Dale, the author of The Benefits of Podcasting in the Classroom, some of the benefits include that it is a form of learning students of today are familiar with and therefore makes it relevant to them, it promotes creativity and innovation, it can offer distance learning opportunities for absent students, and allows parents to see and hear what their child is doing at school. This is the kind of teaching and learning that I want to do in my future classroom. I love hands on learning. I also think that it is a great way for the parents to be involved in their child's learning and personal growth. I will definitely use podcasting as a learning tool in my future classroom.