Susan Milovich
Internet Lesson Plans that Integrate
Technology
Technology should
be incorporated across the curriculum and embedded in the classroom
routine. Lesson plans that are designed
to keep students interested, allow for a great deal of interaction between
students and the teacher, include hands-on activities, and use authentic
assessment whenever possible are pedagogically sound and will generate active
learners. This researcher also chose
lesson plans that: meet Core Curriculum Content Standards (CCCS) in technology and
subject areas, could be used in my fourth grade special education classroom
this year, and include grade appropriate visually stimulating links.
Channel Thirteen offers lesson plans to go along with their
television shows. The inquiry-based
lesson entitled “Hello, Young Blubbers!” is age appropriate. Students are asked to discover how physical
adaptations help the walrus survive by doing Internet research and hands-on
experimentation. The lesson plan offers
assistance with technology and also has tips for modification based on the
number of computers available. An excellent
handout of suggested questions for walrus research is provided. The students will enjoy the hands-on
experiment that uses Crisco to simulate blubber. Links to Channel Thirteen and Sea World
needed to be updated, however once that was accomplished they were excellent.
The Tech Lesson of the Week at the Education World website
called “Tasty Tech” features a spreadsheet and simple graph where the students
rank fast food menu items. This math
project-based lesson incorporates basic knowledge of Excel terminology with
simple data collection and analysis. The
lesson plan is set up as a hands-on, work as a group, lesson that walks the
students step-by-step through spreadsheet and graph generation. The topic is relevant, basic computer skills
from the CCCS are introduced, and there is a simple rubric in the plan for easy
student assessment. This is an excellent
lesson to do when the wireless computer lab comes to the classroom.
Intel’s project-based lesson has students create a weather
newscast with a digital video camera.
The goals of learning weather terms, using Internet research skills, and
developing oral presentation skills are easily met through this innovative
approach that touches on science, technology, and language standards. Making a video is a fantastic authentic
assessment and will definitely generate student interest. Intel offers additional math and science
lesson plans on their site that can be incorporated into my program.
The lesson plan from
“Frogs and Toads are Different” is from teachers.net. The lesson plan combines language arts,
health, and science using Arnold Lobel’s book, Frog and Toad Are Friends,
in conjunction with Internet research.
Students examine friendship and make comparisons between frogs and
toads. This five-day inquiry-based unit
encourages the students to use the Internet each day to help fill out graphic
organizers and download pictures. The
plan suggests incorporating frog jokes and silly frog photos for additional
interest. The downside of this plan is
that only one of the suggested links besides “Ask Jeeves” worked. This absolutely fabulous link connected to
the Rainforest Alliance and contains lesson plans, activities, stories and
photographs. The additional links
required are simple to create in order to help the children finish the activities
in the lesson plan.
Administrators and teachers in my school district are
enthusiastic about integrating technology into all grade levels to enhance the
students’ education, meet the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for
Technological Literacy, and find imaginative ways to engage students in
learning activities. These lesson plans,
although not perfect, will help any teacher fulfill these goals. I read Frog and Toad are Friends during
a health lesson to discuss what makes a first-rate friend. The previous suggestions are a natural
extension to that plan.