You're walking out smarter!

As I was leaving social studies methods class today, Dr. Parker said "You're walking out…" and I finished the sentenced with "SMARTER". I always walk out of this class and think this statement in my head. This week in social studies we focused on learning experiences and how they apply to creating a unit. Learning experiences come before the performance tasks. These are the formative assessments that are given throughout the lesson that help prepare the students for the performance tasks. These are not just activities, they need to be action based and have a variety of ways. Students should be able to grasp content, skills, and generalizations. Also, we did a performance task today in class with the four levels of DOK. This helped better understand both a performance task and DOK. It was a little bit stressful but it required thinking and helped with an overall understanding.

For my research this week, I found an article, 5 ways to make the most of virtual field trips, written by Kyle Schutt. He says, "Virtual field trips can offer students an unparalleled learning experience when integrated effectively into classroom instruction." This article gives some tips to help with creating a virtual field trip for your students. The first thing is to prepare. It mentions to plan it just like a regular lessons and to base it around a standard and content that you want your students to learn. Include pre-event activities to get the students thinking about what the virtual field trip might be about. the second thing is to engage and connect. The article suggest to take any advantage that the virtual field trip might add. If there is something that the students can be engaged in during the field trip, try to be noticed during the event. Third, is model. This means that as a teacher you should model your learning for the students. Take pictures of what is going on in the classroom and document everything that happens. This is a way of showing students what they learned after the field trip takes place. The fourth thing is to reflect. Make sure to go back over the content and the things that the students learned during the virtual field trip. Lastly, make sure to share what you've learned. Some of these things can include a written reflection, visual projects such as photo journals, digital stories, and blog posts. This is a way to include parents and people in the community.

This article ties into the NC Teaching Standard 4 which is, Teachers facilitate learning for their students. I think this standard relates so well because teachers are using a variety of ways to teach their students and to make it engaging. I look forward to completing my virtual field trip and using the 5 ways to make the most of the field trip.