Meaning-Making in Early Learning Contexts

1. Meaning-Making in Early Learning Contexts Using e-Learning Resources to Support and Extend Learning for Young Children Pamela Solvie, Ph.D.—Northwestern College, St. Paul, MN Minnesota e-Learning Summit 2012

2. Tools to foster conversation, connect children with adults and other children • Tools for engagement and empowerment, interaction, relationships, and community, gap closing: Using tools to help move children forward • Tools with mediators or trusted guides • Technology in the service of young children, families, and practitioners E-Learning and E-Resources Chip Donohue, Ph.D., Director of Distance Learning at Erikson Institute, summarizes key themes from the 2010 Fred Forward conference

3. High quality experiences promote Authenticity Perspective Taking Empowerment Responsibility E-Learning and E-Resources Chip Donohue, Ph.D., Director of Distance Learning at Erikson Institute, summarizes key themes from the 2010 Fred Forward conference:

4. Authenticity and Empowerment

5. Consider: Differentiating technology experiences to build on children’s funds of knowledge Shifting focus from skills toward a broader range of competencies, awareness, and dispositions Providing learning environments rich in ‘environmental technology’ Recognizing the importance of authenticity for children’s learning E-Learning and E-Resources (Plowman, McPake & Stephen, 2008)

6. Early Learning Contexts

7. Video Deficit Effect—and other things that may not be effective…. Early Learning Contexts

8. What does this mean? • Does it mean doing the same thing—but with technology? What does the literature say about meaning-making?

9. But…is it safe with technology? • Virtual Worlds: Club Penguin, Webkinz, Neopets, Dizzywood, Millsberry, and others are “online playgrounds for kids ages 6-8. They’re called virtual worlds, because they create entirely new and different environments for your children”. What does the literature say about cyber-safety? http://www.commonsensemedia.org/advice-for-parents/online-worlds-young-kids-tips

10. 21st Century Skills • Collaboration • Communication • Critical Thinking • “Simply being able to use technology is no longer enough. Today's students need to be able to use technology to analyze, learn, and explore. Digital age skills are vital for preparing students to work, live, and contribute to the social and civic fabric of their communities”. What does the literature say about use of technology? http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx

11. Knowledge Building Skills (more than low-level skills) Cultural Capital Dispositions for Learning Funds of Knowledge Cultural and Cognitive Experiences Building On Meaning-making Through Curriculum What does the literature say about access? Expert Interaction (Wolfe & Flewitt, 2010; Plowman, McPake & Stephen, 2010)

12. Access and Funds of Knowledge

13. Collaboration

14. Doing More…Doing It Differently

15. Doing More…Doing It Differently

16. DAP views the child as an active learner and participant in his or her own development • This includes reflection and asking questions. • Child directed, child-controlled tasks with careful scaffolding supports development (Cooper, 2005) Thinking About Healthy Child Development in Digital Environments

17. Reading proficiency, attention span, fine motor skills, and eye-hand coordination will determine time needed to complete tasks • Appropriate levels of intervention and scaffolding will be needed • Cueing • Prompting • Instructing • Using guided interaction (Wang, Kinzie & McGuire, 2010) Thinking About Healthy Child Development in Digital Environments

18. Planning Based on Developmental Appropriateness • Age • Individual • Culture • Interest • Apps 4 Stages Thinking About Healthy Child Development in Digital Environments

19. Scaffolding to Extend Language

20. Commentary • Prompts • Choices Extending Language

21. Bits and Bytes Multimodal Experiences Playing at Learning

22. Children use technology to plan their play experience scenarios (promoting advanced thinking, sustained attention, detail, and extension of ideas) Adults support the child and interact during the planning via computer Children print the picture, build or engage in dramatic play. The child photographs the creation Adults scaffold to help the child articulate and represent their learning (Yelland, 2011) Planning and Documenting

23. The teacher photographs play areas inside and outside the classroom and may upload (or not) to the computer Questions are posed to guide thinking such as “Estimate how many kids can fit into the cubby house. Now test to see if you are correct” and “Can you see any shapes that create a recurring pattern?” Children link the use of new technologies with playful explorations in the real world and build representations and form new understandings (Yelland, 2011) Investigating

24. Reading • Tumble Books and other E-Readers • Read-Write-Think • Author Connections • Speaking and Writing • Kid Pix, Dictation • Kidspiration/Inspiration • Digital Storytelling • Visit, Label, Record—Digital Pictures, Electronic Slide Show • Draw and paint • Planning • iPads and other Pentop Computers • Graphing • Practice with Feedback • Online sites • Electronic White Board • Communications • Digital Cameras • Twitter • E-mail • Blogs • Chronicle Learning • Evidence of Growth—Digital Cameras • Videoconferences Meaning-Making

25. Videatives (Video + Narrative) Videotape children’s spontaneous play based on prompts or themes, edit and screen the footage for children to watch in small and large group Have children watch it play back on a screen and ask questions: • Can you tell the story? • What were you doing there? Why? • Did anything mysterious happen? • What did you discover? • What will happen next in the story? Record children’s voices and re-edit the videos, leaving some of the natural sounds of play interwoven with the voiceover narration Send home the final videos that range from 2-10 mns. (Eno, 2008) Videatives (Video + Narrative)

26. “When you ask children questions about their play, without video footage for them to reference, you will get a few replies. Show them a videotape of themselves at play, however, and suddenly those questions will receive ten times as many answers, which will then lend themselves to 1,000 more things to play, videotape, and think about.” (Eno, 2008) Videatives (Video + Narrative)

27. Listen to a story, draw pictures for storyboards to plan frames for their movie “to get their idea across” Children draw upon their own experiences and the story to generate a visual text Children infer, reflect, and “generate” ideas as they find an entry into the text • (Mills, 2008) Digital Storyboards

28. Listen to a story Change the story by imagining different events from those in the plot Study the genre and textual features of micro-documentaries Include an introduction by a narrator, an observation, re-enactment of events, and an interview of the main characters Prepare storyboards; script-write (revise the script as needed for filming), act it out and film it (deciding on long and short shots); make use of digital editing (Mills, 2008) Digital Movies (Collaborative Digital Microdocumentaries)

29. Provide instruction then have students handwrite a comic that contains only three frames, and then present it digitally using http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/ Engage in problem solving as they seek ways to work within the framework (Mills, 2008) Writing Comics

30. Provide children with cameras Take visual walks; children take photographs Children photograph what is important to them to voice and share what is important to them Integrated within units, children capture real-world examples of things they had been learning about in the curriculum Mount photographs on charts with favorite sentences, art, and poetry Transition to joint construction with leveled questions for interactional routines using first, next, now, above, below to photograph items from different vantage point Each small group creates a digital photo-booklet to document the route of their walk by inserting jpeg images into PowerPoint presentations with key vocabulary Students experiment with custom animation for photos and text Other groups view the photo—booklet and answer questions Photo-Booklets

31. Gather, sort, and interpret photographs from many different sources and study captions Children take photographs and insert them into Word, use Word drawing tools, and write captions (in pairs) of their interpretation Children passed the photograph on to the next pair for their caption to be added Vocabulary lists were generated to describe and interpret photographs for the subjects represented Humor is used to help children think about the multiple ways the same photograph can be read by different audiences in different contexts with different experiences Graphic organizers (Inspiration) were used to sort, classify and order information children want to present to others—first Tree Diagrams and then with subcategories to scaffold what the children wanted to communicate and tell others. Graphic organizers provide a way of evaluating and planning Present digital stories in the form of PowerPoint presentations to record and then report on events at assemblies, in the school newsletter, and through displays around the school. Using Photographs

32. Project and Share • documents, • websites, videos, • worksamples, • photographs, • artifacts, and digital • books • Model and demonstrate • Support • inquiry, • Vocabulary development, and • Creativity • Engage in • project based learning • collaboration Using Projectors to Support Meaning-Making

33. Skype ePals ooVoo iChat (Apple) AIM Gmail Chat Google+ FaceTime (Apple) Host Parent-Teacher Conferences Interview Experts in the Field Take Virtual Field Trips Videoconference Talk With ePals

34. Take a virtual field trip View reality via webcams or video Sketch and label (KidPix) Visit websites to gather, extend, and clarify information Gather information from local sites and community guest speakers Connect with other classrooms via e-mail/chart stories/dictation and videoconferencing Write collaborative stories to create a whole-class story Create video snapshots for review and reflection (Water is Wonderful and Japan themes) Conduct Collaborative Research

35. Select authors with whom children are familiar; read multiple texts by the author Have children compare/contrast themes, characters, and settings in the text Have children select and illustrate ‘golden phrases’ using KidPix Prepare interview questions in collaborative groups; group questions as a whole class (life, decision to write, writing topics…) Create a videoconference account Use http://skypeanauthor.wetpaint.com to connect with the author Prepare and share information with others (newsletter, PowerPoint) Respond to thank the author (e-mail dictation) Connect with Authors

36. Publish e-books

37. Watch trailers • http://www.homepages.dsu.edu/mgeary/booktrailers/default.htm Identify questions Select scenes from the book Prepare text Create video blurb Post to webpage and create QR Codes Book Trailers as Book Reviews

38. Kidblog.org to blog • Tumble Books and other e-readers • Share published writing via iMovie (Author’s Chair) including labels, images, and illustrations • Wonderopolis to tweet • Create QR Codes to link to children’s work Additional Examples

39. Think about differentiating technology experiences to build on children’s funds of digital knowledge • Shift focus from skills toward a broader range of competencies, awareness, and dispositions • Provide learning environments rich in ‘environmental technology’ • Recognize the importance of authenticity for children’s learning (Plowman, McPake & Stephen, 2008) • Document Cameras • Kid Pix • Hyper Studio • Kidspiration/Inspiration • Pentop Technology • Tablet computers • iPads Think About a Broader Range of Competencies, Awareness, and Dispositions….

40. Benefits Challenges • Tasks are problem or project oriented • Projects are student centered • Tasks are often collaborative • Tasks are authentic/relevant • Tasks are motivating • Interaction on the part of the teacher increases • Students work for extended periods of time • Students are engaged • Student voice is encouraged • Positive gains in dispositions toward learning and academic skills are evidenced • Scaffolding needed • Interaction needed • Additional time for activities is required • Just in time assistance is needed • Time is needed for professional development and preparation • Time is needed to troubleshoot technical problems • Role instruction for groups and individuals is needed • Grouping, instructional routines, and center organization may need to be revisited Meaning-Making and E-resources

41. Intentional • Planned • Structured and Flexible • Involves guided interaction that draws attention to important aspects of visual display Meaning-making in Early Learning Contexts

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44. Early Connections • http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/index.html • International Society for Technology in Education • http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx • NAEYC References • http://www.naeyc.org/content/technology-and-young-children/resources • Technology and Young Children Interest Forum • http://www.techandyoungchildren.org/index.html References