Self-Directed Learning Using Feedly

Melissa Holt

Assignment 12

EDT 5372

Dr. Zhang

            After reading two educational post from the educational technology blogs that I subscribed to, I found the postings to be very enlightening. A synopsis of what I learned from each of the educational technology blogs is listed below:

Edutopica: Building Vocabulary Through Fun and Games

            In this blog post, I truly learned several really great things that I plan to take back to my classroom.  I enjoyed this article, not only because the findings within the article are intended to provide academic vocabulary building skills for all student, but also because the suggestions in the article can specifically be geared toward students who are English Language Learners (ELL) and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).  Because the El Paso boarder region has a large number of students who are ELL’s and ESOL’s, these strategies can prove to be very beneficial in helping teacher facilitate and promote student learning in the classroom setting as student build their vocabulary skills in the English language.  The importance of vocabulary building is not only essential for ELL and ESOL students, but often students have difficulty with comprehension skills due to unknown vocabulary words.  The approach to building vocabulary through fun games is an approach to deepen students’ understanding of key terms while keeping them engaged in their learning. Some interesting findings presented in the blog post included having students examine non-examples of vocabulary words, using online vocabulary tools such as a visual thesaurus, and drawing guessed meanings of unknown words as students encounter new vocabulary words. The article even incorporates a kinesthetic approach to building vocabulary skills with a “rating game”.  I found the suggestions in this article to be very creative ways of teaching vocabulary and I aim to integrate at least one of these strategies into my classroom this school year.    

Feedly Link: http://feedly.com/i/entry/5kWGs/SfI+JL6mNKQAH3ijVlWPFqbbz7OtOHvwYHe/E=_1584a4de2b9:4be463:42ec361

Direct Link:
https://www.edutopia.org/article/buliding-vocabulary-through-fun-and-games-rebecca-givens-rolland

Edutopia: 6 Techniques for Building Reading Skills-In Any Subject

            In this blog post, I was able to learn about various strategies that can be implemented into any grade level and content area.  I found this article extremely beneficial in helping student prepare for STAAR testing for tested graded levels 3-12.  The STAAR exams in Reading, Math, Science, and Social Studies are in essence all reading exams; however, they are just reading exams that are content specific. For example, the Math STAAR exam is a reading exam on Math, and the Science STAAR exam is a reading exam on Science, etc.  Therefore, building reading skills across the curriculum is an important skill for students to develop throughout their education.  The techniques mentioned in the blog post included teaching students closed reading skills, appealing to the senses, setting reading goals, varying text length, offering opportunities for choice reading, and assessing content and skill.  The strategies are intended to help students develop their readings skills as well as continue to grow in their reading development as they become lifelong learners.

Both of these educational technology blogs provided insightful information that can be used by educators to support students in an effort to meet the needs of the 21^st century student in effective, creative, and meaningful ways.

Feedly Link: http://feedly.com/i/entry/5kWGs/SfI+JL6mNKQAH3ijVlWPFqbbz7OtOHvwYHe/E=_15853bd3517:4f0a23:48c9ca4f

Direct Link:
https://www.edutopia.org/article/6-techniques-building-reading-skills-susan-barber