Thursday, September 18, 2014

Blog post #6

In watching these conversations involving Anthony Capps I learned many different aspects of project based learning.

Project based learningIn Project based learning part one and two, I learned that project based learning should not be used only in checking knowledge. It should be used as a way to learn. Successful project based learning projects should fit the audience, should involve the community, and should be content driven. (Meaning what you are asking your students to do should meet the standards of state and federal guidelines.)Some reasons why teachers should use project based learning are: students love project based learning, it allows teachers to engage all their students, and it has a high approval rating with principles if done effectively.

iCurio logo
Anthony suggests teachers to allow their students to use iCurio throughout the project based learning process. iCurio is an online tool that students can use to search the web safely. This tool does not allow inappropriate content to display, and gives students organization skills. It does this by allowing students to collect important information be creating files.

Discovery education is another important tool that Anthony uses in his project based learning activities. This is a video tool that shines light on the text. This tool allows experts in numerous fields into the classrooms by allowing the students to watch informative videos on the subject they are working on.

Teaching TipsFive tips Anthony Capps and Dr. Strange gives to teachers.
  1. Teachers themselves must be learners 
  2. Allow your work to become fun
  3. Be flexible
  4. Engage all your students
  5. Reflect on completed work in order to make it better.


Another tip Anthony gives to teachers that want to use project based learning in their classrooms is to use technology don’t teach it. Give your students the ability to build on the technology throughout the projects. When using technology for project based learning do not expect perfection at first. The product is a building block and will get better over time.


The final thing I learned from Anthony Capps was how to create a lesson plan.  In his video additional thought about lessons he states it is important to think about each lesson as if it is made up of four layers. First, create the lesson while looking at how it fits in your yearly plans. Second, make sure the lesson fits in your unit plan. Third, make sure the lesson fits into your weekly plan. Lastly, make sure the daily lesson is carried out to meet your unit plan. He says this is done in order to make sure each lesson get you one step closer to teacher’s yearly goals. 

2 comments:

  1. "... throughout the project base learning process." based, not base

    "... inappropriate content to do display,…" Omit to.

    Thoughtful. Thorough. Interesting.

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  2. Justin Thompson,

    " I learned that project based learning should not be used only in checking knowledge. It should be used as a way to learn. " This was one of the first things I learned from these videos as well! I think it's a great method to teach the topic instead of testing understanding after the lesson is taught. I like how you used all of the links.

    As far as suggestions go, maybe add some bold or italics in certain spots to emphasize certain parts of your blog. Also, a closing sentence or phrase would look very nice! There are also a few little errors here and there. For example:

    "In watching these conversations involving Anthony Capps I learned..." There needs to be a comma after Capps.

    "...guidelines.)Some reasons..." There needs to be a space after the closing parenthesis.

    Overall, this is a great post! You were very thorough. Good luck on the rest of your journey through EDM310!

    Jennifer Cole

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