Henrico Staff Development

Mr. Rankin’s 7th grade French I.B students  put their oral language skills to the test when they gave tours of a house to demonstrate their understanding of the French language.  (SOL FI.5)  This assignment was done individually and could be done live in front of the class, or pre-recorded.

This example is an enhanced podcast that was completed using GarageBand.  The student matched pictures to her voice recording to create an amazing tour of a beautiful home. (creativity & innovation)

[flv]http://teachers.henrico.k12.va.us/moody/jessup_k/frenchvirtualtour.flv[/flv]

Ms. Vernon’s 8th Grade students utilized podcasting in order to increase comprehension and writing skills using the novel Copper Sun by Sharon Draper.  There is a particularly dramatic scene in the story about slavery, where the outsiders come to the African village and kidnap the members of the tribe.  After reading the chapter and an introductory lesson on screenwriting, the students dramatized the scene by writing scripts in small groups.  They used dialogue and description, through the use of a narrator.

Through our Library Information Center, students in grades 6-8 create book reviews to share with their peers. The format of the website not only allows students to post their review, but rate other books listed on the site.

More to come

http://byrdmiddle.org/books/

[flashvideo file=http://teachers.henrico.k12.va.us/wilder/saunders_d/StudentSamples/podcast.flv /]

This video relays how podcasting is an essential 21st century tool.  It contains teacher, student, and Principal perspectives on podcasting.  It also contains relevant information on the benefits of podcasting, and how to implement this feature into your classroom teachings.

Mrs. Thompson’s 6th grade class used Garageband to create podcasts to share their writing assignments on their favorite holiday.  Students worked on expression, enunciation, speed of reading, and volume while reading their work. When students discovered their work would be shared with a broader audience, they were self motivated to make further revisions to improve the quality of their work. To listen to Mrs. Thompson’s students work visit The Spoken Word.