Week 4

Learning tasks using websites.

In the workshop today we directed our attention to the following website: http://www.abc.net.au/dustechoes/dustEchoesFlash.htm

We explored the Aboriginal culture focusing on the dream time stories. As with accessing any website it is advised that there be some user discretion, as the content can be disturbing to some audiences.

The task was then to watch and then retell one of the dream time stories using Inspiration software. In this software, a series of pictures are taken with captions underneath. These pictures together then retell the story. The nice thing about this software is that the user can paste pictures anywhere they like and be creative in the way they use the pictures to retell the story.

There are many websites that have movies on them that students could make these picture stories from. I thought a really educational idea would be to use the kids National Geographic website http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/ for students to create their own picture stories. This has some great educational videos that i think students would really enjoy.

I retold the story Morning Star as i found it particularly interesting. Below is how i expressed my story.

This Inspiration software could be used for numerous activities in the classroom. It provides a unique learning opportunity for the students because it allows them to express themselves using pictures and brief summaries, making their stories concise, and making sure their pictures really do tell a thousand words.


Our next task involved the use of M&M's to create number charts. This was done using Microsoft Excel and had a Numeracy focus. Whilst using a fun medium such as chocolate, it is important to always remember the responsibilities as a teacher, in that some students may have allergies and so caution must be taken.


The task was to count out the different colours in an M&M packet. After sorting the different colours, we then needed to tabulate the results in Excel. From this we then created a chart using the data. From my previous schooling and University life, i have used Excel graphs an abundance of times, and strongly believe that it is one thing the students should learn how to do well from a young age. Microsoft Excel is a brilliant tool for Mathematics, from beginner to advance. It is a very underestimated piece of software because it is so simple to use, yet when it is used to it's full potential it is an extremely powerful piece of software. I know that in my teaching i am going to encourage students to use spread sheets to evaluate data and get the most out of the software.


















The Internet is a great source of education for Numeracy because many statistics can be found and manipulated. Most children are interested in a particular sport, and they could create graphs and charts of statistics for their favourite player or team. Websites such as http://www.afl.com.au/ or http://www.australianopen.com.au/ are full of statistics that students can copy into their excel spread sheets. By choosing a topic that interests them, students will be better engaged in the activities.