I don't have a catchy title for this week's blog...sorry. BUT if you did read my bland title today's blog theme is all about Ebooks! Ebooks are just electronical versions on of printed books that can be read on the computer or any other electronic device.
Ebooks in the classroom should be used in younger grades, intervention classes, or as an option for students who do not read as well or as quick as their peers. According the the article E-Books and TPACK: What Teachers Need to Know About Ebooks, Ebooks have the traditional conventions of print books such as having a title, pages and chapters but they also have pictures and hotspots that provide navigation mechanisms for the reader such as: animations, sounds, videos, and read aloud functions. Perfect for students who struggle with reading. I think that these would be great to assign to students who also struggle with bring things back or loosing items that they are given.
In the school that I am tutoring in now we use an Ebook website called MyOn. I enjoy this site because it is easy to use, covers all ages grades K-12, and reads outloud to its readers. Along with that, it gives you the option to follow along as it is reading by highlight either the sentence they are on OR word by word. This is a great feature to have especially for students who are not strong readers. Another benefit is that this Ebook site has questions for students to answer when they are finished reading to test student's comprehension. This website would be something that I would consider using in my own classroom.
Other benefits about using Ebooks in classrooms are:
I see these benefits fitting in with my future classroom because I want my classroom to not only be diverse culturally but technologically too. When including this into my classroom effectively there are a few things I want to consider is:
When it comes to reading, I think Ebooks are very beneficial especially for young children learning to read and intervention class settings but when it comes to enhancing writing structure, I am not sure it would benefit students. Which means that if teachers wanted to they could spend more time on writing fluency or find another technology option that does. By having Ebooks in a classroom students struggling with reading fluency or phonics can hear how words are supposed to me pronounce and how a proper sentences should be read. When it comes enhancing writing skills I think incorporating book creator into a classroom will help students who struggle communicating their ideas and thoughts. This could also help to increase student engagement such as wanting to write because students would be writing for someone other than the teacher; they would have their own audience. By having their own audience I think it will motivate students to want to give their best writing they can do.
After reading Jon's post on using book creator to help a couple struggling, unmotivated students I would like to try and incorporate something like this in my own classroom. What was the most striking to me was that something as small as creating their own Ebooks was something that motivated not just the students but the parents as well. They liked that their student was happy and enjoying school. It got the kids engaging and interacting with their peers, tracking who has viewed their books (which makes them globally aware because they have to look up where these places are), and they were so excited they could not stop writing. Although not all situations are going to be as warm and fuzzy as his, that is something that I look forward too when I have my own classroom. I may not connect with someone on the first try or even the second or third. But, when I do, it will be a great feeling just knowing that I do not have to do extravagant gestures to get students motivated.
Ebooks in the classroom should be used in younger grades, intervention classes, or as an option for students who do not read as well or as quick as their peers. According the the article E-Books and TPACK: What Teachers Need to Know About Ebooks, Ebooks have the traditional conventions of print books such as having a title, pages and chapters but they also have pictures and hotspots that provide navigation mechanisms for the reader such as: animations, sounds, videos, and read aloud functions. Perfect for students who struggle with reading. I think that these would be great to assign to students who also struggle with bring things back or loosing items that they are given.
In the school that I am tutoring in now we use an Ebook website called MyOn. I enjoy this site because it is easy to use, covers all ages grades K-12, and reads outloud to its readers. Along with that, it gives you the option to follow along as it is reading by highlight either the sentence they are on OR word by word. This is a great feature to have especially for students who are not strong readers. Another benefit is that this Ebook site has questions for students to answer when they are finished reading to test student's comprehension. This website would be something that I would consider using in my own classroom.
Other benefits about using Ebooks in classrooms are:
- Ebooks never run out of stock
- Some have text to speech options
- It is environmentally friendly
- The font is easy to read
- Is it engaging for its readers?
- Is it easy to use both for the teacher and students?
- Are there opportunities for individual practice?
- Does this Ebook site cost money?
The biggest problem that I have talked about in a previous blog is how much money a school has. Ebooks are nice to have in the classroom but if schools aren't able to provide technology to all students it is going to cause problems. Textbooks need to be kept around for students who do not have a computer or internet at home. Or if your school does strictly only use Ebooks, teachers need to allow time in class to get homework done. If a student only has the Ebook option it is going to be frustrating (and probably embarassing) for them to explain repetitively why they weren't able to do the homework or read the assignment.
When it comes to reading, I think Ebooks are very beneficial especially for young children learning to read and intervention class settings but when it comes to enhancing writing structure, I am not sure it would benefit students. Which means that if teachers wanted to they could spend more time on writing fluency or find another technology option that does. By having Ebooks in a classroom students struggling with reading fluency or phonics can hear how words are supposed to me pronounce and how a proper sentences should be read. When it comes enhancing writing skills I think incorporating book creator into a classroom will help students who struggle communicating their ideas and thoughts. This could also help to increase student engagement such as wanting to write because students would be writing for someone other than the teacher; they would have their own audience. By having their own audience I think it will motivate students to want to give their best writing they can do.After reading Jon's post on using book creator to help a couple struggling, unmotivated students I would like to try and incorporate something like this in my own classroom. What was the most striking to me was that something as small as creating their own Ebooks was something that motivated not just the students but the parents as well. They liked that their student was happy and enjoying school. It got the kids engaging and interacting with their peers, tracking who has viewed their books (which makes them globally aware because they have to look up where these places are), and they were so excited they could not stop writing. Although not all situations are going to be as warm and fuzzy as his, that is something that I look forward too when I have my own classroom. I may not connect with someone on the first try or even the second or third. But, when I do, it will be a great feeling just knowing that I do not have to do extravagant gestures to get students motivated.
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