In the age we are living, it is vital that we equip students with the tools to present information via digital media. The focus of chapter 4 in the book Crafting Digital Writing by Troy Hicks, focuses on crafting presentations. Much of the focus is on the presentation rather than the content of the presentation. As a 4th grade teacher, it seems as if many students struggle with basic grammar skills. I would say 80% of the students in my class came to me this year without the skills to put a capital letter at the beginning of their sentences and the correct end mark at the end.
Questions I am asking myself:
-How can I move on to teaching students how to craft digital writing when they cannot even craft hand written writing?
-How can I expose them to digital presentation programs when they are unable to come up with quality content?
-Is allowing students the opportunity to create digital writing the key to unlocking their desire to write?
While I agree that we should be modeling how to create digital texts in the classroom, I am struggling with the logistics of how to do this. It seems as if there are so many resources online…..so many programs from which to choose. If I were to choose a presentation program to introduce to students, which one would be the best? When would I find the time in my schedule to introduce this to students considering taking students to the computer lab would be the only way all students could access a computer at the same time? What is a good balance between hand-written assignments and digital writing assignments?
Hicks (2013) outlines the digital writing process the same as the writing process with prewriting consisting of visualizing and imagining your presentation. He suggests when drafting to start with pencil and paper and to focus on colors and fonts. Revising and editing includes not only checking for grammatical errors but also focusing on appeal. When publishing your content, his opinion is that you should include a handout to your audience. Please click on the link below to see a short presentation I created outing the digital writing process Hicks(2013) proposes.
References
Hicks, Troy (2013). Crafting digital writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Anna,
ReplyDeleteI think you ask a lot of good questions that I would be thinking as well. In math it is hard to have students write much less write digitally. I focus so much on covering my standards and making sure they have mastered them that I do not do enough writing. I told my students that I plan to start giving them discussion questions on their test to get them used to explaining the mathematical ideas and concepts they learned in their own words. I think this would be a nightmare at first but think that the students would get better as the year went on. Im in the same boat you are in when it comes to finding time to introduce them to a tool or to teach them how to write digitally.
Emily, I think it is a great idea to give discussion questions on the test. I may not grade them, but it would give me insight into their understanding!
DeleteAnna,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your thinking. I teach second grade and it is like pulling teeth to get them to write their thoughts down in coherent sentences. I have found that even though we teach them these skills they seem to understand at that moment but, as soon as they have to use them at a later time it's long forgotten. I hope that introducing them to such cool programs/software will motivate them to be better crafters of writing. I enjoyed your Capzles and the background music. I would like to use this program in the future.
It is an awesome idea to go ahead and introduce writing in Math, because it gives your students an opportunity to explain their answers. Although you may have some resistance at first the ability to really break it down and expose them to the idea of exploring their own thoughts is great. Students love to express themselves but often clam up when it come to Math and Writing. If you can make them feel comfortable with expressing themselves they will do very well. The introduction of new skills is always looked at as time consuming but they have to learn them at some point. So, why not the present digital writing is something that I think they will really enjoy.
ReplyDelete