I used ‘Audacity’ to create an mp3 podacst of my reflection of task 1. Again, amongst the many ‘brand new’ things I picked up and learnt during the face-to-face week of this course, I heard about Audacity for the first time… now I’m here using it…
(Image: http://www.masternewmedia.org/images/iPod_and_CD_podcasting_id491613_size440.jpg)
Today, I enlisted my seven year old cousin to test-run our LAMS sequence… it turned out better than I expected…
My partner Shirley was unfortunately not able to come and view the test-run of our LAMS sequence, whereas I had the privilege to do so; I thought and felt that it was an absolute privilege to see a child/student try our LAMS sequence.
I had phoned my aunty the day before, just to let them know that I’d coming over the next day to let get Katrina to help me out with something (I thought it was the right thing to do–let the parents formally know what I was planning to do, and what their child was going to do). By the way, this initial step of informing the parents and carers of a task their child is going to participate in is vital, especially when anything they do will be shared with a third party.
When I got there, I explained to Katrina quite explicitly details of the LAMS sequence and a brief introduction. As our sequence is based on Road Safety, she had not yet delved into this topic this year. She said that she remembered doing a unit on Road Safety in Kindergarten. But from what I observed, this was not a problem at all–she’s such a clever girl. She completed the sequence without a fuss. I was very pleased. I later questioned her for some feedback. Her general comments were that she thoroughly enjoyed the task, the videos and some of the questions were funny, she enjoyed composing the jingle, recording it, then listening to it… Basically, she loved it. Therefore, I was extrmemly happy that it went well. No dramas.
As much as I get nervous of public speaking, I always know that it’s a good learning experience for me especially–to develop confidence in myself and what I’m suppose to be doing. So, the showcase of the groups’ LAMS sequences was a worthwile, enjoyable and inspiring session/task as I realised truly how adaptable LAMS can be for alternative learning in the primary classroom. I was gained a few ideas and pointers on how my partner and I how we could apply various other strategies in our sequence…
The Skype conversation/conference with Debbie Evans via Skype was an incredible experience–the whole class listening into a mini-lecture/talk about the use of technology and interactive educational programs in the primary school sphere. I found this talk inspiring, as I gained more understanding of the effective use of LAMS in the classroom; intially, I was so confused with LAMS and didn’t clearly understand how it could be really used in the classrooms besides a few q. and a. activities, but Debbie expressed how it can be so much more than that… Here are a few quick notes that I took down during the Skype conversation:
