Lesson Plan for TPACK Integration Reflection

    Learning the alphabet is an important part of learning for young students. Most first graders know their alphabet and are able to spell words. The ones learning are first grade students who will soon have a better grasp on spelling and putting letters in alphabetical order. This should be the end result of any particularly given activity in the classroom. I will know if students are learning anything by quizzes given out at the end of each week and by also documenting their progress through the online game involving alphabetical order. I will track how students are doing throughout the week by how well they do with the fun online game.

    Each spelling lesson will begin with students repeating the spelling words as they read aloud. Students will spell each word until they no longer need to look at the spelling sheet. I will then go over with students what alphabetical order is and how it is important to use it. Students will learn that just as the letter "A" comes first in the alphabet, that any word beginning with the letter "A" also comes before any other word not beginning with "A". Students will be given exercise sheets where they will have to put letters in alphabetical order and then also words. Once completing these worksheets, each student will come up to the smart board and write the answer. We will write which letters come first in whichever particular group was given. For example, students will be given the group J,S,D and will have to put them in alphabetical order. The answer: D, J and S. Students will be given a word list and will have to put these words in order as well. Such as the words mouse, cat, zebra, and giraffe. The answer: cat, giraffe, mouse and zebra. By integrating the smart board, students can feel like they are participating and can demonstrate their own great abilities.
   
    After each spelling lesson we will visit the ixl website and click on their language arts button. Here there are two online game activities where students can put letters and words into alphabetical order. This will be a fun activity to keep the kids involved and also to see if they are succeeding with the content being taught. Students can also access this website on their own during centers time or at home. Parents can also be encouraged to help their children access this site at home and document how well their child does. As an incentive to keep learning fun, first grade students can do these online activities and receive a treasure chest award at the end of the week. This will all depend on the progress they are making by doing the games at home, while having their parents supervise their success.

   The use of this technology will support my teaching by keeping kids involved and excited by the content. Anything dealing with the alphabet, spelling and words can be hard on some students. By keeping it fun and offering incentives to do educational activities at home, students will be learning even more without knowing it. Some students retain more when they feel comfortable in their own home environment. I know I do and I know I understand more when I am relaxed. By using technology and online educational gaming, students will better understand the content and will retain more. They will be excited because they feel confidant in what they have learned. They will know how to not only put the letters and the words in alphabetical order, but will also learn how to spell the words as they go. The online games are accessible from the smart board and computers in school. They work from computers at home and on any mobile device as well. This is an activity students can do anywhere and can learn just about anywhere. At the end of the week students should be able to put the letters and words in order, while also knowing how to spell each word.