Engaging Today's Sophisticated Young Learners

Engaging Today's Sophisticated Young Learners

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For educators, finding ways to engage today's sophisticated young students is a constant challenge. These kids read much less than their parents and grandparents, and spend considerably more time interfacing with screens of one kind or another. Rather than fighting this trend, teachers can use the new technologies to their advantage, and find innovative ways to motivate their students.

Incorporate the new technologies into lesson plans: there are resources available to today's teachers that those who taught even just 30 years ago could never have envisioned. Teachers who aren't up to speed on using computers and the internet in their lesson plans will have a harder time reaching tech-savvy young learners!

Most classrooms today have computer hookups available for educators to use: so use them! Here are some ways to use some of the tools in lessons:

-- Most teachers are using Power Point presentations, but how about taking them a step further? Instead of going from slide to slide, consider making a movie of the slides instead using a program such as PhotoStory.

For example, as an introduction to teaching the novel Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, an English teacher could make an introductory movie with photographs from the Great Depression era or the Civil Rights era. With PhotoStory, the short movie can be set to music, have captions, and even have a narrative along with it. It can be shown using a projected laptop, and is guaranteed to get students' attention with a great visual message.

-- Have a virtual scavenger hunt using GoogleEarth. An English educator who is teaching a novel set in various places around the globe can use this program to create a fun and educational experience for students.

Each location can contain hyperlinks leading kids to different websites related to that place, and each location could have an educational activity associated with it. After the assignment in one place is finished, a "clue" is given to send students off to another place in the world that is mentioned in the book.

-- Nothing gets kids engaged more than interacting with the computer and seeing something happen as a result. Many educators are using Adobe Activate to create electronic quizzes that get their students' learning juices flowing. This program can also be used to make on-line tutorials for students who must study at home for whatever reason.

Educators shouldn't be frightened of the new technologies: they should embrace them and use them to their advantage in today's modern classrooms full of tech-savvy children. Most of the programs and software is user friendly and their applications are virtually endless. It's a new day in America's schools!

About the Author:
If you are an educator who would like Captivate training in Chicago, or would like to enroll in a Dreamweaver course in Chicago, contact the professionals who can teach you all about it: Training Connection. Art Gib is a freelance writer.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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