Donna's+project

Improve communication between home/school There are many ways to get information into the homes of the students. There are few options that guarantee that the information is read or even looked at. One goal that I have is to improve the communication between my students, myself, and their parents or guardians. Like many of my classmates, I have decided to start with an introduction explaining what the library program does. In an effort to make this UDL, I have added a podcast of the introduction using //Audacity.// I am also adding a survey for parents and students as well as a blog for students. Hopefully, if I make this interesting and easy enough, I will engage many parents and students and improve the communication thread between school and home. Norwood Public Schools has given teachers their own web pages to edit as they see fit. These pages have a lot of flexibility and some teachers use them religiously, others have yet to do anything with them. I have three websites through my school website. I have decided to alter one of them, my teacher website, ( [] ) and try to create a home school connection that will engage parents and students and hopefully have them associate positive emotions with both the library and reading. My teacher page has lessons that I do with the students during library time. These links are changed periodically throughout the year, depending on what we are doing. The students know how to get to this site and also know that if they want to practice a skill or play a game that we have done in class, they can get to these links from home. I have updated the graphics on this page by inserting a //Wordle// graphic that summarizes what we do in the library. First activity: Although there are many free options out there, my school system just subscribed to //Open Classroom// Server. It allows students and teachers to create blogs, wikis, and online assignments. This program also allows for assessment. We will use it primarily with fourth and fifth grade students this year and see how it goes. I have developed three questions for the students to answer in regards to summer reading. I have also created a blog for the students to discuss any books they have read that have also been made into a movie. I created two questions for the parents to answer – they will use their child’s log in - also having to do with summer reading. This link is posted on my website under Home School Connection. ( [] ) ( login info: visitor/school) (Open Classroom by Aspen Learning – [] ) Second activity: Using //Survey Monkey//, I am going to put a monthly “quiz” on my website for students and parents to answer. I am starting with a back to school survey asking about summer reading and goals for the upcoming school year. I am going to also start the year by putting the link for PBS //Misunderstood Minds// online for the parents. I hope that they would watch it and try a few of the activities. Afterwards, they can answer a few questions about their experience with the videos. I would hope that this would get them thinking about their child and their abilities, not their disabilities. By creating a monthly poll for both students and parents, I will be able to assess how well the students understood what we are doing in the library and how much they are telling their parents about what we do each week. I am planning on always having at least one question that allows parents to write in comments, thoughts, or suggestions. ************************************************* In researching options for how to improve communication with parents using technology, I came across a few sites that would have been good had Norwood not already subscribed to Open Classroom.  Grade Connect – Grade Connect is an online management system that will help teachers organize and enhance communication between teachers, students, and parents. The parent accounts require a fee.  []  epals – Education technology provider ePals has made its formerly subscription-based services available to schools free of charge. These services, available to all schools around the world, include SchoolMail, SchoolBlog, and In2Books.   [] 