I don't know how many
staff development days or conversations I have had with other teachers about using
iPads in my classroom. During the conversation, I am always so excited and
ready to try using iPads with my kindergartners. However, when I get back to
the classroom I begin to feel overwhelmed. I look at my lesson plans and I
can't quiet figure out how to incorporate iPads. Then I begin to think about
those students that are prone to breaking things, always dancing or moving
around, and love to not listen; thinking about those students with an iPad
makes my head hurt. And last but not least the thing that causes me the most
anxiety is working the iPad in front of my students. I don't seem to have a
great working relationship with the smart board in my room! I can't imagine what
an iPad would be like. Needless to say, I have never had the confidence to
begin using iPads in my classroom until tonight.
As I began searching the
web for a blog that talked about iPads in kindergarten, I wasn't thinking very
positively. The first few blogs I checked out were no help at all. Then I found
the gold at the end of the rainbow a blog called Digital Kindergarten. This
blog is fantastic! There were so many helpful ideas once I began to look
around. The thing that was the most helpful was one of her LiveBinders
entitled: Teaching with Technology in Kindergarten. One of tabs talks
about how she uses iPads in her kindergarten classroom all day. She talks about
how she introduces the iPads to the students and what a typical day with an
iPad looks like. After reading this post, I am now positive I can do this with
my students.
There were also tabs in the LiveBinder that showed the apps on her iPad,
the best apps for teachers, and how to use bloom's taxonomy with an iPad. I am
so excited about this blog! I have already learned so much. I am looking
forward to using the iPads with my students. Hopefully, I will get along with
the iPads and they won't give me as much trouble as my smart board does. http://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=796199
That LiveBinder was a treasure trove of resources for all classroom teachers looking to further implement 1-1 iPads with their students. I am glad you found it.
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