Blog Journal 6

     During the Tech Sandbox tour, I was so surprised that something so interesting and thoroughly kept was completely unfamiliar to me. Because the Sandbox is within my college and so close to my dorm, alongside the fact that I believed I was familiar with the building, I was shocked to learn that I wasn't aware the Tech Sandbox even existed. During the tour, I learned about the application of mindfulness techniques and focus activities in easy-to-understand digital games. In my future classroom, I would love to incorporate the same mindfulness games and those which monitored brain activity and flow as I think it could be an interesting way for students to learn about focusing and the function of their brains. I would allow students time to play different games, monitor their progress, and even include this activity multiple times throughout the school year so students could apply their results and see if their focus improved. I think it would also be interesting to include the coding and robotics games into the classroom as it would be a beginner-friendly and exciting way to introduce digital literacy to young minds. 

    ELA.3.C.5.2: "Use digital writing tools individually or collaboratively to plan, draft, and revise writing." Following this standard, students are required to learn how to use and apply digital tools and applications which may aid them in their writing. This means that by the end of their third grade year, students should be able to write and edit their pieces online, effectively using sites such as Google Docs, Word, or other writing applications. Based on the inclusion of planning and revision in this standard, students may even be introduced to the intricacies of writing applications such as spell-check and formatting, editing websites such as Grammarly, or taught how to research and include information from sources in their writing. Though I am unfamiliar with the standards and teachings of third grade students, I feel I have extensive knowledge regarding digital writing tools. Because of my first-hand experiences and digital literacy classes, I feel as though I would ultimately be qualified and prepared enough to teach this standard to students and include effective resources and guidance to students. 

    The learning resource "Is it Bullying?" supports the standards ELA.11.V.1.1, ELA.12.V.1.1, and CTE-EDU.3031.EDG0317.11.3. Throughout the course, students focus on the difference between bullying and harassment, as well as the topic's application into their everyday life. I could use this resource in my teaching as I believe it would be an insightful and impactful topic for students to learn as a means of preventing bullying and harassment. Additionally, if a student may be experiencing these issues, the insertion of this lesson into coursework may help students recognize the signs or report possible occurrences. This resource will also act as an important personal lesson for myself as a teacher, as learning and being well-versed in the differences between bullying and harassment will be an effective way to ensure I can support my students.