Research

=Traditional Writing Strategies vs Technology Implemented Writing Strategies= Type in the content of your page here. **Ipod Research** Ipod Touch vs. Aesop’s Fables Hardcover Book
 * Traditional vs. Technology**

Students: 2 boys (High/Low level reader) The teacher assigned me two students of different reading levels. I specifically asked for a low and a high reader. I chose to do a virtual book the title was “__The Tortoise and the Hare__”. It is a classic Fable about morals steady pace wins the race or, continued hard work will get you where you need to be. I wrote down the interaction between the two while they listened and watched the book.:

They both put on the headphones looked at one another with the biggest grin and both eagerly slid their tiny fingers to start. One spoke and said lets take turns OK? A nod approved the statement. Two prompts came up on the ipod book __Read to me__ and __Read alone__. One of the boys immediately pressed Read to me. When the book started they laughed and waited for the next page to turn. One of the boys would point at the screen, then the other. Their eyes lit up when the figures moved about the screen. They would laugh and look at one another and say “Did ya see that?” When Tortoise won they both cheered and one boy stated “I wanted the turtle to beat that cocky rabbit, they called a hare” “They should just call it rabbit cause that is what it basically is anyway.” When the book was finished I asked them what they thought of it in general. The lower reader stated to me “It’s the best thing I know of ! The other boy asked if the ipod could read big books too. They liked it and they both thought it was way more interesting than a book cause the pictures come up for you. (Yes, of course they asked to play games and went a little crazy over the ipod.) I asked the two students if they had some in their classroom what could you use them for tell me 5 things. They thought about it and came up with this list, it could be used to read to us, we could watch movies like science stuff, math we could play games with times table cause it would be fun, look up stuff from other places.

Second Part: Aesop’s Fables Hardcover Book Students
 * 2 a boy and girl ( High / Low level readers)

We set up a table earlier for me to read to them __The Tortoise and the Hare.__ They came and sat down and I explained to the that I was going to read them a book aloud. They listened as I introduced the book and began. As I read they asked many questions about the books and pictures. They asked why the **tortoise/hare** was not called a **turtle/rabbit**? They were excited and anticipated the end when asked. They both thought the hare would win easily. They liked the ending and both were glad the tortoise won.

Review: I liked both experiments but, I have to honestly say that the hardcover, is still tops in my book. You are able to ask more questions while reading to them, to get their minds to inference, clarify, and summarize all which help comprehension. Although the ipod also has many positives too, for individual work it would be awesome for all subjects. The biggest plus it does not matter what reading level it is when it is read to you! cp

**Test Subjects:** 1st Grade Class conducted during “Corners” with small groups (2 to 3 students at a time)

 * Test Material:** Learn Sight Words Ipod application (25 random words out of 300 possible) and Dolch Sight Word Flash Cards (25 random words out of a 220 card deck)

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 * Overview:** Out of the 15 students, not one expressed a preference of the cards over the Ipod. A few students were indifferent, but the majority expressed that they would prefer the Ipod over the traditional flash cards for a variety of reasons. Using the games and other applications as incentive for students to complete specified apps seemed to work well. The students cooperated and seemed to enjoy the opportunity to chose another application after completing “Learn Sight Words.”======

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What I found especially beneficial to the Ipod app “Learn Sight Words” was that you simply had to flag the word, and when you were finished, chose “review flagged words” and there they were. As the students read them correctly, we simply unflagged them and moved on to the next word or application. When students encountered words that they could not read or were not sure of, they simply tapped the child icon in the middle of the top of the screen, and the Ipod would pronounce the word. The students were eager to manage the Ipod on their own. I started out sliding the cards for them, but by the second or third word, they would take over and flag the words or tap the girl for pronunciations without any cues from me.======

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Things that I kept in mind include the pros: versatility, small and easy to store, less messy in the classroom, fun to use, beneficial for tracking student progress and the cons: expensive, fragile, easy to walk away with, maintenance. I believe that technology is absolutely necessary in the classroom, and the Ipod touch as a great source for a variety of applications beneficial to education. I think the most monumental draw back is the cost and the fact that they are relatively fragile. Of course, if I were working for a school that had a considerable budget, I would be willing to invest in something like the Ipod touch for my classroom.======

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Another app that I didn’t get to test, and was only chosen by one student as an option, was “Daddy I can read.” One of the best features of this app was the option of entering individual students. Student could access the app through their name, and the app would track their progress. Students could access and utilize the app on their own, but as a teacher, I could review their progress periodically to see what areas we would need to focus on. The app provided words at a First, Second, Third, and Fourth grade reading level. (JJSU)======