In todays session we learned about multi modality. This is a means of communication which uses 2 or more of the semiotic systems, which are as follows:

• Linguistic
• Visual
• Audio
• Gestural
• Spatial

“The multimodal capability of ICT is another reason to use it, as it allows teachers to present an idea in a variety of different ways to help pupils understand it. It can also make work more interesting or motivating.” (Beauchamp, G. 2012).

Having seen ActivInspire being used in the classroom whilst on placement, I was somewhat familiar with the software. This was a different story when I had to access it myself!! I found it to be quite intimidating, as their are many different icons and options available, knowing where to actually start was a problem! I found this to be quite stressful at first, I could feel myself getting frustrated due to my lack of knowledge and ability to even navigate around the software!

This made me reflect on the impact this is bound to have had on teachers in the past and possibly presently. It is important that teachers and student teachers are given the appropriate training to be able to use technologies/software in the most effective way possible, to enhance However, after playing around with the software, it was clear that there are many dimensions to it and its capability to assist and enhance areas of the curriculum are limitless.

I decided to link my slide on ActivInspire with the activity I designed alongside the programmable toy Bee-Bot. Having chosen Health and Wellbeing as my topic for last weeks activity, I thought it would be worthwhile using this as an introduction to getting the children used to the vocabulary used in describing some feelings and emotions. In my slide I used the torch tool to enable me to hide the whole page (I did this as I thought it could help keep children focused on one emotion/feeling at a time). The children could put the torch over parts of the face depicting the emotion and focus on certain features-eyes, mouth, eyebrows. This could give hints as to what the feeling is and could be spoken about further in relation to why the person may feel this way or even just getting the children to use descriptive words. It also allows the children to see the word printed alongside the emotive face, making links and exploring their possible meanings.

The experiences and outcomes that could be developed doing this would be similar to those with the Bee-Bot activity:-

• I am aware of and able to express my feelings and am developing the ability to talk about them. (HWB 0-01a / HWB 1-01a)
• I can explore digital technologies and use what I learn to solve problems and share ideas and thoughts. (TCH 0-01a)
• I can explore and experiment with digital technologies and can use what I learn to support and enhance my learning in different contexts. (TCH 1-01a)

This weeks class has made me truly reflect on the need for me to work on my ability to navigate my way around ActivInspire and try to take advantage of all the possibilities that it has to offer. I am going to spend some time watching YouTube videos and tutorials in the hope that it assists me in feeling more confident using the software.

 

References

• Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary School: from Pedagpogy to Practice. Pearson.
• Education Scotland. (n.d.) Curriculum for Excellence.[Online] Available: https://education.gov.scot/Documents/All-experiencesoutcomes18.pdf [Accessed: 10 January 2019]