Month: February 2019

Animation is “the technique of photographing successive drawings or positions of puppets or models to create an illusion of movement when the film is shown as a sequence” (Oxford Dictionary, 2019). Animation is the area in which many people can connect with characters and personalities, however, would not have had any breath of life or movement before (Moving Image Education). Animation is the moving-like images which create a story for not just children to be taught through but has a “big visual impact…” (Jarris, 2015, p.90) on the world due to the way its eye-catching features can attract attention to its audience.

Throughout this week’s session we completed tasks which would help us prepare and practise for our next session that consists of creating our own animation movie. Animation itself can be used in many ways to reinforce the learning within a classroom. Simply, animation can be used to describe something to a class. For example, you could demonstrate eating healthy or online safety by emphasising the points through a story. The use of characters which can clearly set the plot and allows the pupils to connect with what they are seeing. They will be able to reflect and relate to the topics being discussed as they may see someone who they like or someone who they can relate themselves too. Getting the pupils to interact more with the animation is simple; let them produce their own. The enthusiastic gleams off of their faces as they create their own sets and figures to make their own story, from beginning till end, will give them a sense of independence and achievement since they are the creators of that movie.

Why does it enhance learning? Bertrancourt (2005) believes that there are three different elements within animation which takes part in impacting the way in which it can enhance learning. The first is the way in which the pupil’s visual representations are strengthened. The second is it illustrates processes; that there are stages that you must take to succeed in building the animation, you must go through the stages in order so that the final product makes sense. The third is that it provides an interactive element for the pupils. Overall, they can take part in the production of the animation which will improve various skills – I applied some of these skills today.

Problem solving.
To work out the app puppet pals I had to use my problem solving skills since I have not had to use this before. I did not fully understand how to use it at first. However, after trial and error I was able to design my own animation relating to fairy tales.

Creative Skills.
My creative skills encountered during the design of my animation. This included: having to come up with an idea that relates to the theme of fairy tales, thinking of a way in which I could portray my idea in an exciting way and making my animation child friendly but still having a fun aspect throughout.

Digital Knowledge.
Finally, another example of a skill which I used in this lesson was my digital knowledge. This had to take part in creating the animation since I was using an iPad. If I was not confident in this area about how to use the device then I would have struggled to not only make my animation but to work out the apps widgets. Having a strong digital knowledge, for me, is beneficial when faced with apps that I have not discovered before.

After watching numerous YouTube videos on animation we then used iStopMotion. This is the app which you can create, from scratch, an animation. Personally, I found this more enjoyable since I could create whatever I wanted as I was not restricted to the options available on puppet pal. However, I do feel like using puppet pal to begin with gave me a better idea about how to make an animation. Below is a video of the animation which I made.

Next week my group have planned to do our animation based on a tsunami. The idea behind this is to explain and inform the learners of natural disasters that take place around the world. To demonstrate what it looks like and how it can affect anyone; even on holidays with your family for example. During the lesson next week I want to consider the factors of how animation can minimise problems for pupils with learning difficulties. I also want to consider how technology can affect teacher’s confidence and ask myself how confident I was during these sessions and how it may have improved.

References

• Jarvis, M. (2015) Brilliant Ideas for Using ICT in the Classroom: A Very practical Guide for Teachers and Lecturers. Routledge.
• Moving Image Education. Animation. [Online] https://movingimageeducation.org/create-films/animation [Accessed: 14.2.18]
• Oxford Dictionary (2019) Animation. [Online] https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/e-book [Accessed: 2nd February 2019]

 

Personally, I view myself as digitally native. Having being brought into technology at a young age I was always very curious when it came to touch screens and how a simple tap on the screen with your finger could control a device. IMovie was something which I remember using during Primary, especially at upper school. Creating videos to portray road safety, for example, was one of my most significant memories of my experience, and a positive one at that. After hearing that this session was going to be about iMovie, I was really excited to contribute to this lesson due to previously having such great memories.

Primary schools can use iMovie in a variety of ways to inform children about the subject that they are learning about. Its multimodal features can increase the pupil’s comprehension if used effectively. Having the ability to bring lessons to life through the use of videos, sounds and pictures which creates a short movie attracts the pupil’s attention and in result, has a positive impact on their learning.

Within the classroom iMovie can be used to raise attainment since there is evidence which proves that when effectively used can “raise the speed and depth of learning in science and mathematics for primary and secondary age learners” (The Scottish Government 2015). Other benefits with this app include: the ability to teach pupils in ways traditional learning cannot – “students think and process information fundamentally differently from their predecessors” (Prensky, 2001, p.1). Since younger generations are being enveloped in technology, this idea of teaching in traditional ways may not be the best solution. The solution would be to integrate technology into teaching since this could potentially increase their motivation levels since it is what they use at home. Another benefit is that the learning experience is quicker and more enjoyable since it is more attractive to look at (Beauchamp, 2012). With having these impacts within the classroom we can see why the use of iMovie can address subjects as well as topics like e-safety since it can grip an audience.

Teachers in general, can only advise their classroom as much as they can about the positive and negative aspects about the online world. However, it is important that they are realistic about the dangers. To not only educate the pupils knowledge, but to make them aware of the dangers that are out there. “The most successful schools… in terms of e-safety ensured that pupils knew what to do when things went wrong” (Beauchamp, 2012, p.60). We should advise them that their accounts should stay private, that they do not share personal details and if they feel uncomfortable to tell an adult straight away. Overall, the pupil should also be aware of what they comment and post towards others as well as to never meet up with someone you do not know. This is very important since the person may not be who they say they are.

For our own iMovie, my group decided to discuss the issue of catfishing and how keeping your account private is more important than what it seems. Many people feel like it is okay to let people they do not know follow them as well as become their friend on Facebook or other well-known social media apps; like Snapchat. Our iMovie started with me, scrolling through my Instagram: posting photos on my profile, sharing my personal information (location, snapchat name) as well as having my account not private. This meant that anyone could view my details. This resulted in me getting cat fished since anyone (Ross) could view my photos. Ross screenshotted my photos, created a new account pretending to be me as well as messaged my friend (Lynne) who believed that I had just made a new account. This then led her to meet up with my catfish believing that she was meeting me. Our story then ended with my group going through all the different ways in which this could have been prevented. Listing these at the end consolidated this information for the viewer’s. It advised them through tips and gave them facts which they were to keep in mind when creating their own social media accounts.

The learning outcomes which we would cover for this activity would be from Digital Literacy on the aspect of Cyber resilience and Internet Safety.

I can explore online communities demonstrating an understanding of responsible digital behaviour and I’m aware of how to keep myself safe and secure. TCH 2-03a

This outcome can be succeeded through using iMovie since you can clearly get your message across to your audience. The topic of internet safety is a significant area which is happening around us today. Digital Literacy is important for us to be able to contribute in today’s society fully (Weiss, 2017). This overall, demonstrates that we do need to use digital technology to give the children the knowledge which they need to live and be able to adjust to the world around them. For myself, reflecting on this lesson, I can agree with this and feel more aware of this issue. This lesson gained many skills for myself as our group struggled to begin with – feeling like we took a while to get officially started. In the future I would think that a smaller group may have been better for this since not all of us were actually in the movie and could have maybe made it fairer for them to be more included.

References

• Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to Practice. Pearson.
• Prensky, M. (2001) Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. MCB University Press.
• Scottish Government (2016) A Digital Learning and Teaching Strategy for Scotland. Edinburgh: Scottish Government [Online] Available at: http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0050/00505855.pdf
• Weiss, D. (2017) Time to Know blog [Online] http://timetoknow.com/blog/essential-digital-literacy-skills-for-the-21st-century-worker/ [Accessed: 5.2.18]

Hello again! This week’s session consisted of creating our own eBook using the app, Book Creator. According to the oxford dictionary an eBook is defined as “an electronic version of a printed book which can be read on a computer or a specifically designed hand held device” (Oxford Dictionary, 2019). The purpose of using technology in schools, as I have already previously stated within my blogs, is the positive impact it has on the pupil’s learning as well as teaching (Scottish Government, 2016).

Giving the pupils the ability to create something of their own as well as learn from what they have created is one of the many reasons to why the use of digital technologies can achieve this. The variety in which you can teach through an eBook is simple but effective. Book Creator, for example, can allow you to create all kinds of books since the app is quite flexible: you can create children’s picture books, text books and even comic books. Having this multimodality feature within our devices can help the pupils understanding (Beauchamp, 2012).

David Andrews wrote an article in The Guardian to investigate how iPads and iPods could be used successfully within his classroom. He decided, before giving all the pupils an iPad, to only invest with the teachers first. The reason for this was that he believed that the teachers should be confident with using technology before integrating the devices throughout their lessons. They were given many apps which were for enhancing learning. If they found an app which they felt would be useful, they were allowed to inform the rest of the staff during a meeting, in the summer-term, every Monday (Andrews, 2012). After seeing the potential that iPads could have within a classroom, the school decided to invest in them and planned to use both iPads and iPods creatively.

This article gave me a better insight to the overall positive and negative factors of using devices like iPads and iPods in a learning environment. Although we are encouraged to use more digital technology I agree with David Andrews statement that “If the iPads don’t enhance the learning of the children that I teach, then I shouldn’t be using them” (Andrews, 2013, non-paginated). If we are not able to reinforce the pupils learning then it could be seen as a waste of material and use if there is no benefit for the children.

In terms of my own eBook that I created, I chose to base it on the book “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” The reason for this was simply because I loved reading it when I was a child and felt like I could do many activities with the story. One of our success criteria for this lesson was to create a summary of a well-known story, of our choice, and to use Book Creator effectively to achieve this. My summary involved questions and activities to challenge the pupils to think of the correct story line. I achieved this by having a true or false section as well as having questions throughout. The learning outcomes behind my vision were health and wellbeing tied into digital technology. The reason for this was because I had focused on the food that the caterpillar had eaten. Some of the topics which I covered were – if the caterpillar was healthy and whether the pupils thought that they were healthy by completing a table on what they had eaten that week.

Below are some photos and videos of the eBook which I created:

The learning outcomes which my creation are based on:
• Together we enjoy handling, tasting, talking and learning about different foods, discovering ways in which eating and drinking may help us to grow and keep healthy. HWB 0-30a
• 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

Over all, I had a positive experience when using Book Creator and felt like it was something which I will use in the future when teaching pupils. It is straight forward to use and enjoyable. Having used book creator before I felt like I knew roughly how to use each of the widgets but after having spent this session I now feel more confident about the app and could see myself successfully using it in a classroom environment.

Reference
• Andrews, D. (2012) An Apple for the teacher: are iPads the future in class? The Guardian. [Online] 13 August, non-paginated. Available: https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2012/aug/13/schools-secondary-schools [Accessed: 10 February 2019].
• Beauchamp, G. (2012) ICT in the Primary School: From Pedagogy to Practice. Pearson.
• Oxford Dictionary (2019 )E-book [Online]n.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/e-book [Accessed: 2nd February 2019]
• Scottish Government (2016) A Digital Learning and Teaching Strategy for Scotland. Edinburgh: Scottish Government
[Online] Available at: http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0050/00505855.pdf [Accessed: 2nd February 2019]