Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Need a new camera urgently...

Hints on Using a Digital Camera in the Classroom

These ideas can be modified for your specific grade level & student/teacher abilities. The BEST way to get the most out of ideas such as these is to let students do as much hands on as they are able. With good modeling by the teacher, repetitive instruction on the do's & don'ts of handling cameras, and encouraging observations by the teacher, even Kindergarten students should be able to take their own pictures to use in their projects!
1.Have kids dress up as "what they want to be when they grow up" to illustrate career reports.

2.Take a series of pictures (1st step, 2nd step, etc) showing how to do something (how to add 2 numbers, how to conduct a science experiment, how to draw a picture in Kid Pix, etc.).

3.Record pattern block constructions, story maps, inventions, etc.

4. Use the 5 second movie option to record each student saying how they've used Math today, or what their favorite season is & why, or their definition of Science, etc. Assemble into a slideshow (Powerpoint or Kid Pix).

5. Take pictures of students in September, January, & February to watch them grow.

6. Assign pairs of students to go on a walk through the school to find examples of geometric shapes (circles, triangles, parallel lines, obtuse angles, etc).

7. Create a virtual tour of your classroom. Have each student select an area to photograph and describe to create one page in a slideshow. Expand to create "tours" of your school and/or community.

8. Document the growth of a school project: planting & growing of a class garden, any school construction project, the tree outside your classroom window throughout the seasons, etc.

9. Create a "School Rules" or "Class Rules" book complete with illustrations of acceptable behaviors (with your students posing "caught" in appropriate activities).

10. Have teams of students take pictures of everyday things & put into Kid Pix /Powerpoint with English & Spanish/French vocabulary. Print out for a classroom "Pictionary".

11. Take pictures around town of easily recognizable signs (the McDonald's arches, the Big Boy, etc). Assemble into a book titled "I Can Read". Great to inspire confidence in K and 1st Grade beginning readers.

12.Assign a new "Class Photographer" each week. This student should have easy access to the digital camera. The assignment: to capture at least 1 photo of "learning in action" to be used in that week's newsletter home. Of course, s/he would also be responsible for 1 -2 sentences describing what's happening in the photo.

13.Record a series of student pictures as they act out a story they've read or that another student has written. Use as illustrations for the story or as a means for telling what happened first, etc.

14.Use photos of students to illustrate an "All About the Author" page for student published books.

15.Print out full-body photos of students in "poses". Cut out their picture from the background and glue into art projects ("This is me in Fall", "Me on the Ocean Floor", etc.).

16.Import student photos into Kid Pix. Use the Eraser Tool to erase the background. Use the Drawing tools to create pictures of the student in their Halloween costume, as their favorite Fairy Tale character, as Santa Claus ("What I would give to the World as a Present"), etc.

17.Fall introductions: Set up a template for a Classroom Trading Card. Each card should include the student's picture, their full name, and important facts about that student. Print out on card stock and have students had them out to each other so each student has a full class set. Post a set on a bulletin board, use as drawing cards to decide groups, who's next on the computer, etc.

18.Insert a digital picture of you on your "Welcome to my classroom" card that you send out before school starts.

19.Take a class picture and print on special iron-on paper for Class T shirts. Great to wear on Field Trips, for Field Day, etc.

20. Use student photos for "Student of the Week" displays, special certificates and awards.

21.Take lots of pictures when your class is on a field trip. Back in the classroom, each student can choose 1 picture to label with a short description of what was happening or why this was important or some tidbit they learned. Print a copy for all.

22.Take pictures of students with their families during open house. Make sure you label, so you will recognize parents at conferences later in the year.

23.Insert photos of each student into a word document (size them small enough so your whole class fits on one page). Label each picture with the student's name. Helpful for subs, parent helpers, and non-readers.

24.Use the page of student photos to help students take surveys. Insert the page into a plastic sheet, hand one student a vis a vis pen, and pair him/her up with another student who has a survey question on a clipboard. Once they've surveyed a fellow student, they can X out that student's picture to keep track of who hasn't been asked yet. I include my picture at the end so I know when the survey is officially over and they are ready to tally their results.

25.Have to disconnect cables to move your computer? Take several pictures of where the cables go so it's easier to reassemble. Do the same with bulletin boards that really worked for you.

26.Record pictures of bulky art projects to put into a student portfolio.

Got this from http://www.edzone.net/~mwestern/

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