Digital Literacy Workshop

Digital literacy is the ability to locate, organize, understand, evaluate, and analyze information using digital technology. In this fast changing world it is imperative that we as teachers have the knowledge of what digital literacy is and what it looks like in the classroom. This workshop will introduce teachers to several different types of technologies that can be implemented within the classroom. Most of these can be used the very next day. Teachers will rotate around the room working in different stations. Each station will introduce an activity using technologies and allow teachers time to explore that technology. To complete each activity teachers will be creating an artifact that can be taken back to the classroom with them. By setting up activities in small group form I feel that teachers will less technological backgrounds will feel less intimidated. Colleagues within the same group with more experience can provide more one on one support. By requiring all teachers to create an item to take back to the classroom I will be able to assess immediately who understood the project and who had difficulty.

Objective:

  • Teachers will give a definition for digital literacy
  • Teachers will identify an e-book and create one to be used within the classroom
  • Teachers will identify what video conferencing is and how to conduct one
  • Teachers will identify what a glogster is and create one for children's book of their choice
  • Teachers will identify what podcast is and create on based off of an animal of their choice

Outline:

  • Introduction
  • Welcome to Digital Technologies Within the Classroom
  • Direct Instruction
  • What is digital literacy?
  • Why is it important to our students?
  • Where do we find the technology for our classroom?
  • Introduction to Centers
  • What is a podcast? glogster? video conferencing? and e-book?
  • Rules and expectations for each center
  • Procedures on how to move about the room
  • Closure
  • Assign lesson plan critique

Small group activity

Create an E-book

Teachers will be required to create an e-book using the Tar Heel Reader ( for later use in their classroom. Tar Heel Reader is an online collection of books. All of their books are free and they contain a wide range of topics. This website also allows individuals to write a book of their own. The book that these teachers are going to create should be geared towards a struggling reader in their class. The topic should also be one that would be of interest to this child. Teachers will use this website and the picture collection from Flickr. The book should contain at least 8 pages and should contain a picture and text on each page. When teachers are finished they are will be required to add it to their Favorites page.

Follow-up activities

  1. Video Conferencing

Teachers will be required to set up a video conference between two different rooms. Directions will be given at the station in a handout. They will be required to read the directions and set the conference up in order to communicate with the adjoining room. Once the lines have been opened on both sides teachers will be required to tell something about themselves and take notes on their colleagues as they share.

  1. Glogster

Teachers will be required to pick a book of their choice and create a glogster summarizing the plot of their story. The book can be chosen out of the easy section of their school library. Their glogster should contain the title of their book, the main characters and short summary of the story. 3-5 images should be included that represent the book. Glosters will be complete when the teacher adds it to their classroom webpage.

  1. Podcast

Teachers will be required to pick an animal of their choice and research 5 facts about their animal. Upon completion of their research teachers will then be asked to create a podcast disclosing the information they found in their research. Podcasts will be complete when the teacher add it to their classroom webpage.

Assessment:

Upon completion of the class teachers will be required to revisit a lesson that taught previously within the year. Teachers will analyze the lesson for elements of digital technology included within the lesson. They will rate their lesson using a rubric and score accordingly. Teachers will then be expected to revise the same lesson incorporating a digital technology of some type. Teachers will rate their new lesson using the same rubric as before and compare the two scores.