anney

I am an eighth grade English teacher in the Methacton School district. I teach regular and gifted education students. I have two children; both are boys. Cole is five and will be starting kindergarten in September. Jameson is two, going on ten, and acts as if he can do everything that his older brother does. My husband and I have been married for over eight years. In the future, we anticipate a big ten year anniversary celebration on an island somewhere. I enjoy entertaining, spending time with family and friends, and reading.

5/4/3/2/1- -4/9/11 5 new technologies to try 1. Diigo.com 2. Discoveryeducation.com 3. Animationfactory.com 4. Wordle.com 5. Eschoolnews.com

4 ideas to share with others 1. Diigo.com 2. Even small steps towards Universal Design are beneficial. 3. Universal Design does not have to involve technology. 4. Administration and funding may prevent the use of Universally Designed Learning.

3 principles of Univeral Design for Learning 1. Universal Design provides multiple means of representation. 2. Universal Design provides multiple means of expression. 3. Universal Design provides multiple means of engagement.

2 changes in your teaching to reach all learners in the Digital Age 1. Incorporate more time for student exploration of educational sites 2. Reach out to my peers, informing them of the benefits of Universally Designed Learning

1 BIG idea to implement "on Monday" 1. Education should be connecting, creating, and contributing, versus reading, receiving, and responding. I need to give up some control in the classroom, allowing the students to have more control.

Brain Research “Learning is distributed across three interconnected networks.” · The recognition network o Used to receive and analyze information o Enables the identification and interpretation of patterns (sound, light, taste, etc.) § Example: “The Unexpected Visitor” o Is quick and efficient because of parallel processing amongst the cortexes o Differentiation § Occurs due to the structure of the cortexes · Example: Einstein had differences in his recognition networks of the brain § In the classroom · “More varied means of presentation can reach more students.” · Understand the patterns of strengths and weaknesses to individualize instruction · The strategic network o Used to plan a course of action o Used to execute a plan of action § Example: “The Unexpected Visitor” o Work in a parallel process as well as interdependently o Differentiation § Occurs due to the prior knowledge and previously learned skills and strategies § In the classroom · Allow for different means of achieving a final product · Allow for a variety of different learning tools · The affective network o Used to evaluate o Used to set priorities § Example: “The Unexpected Visitor” o Work amongst a variety of specialize modules, allowing for many differences in interpretation o Differentiation § Occurs due to one’s internal and emotional state § In the classroom · Understand student’s history, background, and affective issues · Implications for educators o Analyze individual strengths and weaknesses o Acknowledge that there are no “regular” students o Consider the tools and materials available for ALL students, individually

What is UDL? Univerally Designed Learning is the use of technology and a variety of learning tools. The use of such tools would appeal to all students from a variety of backgrounds, with a variety of disabilities, and as a variety of different intelligences. Universally Designed Learning allows for differentiation in a way that will be meaningful and relevant for all students.

5/4/3/2/1- -4/10/11

5 new technologies to try 1. Visuword.com 2. Edutopia.com 3. Youtube.com 4. Schooltube.com 5. Teachertube.com

4 ideas to share with others 1. The use of Visuword.com as a revision and editing tool 2. The use of Visuword.com as an expansion of the vocabulary units 3. The use of sites like Youtube, Schooltube, and Teachertube to find educational videos 4. The use of Text-to-speech capabilities for the slow reader

3 principals of Universal Design for Learners 1. Give students multiple options for taking in information 2. Reality is that all classrooms are of mixed abilities 3. Providing materials and tasks of a varied nature and levels of difficulty is most successful

2 changes in your teaching to reach all learners of the Digital Age 1. Incorporate more educational videos 2. Create and maintain a wiki

1 Big Idea to implement on Monday 1. Use the video from Youtube on the sentence types

4/31/11

Access- -Students can access a variety of vocabulary tools. These vocabulary tools can be used when revising or editing an essay. Student can find boring or dull vocabulary terms in their essay and can search websites like Visuword.com or Visualthesaurus.com to find more attrative vocabulary terms.

Challenge- -The more advanced student may be challenged in that he or she may already have incoroporated an attractive vocabulary and will be encouraged to develop his or her vocabulary even further.

Choice- -Students are given choice in the website that they decide to use for vocabulary development. Students may find ownership and pride in the words that are identified as weak and may have choice or freedom in the attractive vocabulary that will be used as a proxy.

5/4/3/2/1 4/30/11

5 new technologies to try 1. Wonder Wheel 2. Visualthesaurus.com 3. Tic-Tac-Toe to manage differentiated instruction 4. Kidspiration 5. PixWriter

4 ideas to share with others 1. Use of Wonder Wheel as a means of remediation 2. Use of Visualthesaurus as a revisio tool 3. Students better understand the purpose of their efforts as a result of UDL 4. UDL will help to provide differentiated instrution

3 principles of Universal Design for Learners 1. UDL provides choice 2. UDL challenges and provides for differentiated instruction 3. UDL motivates and inspires

2 changes in your teaching to reach all learners of the Digital Age 1. Provide more choice when working to revise or edit an essay, using some of the web sites mentioned above 2. Encourage students to use the Wonder Wheel as a form of remediation

1 Big idea to implement on Monday 1. Introduce Wonder Wheel as a form of remediation

5/4/3/2/1 5/1/11

5 new technologies to try 1. Live scribe smart pen 2. Visualthesaurus.com 3. Tic-Tac-Toe to manage differentiated instruction 4. Kidspiration 5. PixWriter

4 ideas to share with others 1. Use of Wonder Wheel as a means of remediation 2. Use of Visualthesaurus as a revisio tool 3. Use more video, flash media, and online gaming 4. Speed up instrution

3 principles of Universal Design for Learners 1. UDL provides choice 2. UDL challenges and provides for differentiated instruction 3. UDL motivates and inspires

2 changes in your teaching to reach all learners of the Digital Age 1. Provide more choice when working to revise or edit an essay, using some of the web sites mentioned above 2. Encourage students to use the Wonder Wheel as a form of remediation

1 Big idea to implement on Monday 1. Speed up instruction versus slowing down instruction