Opinion Paper
Use of Technology in the Classroom
Reptiles and Amphibians
By Michael Murphy
EDU 5611
When most children think of reptiles the first word to come out of their mouth in response is usually dinosaurs. Dinosaurs fascinate children because they no longer exist, therefore they have to use their imagination along with pictures and scientific information to create a world that once existed long ago. With reptiles and amphibians I find that children believe the myth that they are all slimy and creepy animals. Although some of them are very strange and different, students enjoy exploring the reasons of why they might have adapted their bodies and defense mechanisms through the process of evolution. The children enjoy comparing characteristics of reptiles and amphibians with the extinct dinosaurs and following the lines of evolution to see how they relate to each other. The best part about introducing learners to the mysterious world of reptiles and amphibians is seeing them interact with live specimens to see that a lot of their fears can be overcome because most are very gentle creatures.
My
name is Michael Murphy and I love Herpetology, which means “the study of
creeping things.” It is a field of science that delves into two groups of
cold-blooded vertebrates: reptiles and amphibians. For eight weeks during one
of my summer breaks I took an elective herpetology class at SUNY Stony Brook.
The class was eight hours a day for three days a week. Sounds like a lot of
time, but to me it was all worth it. For most of the day we roamed through the
woods and waters of
With enough time and effort any teacher can locate valuable information for just about any topic on the inter-net. For my topic of reptiles and amphibians I started with the creation of a Microsoft Power Point presentation that would be a visual and informational way of introducing my topic to a group of students. First I used http://www.yahoo.com to find web sites, pictures, and clip-art to use in my presentation to attract the attention of the students and to stimulate their interest in the topic at hand. Another search engine that I used, http://www.google.com, directed me to many zoological sites were I was able to find unlimited amounts of resources and information that was geared specifically for children. Two things that I found which I think students will find the most interesting are the virtual dissection of a real frog, and live web-cam images of snakes, turtles, and frogs. Below is a table of resources I have found that I feel will be most productive and useful in my lesson on reptiles and amphibians which I will explain more in depth at the end of my document.
Read-Aloud Books
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1. |
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The Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book Charlesbridge Publishing. (ã1990) |
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2. |
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Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians Coloring Book |
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3. |
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What Is a
Reptile? By Robert Snedden |
Zoological Websites
- St.Louis Zoo Site- Reptile and amphibian facts, virtual tour of zoo.
- Smithsonian National Zoological Park- Reptile discovery center, reptile and amphibian index, For Kids, photo gallery, Live Gavial Cam.
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians
Interactive
Websites
- The
Frog Tracker- lets you listen to the sounds of different North
American frogs.
http://www.exploratorium.edu/frogs/tracker/index.html
- Amphibia Web- concentrates on
populations of frogs, environmental protection, and endangered species.
http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/aw/
- Snake
Encyclopedia Article- online article revealing facts and useful
information on snakes
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.asxp?refid=761578341
http://www.centerofweb.com/scitech/bio_reptiles.htm
- Net
Frog- Online Dissection of Frog, includes movies, and do it yourself.
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/frog/Frog2
Games and Frog Web-Cam
- Froggyville- great shockwave games based on frogs can be used as positive reinforcement. Extensive clip-art library, twenty-four hour “Froggy-Cam.”
Opinion
and Discussion
This discussion will start with the topic that is on the minds of many educators as we plow through an era that has been known as “The Age of Technology.” Is the use of technology in the classroom a benefit to the children and what challenges will you face?
To start I will say that having the opportunity to use technology and the informational superhighway, which is known as the World Wide Web in the classroom, is a great way for students to find new ways to express their imagination, artwork, and thinking skills. Current technology makes available information and resources that were previously unheard of in the classroom. Instead of buying new textbooks every year due to outdated information, schools can save money by investing in computers to enable access to an unlimited amount of information that is constantly updated. If used properly teachers can use this technology to enhance their classroom by adding a new and interesting way of learning.
The most important thing for a teacher to do to make technology worth having in the classroom is to start the year with an entire unit introducing the technology and how to use the hardware and software components. Below I have created a graph and chart that shows an approximate lesson schedule a teacher should follow to properly introduce computers and how to use them. Once the students learn the basics they can be encouraged to explore new things on their own so they are constantly adapting to the fast changing technology.
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Beginning of the Year- Instruction on Use of Technology |
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Basics |
Web |
Power Point |
Word |
Excel |
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Introduce |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
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Explore |
1 |
4 |
4 |
2 |
2 |
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Practice |
1 |
5 |
5 |
2 |
2 |
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Total Instructional Lessons |
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Lesson |
3 |
10 |
10 |
5 |
5 |
33 |
Each unit equals one lesson. One lesson should take approximately 30-45 minutes.
(Example: To teach the basics of the computer it will take about 3 lessons, or approximately an hour and a half.)
Basics
Introduce- Teacher guided lesson introducing the
students to parts of computer and how it works. Can be done
in a power point presentation and/or with a physical demonstration. This
should only take one lesson. Then they will be encouraged to explore and
practice.
Explore- this will give students time to explore what they have
learned and give them a chance to become familiar. It is also a guided
exercise, which will lead to independence. In many schools children will need help to log on.
Practice- independent lesson were children could practice what they
have learned.
Web, Power Point, Word, Excel
Introduce- Teacher guided introduction to software
and inter-net. These topics can again be best introduced with a visual
presentation on power point showing students examples of what they can
accomplish.
Explore- these lessons can be done independently depending on the
abilities of each student. The teacher should always be prepared to help during
the explore phase because the children aren’t totally familiar with what they
are doing. More lesson time has been allotted for practice and explore because
it takes time to become familiar with different software.
Practice- this is an ongoing process throughout the year. The more
each student practices the better they can get at using the web and software
contained within the computer.
Once
the children have been instructed in the beginning of the year on how to use
this technology it can then be applied to any unit or topic throughout the
year. It may be a tough process in the beginning, but in the long run it will
prove useful throughout the year and through the children’s continuation of
education because they will know how to properly use this valuable resource.
How I Would Use Technology When Teaching About
Reptiles and Amphibians
I would
start by using an extensive and visually appealing power point presentation
that would introduce reptiles and amphibians by displaying useful information,
pictures, and sounds. This would be used as a motivation for the unit to
follow. Other technology that I would use can be found in the sites that I have
listed in the beginning of the paper. The online dissection of a frog is a
great program that shows the parts of a frog and how you would dissect it in a
very detailed manor. Movie clips are included along with a try it yourself
mode. The live web-cams are great to use for journal writing. Students can view
a reptile or amphibian and write about its behaviors, habitat, and daily life.
Many of the zoological sites that I have listed include kids
chat rooms and discussion boards were they could post questions and interests
on reptile and amphibian topics. Above I also included several read-aloud books
that can be incorporated with the use of power point. After reading The Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book by Jerry Palotta children could create their own power point
presentation displaying their own “Yucky Reptile Alphabet.” Using Word a
student could select a picture of one species of reptile or amphibian and
create a list or table of facts they find on the net about their animal. Excel
can be use in many ways. To create graphs displaying students favorite animals,
a graph that displays the different sizes of crocodiles or lizards, or a graph
that displays the local population of reptiles in your state or hometown area.
Lesson 1-Power Point Presentation
(see attached) on Reptiles and Amphibians.
Lesson 2-Read The
Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book by Jerry Palotta then
create your own ppt presentation using the same
theme.
Lesson 3-Participate in a virtual dissection using
site listed above: Net Frog
Lesson 4-Choose a species and research using WWW,
then create a Word document with picture and facts on species.
Lesson 5-Create an Excel graph using a certain
topic. Example: Sizes of lizards or lengths of snakes.
Lesson 6-Coordinate a chat with
another class that is also learning about reptiles. Print and display
what students have discussed.
Lesson 7-Follow a species on the live web-cam and
create journal entries on behavior, habitat, characteristics.
References
Amphibia Web. (2003). Retrieved
October 2003 from:
http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/aw/
http://www.centerofweb.com/scitech/bio_reptiles.htm
Net Frog. (2003). Retrieved October
2003 from:
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/frog/Frog2
Palotta, Jerry.
(ã1990).
The Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book.
Charlesbridge Publishing
Peterson, Roger
Tory. (ã1985). Field Guide to
Reptiles and Amphibians.
Houghton Mifflin Co.
Smithsonian National Zoological Park. (ã2003). Retrieved October 2003:
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians
Snake Encyclopedia Article. (2003). Retrieved October 2003
from:
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.asxp?refid=761578341
Snedden, Robert. (ã2003). What is a Reptile?.
St.Louis Zoo Site. (ã2003). Retrieved October 2003 from:
The Frog Tracker. (2003).
Retrieved October 2003 from:
http://www.exploratorium.edu/frogs/tracker/index.html
Peterson, Roger
Tory. (ã1985). Field Guide to
Reptiles and Amphibians.
Houghton Mifflin
Co.