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ESL Toolkit Chapter Presentation

In this chapter of my ESL Toolkit, I am including two lesson plans/activities that incorporate technology. I have chosen technology because I think the possibilities for enhancing ELL students' engagement and learning through technology are vast. Thoughtful and rich technology activities are hands-on, include multimedia text, can be multilingual, can provide immediate feedback, engage creativity as well as all four modes of literacy, i.e., reading, writing, speaking, listening. Also, thoughtful technology inclusion is valuable for differentiation through comprehensible input, building background, providing culturally relevant instruction and adapting content.

1. Webquest: What's New at Our Zoo The first activity here is a webquest. I chose a webquest because, in the ed tech world, webquests are oldies but goodies. They represent project-based learning including collaboration and, often, critical thinking and analysis. Webquests tend to be authentic in nature, i.e., they are organized around real-world issues or problems. If not, then they often build upon a problem that is encountered in class materials, e.g., how to get Stella Luna reunited with her mother. The webquest I have chosen was created for a 5/6th grade science class with intermediate level ELLs. The tasks are relevant and age appropriate. Children are interested in learning about animals and, in this case, the students take on the roles of zoo administration who need to decide how to spend a $3 million donation. The interactivity of the webquest will engage the ELLs as well as allow them to move at their own pace. There are also helpful reading strategies offered. Many visuals accompany the concepts and there is practice with grammatical concepts and vocabulary along the way as well. The vocabulary work is well-designed and fits with Marzano's academic vocabulary lists for the level of student. []. If I were to adapt this webquest, I would hyper link academic vocabulary to lead to a pronunciation of the word and a pictorial representation of it.

2. Animoto Video For my second activity within this technology chapter, I am including animoto. With this tool, I will have students produce brief videos about themselves so that we can all get to know each other better and so the students have multiple opportunities to communicate through language as well as pictures and music. This activity can scaffold a more demanding kind of digital storytelling later in the year. Animoto is free for teachers and students. I include the link to an animoto video I made for this assignment that would provide a model for students. [] I would also create or use a published animoto guide or video. Here's a good example of one http://www.schooltube.com/video/b74bb8680a5147ea9a6b/Animoto-Tutorial