Cross Curriculum Canvas_Remix

First of all, the reason I chose to remix the original canvas on the "Importance of Learning Languages" was because I know music and language go hand and hand. I have had a few spanish teachers who actually had us do a number of activities that involved listening and even singing spanish music. I really enjoyed those classes and I still remember the stuff I learned in those lessons. Also, as musicians we sing and play all different cultures music, why not actually tie these two subjects together. Through music we can learn other cultures languages, traditions, and lifestyle in general. After choosing this canvas to remix I wanted to rearrange how the information was laid out on the canvas because some of the images got stretched and distorted on the original canvas. I also wanted our general information such as overview text widget and essential questions widget to be next to each other so that they could both be paid attention to equally. I chose Dora the Explorer to be an essential part of this unit because she is always trying to get students to learn another language through song and dance. I remember as a child I learned a lot of my spanish basics from watching the show. If there were "Dora's" for other languages I think children would be more interested in learning those languages. One thing that worked out very nicely were my cc standards for music, which fit perfectly with the unit. I liked a lot of the original video's and additional resources because it really opened my eyes to the education in other countries and cultures. I actually got the idea of teaching languages through music from one of the Japanese students in the video. After I thought about it I realized that it would be perfect. I hope you enjoy the canvas.

Canvas remix: http: //www.play.annenberginnovationlab.org/play2.0/challenge.php?idChallenge=2597&mode=view#network6    

Original canvas: http://www.play.annenberginnovationlab.org/play2.0/challenge.php?idChallenge=2450&mode=view#network6       

'SimCity' invades the classroom

         
         I encourage everyone to read this article I found on USA Today called "Video game invades classroom, scores education points". It talks about how educators and video game designers are getting together to design educational versions of popular over the counter video games such as 'SimCity'. This game not only teaches basic math and general knowledge skills, the new generation games go way beyond basic skills while being extremely creative. In the 'SimCity' game players act as the builder and mayor of a fictional town, essentially creating the place from the ground up: "They build infrastructure, industry and housing and try to attract residents. Once townspeople arrive, the mayor must scramble to keep them happy, productive and safe." 'SimCity' has even incorporated writing assignments such as asking students to prioritize public work projects and explain their reasoning in a series of drafts and revisions of an essay. It seems pretty evident that school is extremely boring to children, this is based on a study done by Indiana University's High School Survey of Student Engagement, which found that 65% of students are bored everyday in class. It seems that video games on the other hand are not boring to students, even though they challenge a student's intellect much like school does. The difference is the way that they are both presented. One being "old fashioned", "boring", and "out of date". The other "new", "creative", and something a student can take pride in, such as showing off their very own city which they designed from the ground up. I know when I was a student which one i'd prefer.
       The great thing about it is that 'SimCity' is just the tip of the iceberg. What's next? an educational versions of 'Call of Duty' and 'Grand Theft Auto'? Who knows what's possible. Now of course their are some that don't think video games are the way to go. "Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods and The Nature Principle, says he worries about sitting kids down for more screen time. 'I'm sure this thing they're going to do will be wonderful in many ways, but the ultimate state of learning, I believe, is when a child or an adult is using all or many of their senses at the same time,' he says." Perhaps Mr. Louv is correct, but I do think we could reach a good and productive balance. I agree that too much of anything is not a good thing, particularly staring at a computer screen for long periods of time while interacting with nothing more than a computer. Connie Yowell, education director for MacArthur and one of the originators of GlassLab in 2011, says "video games turn the centuries-old model of learning on its head. For generations, she says, education has worked in essentially the same way: 'People have a learning experience and the learning experience ends, and people take a test,' she says. With well-designed games, the test is built into the game: Win a game of Halo and no one asks you to take a test on the material — you've mastered it." That is perfectly said by Mrs. Yowell. The sense of accomplishment at the end of a task makes the whole thing worthwhile. After finishing a game you feel accomplished and yet sad that the experience is over. After finishing a unit in school a student doesn't experiences the sense accomplishment, they are only relieved that the unit is over and that they don't have to deal with the content anymore. If we could present to children education in the form that video games take we could change education in more effective ways than ever before.     

Link to USAToday article: 
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/03/04/video-games-education-simcity/1963239/

Unit Plan Canvas

         The first thing that I did when creating my canvas was making sure that my overview was clear, and not too wordy. The second the students have trouble reading just the preface, they will stop reading it all together and try to complete the canvas with little to none of the readings completed. I had issues uploading the pictures to my photo gallery, but after fooling around with the settings I was finally able to upload most of my pictures. Only images from the internet would upload, none of the pictures from my computer would upload, I was never able to figure out exactly why. I like that you can give your viewers a checklist to complete so that you can ensure that they are covering all the essential material that was provided by the creator of the canvas.

          My unit plan is intended to get students to see the connections between music and visual art. The main themes of this unit are musical texture and original intent. We will be analyzing both of these terms as well as their roles in musical compositions. We will compare and contrast the characteristics of the different Arts, and see how they are all different parts of the same entity. The activities in this unit will ensure that the students will be understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating to ensure their full comprehension of the content. 

Check out my canvas: 
http://www.play.annenberginnovationlab.org/play2.0/challenge.php?idChallenge=2481&mode=view#network6