Funded Aug 17, 2018It has been a little over a month since we have received and set up our brand new iPads. My students are still in shock that we have our own iPads to use every day. It makes me laugh when they "remind" me to grab them, typically 15 seconds into our reading group when we have barely sat down. They truly are so excited to have this technology at their fingertips, and it is safe to say that it has vamped up my reading instruction.
Over the past month, we have downloaded and tried many new apps. Reading A-Z has hundreds of books, and is organized into different reading levels that suits the needs of each student. The app will read the story aloud once, and then have the student try it on their own. This is helping my students learn because they get to hear and see the words at the same time, which helps build their word knowledge. Also, it prevents students from getting stuck on 1 word, as they can click on any tricky word so that it is read to them. The best part of this app is that there is a reading comprehension quiz at the end of each book to check for student understanding. The students think they are just doing a fun activity reading a book and answering questions, but they are actually giving me great data on what they still need work on! This is a great small group activity, and the students are always participating so they can be the one to put the answer in the iPad. My students are so focused when we are doing this, and are even motivated to go back into the text to find the correct answers if they need to.
Some other great apps we have discovered are Epic! books, as well as many different games that help students to learn sight words, different letter sounds, and recognizing letters. I have also been using the iPads to help my students learn new vocabulary and make connections. My next step is to start using the iPads so my students can write about what they are reading. Whether it be answering questions on main idea, character traits, or basic WH- questions, I really think this will be a motivator for my students to write more and think deeper into what we are reading about, a skill that is challenging for most of my students.
Having these new iPads has really helped my students become engaged and excited about reading group. I have created my own reading group behavior management system using Class Dojo, which gives them points for things like participating and being on task. Once enough points have accrued, they will be allowed to use the iPad to do an independent reading game or activity, while not having to share with anyone else (which is huge to them). This is the biggest motivator, and they feel special about the reward they worked hard to earn.
Overall, these iPads have been a great addition to my reading groups, and student participation has been unbelievable. Thank you again for your generous contribution to my project; my students and I cannot thank you enough!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Therrien