Christopher Farm News uses information skills. It is a newsletter that discusses what they have learned, what they have been doing, what is coming up, and has ads. I think this is a great idea for homeschool students because not only does it allow them to keep other up to date with what they have been learning and doing, but also allows them to be more like a regular classroom.

Facebook in First Grade, I think, uses both socio-emotional skills and information skills. It uses socio-emotional skills by allowing children and their parents to in contact with each other during the school day, by allowing teachers and parents to praise and encourage children, and by allowing children to praise and encourage each other. It uses information skills by allowing all parties involved to share information. I think this is the best use of social media I have seen used for a class. I think this is a great way to create a community within the classroom that is extended outside of the classroom.

Kids’ Cell Division Claymation, I would say, uses reproduction skills. It is taking the knowledge the students have learned and reproduced the information into a visual. It used clay to recreate the cell division process and used video to show the process.

Dear George, I think, uses reproduction skills. The students used information previously learned to create something new. I think this video was awesome and very creative.

I think each of these relates to our 4-2-2 because they each show how technology can be used in a very constructive way in schools. They show that, while it is good to keep low-tech forms of teaching and learning in schools, technology can also be a great way for students to learn and show what they have learned, and for teachers to teach. It can also be a great way for families, students, and teachers to all remain involved in students’ learning.

Christopher Farm Newspaper – I loved reading this paper! It reminded so much of the papers me and my sister used to write when we were being home schooled. I would say that this is socio-emotional skill, because the authors were writing to an audience and they could be communicated to through an email address listed at the end of the newspaper. This involved communication through cyberspace.

First Grade Facebook – I was very impressed with this Prezi, and would categorize this as a photo visual skill since they used photos or screen shots to assist them in telling about how the used Facebook. It could also be under socio-emotional skill, because the children used this presentation to communicate about their Facebook page through an online form. 

Kids Cell Division Claymation – This was a cool video and it reminded me of my days in biology class. I think that this video would be under the information skills; because the children have learned about this process and then they showed the correct way, or was giving information to others on how it happens. 

Dear George – I liked how so many students from the school were able to contribute to this video. I would classify this as a branching skill, since the students stepped outside of the box and was able to relay the information about the Declaration of Independence as a break-up letter to “George.”

Overall, I can see that while it might seem like posting online might be one sided, there is actually several different categories or skills that it can fall into. Along with the 4-2-2, these videos show how technology can be used by children to relay information to others. I think that the children were all older, and were capable to understand what they were doing on the internet and they knew what they wanted to convey. 

Christopher Farm News – I think this was a wonderful way for students to put information together into one source. I feel that this is information skills, because the student compiled different information into one source.

Facebook in First Grade – This is an example of socio emotional skills, because the first graders are learning to “rules” to cyberspace communication. I was skeptical when reading the title, but this is such a wonderful idea!I love that the students can write their own status and it is a way to communicate with parents. This is an awesome idea!

Kids’ Cell Division Claymation - This was one of my favorite examples. This just looked like so much fun, and the children had to work very hard in order to make this, because Claymation takes a long time to create. Therefore, I know that they must have really spent time on each stage of cell division and probably had a great understanding of it afterwards. I feel that Claymation is reproduction, because they are taking the knowledge they have and making it into something knew. 

Caldwell Early High School Dear George – This was an amazing way for students to analyze the Declaration of Independence. In order for them to complete this project, they truly had to read it, analyze it, and then find a way to modernize the text. A lot of thought and effort was put into this and the students have a great understanding of what the Declaration of Independence means. I feel that this was reproduction skills, because they took the information, the Declaration of Independence, and made it into something new. 

I feel that this connects to both of the articles, because it shows that there are appropriate ways to use technology without it over taking the learning experience. All of these examples involved the children being hands on with the information. They had to learn about the information and use their creativity to show it to others.