Lucia,+Kate

Objectives of the Lesson: --The students will learn how to use Flickr to find photos --The students will learn to cite information properly when using photos from Flickr in a class project. --The students will learn how to appropriately respond if they come across photos that are not appropriate for school. --The students will learn how to appropriate address any contact that is made from the photo owner.
 * Safety Lesson (7-D-1)**:

Technology to be used: --Flickr (Creative Commons)

Explanation of how the technology will be used: The students will be finding and using pictures in projects such as powerpoint presentations, podcasts, iMovies, and Moodle pages.

Description of what behavior is expected of the students: The students are expected to find pictures that are appropriate in content. The students are expected to find pictures that match the idea behind the project. The students are expected to notify the teacher of any pictures that are not appropriate. The students are not to comment on pictures that they find.

Process of Lesson: 1. The students will learn how to go to Flickr and find copyright free images using Creative Commons. 2. The students will learn how to navigate the website by searching various terms and looking through different images. 3. The teacher will show the students the various sections and explain what pictures are copyright free and then how to cite those pictures in a project. 4. The teacher will explain why it is important to cite the source when they are posting pictures from Flickr. 5. The teacher will explain to the students that pictures with inappropriate content may be found on Flickr and it is important that they report to the teacher if they find such pictures. 6. The teacher will explain that the students are not allowed at anytime to use pictures that they believe may be considered inappropriate according to the school’s standards. 7. The students will learn how they may be contacted by the person whose photos they have used (This happened to me actually when I used my photo on my blog!). 8. The teacher will have the students find a picture to use and then place the photo on their Moodle page and cite it properly.

What action you will take and how you expect students to respond to inappropriate content. 1. I will prepare the students for the fact that there may be inappropriate content on Flickr. 2. I will prepare the students for the fact that they are not to respond to any contact by photo takers from Flickr. 3. I will tell the students that if they are contacted, they are to let me know immediately. 4. I will tell the students that there will be consequences if they are found searching or looking at inappropriate pictures for the school setting. 5. If any students break the rules for using Flickr, they will lose all privileges of using Flickr.

Dear Parents/Guardians,
 * Permission Letter (7-D-2):**

In the upcoming weeks, all 21st Century Literacy Skills students will be writing their daily journals using an online blog. The value of this is that the students can not only write their journals on the blog, but they can read and respond to other students’ blogs. With this being said, it must also be understood that anyone on the Internet can find and comment on a student’s blog. While this is not common, I want to make you aware that it does occur because the blog is on a public site. In hopes of making you feel comfortable and confident in this learning experience, I want to go through the steps of blogging with you as well as the safety precautions we will take in school to make sure that we keep all students safe.

The process will start with the students creating their own blog sites. Each blog site will be set up using the student’s e-mail account and the blogging site Blogger. Please remember that the school does control and monitor anything that passes through this e-mail account. The student’s will create a profile on their blogs, but I will not permit them to identify their full name, location, or any personal information in their profiles. Again, everything will be closely monitored and before any profiles are submitted, I will check them.

Student blogs will be used in many ways throughout the remainder of the course. So far, the students have been writing reflective journals on a site in which only I can see what they are writing. The use of the blog will allow other students in the class to read and give feedback to their classmates’ journal entries. The blogs will also be utilized for students to pose questions or seek advice from their classmates regarding the social issues project. This will allow the students to ask one another for help and share resources that they find useful.

I hope you see how beneficial the blogs will be for the duration of the course. Blogging is an excellent learning and collaborative tool. However, this is a privilege and any student who takes advantage of the blogging experience or posts inappropriate messages will lose all blogging privileges and disciplinary action will be taken. Likewise, any student who feels he or she has been the recipient of an inappropriate comment on the blog should notify me immediately and I will decide the best way to mend the situation. I will go over these rules before the students set up the blog and before they make any postings.

In signing below, you are agreeing to allow your child to participate in the blogging experience. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Sincerely, Mrs. Lucia

Grade/Course: 21st Century Literacy Skills, 9th grade Unit: Social Issues (Self to Community)

Goals: 1. Students will respond to other student’s blogs. 2. Students will create new blog posts about various topics relating to 21st Century social issues. 3. Students will use the blog as a “jumping off” point for the social issues unit.

Materials: 1. Online blog: set-up by teacher. 2. Access to computers on a daily basis. 3. Expectations for maintaining a blog. 4. Guidelines regarding blog post expectations.

Procedures: 1. The students will receive instructions regarding the social issues unit prior to the start of this lesson. 2. The students will receive instructions on what they will be required to do in order to maintain their blogs. a. Each student needs to post 3 new entries to the blog each week. b. Each student needs to respond to at least three other students’ blog entries each week with meaningful feedback, information, or questions. 3. The teacher will explain the process of posting to a blog with the students and all of the students will practice. a. Students will login to the Blogger account set up by the teacher for this unit. b. The teacher will walk the students through the process of signing into the blog account and bookmarking the blog on their toolbars. c. The students will each post a practice blog to the website on which they will introduce themselves to the rest of the class and identify their interests regarding social issues. 4. The teacher will then explain the idea behind the blog postings for the students in regards to the social issues unit. a. Each day the students will post information about their research for the social issues unit. b. The students will write down their thoughts about how they feel about the social issues they are researching. c. By creating, maintaining and responding to blog posts, the students will be able to have a great breadth of knowledge going into the part of the unit where they are focused on creating their projects for the social issues unit. 5. The teacher will explain to the students that the blog is essentially a place online for the students to give and receive feedback and share personal thoughts about the social issues they are researching.

Evaluation: The students’ blogs will be evaluated using the following criteria. The students will receive a grade each week based on: 1. The student has posted at least three times to the blog (6 points). 2. The student has given meaningful feedback to three classmate’s blogs (6 points). 3. Proper grammar, spelling, and mechanics are used in postings and responses (3 points). 4. Each new post either reflects a new idea that the student wants to comment about, or continues the student’s thoughts from a previous posting (5 points). 5. Each comment to other student’s blogs gives feedback, information, or new insight for the student to consider (5 points).