The introduction of Digital Technologies as a learning area in the Australian Curriculum aims to teach students to use computational thinking and information systems to define, design and implement digital solutions. At St Joseph's we will be integrating this new learning area into our current curriculum through the use of iPads.
Two of the applications Foundation to Year Two will use are Seesaw and Book Creator. Seesaw is a student-driven digital portfolio that empowers students to showcase what they are learning at school. It also facilitates parent communication with real-time notifications, giving parents a glimpse of their child’s learning and an opportunity to support it at home. Book Creator is used to develop literacy skills. It allows students to examine the layout of a book and how content can be added through different mediums such as images, video and text. This will help students understand text structure and presentation skills.
Some of the applications Year Three to Six students will use are Edmodo, Creative Book Builder, Popplet and Explain Everything. Edmodo is a collaboration and communication tool that can be used within the school environment to distribute and collate digital work. This is a secure site and allows parent access to view student work. Creative Book Builder, similar to Book Creator, is used to develop different writing styles and allows students to learn to publish material in an eBook or PDF format. This helps them to be audience aware and construct various text types. Popplet encourages students to brainstorm their ideas in a visual manner. It is used in the planning phase of the writing process to support written text. Explain Everything allows students to demonstrate their understanding of a concept and can be used as a presentation tool. It is particularly useful in assessing Mathematics as students can verbalise the mathematical process they are using, giving the teacher a clearer understanding of the students ability.
Two of the applications Foundation to Year Two will use are Seesaw and Book Creator. Seesaw is a student-driven digital portfolio that empowers students to showcase what they are learning at school. It also facilitates parent communication with real-time notifications, giving parents a glimpse of their child’s learning and an opportunity to support it at home. Book Creator is used to develop literacy skills. It allows students to examine the layout of a book and how content can be added through different mediums such as images, video and text. This will help students understand text structure and presentation skills.
Some of the applications Year Three to Six students will use are Edmodo, Creative Book Builder, Popplet and Explain Everything. Edmodo is a collaboration and communication tool that can be used within the school environment to distribute and collate digital work. This is a secure site and allows parent access to view student work. Creative Book Builder, similar to Book Creator, is used to develop different writing styles and allows students to learn to publish material in an eBook or PDF format. This helps them to be audience aware and construct various text types. Popplet encourages students to brainstorm their ideas in a visual manner. It is used in the planning phase of the writing process to support written text. Explain Everything allows students to demonstrate their understanding of a concept and can be used as a presentation tool. It is particularly useful in assessing Mathematics as students can verbalise the mathematical process they are using, giving the teacher a clearer understanding of the students ability.