Standard+4

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**Standard 4 Teachers know how to teach** The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies, including the use of technology, to encourage children's development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills. Evidence:  Rationale:  As part of my Master’s degree in EDT 704 //Using iPads in the Classroom// we were to find a Vidcast that was content specific and explain how we would use it in the classroom. From reading articles about the increase in technology used by children to seeing our students on a daily basis using it we know that we, as teachers, need to incorporate technology into the school day. I have used many different technology programs in my classroom and the student’s engagement has increased. They love trying new programs and do not get bored during instruction.

 Using BrainPOP and Vidcasts with my 5th grade students has helped me keep them engaged and lets me use already developed tools that are helpful for children's development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills. The amount of Vidcasts available and related to education is outstanding and I know there will continue to be many more in the future. I have learned that using Vidcasts with individuals, small groups, and the class keeps students engaged for longer periods of time. Since the students are engaged and excited to learn, they are able to retain more information than in the past. Having access to many videos gives my struggling readers a positive feeling because they do not have to worry about reading the material in order to learn the content.

KSD:  **Knowledge: 4.K.3** The teacher knows how to enhance learning through the use of a wide variety of materials and technological resources (e.g. computers, audio-visual technologies, videotapes and discs, local experts, primary documents and artifacts, texts, reference books, literature, and other print resources).

Since we have mini-laptops for our students they are able to watch the videos when they have independent and/or work time. Students were engaged while watching the videos and felt successful with tasks they usually did not know how to do.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> **Skills: 4.S.2** The teacher uses multiple teaching and learning strategies to engage students in active learning opportunities that promote the development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance capabilities and that help students assume responsibility for identifying and using learning resources.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">I engage my students in active learning by using the educational videos and additional technology in my classroom. Using multiple teaching strategies helps promote the development of critical thinking and when my students have to watch the videos during their independent and/or work time I am teaching them responsibility.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> **Dispositions: 4.D.2** The teacher values flexibility and reciprocity in the teaching process as necessary for adapting instruction to student responses, ideas, and needs.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">To be a teacher, we need to be flexible. The students change every year and just because an activity works with the students one year, doesn't mean it is going to work with the next group of students. This is the same for students in our classrooms, they change throughout the year and we need to keep changing the way we teach or we will "lose them" along the way. Using the videos has helped a few of my students do extra research when they wanted to explore a topic more in depth.