Aha, boys need to have school resemble their interests more like the Web and other multimedia programs.

Planning on using more non-fiction websites and researching some graphic novels for reading groups.

A good way to get kids to collect research information (cut and paste) from electronic texts is to limit them to only collecting phrases and not sentences. And have them summarize why they chose this piece of info. and how it will be helpful.

I like the drama/interactive activities to do with reading to engage boys.

I will use United Streaming videos in my solar system instruction within the next 2 weeks. I will also find interactive websites to go with this.

I will use NetTrekker with my students' research and in my own searches for lesson planning.

I will use the shortcut for right click on my Apple computer. :)

It was a great day! The ahha I had was the brain research around boys and girls. It reinforced the importantce of doing transitions that involve movement. Boys compartmentalize their learning, so they can switch gears better if they move their bodies.
Next week I will be using nonfiction reading on the web w/ the resources provided by the district social studies committee to help students prepare to vote in the mock election. Standards covered in reading and civics, and I will focus on my targeted students.

I was really struck by a comment in one of the articles that made reference to the fact that boys read more when the reading is authentic and purposeful and they can be selective and critical of the text. It made me really examine the types of reading material that I have available to my students. I need to work on getting more non-fiction, magazines and possibly comic books. I want to have materials that encourage them to become more involved in their reading.

I plan to use United Streaming or another site to help me reinforce grammar concepts with my students. I am thinking of linking an activity to a page in inspiration. I will probably try using the Grammar Ninja.

The ahha was seeing once again how important it is to gather lots of authentic literature that really speaks to boys. One thing I want to do in the next couple of weeks is to begin to organize and save clips from United Streaming to help organize my science units. Amy Krebbs rocks!

It is important to remember that boys need different types of text to be engaged in reading. I need to pull more non-fiction, magazines, and appropriate comic books for the classroom to get my boys reading.

It really struck me that my boys do become my "mother hens" when it comes to technology. It was interesting to find different reading strategies for whole group and guided reading that will engage my boys more. I will be using clickers to begin some CSAP/GVC based lessons around test taking strategies, text organization and finding main ideas since these were some of the challenges we faced last CSAP. Also, with the election coming up, an interactive lesson with Inspiration linking to graphic organizers to drive research, short movie clips and interactive sites will help engage the students as well.

Aha - I think all of the reading on brain research was really interesting. It made a lot of sense when thinking about my class this year.

I loved the pull-down menu feature of Microsoft Word. We already created a quiz for our students to try first thing tomorrow! I think it will be really interesting to see what the students do and how motivated they are to complete the quiz. I am also excited about Netrekker. I would like more time to play around on it in the next few weeks. Thanks for a good day!

I learned so much on how to navigate around the sites. I have created a folder with sites and activites for my children to use. I can't wait to get started!

This is Todd. United Streaming is an awesome "AHA" for me. I look forward to working with my focus students(same as my CARE focus students) with integrating technology. Thx, Jane, you were great, as usual!

The one aha I had was the overwhelming research that shows how differently boys become engaged in reading. I need to work on getting my boy students more actively involved and connected more towards their interests. Planning on using nonfiction websites for research and the read alouds through nettrekker for my lowest readers. Thanks for a great day

My ahha was using the united streaming website to create sequencing activities for students to use. Something that I will use in the next two weeks is the read outloud feature on nettreker. Something that would be helpful is a hard copy of the steps that you go throught to do the various activities that you shared. I realized that some are on the website but I need to have them in front of me for them to be most useful and so I could have more meaningful practice today.

This class had several components that will assist me in the classroom. In the article I read, I liked that there are 4 kinds of reading. This will be something that I post for my guiding reading groups to think about while they are reading. The hoax websites were something that I never would have thought to use in the classroom, but if implemented correctly, I think it will be a useful tool to assist students to navigate through websites efficiently and effectively. In the next couple of weeks, I plan on having my students use the drop-down lists in word to make the evaluation a little more engaging. There are other ideas that I am thinking of, just have not thought them through yet.

The Ah- Ha for me was that men do not sit around in book clubs. Why would we expect boys to do that in school?

SOmething I will do in the next two weeks - I will read aloud a story and it will include a boy as a main character and lots of action!

I was really reminded about how important it is for boys to use and read authentic text. One thing I want to do is incorporate more non-fiction and literacy strategies into my science and social studies curriculum. I plan to utilize netrekker, united streaming, and inspiration.

Today I was wowed by the Smart Board. I had never seen one before.
Use nonfiction pieces to align with Co History chapters.
I particularly enjoyed exploring United Streamlining and hope to use videos in my classroom soon.
I also plan to engage the boys in my classroom by using some of the interactive activities we explored today.

I thought the statistics regarding boys and comments were very enlightening. I am planning to use the information I used today in my literacy block. I am interested in seeing if my targeted boys become more engaged.

Thanks for the wonderful sites and ideas!

Loved the smart board, Ninja I will nonfiction pieces to align wsith Co History. Will read lit gliven to us to enhance boy learning.

I had a great day. I was very interested in learning about how to engage reluctant boy readers. I realized how important it is to have a variety of materials/genres and activities that connect with their lives giving them the ability to see themselves in the text and well as foster their passions/interests.
I plan to use United streaming to reinforce science content and math. We are also doing animal reports and I will use some of the sites you showed us to do research.

I will try and use Grammar Ninja with my title kids. I also really liked Jane's cause & effect lesson and plan to use the template she demonstrated with in class. With my groups I will try to use more text online to engage the boys more. Thank you.

I enjoyed the day, but I especially enjoyed the chance to take a closer look at Nettrekker. I have had my students do research in class before but it always ends in confusion, frustration, and the desire to just use Google. Nettrekker will provide a search site that will allow my students to find creditable information quickly and without much frustration. My biggest ah-ha moment was when I read about students' "plugged-in" bedrooms. I too often forget that these kids know only a world of technology and that I need to include that world in my classroom. In the next two weeks I plan to do a lesson on how to use Nettrekker as a reliable and valuable search engine.

I appreciate the difference between boys and girls. Today was enlightening because of the websites for my boys to use, especially Grammar Ninja. They will love it!!

My ah ha was Voice Thread which I will definitely be utilizing as soon as I am tracked back on in conjunction with our book study.