Helpful Links and Sources

See this list for additional sources that can encourage and support 21st century 

learning in the classroom

Technology Sources

https://www.booktrackclassroom.com/content/

https://www.soundtrap.com/

https://www.peardeck.com/
http://newtech.coe.uh.edu/
http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/9-digital-learning-tools-every-21st-century-teacher-should-be-able-to-use/

Zaption

Youtube

Facebook

Tumblr

Google Docs

Pinterest

Evernote

Animoto

Prezi

Class Dojo

Storybird

Oovoo

Lesson Idea: Global Community

Create Citizens of the World

Our students are growing up in a world where communication is instant. As educators, we must prepare them to be ready to voice their opinion in a world of citizens. We can encourage this by providing opportunity to communicate and learn about the people of our world. This gives students the skills to be willing and able to learn with people of diverse backgrounds and perspectives.

Civic Engagement: Incorporate inquiry based learning to give back to communities. In this scenario, participants in civic engagement are supportive of one another, each gaining new knowledge and perspectives. Cooperative learning environments help students develop academic and social skills that they can take out of the classroom and apply in real life situations.

Writing with a Purpose: With technologies such as email, blogs, and forums, students writing can be a vehicle for their voice. Rather than write responses, students words can be shared in real discussion. This activity shows students that their writing is valued and has a real purpose, encouraging them to use their voice and technology to voice their opinion.

Skype: Enable a connection with classrooms in different parts of the world. Skype allows classes to video chat with other groups, making face to face connections and allowing for real conversation with people who we cannot physically meet with.

https://www.skype.com/en/

Lesson Idea: Students as Authors

What ways can our students write and report information?

Electronic Story Planning: Students can use these apps to create writing samples that can be easily edited and shared. 

Writing Prompts:

• Write an alternate ending to a story
• Recreate a scene from a different character's perspective
• Report on non-fiction information from multiple sources

  https://www.mystorybook.com/

 https://www.storyboardthat.com/

Online Discussion Boards: Using this format, students can respond to their peer's thoughts where their work can be viewed by all in the learning community. The teacher can track connections and responses to encourage students to ask questions and be critical of their peers ideas.

Discussion Topics:

• How can we make our classroom more supportive of our learning needs?
• What would you change about our school community?
• If you could add any topic to our curriculum, what would it be?
• How do you feel about (community problem)?
• How does it make you feel when you are challenged by your peers?

https://www.proboards.com/

https://www.glogster.com/

Lesson Idea: The Power of Social Media

How can social media connect our students to diverse communities?

Develop Communication Skills:

• Twitter: with restricted character count, students must choose to report the most important information
• Instagram: creation of text to support the meaning of an image
• Pinterest: categorize and organize data for easy access
• Youtube: provide students with a mode to share their creative expression of ideas and knowledge

Support Home-School Connection:

• Google Chat: easy and safe communication with parents
• Google Hangouts: report classroom information and progress\

Links:

https://twitter.com/

https://www.instagram.com/?hl=en

https://googleblog.blogspot.com/

https://youtube.com

https://hangouts.google.com/

https://www.pinterest.com/

Lesson Idea: Google Maps Lesson

These following lesson are supported by 21^st century technology. They help students reach current MA Common Core standards of learning. In addition, the lessons use tools to help students reach the 4 C’s learning objectives of 21^st century learning.





https://www.google.com/maps

• Find and label coordinate points
• Search for locations based on longitude and latitude 
• Explore new places with Google Earth view
• Use satellite view of community to analyze community planning models
• Compare new and old satellite image

Google Map vs. Google Satellite World View

How do we cultivate 21st century literacy in the classroom?

As educators, we can make the goals of 21^st century learning attainable to our students by encouraging 4 important ideas: 

The 4 C’s of 21^st Century Learning

Communication- We encourage our students to communicate effectively within different platforms. Our students can address their thoughts and opinions with distinct and specific evidence and reasoning. They are encouraged to extend their modes of communication by choose effective tools based on their audience and content. Different forms of classroom management can help students develop these skills. Morning meeting gives students a chance to practice discussion skills with their peers that can be transferred to discussions using various technology platforms. These discussion cans bring students out of the classroom, working with other learners around the world to exchange and build new knowledge.

Collaboration- Students use their strong communication skills to work in various types and sizes of student work groups. Using questioning skills, students develop strong understanding of the opinions of their peers. They are able to combine knowledge to arrive at the most comprehensive and detailed answer or solution. In addition to collaborating with groups in the classroom, this learning models allows for collaboration with other institutions to solve real problems. Perhaps students engage in projects in their communities to collect data and suggest solutions. This is influenced by technology, where students can complete extensive research and creatively report their findings as members of their community projects.

Watch! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWFE1YLk0TA

Critical Thinking- According to Bloom’s Taxonomy of higher order thinking skills, critical thinking is locked within the top of the pyramid of skills, encompassing evaluation, synthesis, and analysis. By modeling, we help our students achieve these thinking skills. Within technology, students must collect data and make decisions as to whether the information is accurate and effective. They pull together this data from various sources and make conclusions based on this information.

Creativity- Creativity falls at the highest level of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Here, students are required to pull together their knowledge in order to create a new resource. With 21^st century technology, the possibilities for creation are endless. This element also encompasses collaboration, as students learn to work together, pulling knowledge together to create and report new ideas

How is the 21st century revolutionizing teaching and learning?

21^st century learning methods are closely linked with theorists such as John Dewey and Geneva Gay, who advocate for culturally relevant, community and inquiry based learning. Gay advocates for the creation of culturally relevant teaching as a way to meet all students needs. In the 21st century classroom, these needs are diverse. Culturally relevant teaching recognizes students prior experience and cultural knowledge as a tool to help them access new content. Students come to the classroom with different technology experiences. As teachers, it is vital that we give models and support for students so that they are all able to access technology to improve their communication skills.





Technology provides the opportunity for students to be a part of an infinite number of communities. Within the classroom, students are in groups of friends and peers. This extends to their school community of learners and their town or city community of citizens. This idea connects to John Dewey's work with learning communities. Collaboration and communication become important tools in creating these global communities. We are now able to help our students connect with other scholars around the world to share ideas, theories, and cultural experiences to deepen their understanding of our global communities.




Increase of communication-based technology allows ideas to flow freely and immediately between these communities. While ideas from John Dewey’s laboratory school are not new, originating from his work completed in the early 1900’s, 21^st century learning styles support his seemingly timeless ideas. The combination of available tools and ideas rooted in constructivism are fueling the revolution in teaching and learning.





Above is a photo of Dewey's laboratory school, where students learn by completing authentic tasks as a community of learners.

What does 21st Century learning look like?

How do schools around the world embrace 21st century skills?

How is 21st century education building citizens of the world?

Watch this video to get an idea:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA1Aqp0sPQo

Big Ideas:

• mobile and qualified workforce

• skill sets that haven't been invented

• skills and technology relationship

• diverse and creative engagement

21st century education builds a community of learners around the world, who 

are challenged to problem solve, communicate, and become life time learners.

What does it mean to be literature in the 21st Century?

Think Critically

Literacy in the 21^st century means that students are able to effectively absorb and report information using new and evolving technology sources. First, students need the skills necessary to decode information. This encompasses critical thinking and technology safety skills. We teach our students to make informed decisions, question content validity, and protect their personal information on the web. 

Through exploration, students develop the skills the need to navigate these sources. They search and select information that is relevant and applicable to the questions they must answer. Here, literacy is defined by the ability to understand.

Think Creatively

Second, our students use their experience with data collection in order to share their knowledge and new thinking. Our students activate their creative thinking skills, summarizing ideas and reporting their most important findings. This communication, when effective, has the potential to bridge diverse communities, using various communication platforms.

Creation calls upon a high level of thinking. Students pull in examples from the sources they explore and create new ways of reporting data. This expression of ideas is then assessed to determine if students were able to take in and decompress information. Here, literacy is defined as the ability to convert and report information in an interesting and effective way.