This year we were asked
to use Wordly Wise to help teach vocabulary through direct instruction. For those
of you who know me I am not what you would classify as a workbook person, but I was on board with the expectations from my
administration. However I did ask if I could use the book in different
ways with the goal of students learning the words and applying them in a
variety of situations with understanding.
We spent the first
several units (1-3) learning how to figure out what words mean and expectations
of exercises in the book. I wanted to create an authentic experience for
students to use the vocabulary words and decided we would create our first
class podcast.
I spent some time
researching various podcast programs and speaking to colleagues across the
country who podcast with students, including our principal. I asked for
permission to do this as well. The programs suggested were:
- Podbean
- Irig with anchor
- Vocaroo
- Audacity
- Sound trap
- twistedwave.com/online
I met with the people
from Soundtrap. Though that is an amazing program to use, it is not sustainable
given the cost I would have to pay out of pocket. I decided to start with
Anchor.
Students and I met to
discuss possible themes for a podcast. They had time to individually write a
list of ideas. Then they met in a small group, figuring out two possible
choices. Students showed me their two choices, and I asked them to come up with
a list of items we could podcast about under one of them.
Students suggested The
Day in the Life of a 5th grader, books, Discovery Quests, and Top 10 Lists. We
had a long discussion about which one would produce the easiest way for us to
discuss things and use our vocab words.
Students narrowed it
down to Top 10 and Day in the Life of a 5th grader. We then spent
some time chatting about each one, expressing opinions and asking questions. I pulled
two students together and modeled how it would look with each one. Students
realized the Top 10 one would require research and be very limited in
information, so we should use that as a backup. They had a lot to say about their
days, and it didn’t have to be just in school. We used words we had already
covered from topics 1-3 to create a short podcast. I needed to figure out with
students how to use Anchor and get us started. We are all learning
together.
The students worked in
collaborative groups to create their first segment. We counted off by 3s, and
each group took a chapter from Worldly Wise. I modeled what one could say in a
podcast and went over a bunch of ideas they could talk about. We also listened
to sample podcasts. Students did a great job creating their first segment. However
when I did a mock recording, they expected it to be done in the first try. They
learned things take time, patience, and practice. It was a dry run through. I figured out Anchor does not let you
record and upload at the same time. I can do one long piece and break it up.
Students needed to practice a bit more since they were off key when speaking in
unison and crumbled paper or were not sure when to go. I also forgot to use the
microphone I had gotten.
We did see Anchor had
music for a theme song. I decided to do the small chunks with a live studio
audience. I hooked up the mic. We organized the segments by type and had the
students come up to read. Two groups had some trouble starting but we were able
to delete their blooper and rerecord. When they were done I spent some time
after school figuring out how to put the podcast episode together with
transitions. Then I shared it with families and on social media.
What started as a voyage into vocabulary words turned into
something much bigger!
Check out our first class podcast!
I spent some time with
the students listening to the podcast. They were asked to think
about things we did well and things we need to work on. They could have either written bulleted notes or
sketchnotes. Students thought some groups were animated. They gave props to our
singers. They liked that we had a lot to talk about. One
student was surprised at how people got along and did not argue when having to
do the task. They felt we needed to
work on intonation (voice excitement), more diverse topics, and background
noises.
They really did a great
job capturing some specific ideas of what we can do moving forward.
I talked about using passions, ideas, and reflection to share their story. Students see the benefit of using Wordly Wise
exercises to help us get to know the words. The background knowledge of the
words was helpful. Our podcast has inspired others at the elementary level
across the country!
Several students were empowered to blog about their podacasting experience!
Our journey is just
beginning, and we are going down this podcasting path together.
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