GFS: Audacity to Monitor!

Caitlin Walsh, 4th grade teacher at GFS, uses Audacity software to monitor her students progress in oral reading fluency.

Students first recorded their reading using a microphone and Audacity software. They saved their files in the R-Drive so that they could be easily accessed.

Students used the following three checklists to assess their growth over three repeated readings. The checklists were designed based upon the focus of the lesson (click on them to open up the checklists):

• Fluency Center Goals and Progress Reflection for Heeding Punctuation
• Fluency Center Goals and Progress Reflection for Reading with Expression (Poetry)
• Fluency Center Goals and Progress Reflection for Reading with Expression
  

Listen to an example of one of the student's audio files: SAMPLE

SHS: Spanish -- Podcasting and Blackboard

Victoria Mazzarelli, World Language Department Chair and Spanish teacher, recently combined podcasting with Blackboard's Discussion Boards. Two of her 12th grade Spanish Honors classes participated in this activity. A Blackboard class was set up combining all students from Periods 2 and 3. Both classes were given the assignment to read and create an alternate ending to the story "Nosotros, no" ("Not us") .

Working in pairs students used the language lab to record their endings in Spanish. With the help of lab assistant, Laura Schwartz, the audio files were then attached to each group's Blackboard Discussion Group.

Next students from Period 2 were asked to listen to the podcasts in the Discussion Board of Period 3 and comment in Spanish on all of them. Students were given time to start this in class, but some of the work was done at home.

The project involved reading, writing, listening and speaking in Spanish as well as collaborating with students in another class.

This image shows the Blackboard Discussion Board groups with the uploaded .mp3 file. Click on image to see a larger view. To hear one of the Spanish podcasts, click here.

LLS: Podcasting Book Reviews

(Click on book cover to hear student podcast)

Barbara Eilertsen, LMS at LLS, has been working with students to create podcasts with students in grades 3-5. These podcasts focus on students recording an entertaining, informative and persuasive marketing pitch for a book they recently read. Scripts are prepared by the students, and music is added after the recording session. Using Audacity software as the recording tool and First Class as the publishing tool, students have created 24 "Book Review Podcasts." These podcasts are available to the students through the LMC Blackboard page. Here is the RSS Feed if you would like to subscribe:
feed://mail.westport.k12.ct.us/~Barbara_Eilertsen/FOV3-0001BC51/?Plugin=RSS&Leaves
(You can subscribe to these Podcasts using Google Reader or iTunes and have every new podcast delivered to you! Just cut the RSS feed provided into the subscription field in Google Reader, iTunes or any other RSS Aggregator you have found.)

(Click on images for a better view.)