Reflection #9

Prezi is an online presentation creator that steps outside of PowerPoint and offers more
options for the students to use in class presentations. Prezis mapping style of designing a
presentation is especially useful because it creates an easier way to differentiate between the
larger ideas and the supporting details of the subject. The student can edit the path of the
presentation by mapping out branches off the larger idea. I think it is a perfect tool to center a
book report around, but it could be used in any presentation setting seeing as it is not topic
specific in any way. In my English class, I would utilize this tool to aid students in determining
the theme or central idea of a text. Ideally, they would use the mapping design to show how the
details in the text contribute to the development of theme throughout the course of the text. This
type of project especially appeals to visual learning students and, perhaps, also students that are
having trouble with connecting concepts together. I designed an assignment in Prezi with
specifically two of my students in mind: Delmar and Rachel. While Prezi is a general
presentation creator and can be universally utilized, I think the design of it perfectly targets the
needs of these two students. For instance, Delmar is an artistic student that seems to learn best
through visual stimulation. Rachel is struggling with some of the key concepts in class and how
they relate to a text. With Prezi, Delmar and Rachel are hopefully more likely to process the
material being covered with it being a visual and concept connecting presentation maker. This
falls under the Analyzing level of Blooms Taxonmy as the student would be utilizing this tool
to further analyze a particular text for recurring themes and contributing details. A secondary
level of Blooms Taxonomy that it could fall under could be Understanding. Students would be
creating a presentation through Prezi to demonstrate their understanding of a text, its smaller
themes/details, and how those smaller themes/details work with the larger theme of the text.
This tool is especially ideal for my instructional needs because it makes it easy for the
students to focus on a central theme such and provide textual evidence to support the idea. The
option to map out smaller branches from the main idea would be ideal to include specific details,
examples, and quotes. It also fits my teaching philosophy, which is to be able to present the
material in at least two different ways to the class. I like this approach because it better ensures
that all students are being reached. So, if I were to lecture and produce hand-outs that explain
central themes and supporting themes with examples from previous texts weve read as a class
and also presented the class with this project to discern those themes on their own, they are more
likely to remember these thematic ideas. They hopefully will be better at picking out themes
afterwards because not only have they been presented with multiple examples, but also have had
to practice and apply it on their own through making a Prezi presentation. If I were to choose to
have each student present their Prezi, the students would be even more exposed to these ideas of
themes, seeing as some students might find smaller themes others did not and connect it still to
the same larger theme of the text. I do not foresee any particular ethical concerns with purchasing
this tool, but as precautionary I would have the students turn in their presentations to me before
presenting to the class so I could check through each project.

Glogster is an online interactive poster creator. It provides a creative and fun way for
students and teachers to present a topic. It includes the options of adding text, links, video,
graphic, and images to your poster. I think this tool would be especially helpful in presenting a
book report in an English class. This tool would appeal to my student much like Prezi because it
allows the students to take an abstract idea and make it tactile in terms of video, graphics, and
images. It could include a specific option for any learner. For example, a video explaining history
of a book, key thematic elements, and those elements importance could very well appeal to
audible learners as well as help other students by having the material presented to them in a
different way. This perfectly exemplifies my teaching philosophy, which is to be able to present
the material in at least two different ways to the class. This approach better ensures that all
students are being reached to comprehend the material. I if used Glogster as a tool to give book
reports, I would also include another medium to help them along the text. For instance, I would
implement mandatory study guides of the text to be filled out as they are reading it. These
questions would not only force them to think about the text in a larger way, but also ensure that
they have notes to reflect on when it comes times for them to make a book report on Glogster. I
think this best exemplifies the Understanding level of Blooms Taxonomy because, seeing as it
would be a final project to finish up a text, it would then be ensuring that the students
comprehended and got a firm grasp of the textual themes. It could also fall under the secondary
levels of either Applying or Analyzing because the students are applying their knowledge
after close examination of a text through study guides.
This tool would be an especially good tool to implement for the benefit of two of my
students, Delmar and Rachel. While Glogster is a general presentation creator and can be
universally utilized, I think the design of it perfectly targets the needs of these two students. For
instance, Delmar is an artistic student that seems to learn best through visual stimulation. Rachel
is struggling with some of the key concepts in class and how they relate to a text. With Glogster,
Delmar and Rachel are hopefully more likely to process the material being covered with it being
a visual poster that also offers multiples different mediums for Rachel to see the material being
presented. Hopefully, by presenting the material to Rachel by study guide questions, creation of a
poster with different mediums, and also class presentation of online posters, Rachel would be
more apt to grasp the text and make the connections because the material was presented in so
many different forms repeatedly. This perfectly fits my intended instructional needs of student
text comprehension. I would utilize this tool in my English class to ensure student
comprehension of a text. By having to go outside of the text itself and find other materials on the
story, such as links, images, and videos, the student is being better exposed to the story and, in
turn, more likely to remember and comprehend the text. I do not foresee any particular ethical
concerns with purchasing this tool, but as precautionary I would have the students turn in their
presentations to me before presenting to the class so I could check through each project.

Storybird is a online story and poem poster creator. It is a creative way to engage students
in writing. As the teacher, I can create an assignment specifying what I want the students to write
(short story or poem) and the subject matter to revolve it around. I would specifically perhaps
choose a writer and have the students try to imitate the writing style of that writer. In my sample
assignment, I choose to have the students create a poem in Storybird with the similar style and
word choice as writer, Edgar Allan Poe. In this way, I would be testing the students
comprehension of his word choice as a writer and how that contributes to his work as a whole.
This best supports the Applying level of Blooms Taxonomy because this particular approach
of imitating an authors style for analytical purposes would show an overall understanding from
the student and test their ability to apply that knowledge. I would also consider it as Creating
because the students are writing their own work and portraying it visually through Storybird.
This tool would best meet my intended instructional needs of ensuring reading comprehension. I
would utilize this tool to ensure student comprehension of a writers style and word choice and
how that correlates with the tone and meaning of the piece. I think this would be a fun and
different way to test their knowledge. It would also tie in nicely with my teaching philosophy,
which is to be able to present the material in at least two different ways to the class. This
approach better ensures that all students are being reached to comprehend the material. If I used
Storybird as a project creator, I would be sure the students were well prepared to complete the
project before I assigned it, utilizing the project as a way to test their knowledge and review. For
instance, if we were focusing on a specific writers work, such as Edgar Allan Poe, I would
implement lectures, point out key phrases that exemplify his signature dark tone, and I would
also include study guide questions for them to answer along the way. At the end of this unit, I
would assign the students to create a poem in Storybird that they think mimic the same signature
style of Edgar Allan Poes that we had been learning. I think it would be a different way to
engage the students in writing as well as test their comprehension and ability to apply what
theyve learned. With the creation of this assignment, I also kept two of my students in mind,
Delmar and Rachel. I think the design of it perfectly targets the needs of these two students. For
instance, Delmar is an artistic student that seems to learn best through visual stimulation. Rachel
is struggling with some of the key concepts in class and how they relate to a text. With Storybird,
Delmar and Rachel are hopefully more likely to process the material being covered with it being
a visual poster that allows creativity and allows individuality and personal creation. It would
obviously appeal to Delmar with it being so tactile, but it would also help me gauge how well
Rachel, and all my students for that matter, are grasping a topic. Hopefully, by presenting the
material to Rachel by lecture, examples, study guide questions, her own creation of a poem, and
also class presentation of online posters, Rachel would be more apt to grasp how writing style
contributes to a text by being presented with the material in so many different forms repeatedly. I
do not foresee any particular ethical concerns with purchasing this tool, but as precautionary I
would have the students turn in their presentations to me before presenting to the class so I could
check through each project.