Project-Based Learning Written Report

Tori Webster and Mary-Vaughan Spruill

ECI 546
Lesson Rationale

For our PBI project, we wanted to know how using Chatterpix Kids during guided

reading could enhance comprehension. We used the app to teach the standard RL.1.3;

describe characters, settings, and major events in a story using key details and RL.2.2;

Recount stories including fables and folktales from diverse cultures and determine their

central message, lesson, or moral. We taught the lesson to multiple guided reading

groups that were differentiated by instructional reading level. Students had multiple

readings of the book and practiced finding the beginning, middle, and end of the story

with attention to important details before moving on to record it on Chatterpix Kids.

Our project was interconnected with TPACK in several ways. In order to

implement this lesson, we had to use Technological Knowledge of using the iPad and

the Chatterpix Kids app. After we used the app, we had to think of our students and

what they would need to be taught in order to have success in our lessons. Since most

students have used a tablet or iPad previously, our main focus was on teaching the

students how to use the app. We also had to use our Pedagogical Knowledge to plan

and implement the lesson. Since we were doing guided reading, we knew that the

students would be divided into small groups on their reading level. This allowed us to

think of each group and what their needs were. Some students would need more

support than others on how to retell a story, and each student had a different book with

a different genre. In addition, we used content knowledge. Since we were teaching the

standard RL.1.3 and RL.2.2, we needed to think about what students already knew and

what they would need to learn in order to retell a storys important details. We also had

to think about what students would need to be able to know about morals and how to
find the moral of a story. It allowed us to differentiate better, because we taught the

comprehension strategies to smaller groups and gave scaffolding to the students that

needed it. It also allowed us to take a closer look at the standards and think about

exactly what the students needed to know to master the standard. This is what we

based our assessments on in the end as well.

Throughout our project, there was a progression of the Revised Blooms

Taxonomy. Students started at the remembering level, where they just remembered

what components of the story served as the beginning, middle, and end. They then had

to understand and summarize the important parts of the story and decide how to retell

the story. They applied what they had learned by writing and comparing their summaries

with other students. Finally, they created a Chatterpix Kids video to tell what they have

decided to be important details or the beginning, middle, and end of the story that their

guided reading group read. Second graders would be working on telling the lesson or

moral of the folktale that they had read.

The lessons were taught using a modified guided reading model created by

literacy consultant, Jan Richardson. In her lessons, books are taught for at least 3 days.

Students have several opportunities to interact with the text and work on reading

strategies. In her book The Next Step in Guided Reading, she provides detailed

lessons for readers at all grade levels and at all reading stages from emergent through

proficient.(Richardson, 2009) These detailed lessons include word study, teaching word

attack skills, and a guided writing component. Through this model, students are able to

become much better readers. Implementing the use of Chatterpix Kids was a good

extension to the comprehension and guided writing components of her model.

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 Chatterpix Kids is a free app that you can get through the App Store. It was

created to have multiple purposes. Its description on the App Store says that it was

created to make anything talk. It can be used to share with friends and family as silly

greetings, playful messages, creative cards, or even fancy book reports. ("ChatterPix

Kids - by Duck Duck Moose on the App Store") To many, this tool is just for fun, but we

were able to find an educational purpose for it. Students did enjoy using the app, and

could share their retelling with other students in the classroom. They also talked to one

another about their videos and explained why or why not they believed the other student

had created a correct summary of their book. Students were engaged in critical thinking

throughout the process of this project by constantly having to justify their answers to

their teacher and peers.

Lesson Implementation

Day 1

Before our first reading, we did a picture walk, discussed some vocabulary words from

the book, and talked about their background knowledge of gardens and what their

predictions for the book were. The lesson started as a typical guided reading lesson.

The class was divided into four groups by their instructional reading level. The first

graders read a story called Plants We Eat. This is a realistic fiction text about a girl that

plants an herb garden with her mother. Before we read the book, we did a picture walk

where we just looked at the pictures and made observations. Then we discussed what

the students already knew about a garden. Next, we introduced the vocabulary for the

book- parsley, oregano, basil, and herbs. Students were asked to find the vocabulary

word in the book, and think about what it might mean before we gave them the

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definition. The students then recalled reading strategies that we use when we are stuck

on a word such as chunking the word or checking the pictures. We reminded the

students that we would be listening to them and to make sure that they were reading

and to read at a whisper level. As they were reading, we took notes about their reading

behaviors and prompted students that got stuck to use the strategies that we had

discussed. After about ten minutes of whisper reading and taking notes, I asked the

students to stop reading and discussed a student that I noticed using a good reading

strategy to figure out a word that they were stuck on. Finally, I asked a comprehension

question about what we had read so far. Students were prompted to back-up the

answer to the comprehension question by using the book. Then, they wrote down their

answers in their guided reading notebooks.

Day 2

On day two of the lesson, students recalled what they had read previously. We

talked about what had happened so far, and what we thought would happen next. This

session was spent with more emphasis on reading the story. Just like in day one,

students whisper read and we took notes. After students were finished, we began to talk

about the components of retelling a story using the important details. Students had

experience with retelling in Kindergarten, so to build on that we talked about what

details were and how to use the main events when we are retelling a story. As we

discussed these components, students were prompted to look back at the book and find

their answers. They were asked to think about these parts and which ones would be the

most important if they were telling this story to someone that had never read it before.

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They then talked with a partner about their thoughts and began to record their ideas on

an organizer that was labeled B for beginning, M for middle, and E for end.

Day 3

On day three of the lesson, students read the book again. We prompted them to

continue to think about the important parts of the story that they were recording on their

sheets. When they were finished, they completed their written retelling. We explained to

them what Chatterpix Kids was, and my partner pulled them individually to give further

explanation of how to use the app and to record what they wrote using her iPad. She let

them see the app, and explain to them how it worked. The students were able to hear

their recording and decorate their video however they liked. When she finished,

students listened to one another and talked about what they agreed and disagreed with

from the other students. After this lesson, the other groups had to record their retelling

during the guided reading group. Since we had limited technology and assistance, we

had to make sure that students were fully supervised while using our personal iPads.

Challenges

This project had many challenges, but the biggest one was just having access to

the technology itself. At school, the iPads that are issued to us are not allowed to be

used for anything other than mClass assessments. Therefore, we were unable to

download the Chatterpix Kids app to use. Luckily, one of us had a personal iPad that

could be used and the app worked on our phones. The school had also issued a class

set of Nooks, but the Chatterpix Kids app was not compatible with it. If it were not for

our own technology, this project would not have been able to be implemented using this

tool. It was a little frustrating to have the technology at our fingertips, but not be able to

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use it to enable student learning. However, we were able to come up with a way to

make it work for our students.

Another challenge of this project was to show students how to use the

technology itself. With one partner living two hours away and limited assistance

available at the school, some students were unable to have their own time to use the

app in a timely manner. Working with such a young group of students required a large

amount of modeling, despite the fact that our app was very kid friendly and easy to use.

Since students were in small guided reading groups, we had to teach them how to use

the app in small groups. When left alone to record themselves, some students got off

task and were not using the app to record the story, so we decided to have them do the

recording during the guided reading groups instead of alone.

It was also a little difficult since the class is a combination. It is true that having

the students in groups allowed us to differentiate and to teach students what they

needed to know, however the guided reading books for second graders was longer.

They also needed more time and practice than the first graders before their final

Chatterpix was created, hence why we chose to make our report mainly about our

experiences teaching the first graders.

Success

After implementing this project, students have become proficient in retelling the

beginning, middle and end of stories. After assessment, 11 out of 12 first graders were

able to retell a story using the important details. Before this project started, only five

students were able to do this. Using the technology has caused them to be much more

excited and focused during guided reading. This same lesson structure is currently

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being implemented with the second grade students about telling the lesson or moral of a

folktale. They are constantly asking if they can use the app to retell other stories so it

has been added as an option in reading work stations. With some experimenting, we

have been able to make it effective so that less students get off task when they are

using the app. Most of this has come from them getting to practice using it and

becoming more comfortable. Students have had to learn the expectations for using the

app and how to take care of the iPad or whatever piece of technology they are using.

We had to be very strict, only letting them record their Chatterpix in the small group in

the beginning but it has been better. Students will now know the expectations and at

some point be able to use the technology more independently.

Collaboration

Initially, we thought working together on this project would be very difficult due to

the distance between us. One partner lives two hours away from the other who lives in

Raleigh, which made face to face collaboration complicated. We were able to set up a

day to come and visit the classroom and work with the technology and the students

together in the beginning of the project. Then, we held discussions through e-mail, the

phone, and when we saw one another in our other cohort class. We divided up the work

load, and sent one another our products. Then we critiqued and made decisions on how

we thought we should continue.

Tori

I have learned that collaboration has been made much easier due to technology.

At first, I thought that not being able to meet in person would cause problems and that

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the project would be almost impossible. It worked out that we only had to plan to meet

once, so everything else got done online through email or text messaging. We would

discuss our project during breaks in our other class, but the bulk of our work was

completed outside of a face-to-face setting.

Another thing that I learned about myself as a collaborator is that I prefer

collaborating digitally. At first it was overwhelming because I was not used to it. Now I

really like how you can work at the pace that works for you as long as you and your

partner have agreed upon how to divide up the work. Setting deadlines was key, but we

never had issues with the other person not participating even though we were not

working face to face. It takes trust, which I am not used to having and organization.

Some people would probably not fare as well with this method, but I think that online

collaboration is now my preferred process.

Mary-Vaughan

When Tori and I first began this project, I was concerned that one person would

be stuck with most of the workload. It is difficult to split up group work, especially when

both members of the group do not live in the same area. Luckily, Tori and I collaborated

together very well and overcame any difficulties by being honest and open whenever we

felt overwhelmed. Without the use of technology, collaborating and completing this

project would have been incredibly difficult. Tori and I used email, text messages,

google docs, and a flash drive to constantly communicate with one another when we

could not meet in person. During class breaks, we would discuss our project or go over

what we both were working on. I really enjoyed being able to visit Toris school and

working with her students for this project; the students really enjoyed using Chatterpix

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Kids. I wish that I would have been able to visit more, but Tori did an exceptional job of

keeping me informed. I feel we did a great job of splitting up the workload, had strong

communication in person and through technology, both met all time lines, and respected

one anothers work ethic. Collaboration was definitely key in completing this project and

I believe we did a fantastic job working together.

References

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ChatterPix Kids - by Duck Duck Moose on the App Store. (n.d.). Retrieved November
29, 2015, from https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/chatterpix-kids-by-duck-
duck/id734046126?mt=8

Richardson, J. (2009). The next step in guided reading: Focused assessments and
targeted lessons for helping every student become a better reader. New York:
Scholastic.

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