National State Parks in the U.S.A

NATIONAL STATE PARKS IN THE U.S.AGrade 4 Unit By: Jackie Filomeno

Image came from: http://worldheritage.routes.travel/americas-world-heritage-sites/ 1

Reason for Technology Integration Technology allows students to be able to experience what different National Parks are like around the country without having to actually travel there This saves schools moneyTechnology allows teachers to show their students vivid photos and videos which can enhance their experience and helps students retain information These realistic videos and pictures can show students the importance of saving our environment

Internet Content

All websites in this presentation are accurately related to National State Parks in the USA

All of these websites have been checked as reliable sources for both teachers and students to use

All URLs have been checked to make sure that they work

All photos and videos have an accurate link that can be connected to them (some links in the notes section)

Blogs!PBS.ORG provided this blog

Todds blog about stepping into the world without leaving the classroom promotes the use of technology to help connect students to professionals in different fields of work

Students could use technology to Skype with Park Rangers around the country to get

Blog source: http://www.pbs.org/education/blog/globetrotting-without-leaving-the-classroom

This blog is a great way for teachers to be able to get new ideas on how to incorporate Skype into their classroom. Not only does Todd list the benefits to using Skype in the classroom, he also addressed how teachers should go about it. He has given teachers his contact information so that people can reach him if he has any questions because he referred to himself as a Skype Master.4

Blogs (cont.)SCHOLASTIC.COM

Beths blog focuses on the importance of creating interactive experiences for her students by having them travel across the country to learn about different region and national state parks around the USA

Students will make maps, diagrams, animal tracks, Etc. to enhance their experience

Beths blog has lots of pictures and videos that can help other teachers visualize how she transformed her classroom

Check out Beth's Blog!

https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/blog-posts/beth-newingham/region-tour/

Beths blog is a really good resource for teachers because it is really detailed and specific. It also has many pictures of students actually carrying out the activities which is a good tool for teachers who want to use this approach in their classroom. This website is easy to access for teachers and can give teachers many fun and exciting ideas for the classroom!5

Podcast David Quammen's Yellowstone National Park Podcast!

Quammens podcast helps students understand the pressing issue of the stress on the parks ecosystem

This helps keep students up to date with current events by getting a first hand opinion

http://www.npr.org/2016/04/18/474658536/is-yellowstone-national-park-in-danger-of-being-loved-to-death

By getting a first hand experience, we are teaching our students to be caring and responsible individuals when in comes to taking care of the environment. This is a great resource for teachers to use in their classroom to help students understand real life issues. 6

Internet Resources Discover the Forest This website provides lots of fun opportunities and resources for children!Allows students to find forests or parks near them Allows students to explore different animal tracks, leaf rubbings, and animals noises that they might come across in national state parks Allows students to become Jr. Park Rangers

http://www.discovertheforest.org/what-to-do/

This website helps students learn about nature that they would find in the forest so that they can be prepared to adventure forests on their own. They can also pledge to be a Jr. Park Ranger which helps them learn the importance of taking care of the environment. 7

Internet Resources 2. Save the Redwoods This website teaches students the importance of saving the Redwood Forest and how trees are crucial to our environment. Allows students to get involved themselvesAllows students to learn about what this national organization does on a daily basis Allows students to understand the importance of saving our planet

https://www.savetheredwoods.org/learning-center/act/

This website teaches kids a very important lesson that will help them be active participants in society. We want our students to care about the environment and to know all the different biodiversity that is found in each environment. 8

Internet Sources 3. National Geographic Kids! This website does a great job of teaching students the history of National State Parks which can incorporate history into a science lesson. Allows students to play games and watch videos as they learn new information Allows students to learn about animals who were or still are endangered

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/history/history-of-the-national-parks/#park-yellowstone.jpg

9

Instructional Videos Before we begin our unit on National State Parks, students should understand what a National State Park is and how each state park has a different location, ecosystem, climate, etc.

This will get students excited to begin learning about National State Parks in depth

I will ask students if any of them have ever been to a National State Park so that we can make some real world connections

Instructional Video!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH9DZH87Lb410

Inspiration/Kidspiration

http://www.inspiration.com/Freetrial/Inspiration

Students can use this graphic organizer that was created with Inspiration to organize different National State Parks in their head. This organizer creates a nice and organized visual for students to have so that they can better compartmentalize thoughts in their head. In this organizer, students are asked to identify the climate, habitat, and location of five different National State Parks that are in five different parts of the country. Students can use IPADs and computers to do research on each one of these National State Parks in order to fill out the organizer appropriately. Students will be able to refer back to this graphic organizer whenever they need to in future lessons. And it was fairly simple to make online, which is a benefit for most teachers who are in a time crunch. This is a great way to great resources for any lesson in the classroom.11

Teaching Materials - AppNational Geographic App

Students can travel to all of these parks without leaving the classroom. This allows themto be able to become knowledgeable about different National Parks at their own pace.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/national-parks-by-national/id518426085?mt=812

Teaching Materials Book Tracks, Scats, and Signs written by Leslie Dendy

This book helps students become a nature detective by introducing different animals to students

It also introduces students to the tracks and signs that animals leave so that students can identify them

http://www.nationalgeographic.org/idea/national-park-resources/ 13

Teaching Materials- Worksheet This worksheet was found on education.com which provides lots of resources for teachers to use

This worksheet asks students to write in National State Parks that are found in different states across the country

https://www.education.com/download/worksheet/103944/national-parks-map.pdf 14

Teaching Materials -This assignment could be completed on the computer or printed out for students to complete with pencil and paper

It is really useful because it gives facts to students about National Park Services and then asks them to answer comprehension questions after

https://www.nps.gov/common/uploads/teachers/lessonplans/HALE%20GEOLOGY%20What%20is%20a%20National%20Park.pdf 15

Subject Specific WebsiteThis website has education resources for students, teaching resources for teachers, and blogs and information for any person interested in National State Parks!check this website out!

http://www.nationalgeographic.org/idea/national-park-resources/

I chose this website because it was useful for both the teacher and the students! Teachers are able to get educational resources and lesson plan ideas for free and students are able to explore different National Parks and learn information on their own during independent time. Students could use this website to fill out their graphic organizer from Inspiration. This website is very organized and easily to use and it is a reliable website because National Geographic is a trusted source of information.

16

Use of Internet Interactive WebsiteThis website provides interactive games where students can learn about habitats This website allows students to play games where they have to decide if an animal is in the right habitat, create ecosystems, etc.

http://interactivesites.weebly.com/habitats.html

This website is extremely fun for students and lets them practice concepts that they have learned in class but in a fun way!17

Uses of Internet- Research EngineThis is a search engine made for kids to be able to do research on their ownIt is kid friendly and it modifies searches to make it easier for kidsStudents can use this website to find facts about National State Parks

http://www.kidtopia.info/

18

Web 2.0 Edublog is a blogging website that helps link students to teachers as well as students to other students. Teachers are able to communicate with students while they are at home which is convenient for snow days, weekends, etc. Students are able to share their ideas on topics without talking in front of the whole class, it is a safe space

http://edublogs.org/about/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/edublogs19

SlideshareThanks for watching!