Inquiry+Activity+Elizabeth+O'Keeffe

--1st Inquiry Activity (1) Web-based activity: Grammar Bytes.

The activity that I chose is called Grammar Bytes[| http://www.chompchomp.com/menu.htm] (Grammar Bytes can be found by clicking on Graphics & Learner Activities-> Learner Activities>.) Grammar Bytes uses common grammar problems such as the comma splice, sentence fragments, irregular verbs, pronoun agreement, etc. These exercises show the learner parts of speech and how to improve their grammar by choosing which is the correct word or sentence. The game tells you (loudly), if you answered correctly or incorrectly. That was a part of the activity I did not like. I felt the barnyard noises and the loud applause and cheering were a little over the top. However, I could be reacting too sensitively becuase I answered a few of the comma splices incorrectly and got a vociferous moo! I think young kids would like the audio sounds and would find these games entertaining and fun while still learning a good deal of real grammar. The explanations were satisfactory, when I answered incorrectly, I would ask for an explanation and it would be clear. However the downside to guess games like this is that the student may just be arbitrarily picking any answer and not really learning anything. There are also handout links on the website so teachers can print out the questions and have the learners do them in class.

(2a) NY State Standards:

NYS ELA Standard 1: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding.

(2b) National Education Technology Standards

NETS Standard 6: Technology Operations and Concepts: a. understand and use technology systems b. select and use applications productively and effectively

(3) I think this is a good example of inquiry based learning because it provides a variety of activities which incorporate the use of Internet resources in order for students to discover new grammar knowledge and use it in real-world situations. I think this is a good supplement and teacehrs can use this as a tool to access what students have learned in class. For example, as a homework assignment, they can have them complete the worksheets while doing the quizzes online. Upon further examination, Grammar Bytes was revealed to be too basic of a website to be inquiry-based learning. The website was really more of a supplememt to a lesson than an actual lesson. Beyond using simple games, there is really not much substance.

**2nd Inquiry Activity: It was hard to find an inquiry based activity because a lot of these learner activities were just online games or teacher resources.

(1) Web-based activity: Virtual Fieldtrips The second activity that I chose is called Virtual Fieldtrips [] (Virtual Fieldtrips can be found by clicking on Graphics & Learner Activities-> Learner Activities>.) This is a great website for teachers and students. Students can take a virtual field trip through a variety of subjects like foreign language, fine arts or math. They would begin by clicking on the subject they are interested in such as fine arts which would lead you into a variety of possible art and music topics such as The Trumpet Shop or Ancient Egyptian Art. Choosing The Trumpet Shop would lead you through a "tour" dedicated to important trumpet players and music compositions. A teacher could easily use one of these sites to create a webquest and have the learners find out information in a particular area. A downside to this activity is that a webquest would need to be created. These are not set up as webquests already and the teacher would need to supplement the sites with questions and additional activities. They are also very short and the teacher would need to have the learners use several tours to fill up an entire lesson. However, there is an option for a teacher to create their own virtual field trip which can be tailor made to be appropriate to the learner grade level. There is also a section to visit related sites such as PBS Easter Island or The White House which were very interesting and great research sites for class projects. Unfortunately a lot of the links provided did not work.

(2a) NY State Standards:

NYS ELA Standard 1: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding.

NYS ELA Standard 3: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">(2b) National Education Technology Standards

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">NETS Standard 6: Technology Operations and Concepts: <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">a. understand and use technology systems <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">b. select and use applications productively and effectively

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">NETS Standard 3: Research and Information Fluency

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> a. plan strategies to guide inquiry <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> NETS Standard 2: Communication and Collaboration <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">(3) I think Virtual Fieldtrips is a fair example of an inquiry-based activity. It is a better example than Grammar Bytes which was a more one-sided website offering only grammar games. The virtual tours opened the door to the possibility of a very interesting lesson but would require more planning by the teacher to round-out the assignments. The tours were a little skimpy and could have used research question and follow-up activities. However, they were good for introducing learners to a variety of topics under their subject area.