Renee Griffin

Contact Info:

Pine Grove Elementary

229-245-2297

Email:   reneegriffin@lowndes.k12.ga.us

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/_zebrastripes

About Me:

This year marks the beginning of my 3rd year teaching 2nd grade at Pine Grove Elementary.  I have been out of public education since 1997 when the first of my three children was born.  I taught 3rd grade at W.G. Nunn, in the City Schools for my first three years straight out of college from VSU.  The time in between was spent at home raising my beautiful children.  My husband and I met here in Valdosta and have loved making it our home.   

A Positive Experience with Instructional Technology:

My natural interest in technology drew me to this course.  I aim to make my daily instruction engaging and interesting for my students. Technology is the perfect vehicle to accomplish this goal.  My hopes for this class are to move from a "how-to" into application for the grade level that I teach.  I have been very fortunate to have a SmartBoard, Airliner, and CRS in my room.  I began using the SmartBoard immediately and have found that the little ones immediately pay attention when the SMRTBD is on.  The CRS came into my room around the middle of the year.  For CRCT test preparation, the CRS became an invaluable tool.  I was able to quickly and efficiently observe gaps in learning.  Interventions could begin quickly since I didn't have to take the time needed to grade the assessments.  I was amazed at how skilled my class became in using the "clickers".   

Interests:

• All things techy!!!  Love my laptop, my phone, etc.
• Cooking, food network, collecting & studying cookbooks (weird, I know!)
•  Hanging out with the fam especially at the pool

My Teach 21 Project....    

                                                                  "iPLAY"

My 2nd grade students will be involved in an exciting project this year that is centered around our new school which will open Fall 2010.  Currently, our administration & staff are beginning to brainstorm ideas regarding the layout and equipment purchase for the new playground.  My students will be collaborating together in groups to develop ideas about what they would like to see in their new playground.  This group collaboration will be taking place on our class wiki.  We will use the wiki to organize and collect data as we analyze the current playground  and to plan for the new one. Since this new space will be shared by grades K-2, the students will be surveying and interviewing staff and students from all 3 grades.  I would love for them to be able to record their interviews with flipcams.  The students will also need to take digital pictures of the current playground so that we can use analyze the current playground equipment. These digital shots can be uploaded to VoiceThread so that the groups can all discuss each piece of the playground.  These VoiceThreads can then be embedded into the class wiki for further collaboration & discussion. There are also certain conditions that have been provided by our principal that the students will need to address as they process their data.  After all data is gathered, the students will organize it using software we have on our server & the Classroom Response systems that we have in class.  The graphs created by the CRS can also be added to the wiki.   I am in hopes of linking up with another 2nd grade class from Westside Elementary to chat with via Skype since those students have recently moved into a new school.  Students will be considering the information provided from these student's perspectives also.  I will need webcams for this as well as for video-blogging by each student for the wiki.  The students will also need  jump drives for video and digital picture storage.  Somewhere in this project, I would love to differentiate by adding in the budgeting element for one of the groups.  The next phase will be the planning for the new space.  Again, the wiki will be the guiding force for collaboration.  The students will be using the internet to explore the 3 companies selected by administration to examine the different pieces of equipment based on the guidelines of the new space.  The different choices can be made into VoiceThreads and discussed among the groups and embedded into the wiki.  At the end, I would love to see the students produce some sort of persuasive commercial for what their group proposes for the new playground.  This could be in video form, photostory, or VoiceThread.  

GPS:

ELA2W2~The student writes in a variety of genres. (persuasive writing)

ELA2SV1~ The student uses oral and visual strategies to communicate.

Data Analysis & Probability M2D1

M2P1~Students will solve problems using appropriate technology.

NETS:

*Communication & Collaboration

*Critical thinking, Problem Solving & Decision Making

*Research Information Fluency

*Creativity & Innovation

HOTS:

*Analyze

*Evaluate

*Create 

Hardware Needs:

 (Amazon.com)

Item Descriptions and Details:

1 Digital Camera

Nikon Coolpix L2010MP Digital Camera with 3.6 Optical Zoom & 3 inch LCD (Deep Red) $107.03

1 Flipcam

Flip Ultra Camcorder 2nd Generation, 120 minutes, (pink) $125.90

3 Webcams 

Logitech Webcam C500 (silver) $49.99

3 flash drives

Kingston Data TravelerI- 8G USB 2.0 Flash Drive DTI/8G $21.34

VoiceThread.com subscription $60/year for an educational subscription