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Media Resources for All Learners - Emily Rogan

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MEDIA RESOURCES FOR ALL LEARNERSSpecial educator Ed Sickles builds entire lessons aroundCNN Student News.(Continued from page 5)the iPods make it possible to compare students’growth from the beginning to the end of the year.The iPods also can be used to help studentsstruggling with mathematics, reading, and writing.“Students can listen to books using the iPodwhile reading along in the text,” Napoli says. Formath, they listen to rap songs with lyrics aboutmath facts. “In the past, they listened to thesemath-fact songs on cassette tape. Using an iPodallows them to listen from anywhere in the roominstead of at a specific listening center. This ismuch more motivating <strong>for</strong> them.”USING THE NEWSEd Sickles, a longtime special educator, has usedCNN Student News in his classroom <strong>for</strong> years.“Technology allows kids to be close to the world—no matter where they are,” he says. Now chairpersonof the developmental-language program‘WE’RE GIVING KIDS THE TOOLSTO CHOOSE WHICH ONE THEY NEED,DEPENDING UPON THE SITUATION.’at the Perkiomen School, a college-preparatoryschool in Pennsburg, Penn., Sickles teaches notetaking, organizing, and processing skills toa small group of students who need individualizedattention.For Sickles, CNN Student News is the perfecttool. He uses the 10-minute broadcasts, teachers’notes, maps, and website suggestions tobuild an entire lesson, incorporating geography,newspaper reading, vocabulary, and currentevents. “Some kids have sequencing issues,” hesays, “and CNN Student News lets them put eventsinto chronological order and gain perspectiveon the world.”In addition, Sickles emphasizes that the programprovides a multimodal approach that helpsstudents with challenges learn. For example, astudent with auditory-processing difficulties canboth see and hear in<strong>for</strong>mation simultaneously,which will strengthen the student’s ability to retainfacts. For those kids who feel self-consciousabout their individual learning styles, thesecable-based classroom lessons “make the playingfield more level, so they feel good about themselves,”he adds.Whether it’s a wiki created by teachers and studentsthat helps struggling learners review notesand class work, closed captioning <strong>for</strong> ESL studentsso they can listen to text and follow along, ortext-to-speech software that lets a developingreader listen to in<strong>for</strong>mation and concentratewithout decoding, teachers are using technologyto reach challenged learners and finding methodsthat don’t exist in a traditional textbook orlecture classroom setting, says Janowski. A classroomwith cable and Internet access opens doors<strong>for</strong> everyone in it.“Now we’re giving kids the tools to choosewhich one they need, depending upon the situation,”she says. “Promoting independence equipsand empowers students and allows teachersto address the needs of all students in theirclassroom.” ::<strong>Emily</strong> S. <strong>Rogan</strong>, a freelance writer who lives in Huntington,N.Y., specializes in health, safety, and education.A trustee on her local school board, shealso teaches writing.RELATED RESOURCESDiscovery Educator Network[Free registration required]community.discoveryeducation.comEdTech Solutions: Teaching Every Studentteachingeverystudent.blogspot.comFree Technology Toolkit <strong>for</strong> Universal Design <strong>for</strong>Learning (UDL) in <strong>All</strong> Classroomsudltechtoolkit.wikispaces.comInspiration Laneinspirationlane.blogspot.comlivescribelivescribe.comMrs. Keck and Mrs. Dilmore Classroom Blognancykeck.blogspot.comTeachWithGraceteachwithgrace.com/TWG/Home.html6 :: CABLE IN THE CLASSROOM :: DECEMBER 2008 www.ciconline.org/cicmagazine

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