My Symbaloo Webmix - Mi webmix en Symbaloo

Symbaloo is an app that functions like an online desktop where you can organize webpages of your interest to access them in a fast way, personalizing each link with icons, colors and distributing them as you please. This resource has been very useful for organizing different links of special interest for CLIL teaching. I have created a Webmix related to CLIL methodology. Here are the links that I have added and the reason why:

1. Plickers: It is a great app I have used many times with my students for realtime testing and reviewing contents. Students enjoy using it, and love to view the graph of the different responses each has given in the class. This time I have created review was/were multiple choice questions to view the understanding of the difference between them.

2. British Council Web: A very complete page where you can find different types of exercises, content, activities and videos on English as a second language. I have specifically added the link of past verb tense which is the content we will be studying through the CLIL unit I am creating.

3. Tes Teach: This is an amazing tool to create online lessons, where the students can learn on their own, teacher can review from home what they have accomplished, or use it in class to explain the unit in question. It offers a great amount of links, resources from other teachers which you can modify, download or use for your own lesson plan. I have created a lesson on creative writing, which is the basis of the Kamishibai the students will create.

4. Youtube: Who doesn't know what youtube is? This platform allows you to upload videos of any kind, receive feedback, share privately or publicly or search to watch tutorials on almost anything you can think of. I researched an example of a Kamishibai so my students are able to watch and listen to a real one and know what their final task is.

5. Pinterest: An attractive app where you can find many different resource and tools for teaching. I found a great link to prepositions of time which will be very helpful for my students when writing their narrative. 

6. Wikipedia: Of course the free encyclopedia online had to be in my webmix. I linked the information on what a Kamishibai is so we can read it in class and explain it.

7. Wordreference: It is one of the best online dictionaries of all times. I linked this dictionary because we will be using it to search for words that any of the students my have doubts with.

8. Wordclouds.com: This web page creates a word cloud of your choice, you just have to introduce a text and it will create it. You can choose the shape, the colors, and the size. I created one to talk about narrative.

9. Rubric for evaluation: I linked this rubric because when working in groups it is the best way to evaluate students in a very objective way. 

10. eslgamesplus.com: Great web where you can find all types of online games for students of different age groups and different categories. I have linked a Jeopardy game to review the past irregular verbs.

At the end of my post you will find my webmix embedded so you can scroll through it and use any of the ideas I have shared. Thanks for reading. See you on the network!

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Symbaloo es una aplicación que funciona como un escritorio online donde puedes organizar enlazes web de tu propio interés para acceder a ellos de una manera rápida, personalizando cada enlace con  iconos, colores y distribuyendo los mismos. Este recurso me ha sido muy útil para poder organizar distintos enlaces de especial interés para la enseñanza AICLE. He creado un webmix sobre la metodología AICLE. A continuación explico los enlaces que he usado y la razón de su elección:

1. Plickers: Es una gran aplicación que he usado numerosas veces con mi alumnado para repasar contenidos o evaluar en tiempo real. El alumnado disfruta usándolo y les encanta ver la gráfica en la pantalla digital de las respuestas de sus compañeros. He creado un repaso con preguntas tipo test para repasar el verbo "was-were".

2. Página web British Council: Una gran página donde se puede encontrar distintos tipos de ejercicios, contenidos, actividades y videos en inglés. He enlazado en mi webmix el pasado simple ya que es el contenido que se estudiará  a lo largo de la unidad AICLE que estoy creando.

3. Tes Teach: Una gran herramienta para crear unidades online, donde el alumno/a puede aprender a su propio ritmo, el profesorado puede repasar desde casa lo que el alumnado a conseguido, o se puede usar en clase para realizar las explicaciones. Ofrece numerosos enlances, recursos de otros/as profesores/as las cuales se pueden modificar, descargar o usar para nuestra propia unidad. He creado una unidad que explica la narativa creativa, ya que es la base de la creación del Kamishibai.

4. Youtube: ¿Quién no conoce Youtube? Esta plataforma te permite subir videos de cualquier tipo, recibir retroalimentación de los demás, compartir de manera pública o privada y buscar tutoriales de casi cualquier cosa. He enlazado un ejemplo de un Kamishibai para que mis alumnos/as puedan verlo y escucharlo y así saber cual será su tarea final.

5. Pinterest: Una aplicación donde puedes encontrar muchos recursos y herramientas para la enseñanza. He encontrado un enlace de las preposiciones de tiempo en inglés que será muy útil para el alumnado cuando escriban su historia. 

6. Wikipedia: Por supuesto la enciclopedía online gratis tenía que estar en mi webmix. He enlazado la información sobre lo que es un Kamishibai para poder leerlo en clase y explicarlo. 

7. Wordreference: Es uno de los mejores diccionarios online de todos los tiempos. He enlazado el diccionario porque se usará en clase para buscar las palabras que el alumnado no sepa.

8. Wordclouds.com: Esta página web crea una nube de palabras de tu elección, lo único que se tiene que hacer es introducir un texto y a partir de él se crea la nube. Se puede elegir la forma, los colores y el tamaño. Yo he creado una para hablar de la narrativa.

9. Rúbrica de evaluación: He enlazado esta rúbrica porque cuando se trabaja en grupos para mi es la mejor manera de evaluar a mis alumnos/as de una manera objetiva.

10. eslgamesplus.com: Gran web donde se puede encontrar todo tipos de juegos en línea de distintas categorías para alumnado de distintas edades.  He enlazado un juego de "Jeopardy" para repasar los verbos irregulares en pasado.

A continuación se encuentra mi webmix para que cualquiera pueda ojearlo y usar las ideas que comparto. Gracias por leer. ¡Nos vemos por la red!

CLIL Methodological Aspects - Aspectos metodológicos AICLE

And so my experience continues in this magnificent course of CLIL Methodology. One of the last tasks we were asked to complete was to analize a CLIL didactic unit. Here we had to verify which were the principal aspects of CLIL methodology being used. It has been a very helpful task because I have realized throughout a unit how the methodology is established through the different activities proposed, the organization of the contents, the way language is presented and how the linguistic skills are practiced through the learning of the contents. When creating or using a CLIL unit it is important to take into consideration the following:

1. The use of language (L2) in a significant way to learn both language and content.
2. Scaffolding of reception and production. It is the procedure used throughout the teaching-learning process for the students to build knowledge of the topic being studied and consciousness of the structures of the language being used. 
3. The use of different resources to grasp the students attention, to make the process meaningful and useful in real life situations.
4. Flexibility in the teaching process taking into account the students needs in the learning process, making use of different strategies to facilitate the comprehension of the contents through the language (L2). 
5. Presentation of a variety of activities that engage students in interaction with the rest of his/her classmates. 
6. Personal autonomy in the learning process, for example working in groups in projects of investigation.

There is a variety of materials posted on the web  to be used freely by anyone that wants to implement this methodology in their class, whether if you are working with bilingual groups, or you just think it is the best technique to get across to your students. I really do think that this methodology is the way to  true bilingual teaching. 

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Así pues continúa mi experiencia en este magnífico curso de metodología AICLE. Una de las últimas tareas que se nos ha pedido es la de analizar una unidad didáctica AICLE. Teníamos que verificar cuales eran los principales aspectos de la metodología AICLE usados. Ha sido una tarea muy útil haciéndome ver como se establece la metodología a través de las actividades propuestas, la organización de los contenidos, la manera en que la lengua se presenta y como se practican las distintas destrezas lingüísticas a través del contenido. Cuando creamos o usamos  una unidad AICLE es importante que tomemos en consideración lo siguiente:

1. El uso de la lengua (L2) de una manera significativa para aprender tanto el contenido como la lengua.
2. Andamiaje de recepción y producción. Es el procedimiento que se usa en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje para que el alumnado construya conocimiento de lo que estudia y conciencia de las estructuras gramaticales que usa.
3. El uso de distintos recursos para llamar la atención del alumnado, haciendo el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje significativo y útil en situaciones reales.
4. Flexibilidad en el proceso enseñanza tomando en consideración las necesidades de aprendizaje del alumnado, haciendo uso de distintas estrategias para facilitar la comprensión de los contenidos a través de la lengua (L2).
5. Presentación de distintos tipos de actividades para comprometer al alumnado en interacción con el resto de sus compañeros y compañeras.
6. Autonomía en el proceso de aprendizaje, por ejemplo trabajando en grupos en proyectos de investigación.

Hay una gran variedad de material en la red para su uso libre si se quiere implementar esta metodología en el aula, sin importar si se trabaja con grupos bilingües o simplemente si se piensa que es la mejor manera de llegar al alumnado. Pienso que esta metodología es el camino para una enseñanza bilingüe real. 

CLIL METHODOLOGY - METODOLOGÍA AICLE

This month I started a new online course about CLIL methodology (Content and Language integrated Learning). Having been a teacher for ten years this is a new challenge for me. I am very interested in this methodology because I want to introduce it in the biligual project I coordinate in my school (I.E.S. García Lorca). I also want to guide my team of bilingual teachers with new practices in the teaching and learning process. Besides this, it would be very interesting to use it in my L2 class, integrating the contents of the subject with the learning of the language. 

My first impression of the course has definetly been a good one, having already learned about and used new tools to introduce the learning of a language in the classroom. 

At the beginning of the course we were asked to create a presentation of ourselves with any online tool we were comfortable with. Personally I used "Biteable", a great online page that offers a great number of scenes for creating different types of presentations. Some of my students have used this tool to create digital support for their oral presentations in English class. Some of the participants of the course used: Adobe Spark, Powtoon, Genial.ly, among others.

During the following months I will post my experience of the course, sharing with everyone knowledge I will acquire about such great methodology. It would be an honor to receive feedback from all those who take their time and read my thoughts. Remember, colaborating, sharing and cooperating are some of the best ways of learning. 

At the end of my entry I have posted my presentation of "If I were..." in Spanish. Hope you enjoy it! 

See you on the network!

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Este mes he comenzado un nuevo curso en línea sobre la metodología AICLE (aprendizaje integrado de los contenidos y lengua extranjera). Después de 10 años de docencia, este se presenta como un nuevo reto para mi. Me interesa mucho la metodología  AICLE porque la quiero introducir en el proyecto bilingüe que coordino en mi centro (I.E.S. García Lorca). Además quiero orientar a mi equipo de profesores y profesoras bilingües en nuevas prácticas en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Añadido a esto, sería muy interesante introducir la metodolgía AICLE en mi clase de inglés, integrando los contenidos de la asignatura con el aprendizaje de la lengua.

Mi primera impresión  del curso ha sido muy buena, habiendo aprendido acerca de herramientas TICs y haberlas usado para la enseñanza del idioma en el aula. 

Al principio del curso se nos pidió crear una presentación acerca de nosotros mismos. Podíamos utilizar cualquier herramienta TIC con la cual nos sintieramos cómodos. Personalmente usé "Biteable", una página web que ofrece muchas distintas escenas para crear diferentes tipos de presentaciones. Algunos de mis alumnos y alumnas han usado esta herramienta para crear apoyo digital para las presentaciones orales que realizan en la clase de inglés. Los participantes del curso han usado: Adobe Spark, Powtoon, Genial.ly, entre otras.

Durante los próximos meses publicaré mi experiencia en el blog, compartiendo con todos el conocimiento adquirido sobre esta metodología. Sería un honor recibir retroalimentación de aquellos que se tomen su tiempo en leer mis pensamientos. Quiero señalar que colaborar, compartir y cooperar son algunas de las mejores maneras de aprender. 

A continuación os dejo el video presentación que he creado para el curso "Y si fuera...". Espero que os guste. 

¡Nos vemos por la red!

Final Thoughts...

One of the last tasked asked for in the MOOC is to write down our final thoughts after completing the assignments proposed in the course. First of all,  I have to say that though I made it in time, its been a tough week with all the work at school, though its been  worth while since I have learned many new things to put into use next school year. These are the questions formulated by the MOOC for each participant to answer:

1. What have you learnt from the course? 

I have learned a lot about collaborative teaching and learning. The use of ICT tools is something I will definitely incorporate in my classroom, to a bigger extent than I have to the moment. I have learned how to use different tools online, and a number of ones I didn't know existed. 

2. What are the positive aspects of the MOOC? 

Positive aspects have been getting to learn from others, sharing experiences, and being able to talk about it with many like ourselves, from all parts of the world. Best part was being able to communicate with people around the globe!

3. What are the negative aspects of the MOOC?

Maybe the timing of the MOOC wasn't adjusted to all the labour I had to do at work, its been crazy last month at school.

4. What would you suggest to improve it?

I suggest offering the MOOC  at a better time during the school year, a more relaxed time if there is any :-)

Overall, this has been a great experience, and I am glad to have been able to share it with many teachers with the same needs as me. Thanks for reading, see you on the Network!

UNIT 5: FINAL PROYECT

After all the activities, peer revising and assessing, this is my final product. I have learned very much after coursing this MOOC. It's been a pleasure, and I am looking forward to putting into practice all what I have learned. In the meantime, see you on the network!

Final Project

UNIT 4: E-ACTIVITY

Project Design

In Unit 3 we are asked to draft a collaborative project to work with our students in school. As this year I had the great experience of working with 3 different classes on creating a class yearbook, I think it would be a great idea to expand and instead of making a classbook, make a European Newspaper, where students from different countries can share their experiences with others. For this I have elaborated the following draft of my project.

PROJECT: The European School Newspaper

ABSTRACT: The European School Newspaper will feature the different events that students engage in during the school year, such as their complementary activities and extra-curricular activities. It will also have a section where the students share their curiosities and tastes on music, films, and past time activities.  The idea is to create a newspaper where different activities performed by students of Europe  are shown.

GOALS: 

1.  Improve writing skills in English.  
2. Improve communication language skills (speaking in English). 
3. Use ICT tools successfully. 
4. Learn about interests and the different activities other students from Europe engage in.

WORK PROCESS:

The students of a given class will work in small groups of 4. Each group will have a task in the school newspaper. One group will be the one in charge of taking the different pictures to include. Other groups will write the articles of a given section. We will have one group working on the editing of the newspaper.

Communication among the partners will be done by email, social network, and twitter among others.  A common platform will be used to share the different articles that each group writes, being assessed by one another  on the contents and gramatical correction.

We will evaluate the project considering the implication of the students, using a rubric to score each group, and individually.

For the writing of the articles the students will have to create a guideline of the different information that should be included in them. This guideline will also be shared with others to help one another in the writing of the articles. The students will use word processors to write their articles. The articles then will be edited by the responsibles, and they will have pictures included.

EXPECTED RESULTS:

By the end of the project, the students will have printed out a full newspaper with the different articles created by their collaborative partners and them. They will also have the digital version which will be the one which can be shared online with the rests of the schools.

At the end of the project each student will have:

     -Cover an event at their school.

      -Learn how to write an article.

      -Practice writing an article.

      -Review their peers work.

AGE: 12-16

NUMBER OF PARTNERS: 2-3

AREAS OR SUBJECTS: English as a foreign Language / Computer Class

LANGUAGE USED: English

I hope you find it interesting to work with. Hope to get feedback on my ideas. Thanks a lot for reading...