Constructivist Approaches to Literacy

The last few days in C I 556 have been fun filled. Yesterday we created a poem. We were given the sentence "When the _________ went to the __________." We then filled in the blanks, added a picture, and narrated it. It was fun. I really like the idea of using something else and rewording it to make it your own. We used the poem "When the Vampire went to the Bloodbank". We just took out Vampire and Bloodbank and filled in our own words, creating a new saying. Our other task was to make sure that lines two and four rhymed. I think this would add a little challenge to the task, especially for children. This was a creative way to incorporate technology (powerpoing) with literacy (the poem). I think this type of lesson could be done with all kinds of things such as books, poems, songs, etc. It was fun yet made us think.

Next, we were given a challenge. We were given a powerpoint to look at that had clues on it. We were then given the task of figuring out 'Willie's' height, weight, real name, and the color of his socks and shirt by using the clues from the powerpoint. I really liked this. It was challenging and kids love guessing games. It really made me think, it even incorporated some math! Once we found the correct answers we were to draw a picture of what we thought Willie looked like, using Kidpix. This was an added reward for finding the correct answers. Not only was it fun, it made us think and visualize what we thought Willie looked like, and it made us use our creativity when drawing. These types of activities can be done for all subjects. They really engage the learner in the activity. I thought it was very fun but definitely had me thinking.


Today we worked in groups and created a visual storytelling project. We were given forty minutes and a camera to take pictures of what we thought represented Iowa State. My group took Cy-ride to Alumni hall, got some pictures of the buses, the Cy statue, and Stephens Auditorium and Hilton Coliseum. We then took the bus back to campus where we got some pictures of such things as the campanile and chipmunks. When we got back to class we chose our 10 favorite pictures and created a visual storybook. We added text to go along wiith the pictures and it turned out very nice. This type of activity can be over anything and can be done by almost any age. You could even do this with five year olds, just adjusting it a little. For a child I would probably give them less time for pictures, fewer pictures to take/fewer slides to add text to, and I would not let them venture where ever they wanted. However, it would still be a fun activity and would allow them to have fun taking the pictures, and then add the content part to it by having them write about the pictures they took. It was a fun way to have students create a story or book.