Reflection #3

1. Discussion on what should be considered in finding "the Big idea" for a project:

When considering the big ideas in a classroom, you must first identify the overarching concepts and processes you want your students to understand. From there, you will reflect on why these concepts are important. This brings up how students will think about their applications and relevance to real-life and might help you grasp the realistic ways students might think about a topic. 

2. Discussion on the 21st century skills:

Getting our students prepared for 21st century skills involves more than just work out of a textbook and subject mastery. Getting our students ready for 21st century skills include mastery of important skills, attitudes, and habits. A well-designed project can help students stretch their minds in ways a traditional learning activity may not. The biggest thing we can do as teachers is to prepare our students for the higher-order categories of Bloom's Taxonomy.

3. Discussion on the 21st century literacies:

The definition of 21st century literacies goes way beyond just reading and writing. Some of the things it includes besides that is digital-age literacy, Inventive thinking, effective communication, and high productivity. These categories all include higher order thinking and ways to push each student to prepare for the real world. 

4. Discussion on each of the essential learning functions:

• Ubiquity: learning inside and outside of the classroom, all the time. Some tools that support and promote ubiquity are global position devices, mobile phones, MP3 players, and Web based applications. These tools will all help students be more mobile and help them learn wherever they are and more frequently. 
• Deep Learning- This is meant to help students make sense of "raw" information on the web. Things such as primary sources integrate higher order thinking. Higher order thinking is also engaged when students have to navigate, organize, and analyze in order to learn  and express their learning. 
• Making things visible and discussable: Showing rather than telling using things such as digital artifacts, multimedia, photographs, etc. will all help students visualize what they are learning. Making thoughts and ideas visible is the first step to get conversation going. 
• Expressing ourselves, sharing ideas, and building community: Find ways students can use the web (such as social media) to express their ideas and build society  around shared interests. 
• Collaboration-teaching and learning with others: Projects invite collaboration among students. Webinars and survey tools are all great resources we can use to create collaboration and tools that help students learn together. 
• Research: Internet research puts information literacy to test and can give answers to students when they have questions. citation engines help students make sense and organize what they need from the web. 
• Project Management: Planning and Organization: Helps students manage their time, work, sources, drafts, feedback from others, and products in the course of doing projects. Home pages and desktops can give students space to work and help them plan and organize. 
• Reflection and Iteration: Examine all sides of your ideas when trying to get a point of view. Looking back at your own thinking is important and can help students reflect and collaborate possibilities for sharing. 

5. Discussion on how concepts in this chapter relate to your topic/project:

This chapter relates to our topic because it shows how collaboration and research all come together to create a final product. It also relates because we have to collaborate with others in discussing and coming up with ideas for our project.