We Are Always Learning... Blogging and Teachers' Domain

by Kris Owens

This week, I began a course called "Explore Alaska! - Alaska Native and Western Perspectives on Earth's Systems."  The learning began right away, with what felt like a whirlwind introduction to blogging.  I have never blogged before, and although a little confused at times, the blog has been established!

Through this first module of the course, I was also introduced to a resource called, "Teachers Domain." Looking for resources on the web to use in the classroom, can be a time-consuming process. It is always wonderful to find a site that is easy to use, and has current, well-organized, matched-to-standards materials.  Teachers' Domain (http://www.teachersdomain.org/) is new to me, and looks to be just such a site. 

In the past, I have relied heavily on Discovery Education as a source of digital media (http://www.discoveryeducation.com/ ).  Like Teachers' Domain, it also offers a wealth of curricular resoures, digital materials, and support materials for educators. A weakness has been that the videos offered are often dated, with a recent one my class viewed being made in the 1980's.  This was a short video-clip on ecosystems.  While the concepts being emphasized were just what I was looking for, the students quickly judged the video as being older.  It seemed that as soon as they believed it to be older, they became more skeptical of it's accuracy and revelance, and tended to focus more on how old it was.  After watching several video clips from Teachers' Domain, it appears that the media being presented is very current, cutting-edge material.  The support materials it provided for each video-clip I viewed, were extensive and useful as well. 

The Frame-Focus-Follow-up approach to integrating video and media into a lesson, was modeled as we explored the site and viewed a video called, "When Did the First Americans Arrive?"  This approach involves framing the video, by giving it a context; focusing the viewer, by providing specific questions or information to look for; and then following-up the video, with discussion, description, and reflection on ideas and concepts presented. The effectiveness of frame-focus-follow-up was evident as I viewed and reflected on the clip.

This particular video presented a wealth of information in a short amount of time.  It was fascinating to learn of the evidence that caribou, fox, and bears, were able to survive the ice ages, and to consider the possibility that humans had as well.   The video also filled in "gaps" in my knowledge of the Bering Sea land bridge.  While familiar with the land-bridge, the explantion that the weight of the glaciers during the ice-age 11,500 years ago, drew water out of the ocean, lowering sea-levels worldwide, exposing this land-bridge, was new to me.  In terms of the main question (when did the first Americans arrive?) the idea that knowledge is constantly evolving was evident.  The video clip highlighted the notion that as evidence is gathered, theories evolve and change. 

The reality of Teachers' Domain as a practical resource  became clear to me as  I explored the site further, looking for materials and media to supplement what we are currently working on in my 3rd-6th grade theme studies.  Being able to narrow a search to grade levels, content, and media type, made it easy to find materials related to our current topic of ecocystems.   As a result, students will be completing an interactive web activity, as well as viewing a short video-clip, as they learn about ecosystems this week!