| The best way to incorporate the
Internet into your curriculum is to make it part of the resource bank you
rely on for your standard lesson plans. The number of sites devoted to
sharing existing lesson plans and other curriculum resources grows daily.
To get a "quick start" on using the Internet within your classroom, you
should probably take the time to visit a number of the sites listed below.
Not only will this give you additional practice in using the Internet as
a resource, but you'll also be able to collect a beginning group of plans
to choose from and modify to your own classroom needs. Additionally, you'll
get to experience the same sort of evaluation process your students need
to use when they visit sites for information, namely, not all lesson plans
will automatically be valuable, authentic learning experiences. You will
need to do some critical evaluation before introducing any of these ideas
into your classroom. |
As your experience with the Internet grows, here are some suggestions
to help you with lessons.
-
Identify those areas of your curriculum that seem to be the most likely
to be supported by freely available Internet resources.
-
Keep a bookmark list with a section devoted to lesson plans in the areas
you're most interested in.
-
Involve other colleagues in the collection and evaluation of possible lesson
plans already produced.
-
Research the topics yourself before assigning projects to students to make
certain that an appropriate number of resources exist. Of course, expect
the students to find resources that you didn't since that is the nature
and size of the Internet!
-
Much as you expect of students, work collaboratively with colleagues as
you develop your original lesson plans that integrate Internet resources.
This can be done locally or remotely via email.
-
Give back to the Internet what you've had the opportunity to experience
and use - in other words, share your lesson plans so that others can benefit
from your work.
The experience of integrating Internet resources within your traditional
lesson plans is one that both you and your students will enjoy and benefit
from. Your personal "modeling" of Internet usage will make certain that
your students see it as a valuable resource for their own use.
One process of developing meaningful lessons for students to participate in
has been given the name of "WebQuest"
by Professor Bernie Dodge of San Diego State University. This concept
of a WebQuest, and others that will certainly follow, is an example
of how all of us are still in the infancy stage of knowing how best
to integrate Internet resources within our existing curriculum. The
key is to realize that there is no firm right or wrong way to go about
it, only these and similar suggestions on getting started. The rest
is up to you! |
