In this course, participants will learn about technologies that can be used to strengthen teaching and learning in many aspects of literacy development in upper elementary classrooms. The content covered includes many ways to use technology to support a variety of approaches to developing students' literacy, including developing vocabulary, framing ideas for writing, promoting critical research skills, facilitating revision processes and teacher and peer editing, and publishing final products. During this course, participants will develop a technology-enhanced lesson that addresses national and local literacy standards. To support this lesson development process, participants will examine a sample lesson plan that incorporates several ways technology can support reading and writing across the curriculum. Participants will also discuss strategies for the ongoing assessment of students' literacy development.

Goals and Products

This workshop will enable participants to:

• Develop a technology-enhanced lesson plan that addresses national and local curriculum and technology standards
• Learn how technology can enhance each phase of the writing process, from brainstorming to publishing student work
• Develop a personal collection of web-based resources for curricular use
• Learn approaches for using technology to accommodate students' individual needs
• Develop strategies for the ongoing assessment of students' literacy development

Format and Requirements

Prerequisites

This is an introductory course for teachers, technology specialists, curriculum specialists, professional development specialists or other school personnel. Participants are expected to have regular access to computers. In addition, participants should be proficient with using email, browsing the Internet, and navigating to computer files.