WEEK SIX =POWERPOINT (for me) !

For me this week is associated with my first creation of a powerpoint for my class ! It must seem strange for some of you who are already mastering this device .But it was a big deal for me !
Many of my students use it to present some of their tasks but I had never created one myself before .
It took me quite a long time but I managed to create something by myself .Yet, I definitely need to practice this new software since I have most probably used 1% of the possibilities it offers.

This powerpoint will be used to introduce a new topic and to engage students in a more captivating way into the lesson . Then I will study a song  ( lyrics and video on you tube) and the students will have to write a poem (a limerick) on the topic studied ,related to their own life , as a the final task .
(The details are on nicenet)

Then , this week , I also enjoyed reading all the good and new ideas proposed by all of you , my foreign colleagues , on nicenet , on engaging students . Even if the course readings given to us as the week task were interesting too , I preferred discovering the practical ideas proposed and used by all of you in your respective classes.
As I said in my post on nicenet , engaging students has become a challenge these days in a lot of French high schools , that's why learning new "tricks" (class website, blogs, powerpoint , quiz games, group work, information gaps, jigsaw , graphics, quick thinks etc…etc..) to attract the students 'attention has been greatly appreciated . Thank you !

Moreover , I implemented the use of Vocaroo and Rachel (la cle des langues/rachel) in my 12th graders class to help them prepare their next oral presentation on "hispanics in The US". Students will use these two websites to train themselves before speaking , to improve their pronunciation .
I will record their oral presentation each time they have one every trimester throughout the school year and we will check their improvement at the end of the year before their exam as far as their pronunciation is concerned.
My students seem to be eager to start this experience and see how their way to speak and pronounce evolve.

Then , I gave the NYC webquest to my 10th graders . I took them to the computer room to do the webquest :
 http://questgarden.com/author/create/preview.php?u=163961&l=163961-131104023429&pt=student&p=introduction
They liked doing it but I noticed they had difficulties to find the right answer in the wide range of information contained in wikipedia . I had to teach them how to scan documents to find what they were looking for .
Actually , students are used to some websites they know to handle because they use them regularly such as Facebook or you tube but they are not very comfortable with new ones for them and we have to give them methods to be more efficient .

Anyway , many changes for me this week with my students ! Exciting and scaring at the same time more for me than for them I think .
After 6 weeks , I start seeing things change ……..but I need more time to feel totally comfortable with all these novelties !
Take it day by day !