Although I'm trying really hard not to, I can't resist having a look at "Vokis".
I want to create a unit of work for my Year 6 students that helps to revise and consolidate what they have learned so far in Japanese, before they progress to the Senior School next year. Of course, revision can be a problem, because a large percentage of them claim they already "know" something, or say, "We've done that before". With only one lesson a week, however, a lot of their learning is superficial, and topics covered in earlier grades are often forgotten.
Much of what I teach in lower grades centres on the students themselves: being able to give information about themselves, and ask others for the same information. I always tell them that my main goal is to enable them to communicate with other Japanese speakers, and to make friends. When you're a kid looking to make a new friend, the first thing you want to establish is what you might have in common. Age, grade, hobbies, family, likes/dislikes...
In the past I have tried to draw all of this together by getting the students to make a Powerpoint about themselves, incorporating pictures and clip-art, and teaching them how to word-process in Japanese script as part of the process. They also record themselves narrating each slide. As they have access to one laptop per student, and the school is wirelessly networked, technology is not a problem. But, to be honest, Powerpoint is not the motivator it once was!! Eleven year olds are very tech-savvy these days, and making a Powerpoint is something they have done many times before.
After hearing Penny mention Vokis, and doing a quick Google search, I am intrigued! I think the students, many of whom like Japanese manga (cartoons), would really get a kick out of making a Voki, and then we could use Audacity to record our speeches about ourselves. I will need to set up a class blog first, though, so that we have somewhere to display and listen to our Vokis.
I want to create a unit of work for my Year 6 students that helps to revise and consolidate what they have learned so far in Japanese, before they progress to the Senior School next year. Of course, revision can be a problem, because a large percentage of them claim they already "know" something, or say, "We've done that before". With only one lesson a week, however, a lot of their learning is superficial, and topics covered in earlier grades are often forgotten.
Much of what I teach in lower grades centres on the students themselves: being able to give information about themselves, and ask others for the same information. I always tell them that my main goal is to enable them to communicate with other Japanese speakers, and to make friends. When you're a kid looking to make a new friend, the first thing you want to establish is what you might have in common. Age, grade, hobbies, family, likes/dislikes...
In the past I have tried to draw all of this together by getting the students to make a Powerpoint about themselves, incorporating pictures and clip-art, and teaching them how to word-process in Japanese script as part of the process. They also record themselves narrating each slide. As they have access to one laptop per student, and the school is wirelessly networked, technology is not a problem. But, to be honest, Powerpoint is not the motivator it once was!! Eleven year olds are very tech-savvy these days, and making a Powerpoint is something they have done many times before.
After hearing Penny mention Vokis, and doing a quick Google search, I am intrigued! I think the students, many of whom like Japanese manga (cartoons), would really get a kick out of making a Voki, and then we could use Audacity to record our speeches about ourselves. I will need to set up a class blog first, though, so that we have somewhere to display and listen to our Vokis.
