eBooks

The new tech tool that I used last week was the use of an eBook for my entire class. As a school we are celebrating I Love to read month through activities and lessons that surround the Olympics. Our media specialist has purchased some eBooks that our classes can choose from. He purchased a few fictional stories that focus on winter sports such as figure skating and snowboarding and one nonfiction book about the Olympics. The book that our class sampled on Friday was the nonfiction Olympic fact book titled, The World of Olympics by Nick Hunter. He purchased the book though the Capstone Library site. Viewing the book was very simple; just a few clicks. I found this way of reading beneficial in three different ways. First, the book started with a catchy theme song which pulled the kids right in. The Olympic song made them feel that they had the stadium. Next, the book allowed them to follow the highlighted words as the audio progressed through the book. They were part of the reading experience. And lastly, I really enjoyed that they were able to view the pictures of the landmarks and events as the book explained them. It was really cool to see a nonfiction book presented on the big screen. I allowed the audio reader to read on Friday. I think that in the future I will read the book to the kids. I felt that the reader did not have as much emotion in her voice as she

 could have. I also felt that how they presented their information on the side bar was very helpful. It would be easy to select books for your class with the information that they provided. This is what the side bar listed for The World of Olympics...

 

ISBN:978-1-4329-8504-2

Copyright:2012

Author:Hunter, Nick

Illustrator:

Dewey:796.48

Grade Range:3 - 5

Interest Range:3 - 5

Guided Reading Level:T

Lexile:980L

Publisher:Heinemann-Raintree

Brand:Heinemann-Raintree

Series:The Olympics

Language:English

Runtime:23 min 47 sec

ATOS^TM (AR^TM Level):6.9

AR^TM Quiz Number:144920e

 

This type of technology integration is not very high on the SAMR model, although, I do feel that it is another way for kids to access literature. Students are able to follow along and we do not need twenty five copies to do that. They also enjoyed the idea of experiencing something "new". I will definitely think of purchasing a few ebooks for my class throughout the year.