Lynn+Burrell's+LEARNZ+story

My LEARNZ Story by Lynn Burrell What is Learnz? **LEARNZ is** an online education programme for students in New Zealand state, private and integrated schools. LEARNZ has specific learning objectives! The **first step is the hardest**. Go to [|www.learnz.org.nz] to look at what’s on offer for Term 3 and 4. **Before you do, read my story!** Or be pro active, go to the site and check the lesson planning sequence. **It is all done for you.** Small steps, but big achievements at the end! I was first introduced to LEARNZ eight years ago. Our school had a teacher who adored Learnz to bits and religiously informed teachers of what was coming up. I thought oh yeah and then took six months to look at the site. What a fool I was? My students had missed out on the most amazing learning experiences! SO what was the carrot…..? Was it going to make things easier for me I asked myself! Now I can answer “YES”. Then I thought it was just too hard! What put me off was not LEARNZ but the fact that I had to learn how to use a polycom audio phone. Now I think back it seems pathetic! So my recommendation is **please don’t let your students and yourself miss out on a wonderful online learning opportunity.** When I eventually signed to be part of an audio conference re the KIWI I thought we’d just be a listening school! Boring! I have now done six plus Learnz virtual tours at Mihi School. It really is like being there! It’s a bit like the old days when Radio NZ did daily schools broadcast. But there’s video footage and resources and.. and.. and! ( I don’t remember “Broadcasts to Schools”, I just heard about them!) At the end of each virtual tour teachers do an online evaluation and you tick what you have done. I used to think this was bit dumb (especially as I only ticked one box!) However that was until I did my seventh conference. I was ticking every box! Yes I like ticking boxes. I had gone from one audio conference to even contributing student work! (Which may still be archived.)Now I want to tick all the boxes and get a Level whatever certificate for the class! With Year 4/5/6 students at Mihi School we have done The Kiwi times 2 Blue Duck Takahe Matiu Somes Island Tiritiri Matangi **New entrant teachers!** Yes, you can be involved in the audio conferences. I have heard some stunning questions from five and six year olds who were involved in the audio conferences. At Mihi School my class invited the Y1/2 to their Blue Duck presentations. There were five groups who presented in different areas of the school. (I can also tell you a fast, easy way to have class presentations and eliminate waiting time for each group to set up!) I thought the groups knew every thing there was to know about the Blue Duck. Until it came to question time. A new entrant had listened very carefully and knew that the blue duck lived in fast flowing waters! Thus wanted to know “How come the duck doesn’t fall off the rock with all the rushing water around it”? It proved to be another of those questions that the group had to research ! Maybe we should have started our project based learning with questions from Y1/2 about what they wanted to know and then geared the presentation specifically for them. Parents also came to the afternoon presentations which were scheduled before Friday Assembly. Many parents went to presentations done by other students. The Dairy Farming Learnz Virtual tour starts August 20. What could be better? My advice is register now. It’s easy! It’s all on the home page. (Write your password down immediately!) Need more time to think about it….. go there any way and look at Term 4 topics….. Antarctica…Takahe, Kiwi. Inquiry Learning will just happen! Your students will be engaged You will be engaged. You do need to introduce the topic two to three weeks before the audio conference. There are resources at different levels (easy hard) for you to use to begin the orientation phase. Students think of their questions and thus they need some background. You must submit ten questions and five will be selected. Last year I was really ambitious and enrolled the class for three Kiwi audio conferences this meant thirty questions had to be submitted. I wouldn’t recommend this for new users of LEARNZ. I used these for guided and instructional teaching purposes. There are very valuable discussion /content prompts. Rarely did the children receive a “work sheet” and complete it on their own. I am happy to be your Learnz mentor. Start your exciting journey today. **You will only be disappointed that you didn’t start sooner.** **LEARNZ offers** 20 virtual field trip experiences in 2008: Students stay at school but visit places they would never otherwise go to and interact with people they would never meet. Students' participation is supported by online background materials and activities, and is enabled using live audio conferencing, web board and diaries, images and videos uploaded daily. **Participation in** LEARNZ virtual field trips is easy. First, register your class but check if you are eligible for free registration? Then at any time enrol your class for free in any of up to 107 futures, current and past field trips, below. Mihi School qualifies for free registration so it’s likely your school will too! **Remember** **you will only be disappointed that you didn’t start sooner.**
 * Getting interested! **
 * How will it make my job easier? **
 * A note about questions! **
 * A note about the online resources **