Hands-on Activities &
Concrete Manipulatives
Technology for Science & Math
Should we be asking,
“Which are More Effective,
Hands-on Manipulatives or
Technology Equipment and
Applications?”
Do modern technologies make
low-tech, hands-on activities
and concrete manipulatives
outdated?
NO!
Hands-on Activities
+
Technology
=
Engaged Students & More
Learning!
Benefits to Incorporating Both
• Reach more students by addressing
different learning styles & multiple
modalities
• Deepen students’ understanding and
mastery of concepts and skills
When, Where, Why, and
How?
To Tech or Not to Tech
Does this equipment, application,
digital media, resource, or activity…
• Facilitate effective content delivery or increase
the effectiveness of the lesson?
• Allow the students or the teacher to access
information or complete a task that would not be
possible or would be difficult without the
technology?
Does the technology…
• Increase student engagement in ways that
promote deeper understanding and
achievement?
• Enhance students’ ability to demonstrate or
apply, practice, create, evaluate or analyze,
communicate or present?
• Save time and/or increase productivity?
Integrating various technologies into
hands-on concrete activities should
not mean double (or triple) the
preparation or double the class time.
Technology can help students
• Organize their thinking (brainstorming, collaborative
planning, concept mapping)
• Graphically represent, manipulate and revise ideas,
procedures, flow charts
• Illustrate and manipulate concepts and processes,
including cycles, cause and effect.
Technology can help students
• Digitally capture observations made during hands-on
activities
– Photograph or video
– Record and organize individual, group and whole class results
– Display, manipulate, analyze and evaluate data
• Perform time-consuming or complex computations which
might otherwise frustrate or detract from the essential
concepts around which the activity is focused
Technology can help students:
• Communicate and collaborate remotely with
other students and with experts
–
–
–
–
Wikis
Collaborative web projects
Ask an expert
Chat and Video conferencing
Technology can help students:
• Present what they know and can do
– PowerPoint or other presentation software
– Digital Stories- free or low cost
– Video and podcasts
– Flash or other animation
So, how can you do this in your
district, school, classroom?
Or…
Sounds great in theory, but what
about a real classroom?
Let’s take a look at some authentic
examples
Space Unit
• Hands-on with concrete manipulatives:
– Models of solar system
– Kinesthetic simulations (ex: flashlight, globe,
simulating rotation and revolution)
– Star charts
– Creating Constellation Models- construction paper,
holes, flashlight (or overhead projector)
– Live viewing of constellations
Space Unit- Technology Integration
Online Interactive Star Charts - Skyview Café
http://www.skyviewcafe.com/skyview.php?version=4
Space Unit- Technology Integration
•
•
•
•
Starry Night software
NASA website and other interactive websites
Create your own: Space Adventure Web Quest
Presentations
Hands-on Flower Dissection
Students dissect a
complete flower to
locate and identify the
male and female
reproductive parts.
As they remove the
parts they place them in
the correct place on
their recording sheet.
Flower Parts- Gizmo
ExploreLearning.com
Pollination Gizmo –
ExploreLearning.com
Going Further & Increasing
Interactivity and Student
Engagement
Let’s seamlessly incorporate the
technology into the concrete,
hands-on activities
Incorporating
Document Cameras &
Interactive Whiteboards
Into Hands-On Activities with
Concrete Manipulatives
*Activities modified from:
AIMS (Activities Integrating Math and Science)
FOSS (Full Option Science System)
Thank You
Karen Muska
karen.muska@ousd.k12.ca.us
Resources at:
www.kmuska.pbwiki.com