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Using the Sonoran Desert Explorer website has many benefits for the teacher as well as each student. The website had many different sub-pages which allows the teacher to assign each student an animal or wildlife. Teachers who access this site will have dozens of different lesson plans to consider. While using the site if the teacher decides to assign a student or group of students a sub-page, they will have automatic feedback on the assessment. Teachers will not have to worry about grading each assessment with a pen, after each assessment has been completed the website will automatically e-mail the teacher an excel form which stamps the time and date that each student submitted the assessment as well as their answers. This website was designed to keep students interested in the subject by providing fun yet educational activities. Students will feel like little explorers of the wild as they navigate through the website and go on their nature walk. There are many student benefits when using this website include using an easy, manageable site as well as different components of the site which cater to the different learning styles students possess. For students who have a linguistic intelligence, every sub-page will have text which thoroughly describe the animal or vegetation. Students who have a Spatial intelligence as well as students with musical intelligence will be able to enjoy and learn from the “Xtranormal” video provided on every sub-page. Intrapersonal and naturalistic intelligences will shine when students go on their nature walks as well as when they work independently on their activities. Students who are of the interpersonal intelligence will have the opportunity to interact with their families and classmates when they share their nature walk experience, short story using the vocabulary, and what they found most interesting about the Sonoran Desert.
Another theory that will be applicable to the website is the Constructivist theory. This theory emphasized the importance of relating new experience to prior knowledge. It also focuses on certain teaching characteristics including; learner centered instruction, interesting material, social instruction, and active instruction. The learner centered activity is the nature walk, students will be able to connect their experience and the animals and vegetation they saw with that if the Sonoran Desert. They will get an interesting piece of material when they watch and listen to the Xtranormal video. The social and active parts of the constructivist theory will come into play when students participate in the activities, write their short story using the vocabulary terms and when they reflect and discuss on their whole experience. Lastly, remember this website is a great educational tool which caters to different intelligences and keeps your students interested and interactive while learning about the Sonoran Desert. Sonoran Desert lesson plan
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Joanna M. Lozano >