Rational For Unit Plan

When deciding upon a topic for this unit plan there were many obstacles that needed to be eradicated. First on the list was obtaining software to review. As a high school math teacher in a city school it is extremely difficult to obtain quality software. Newtown H.S.’s math department has a computer lab that has not been used in a number of years. Most of the math software is out of date and is basically either skill practice or drill type programs. Upon further investigation I found that the schools library contains a number of interactive multimedia software. The only problem being, that it is geared for either social sciences, ESL instruction, or Science. Since none of the titles I found caught my interest (except for Hyper Studio and Kid Pix’s which could only be used in school since they were Mac CD’s) I decided to pursue an entirely different approach.

My daughter has been using computer software since she first learned to talk (1 1/2 yrs. old). In the past two years hence I have purchased a lot of early childhood software for her to use. This was perfect, now I could find a way to finish this project, and at the same time help to improve my daughters educational program at home and at school (She has attended school for 1 full year come June).

In addition, the constructionalist philosophy pin points that, the best attempts for success with this approach need to begin in a students beginning years. Furthermore today’s multimedia program(including the ones I selected) appeal to almost all of Gardners Multiple Intelligence’s, which helps to enhance the learning process in a great many ways.

Most young learners begin by mimicking the world around them. For instance my daughter can sing every song from the Fisher Price ABC software. If you give her a letter, and ask her to sing a song about that letter, she will repeat the a song from the program. Now I will attempt to use the Knowledge I have gained to see I the software can in fact help her learn to read.