Kaitlin Rossi

C&T 898

Learning Outcome 1E: Technology

In C&T 840: Emergent Literacy and Beginning Reading, I created a nonfiction

information e-book on the life cycle of a pumpkin to support developing readers. To
support my e-book I also wrote a descriptive paper explaining the audience, topic, and
Common Core Standards my e-book was aligned with. When creating my e-book I used
information from Ehri and McCormick’s (1998) Reading & Writing Quarterly:
Overcoming Learning Difficulties. This text discusses what the consolidated phase is. In
my e-book I aligned the phase of word learning to the consolidated word phase. In the
consolidated phase students are able to identify affixes, root words, onset, rimes, and
multisyllabic words. Additionally, students have a concrete understanding of vocabulary
in the consolidated phase.

These artifacts, an e-book and informational paper created for C&T 840,
demonstrate evidence towards Learning Outcome 1E: Technology “demonstrates
appropriate applications of technology by creating experiences and opportunities for
learners to engage with technology to enhance and extend their learning”. I created an
electronic book that students and teachers can use in their classroom lessons. The book
can be used in whole group, small group, or independent studies. This artifact is a way to
incorporate technology into the classroom. The book can be used on any electronic
device and has the option for read aloud, highlighting text, and comprehension questions.
The e-book creates an experience for all students and teachers and engages students with
technology that enhances and extends their learning.

The topic of my e-book is the life cycle of a pumpkin. I chose this topic because it
is a unit that I see across many grade levels in the fall season and I believed an
informational book on this topic could be very useful to teachers. My e-book is intended
for second grade students. In the assignment you will see several photos of students
interacting with the e-book. In one image a student is working on answering a
comprehension question. In another image you will see a student writing the vocabulary
words she learned from the text. The book can be used in many different ways to assist
students in word recognition, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension strategies. I also
chose to use this e-book whole group with my Kindergarten students this past fall. I
wanted to find a way to use technology in our fall unit that would extend students
learning. Not all of my Kindergarten students can read and the book has a lot of content
specific vocabulary so the read aloud aspect of the e-book allowed for my students to go
through the text at their own pace. They were able to hear how words were pronounced
and listen and answer the comprehension questions throughout the read aloud. The
technology helped me create an experience that was new to my students and allowed all
students to work at their own pace through the text.
 I made many important decisions when designing my e-book that would affect
how a child reads or views the story. For example, I selected a font that was easy to
understand and included pictures that directly correlated with the text on each page. The
use of technology allowed me to explore all font options and sizes and decide on one that
was easy to read and didn’t change the normal letter format. When creating the e-book I
was able to search for images on the Internet that connected with the text on each page.
The use of technology supported my e-book because it allowed me to include pictures
that would help clarify meaning of parts of the life cycle to help students with
understanding.

I created my e-book through the CAST book building website. Within this
website students can have the story read to them by fun characters. The CAST e-book
website helps create student friendly books for students to interact with and read. With
the increase of technology found in classrooms e-books are becoming more common. I
would recommend the use of the CAST book building website when creating and
accessing e-books. The automatic read aloud in the website assists with modeling fluency
and identifying unknown words. I included context specific vocabulary words throughout
my text. To help students better identify these words I bolded them. I also created a
glossary at the end of the text to assist students in defining all words. Within my e-book
students are prompted to practice comprehension strategies before reading, during
reading and after reading. By activating prior knowledge I am able to see what a student
already knows. The comprehension stop points during and after reading help students
reflect and explain what they have read.

One thing that I think is so great about my e-book is that it can continue to be
used for many years across grade levels. Every fall teachers usually have a pumpkin unit
and my informational text on the life cycle of a pumpkin is a great addition to any
teacher’s lesson planning. I have personally used my e-book in my classroom and seen
how it can be implemented across grade levels. When creating my e-book I was able to
explore the important steps to creating a text. In the end I believe I created an e-book that
helps students work on reading skills. The e-book provided me with an experience with
working with technology to create something that can be used to enhance learning.

 References

Brabham, E., Buskist, C., Henderson, S. C., Paleologos, T., & Baugh, N.(2012). Flooding

vocabulary gaps to accelerate word learning. The Reading Teacher, 65(8), 523.

Deeney, T. A. (2010) One Minute Fluency Measure: Mixed Messages in Assessment and

Instruction. The Reading Teacher, 63(6), 440-450.

Ehri, L. C., & McCormick, S. (1998). Phases of word learning: Implications for

instruction with delayed and disabled readers. Reading & Writing Quarterly:

Overcoming Learning Difficulties, 14(2), 135-163

Fridell, R & Walsh, P. (209) The Life Cycle of a Pumpkin. Retrieved from

https://www.bcsoh.org/cms/lib/OH01001261/Centricity/Domain/329/Life%20Cyc

le%20of%20a%20Pumpkin%20Story.pdf

Tankey, J. Observing the Life Cycle of Pumpkins. Retrieved from

https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/observing-

life-cycle-pumpkins/

O’Block, T. (2016). How to Make the Pumpkin Life Cycle Meaningful & Fun for

Students. Retrieved from https://lessons4littleones.com/2016/10/26/how-to-make-

the-pumpkin-life-cycle-meaningful-fun-for-students/

Pixabay Pumpkin. Retrieved from https://pixabay.com/images/search/pumpkin/

Yokota, J., Teale, W. H. (2014). Picture books and the digital world: Educators making

informed choices. The Reading Teacher, 67(8), 577-585.