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Planning Documents:

__Requirements__ __ for the ICT integrated project __  Technology and digital media are found everywhere in modern society and they are integrated into almost every aspect of an individual's life. Modern technology aims to help improve the accessibility, convenience and overall entertainment of an individual's life. Not only is technology entertaining, there is a wide range of technologies that can improve and assist education in the classroom. We believe that as future educators, we must provide students with the skills they will need to excel in a technology-rich society. For this project, we will be exploring and integrating our knowledge of ICT and content into four lessons. Over these four lessons, we aim to teach students about new technologies while also teaching them valuable contextual lessons that support the curriculum. To do this, we will create a Wikispace that leads children through the project. The Wikispace will contain the resources and links of the three major ICT  components of the project. By including the links and resources in the Wikispace, the student will be able to recognise when and what information is needed, locate it and obtain it from a range of sources. The Wikispace will be used to help assist the student in working without constant assistance and guidance from the teacher, which will help the student work towards becoming self-motivated and confident in their approach to learning and are able to work individually and collaboratively . The aim of this project is to combine technology with pedagogy to create a motivating, fun and valuable ICT learning experience.

__Use of ICT in the ICT integrated project__ As technology is continually improving and evolving, there are many great opportunities for educators to apply technology into the classroom to create a positive and fun learning experience. The benefits of having such a vast variety and selection of different ICT and technologies, is the ability to apply ICT into every subject and context. For this project we have chosen three main ICT to use over the four lessons. The first ICT is Inspiration. Inspiration is software planning tool used to help students quickly develop and communicate ideas using flowcharts, concpept maps, and story webs. By using Inspiration, the students can express their creativity and individuality whilst publishing their ideas and research in a simple and easy to use format. In the second lesson of our project the students will have a choice of using either Powerpoint or Photostory software, which will be our second major ICT component. The students will have a choice to use either software to create a factual presentation about a chosen planet. By giving the students a choice to use either software, they will have the opportunity to experiment with the software and find the software that they feel comfortable and confident with. The third major ICT to be used is iMovie, which will be used in the fourth lesson. In the third lesson, the students create their own planet by creating an imaginative planet with features, characteristics and a planet which will benefit the Earth. In the fourth lesson, the students will make a video advertisement, advertising their planet and why their planet is valuable to Earth. The students will use this recorded media to create an advertisement using the iMovie software. The iMovie software allows for the students to be creative, experiment with the software, and create a valuable final product. Overall, we believe that these three major ICT will allow for inquiry, creativity and communication. Using these ICT will be a valuable and motivating educational experience.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 150%;">[|Mind Map]

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 150%;">[|Project Plan]



<span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms',cursive; font-size: 150%;">__The Integration Project's evidence-based learning theory__ <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The learning theory that this Integration Project will be based on is Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development. This theory is a social constructivist approach that focuses on social interaction as a major determinant of human development (Marsh, 2008). Vygotsky focused particularly on the social world of the child which is of particular importance in early childhood education. Vygotsky also noted that one’s culture tends to determine the stimuli that occur (Marsh, 2008). In our society technology is a major part of our lives with children spending around 28 hours a week using some form of technology (Shapely, 2012). This has greatly influenced our culture and according to this theory it should be used as an educational tool as it is apart of the children's everyday lives and culture. Thus,the media is relevant for the development of intellectual skills (Marsh, 2008).Therefore, according to Marsh when the theory of Vygotsky is applied to the 21st century it includes the computer as a major intellectual tool (Marsh, 2008).

The Zone of Proximal Development classroom strategies state that student’s must identify key principles for themselves by the teacher’s present examples until they discover the interrelationships (Marsh, 2008). This principle has been implemented in the four lessons about the solar system. In the first lesson the students are helped to see connections among concepts by the teacher showing the students a video clip about the order of the planets in the solar system on the Interactive Whiteboard. The students then take part in a class quiz before they research a selected planet in more depth. The lesson is scaffolded and builds upon their prior knowledge to further their understanding about the solar system. Students must then apply this knowledge constructively.The students are given this opportunity to apply the knowledge construvtively by creating a planet of their own on Spider scribe. The students must consider how many moons their planet will have and how close to the planet will be to the sun.

Vygotsky's ZPD focuses on language and ways of thinking from others (Marsh, 2008). The students will create an advertisement to encourage people to come to visit their planet. This will be presented to the class allowing the students to share their work with the class and to learn from thier peers. The Vygotsky's ZPD was chosen to underpin the lessons because in early childhood education it is vital for the teacher to scaffold the lessons and use ‘scaffolded instruction’. This provides initial support from the teacher and is gradually phased out as the four lessons progress. This increases the student’s cognitive development and promotes higher level thinking skills (Charintski & Harvey, 2000) <span style="color: blue; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">. Vygotsky's <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 110%;">ZPD encourages children to organise their thinking (Marsh,2008). This is evident when the students have to find facts about the planet by using the Inspiration template and creating their PowerPoint about their selected planets.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 110%;"> Overall, Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development learning theory which has been intergratedto the four lessons presents challenging tasks that are developmentally appropriate within a cooperative learning framework.



<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 110%;">Lesson plan for Proto-type lesson: