A Peek in the Classroom: Toni Doyle Using Shadow Puppet

Toni Doyle, first grade teacher at Rome City, has turned from technophobe to techno-wizard all in the course of this school year. Her previous experience with teaching and technology caused her to view students using technology as a "toy." Throughout this year, her views have changed as she has witnessed the benefits of students being trained to properly use it as a learning tool. This is now to the extent that she is considering her continuing education in the area of technology integration. It has been exciting to watch Toni grow as an educator this year. Ultimately, Toni's change in teaching is due to her ability to be "teachable." It is a constant reminder to me when I walk into Rome City Elementary that I need to be a learner every single day.

Toni's first graders have used multiple tech tools this year. However, her favorite has been Shadow Puppet. She loves the quick way that students can share not only with her, but with the entire class. This happens because her students are all signed into the same account. When a student creates work, the entire class can view it. 

Toni uses Shadow Puppet in a couple of forms. One way is to assess students. She will have them report how they solve math problems, record sight words, and record reading passages. Another way she frequently uses Shadow Puppet is for publishing final works. She will use apps like Pic Wall so that students can publish their writing. Then as the students save their work, they can import the pictures into Shadow Puppet to create a video slideshow with voice. This process could be called "app-smashing" or "multi-apping" as the students use multiple tools to accomplish a task. 

In this lesson, Toni is having students work on place value. The students then take a picture of their work and record their explanation on how to solve the problem. This allows Toni to easily check in with students as she can work with individuals that she knows will need some extra attention. How does she know they need more guidance...from previous recordings the students made. 

Thanks, Toni, for allowing me to record you: