INFOhio Resources for Research

1) Thinking about the students you work with, which features of IWonder do you think will be most helpful for your students?

As a former middle and high school ELA teacher, I think the "Do you want to prepare for the future" section would have been extremely helpful for my students. I browsed through the different resources, and I was a big fan of the "Plan Your Future" section of Ohio Means Jobs. Students could do a career finder quiz and browse different careers. These were things I was already doing in my class, but I always had to harvest the resources myself. It would have been great to have them all in one place. 

2) What is one question you have about this resource that you hope will be answered during the training?

I hope to know if there are any lesson plans to use in conjunction with the site to help drive some of students' autonomous exploration. 

3) Reflect on other digital tools and resources designed for student use. In what ways is IWonder similar to these tools? How is IWonder different from other digital tools your students use?

Honestly, IWonder feels like almost a "safe" Google. A lot of these resources, students could find if they Googled. However, sending kids down the rabbit hole of Google is always a scary experience. I like that I can send them into IWonder and know they aren't going to encounter material they shouldn't encounter. 

1. Thinking about the students you work with, which features of IWonder do you think will be most helpful for your students?

I like how the topics are grouped by question.  I think that helps students choose what to research.

2.  What is one question you have about this resource that you hope will be answered during the training?

I wonder how varied the reading levels are and what kind of supports struggling readers would have access to.

3. Reflect on other digital tools and resources designed for student use. In what ways is IWonder similar to these tools? How is IWonder different from other digital tools your students use?

I have used sites that provide reading tasks to students in categories, so that is similar.  IWonder seems to have a good variety of types of resources.  There are websites, articles, graphics, etc.  

Since students are required to create a graduation plan now for Lakota and the state of Ohio, the resources for career inquiry will be very helpful in achieving that task!

It's great to have so much curated content rather than kids trying to find valid, reliable sources on their own through Google!

1. I think that iWonder would be a great resource for some of our lower level students at the high school and on level in Grades 6-8.  I love how the process starts with students choosing their question.  Sometimes wording their actual question can be tough, and having the ability to look through possible questions could give them a clearer voice when advocating for themselves and asking questions about their learning. 

2.  I am curious of the actual depth of resources that will be available for students to use and how diverse the selection of resources will be.

3.  Most of the digital resources that we use are databases that provide access to academic journals and articles from magazines or encyclopedias.  I like that iWonder directs students to a website that has been approved by INFOhio to be appropriate, trustworthy, and high quality.  Not only does it take the guess work out for students, but they are learning the aspects of a trustworthy and high quality resources by being exposed to them.  

I like how each section is divided into easily identifiable boxes.  I believe the easy layout is a great feature to helping student find what they are looking for.  I have found in the past that if it is to difficult to use they don't want to even give things a try.  So this will be a great tool for them.

Students can easily identify which link to click to help them wit the question they have. I like that it can help them find exactly the right resource to help them with their questions.