Context:
This unit was created for CI 3750, Integrating Media and Technology into Teaching, Spring 2007. It was created under the advisement of Jeff Goodman. This newsletter is used for parents and students, of who I am teaching. They will be able to get a glimpse of who I am.

Impact:
This newsletter can help my students get to know me as a person. The teacher or parent can either print it out, or pull up the newsletter online for the student. There are some parts to my newsletter that I made for my students. On the front page, I told the students what my favorite foods and activities were. Than I ask the students to write or type what their favorite foods were. The second page of the newsletter is all for the children. They can write or type some things about their favorite animal. I also placed some links to websites that they can learn and play games with animals.

Alignment:
This unit met the following North Carolina Standards for Elementary School Teachers:

Standard 16: Elementary teachers develop as leaders in their schools and communities by staying informed about educational policy issues and supporting professional develpment. Elementary teachers participate in co-curricular activities, provide leadership in student and curriculum involvement, and connect these activities to the develpment of citzenship ideals in their students.
Indicator 3: Teachers communicate with parents, guardians, and
caretakers to build partnerships between home and school. I met this goal by making a newsletter that could be given to my students to take home, so that parents would learn more about their child's teacher.


I will be giving out a newletter, somewhat similar to this one every month to the parents or guardians of my students. There will be information for the parents about what is going on in the month and what the students will be studying. I will always have a contact listed in some form, so that if they need me they can get a hold of me. I feel that it is important to get parents involved, so I would list some days and times that would be good for parents to come and volunteer.

This unit met the following NETS-T Technology Standards for Elementary School Teachers.

5. Teachers use technology to enhance professional practice.
C. apply technology to increase productivity.
I used technology (computer) to make this newsletter. The computer program I use was microsoft publisher, which helped make my newsletter look neat and organized. There are many creative things that you can do with this program, which ehnances your ability to grab students and parents attention. Also, if students or parents were looking at the newsletter online they could go to the websites that I listed.

D. use technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, parents, and the larger community in order to nurture students learning.
A newsletter could be posted on web pages of places in the community, or sent to parents and peers through e-mail. In this way, business's and parents would know what they could do to be involved in students lives around them.