OXFORD - Thanks to a technology grant from the Area Cooperative Educational Services based in Hamden, sixth-grade language arts teachers at Great Oak Middle School are making a reading experience come alive.Beginning in February, the teachers, working with Media Specialist Robin Metaj and ACES Education Technology Specialist Howard Gunther, have been integrating the study of a young adult novel, "The Lightning Thief," by Rick Riordan, with technology-based activities.
The story centers on a 12-year-old Harry-Potter-type boarding school student named Percy Jackson, who has ADHD and dyslexia.
The premise of the story is that some kids are the offspring of Greek gods and goddesses who have come to earth from Mount Olympus to associate with 21st-century mortals.
The author works into his story many Greek myths and characters, including the Minotaur, Medusa, Poseidon, Ares and Zeus.In a pilot program introduced by Language Arts Teacher Debbie Lynch, students researched relative information, using computers to learn about the various mythological deities and about the specific geographic locations mentioned in Percy's cross country travels.
The program encouraged journal keeping, blogging, creating podcasts and using a Smart Board. In addition, students were required to create their own websites.
Assessments of each student's work was based on a portfolio that included the websites, journal entries and answers to questions presented in a rubric prepared by Mrs. Lynch.
The study was enhanced by readings from the book by "celebrity" readers, including School Superintendent Dr. Judy Palmer, custodian Sean Sweeney and music teacher Tom Surat.
The approach made western civilization come alive, Mrs. Lynch said.
The project is in line with the Connecticut Mastery Test standards for the English Language Arts Curriculum, which calls on students to read and respond to classical and contemporary texts from many cultures and literary periods.
To share the experience, the teachers involved in the program and four students were scheduled to attend the 13th annual Legislative Technology Exposition in Hartford today, April 1.
They plan to present an overview of the unit to legislators, administrators and fellow educators from other districts.
