Artifact 5

Context:
I reviewed this piece of children’s software as a part of my Elementary School Curriculum and Instruction class at ASU. The software I chose was The Magic School Bus Explores the Rainforest and is intended to be used by children ages 6-10. In this game, students are free to explore the rainforest and all that it has to offer with the help of Mrs. Frizzle and her students. After investigating this program, I created an evaluation of it, including its strengths and weaknesses and content description.

Impact:
Since I have spent time evaluating this software, I now know that it is a wonderful exploration tool for students in the elementary grades. It does a good job of incorporating science lessons into a fun and colorful computer program that is easy to navigate. I determined that I would use this software in my classroom and would allow students to explore it individually or in small groups during free time. There are so many paths that you can take that this program would never get dull or repetitive. Students could learn many valuable facts about the rainforest and also get experience with computers.

Alignment:
After reviewing this piece of software, I consulted a few websites, which included reviews from experts, teachers and parents about the same program. It was interesting to find out what other professionals had to say about the software that I evaluated (Tech. Comp. 10.3). Once I had chosen the software program that I did, I conducted a search on an Internet search engine to find out more about it. I found a website that is dedicated specifically to The Magic School Bus and have linked this site to my evaluation. I also found many websites that review children’s software and have included a link to a parent review in my evaluation as well (Tech. Comp. 10.6). This program could be incorporated into a science unit on the rainforest and its many habitats. Students could take turns exploring this program freely or the teacher could choose specific areas to pay attention to by providing a sheet of questions to answer (Tech. Comp. 11.3).