Jordan Cornett

Online Literacy Assignment-Written Component

Using Keywords to Locate Information

The lesson, using keywords to locate information, was designed for my kindergarten

classroom in which students will complete an online literacy assignment that will develop their

online gatekeeper skills. It was determined that best practice would be to begin teaching these

young students the first gatekeeper skill of locating information. According to Laurie A. Henry

(2006) locating information online may be the most important skill because without it students

will be unable to move beyond the search process. Students will be unable to find answers to

their questions or solve problems if they cannot search for and locate information on the internet

which will impede evaluating, synthesizing, and communicating information (Henry, 2006; Leu,

McVerry, OByrne, Kiili, Zawilinski, Everett-Cacopardo, Kennedy, & Forzani, 2011).

Specifically this lesson focuses on teaching students how to determine keywords to locate

information they need online. Students need instruction in new online reading skills and

strategies such as how to generate effective keyword search strategies (Henry, 2006; Leu et al.,

2011).

Students will be positively impacted by this lesson from learning new technology skills.

Carroll (2011) found many benefits of effectively teaching technology gatekeeper skills.

Technology provides students with the opportunity to explore new technologies and can also

motivate reluctant learners (Carroll, 2011). Technology also provides the teacher with

possibilities of accommodations that can be used with all student learning styles (Carroll, 2011).

ILA Standards
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This lesson meets ILA standards 2.3: candidates use a wide range of texts (e.g., narrative,

expository, and poetry) from traditional print, digital, and online resources, 4.2: candidates use a

literacy curriculum and engage in instructional practices that positively impact students

knowledge, beliefs, and engagement with the features of diversity and 2.2: candidates use

appropriate and varied instructional approaches, including those that develop word recognition,

language comprehension, strategic knowledge, and reading-writing connections. In this lesson

students are exposed to a new instructional approach of using an online search engine (ILA 2.3)

to read information about their community helper along with learning how to locate information

on the internet by learning how to create effective keywords to locate the information that they

need, which will positively impact their knowledge (ILA 4.2). Students also take the information

they read to write about their community helper making a reading-writing connection (ILA 2.2).

ISTE Standards

This lesson also meets ISTE standard 3a-b: students apply digital tools to gather,

evaluate, and use information to (a) plan strategies to guide inquiry and (b) locate, organize,

analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media.

In this lesson students plan a strategy of determining keywords to search for answers to questions

about their community helper so that they can locate information online. Students also meet

standard 4a-b: students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects,

solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources by (a)

identifying and defining authentic problems and significant questions for investigation and (b)

planning and managing activities to develop a solution or complete a project. Students identify

questions that they want to research about their community helper and locate information online

after using keywords to search to complete their Community Helpers Research Booklet.
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Kentucky Teacher Standards

This lesson meets KTS standards 6.1: uses available technology to design and plan

instruction and 6.2: uses available technology to implement instruction that facilitates student

learning. The technology that is available in the classroom was used to plan instruction in which

students themselves would use the iPads to learn how to use keywords to search and locate

information on the internet.

Common Core Standards

This lesson also meet Common Core English Language Arts standards. In this lesson

students answer questions about their community helper by reading online informational texts

(RI.K.1) while also engaging in group reading activities with other students (RI.K.10). Once

students locate information online, in their shared research groups, to answer questions about

their community helper students must write in their information in the Community Helpers

Research Booklet (W.K.2/W.K.7/W.K.8).

TPACK

Finally, content knowledge and pedagogy were considered when designing this lesson

that utilizes technology. A social studies theme included reading and writing standards in which

students read online information to write informational pieces. Pedagogy was also considered.

During the lesson a gradual release of responsibility was used using the I do, we do, you do

model to teach students how to locate information online about their community helper. The

needs of students in my classroom was also taken into account and appropriate accommodations

were planned. Using the iPads students were provided audio so that the assignment directions

could be read to them along with the option to have information on the website read aloud as
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well. Supports were also provided such as anchor charts, a video that could be viewed, and their

Community Helpers Research Booklet in which the correct spelling of words could be located.

The content and pedagogy was planned in order to facilitate the use of technology effectively.
 Jordan Cornett

References

Carroll J. (2011). From encyclopedias to search engines: Technological change and its impact on

literacy learning. Literacy Learning: The Middle Years, 19 (2), 27-34.

Henry, L. A. (2006). SEARCHing for an answer: The critical role of new literacies while reading

on the Internet. International Reading Association, 59(7), 614-627.

Leu, D. J., McVerry, J.G., OByrne, W.I., Kiili, C., Zawilinski, L., Everett-Cacopardo, H.,

Kennedy, C., and Forzani, E. (2011). The new literacies of online reading

comprehension: Expanding the literacy and learning curriculum. Journal of Adolescent &

Adult Literacy, 55 (1), 5-14.