Digital Microscope

Our children have a real interest in dinosaurs at the moment, so to extend this further I decided to set up our digital microscope with some dinosaurs and dinosaur skeletons. Oldridge states that technology should be used to "follow a child’s interests and to draw links across the wider curriculum" (2003, pg9). The digital microscope works by being connected to our laptop, so the instead of looking through the top of the microscope to see what’s inside, it shows up on the computer screen. The software also works by taking photos and videos of what is under the microscope. After setting this up I also put out some flowers, shells, and leaves for the children to examine.

 This was a really popular activity and as the children were examining the objects we were able to engage in conversation about the objects we were looking at, asking questions and building out knowledge on certain thing. While this was happening the children realised that as they were placing and turning the objects under the microscope they could see their fingers. This started off all children placing their fingers underneath, and wiggling them. They were really amazed that they could see their fingers moving on the screen. From this piece of technology they were able to explore their own bodies and engage in discussion about how fingers work.

One child in particular really interested in how he could make movies from what was underneath the microscope. When I started out using this microscope I thought that we would just be examine the objects but this child took the activity in whole new direction. He would get the objects place them under the microscope and make up a whole story line about what they were doing. Hatherly 2008 states that "by using ICT, children can shift from being  passive to active contributors" (pg 47) I think this is true as I let the  children explore this on their own and take the activity in what the direction that they chose. He made several movies from this and kept on wanting to play them back to watch them. He thought this was really cool and would bring his friends over to watch his movies or ask them if they would like to make a movie with him. This child had an awesome imagination and was really engaged in using the microscope.

 Hatherly 2008 state that "ICT has the potential to blur the lines between teaching and learning, as children and educators do both" (pg 47). I think this statement is really true, as I was using this technology with the children we were engaged in discussions of dinosaurs at first and the children were real experts on this subject. I was able to listen and learn about each dinosaur and in return I was able to show the children how to use the software so they could take photos and movies by themselves.

 I could see that through the microscope we were developing literacy, through talking about objects asking questions, making story lines to movies. Children were sharing their ideas and this became quite a social activity, while they were showing each other their movies and pictures they had taken from the microscope.  The New Zealand Curriculum states that "graphic’s and other forms of visual representation offer important tools or exploration and communication" (2007, pg 32), I feel that this piece of technology is really beneficial as it gave the children another dimension of looking at things in our world and this piece of technology offered different ways for the children to explore the objects through looking at them on screen, taking photos and making movies with the objects. This made the think what an awesum way discover our world, I will definately be using this piece of technology more within my centre!