001+Digital+Cameras



Being creative is one of the main necessities for being a teacher. Using technology in the classroom is a great example of creativity. Digital cameras are just one of the many technologies available for teachers today. From teaching students how they work, incorporating them in an everyday lesson, and the reasons why they are used, digital cameras play a major role in the classroom. A digital camera is a camera that stores images digitally instead of recording them on film (2010). The camera has several parts: the lens, capture button, flash, and LCD screen. You should be familiar with a few terms before using the camera: digital zoom, JPEG, LCD, megapixel, memory, and resolution. Digital zoom enlarges an area of a photo. The larger you make the photo, the lower the quality of the picture. JPEG stands for Joint Photographers Expert Group. This is the standard format for saving digital images. The LCD or liquid crystal display is the screen you view on the camera. This screen affects your battery. Resolution is the amount of detail in the picture and megapixels determine how much detail the pictures will have. You can save your pictures on a memory card (No Author 2005).

There are many different ways teachers can incorporate the technology of digital cameras in the classroom through lessons. Throughout the article “Smile! Digital Cameras Can Make Your Day” by Lina Starr, there are many ideas on how you can use digital cameras in the classroom. She suggests taking pictures of objects or places that go with the topic of study or theme for the week. This way the students can get a better look and understanding of what they’re learning about. Another great idea was given by Cavanaugh in the article called “Digital Camera: An electronic device that digitizes images.” Cavanaugh suggests taking step by step pictures of an activity or lesson for the day that way the students can see what exactly they will be doing. This is definitely good for those students who are better visual learners. In the article called “Digital Cameras and Digital Imaging in the Classroom” the author gives an example of a math lesson that could teach the students about parallel and perpendicular lines. By taking a photo of a brick building or side walk lines you could visually show and point out to the students where those lines are. Then to extend the lesson you could have the students go home and take photos of other indoor or outdoor objects that had parallel or perpendicular lines.

Why do you think teachers use digital cameras in the classroom? Technology is used in the classroom for all different reasons. Digital cameras in general are a very popular tool that teachers enjoy using. Miller (2002) describes that, “Students love taking pictures as much as they love being in them.” Digital cameras are so fun to children and give them a new sense of learning. Miller (2002) also adds, “Using digital photography helps the students become more involved with the subject.” If students are able to become more engaged with learning through digital cameras, teachers are always looking for ways to allow children to have more fun with learning. Starr (2009) says that, “Digital Cameras are easy and fun to use and they offer teachers nearly unlimited opportunities to engage students and to incorporate technology in their curriculum.” Most teachers today seem to be required to involve technology in their day to day planning. Digital cameras provide teachers with a great use of technology and allowing students to be engaged through different ways of learning. Digital Cameras are a great resource for teachers to use.

As teachers to be someday, we are going to be incorporating this technology in our classrooms from learning great information concerning digital cameras from this tech class. Be creative!

__References:__ 1. Miller, L. (June, 2002). Using Digital Cameras in the Classroom. September 13, 2010, from

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2. Starr, Linda. (2009, Aug 31). Smile! Digital Cameras Can Make Your Day. Retrieved

September 11, 2010, from []

3. Cavanaugh, T. (2006). The Digital Camera in Education. September 13, 2010, from

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4. No Author Listed. (2004). Digital Cameras & Digital Imaging in the Classroom. September 13, 2010.

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5. No Author. (2005). Digital Camera Fun. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from

http://teachersmousepad.com/Digital%20Camera%20Fun/Digital%20Camera%20Fun.htm

6. Digital camera. Webopedia. Retrieved September 13, 2010, from http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/digital_camera.html

Date Finalized: 9/28/10

Amber Griffin Meghan Matheis Maggie Wood