Google Classroom

As a lover of all things Google, I decided that it was time to try out Google Classroom, a straightforward way to create a workflow to and from students through their Google accounts. This video explains how to set up a classroom and how to create assignments. Bonus: It allows you to view the Teacher and Student accounts simultaneously.

After setting up my class and adding students, I created my assignment: a Google Presentation that focuses on the proper use of "your" and "you're" using photographs.

Check it out:

Here is the link to my Google Presentation assignment. 
Please give attribution if you use it. :)

Finally, I created an assignment in Google Classroom with the Presentation attached. When I shared it with my class, I chose the selection, "Make a copy for each student."

This option takes a looooong time before it shows up in their accounts, but it's worth the wait! I would advise doing this the night before. Another bonus: it automatically puts each student's name on the end of the assignment title.

When students log into their Google Classroom accounts, they will discover that they have an assignment waiting for them. 

Once students open the assignment, they simply view the Presentation, fill in the blanks like so:

Grammar can be scary!!!!

and turn it in. When they do, it populates a folder in my Drive that was automatically created when I created the assignment in Google Classroom. All assignments have their own folders, and all folders are placed in a folder called "Classroom" in Google Drive.

Now I can decide to grade these assignments or call just make this assignment "Practice." 

I am excited about Google Classroom, and I think that it is going to evolve to include many more features, but this is definitely an easy way to begin. Give it a try and see for yourself!

"The Pitch" Preparation for Genius Hour

Students used their class time today to develop their “pitch” about their Genius Hour. The idea is that an innovator with a great idea might find himself/herself in an elevator with a powerful person who might be interested in investing money in a promising proposition. (Talk about being in the right place at the right time?!) The innovator has a very short period of time to convince this investor to buy into the idea. It is time to deliver an “elevator pitch.”

For this assignment, I am asking my students to prepare a pitch about their Genius Hour project in 30 seconds. I will be asking students to privately deliver their pitch to me. Here’s a video explaining the elevator pitch from Sean Wise, a business journalist for The Globe and Mail in Toronto, and the host of Canada's version of Shark Tank.

Wise states, good elevator pitches have two parts: the pain statement and value proposition. He says that first, the individual lays out a problem that needs to be solved. Then he/she establishes how the idea is going to solve it.

Wise says that elevator pitches should be succinct, easy to understand, greed inducing, and irrefutable. My students may find that last part confusing, but I’ll help them understand that good ideas can equal MONEY. This is an opportunity for students to think through an idea enough to try to “sell it” it me. At this point, I will soon be vetting the ideas of my students. I will help them to think it through. (A big shout out to Kevin Brookhouser for his great ideas in shaping this lesson.)

Here are some student samples from a document that I created to help students plan their pitches:

Here is the link for this document.

My students left school with a much better idea of what their project will look like. Some of them want to start working on it this weekend! Next Genius Hour - "The Pitch!"

Genius Hour: Topic Exploration

Today was our second day (and second week) for Genius Hour. I knew that after all of last week's excitement, we had to do something with all of those fascinating ideas. So I created this document:

Here is a link to my public document.

I explained that in order to see if an idea would work, they would need to "try it on" in this document to see if it was possible and workable. This forced them to think about not only a cool project, but what they would have to research, how they would research, and where the project would be made. It is important to note that projects could be completed at home, but only with parent permission. (Some students were interested in building a Rube Goldberg machine. But not in MY classroom!) 

After initial trepidation, most kids just dived right in.

These two students shared an idea about bioluminescence.

This student has filled out his paper and is looking at Roman coliseums.

And we had trouble, too. With students who had NO IDEAS AT ALL. Thankfully, I had a remedy for that. All summer I had been collecting magazine and newspaper articles of possible topics. I'm so glad I did! 

So hot, it burns!

I sat down with this student and got him "fired up" about Easter Island statues and Terracotta Warriors. 

Checking out dung beetles in my HOT IDEAS binder.

All in all, a very successful Genius Hour. One thing: I don't think that the students were used to such freedom of investigation. I had a lot of, "Is it okay if I research..." They felt that they needed my permission to think freely. I told them, fill out the form (so helpful!) and then check the idea out on your iPad to see if it really interests you. Next week, "The Idea Proposal."

Genius Hour Introduction

After months of researching and planning over the summer, I was finally able to introduce Genius Hour to my class. My best source for information was this LiveBinder by Joy Kirr. The problem was, with all of the information out there, and all of the different ways other teachers have introduced it, I still wasn't sure how I was going to do it. Finally, days before THE BIG DAY, I put it all together. First, I crafted my parent letter so that they would be aware of the plan. I posted that on my website. Then I introduced the idea with my video from PowToon:

Then I chose explained that students would be coming up with different ideas and that they would be working in class on the project. This video does a great job in just introducing that:

After that, I told my class that they would be presenting their final project to the class in a TED-like way. I showed this short video of high school students presenting their projects. I realize that this is above my students' level, but it is still a great example.

By this time, the class was really getting fired up. They starting asking me questions, so I went over the basic rules that I had created. I was happy to say, the answer was "Yes" to almost every question!

This haiku deck that I created is what REALLY got them excited.

Here's the link for it.

This gave my students A LOT to think about over the weekend. So now, my plan for this week is to begin collecting ideas and looking at the possibilities for my class. The new adventure begins!

Genius Hour Topics

I'm one of those people who have many interests and project ideas. From investigating natural pesticides, to learning more about pilates, to figuring out why I can't find a comfortable bike seat, I have more ideas that I have time! Unfortunately, I find that many of my students are at a loss when asked to come up with their own ideas, including topics for personal narratives, persuasive/argument essays, or informational writing subjects. When I embark on my Genius Hour initiative, I expect that I will have a few students who will be overwhelmed by the idea of working on a passion project of their choice. Here is how I plan to help them.

You are Your First Source for Ideas:

1. Choose an interest you have that you want to learn more about. (hobbies, sports, geographical locations, crafts, skills, etc.)
2. Pick a topic or issue that directly affects you or someone close to you in a positive way. (recycling, conservation efforts, dog parks, clean beaches, etc.)
3. Think about a topic or issue that directly affects you or someone close to you in a negative way. (illness, disorder, health issue, dirty beaches, lack of parks, etc.)
4. Think of your average day from the moment you wake until the moment you sleep. Walk your life in your mind from the beginning of the day (eating breakfast, brushing teeth) to the end (coming home from a sports activity, completing homework) What topics come to mind? Jot all ideas down. See if that brings up topics or issues that interest you.

Other Great Sources for Genius Hour Topic Ideas:

1. Instructables - http://www.instructables.com/ 
2. National Geographic Magazine - hardcopies or http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/. For kids - http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/
3. Newsela - https://www.newsela.com/
4. DOGO News - http://www.dogonews.com/
5. Science News For Students - https://student.societyforscience.org/sciencenews-students
6. Scholatic News - http://magazines.scholastic.com/
7. Time for Kids - http://www.timeforkids.com/news
8. This Blendspace Creation by Amy Clancy - http://linkis.com/blnds.co/gh4KO

After a possible topic is picked, the following questions need to be asked in order to be considered a Genius Hour Topic:

I went back and forth on whether I should require that the topic directly affect the student or someone close to the student. I think that kids usually relate everything to themselves anyway, so this question is important. I came to the conclusion that students should think about a topic that affects them, but it doesn't have to be a pre-requisite in choosing their topic. 

Literature Circles, Apps, and Edmodo

I have always used literature circles in my class, and my students have greatly benefited from the deep thinking they use as they are reading. My challenge for the past couple of years was how to incorporate iPads and technology into a system that already worked for me. 

Edmodo was the platform for what I planned. For those who aren't already familiar with Edmodo, it is a FREE website for educators to share resources, collaborate, form groups within the classroom, create online assignments, give quizzes or polls, and more! For me, this was a no-brainer. All I had to do now was to look closely at student roles, which have always been a way for me to introduce literature circles. I needed to bring technology into the picture. 

Students hard at work creating products to share.

I wanted to find apps that really produced something significant and meaningful for my class. Another big challenge was to use apps that weren't just cool and fun, but that actually accomplished what I wanted using the depth and complexity that was needed. Oh, and by the way, the products that students created and shared with their groups could only take 15 minutes to create. The rest of the time was spent reading and discussing. It took a few weeks to get there, but we did it.

These were the basic management rules I used:

This presentation gives an overall picture of how Lit Circles look in my class:

Apps I Have Used:
(but there are so many more I still plan to use!)

Edmodo - Post assignments directly into Edmodo.

Camera - Use for almost anything!

Pages - Create a document and add a photo.

Keynote - Create a short slideshow on Keynote. 

Croak.it   - Record an audio response on Croak.it.
WordHippo.com - Find definitions for Word Wizard role.

Educreations - Create a screencast.

Haikudeck.com - Create a haiku PowerPoint.

Simple Mind - Create a mind map.

Over- Select a photo and label it.

PicStitch - Create a photo collage.

ImageChef - Create a photo collage for theme/mood.

Word Clouds - Create a word cloud of vocabulary.

Notability - Highlight and annotate text.

Creative Commons - Free-use images.

I hope that this list inspires you to think outside the box as you create meaningful literature circles in your own class!

ePortfolios: Keeping Track of Online Work

I've quickly come to realize that keeping track of my students' work in paper folders is a thing of the past, especially since most of their work lives online or on their iPads. EPortfolios is the way to go. This year I was inspired to learn how to create ePortfolios with Google Sites from presentations at the CUE conference that I attended in Palm Springs, CA in March.  I had my own ideas of how I thought it might look, but what it ended up becoming was far superior to anything I could have dreamed up.

I started off by practicing with an informational writing piece. We broke the chapters up into separate pages. Then I required students to add a combination of photos, maps, or videos. In addition, they had to change the font size and/or color, plus wrap the text around any images they used.

Here's an example of using Google Sites for a report on the Great Wall of China:

Notice how the chapters are numbered. This was key to keeping them in order,
Otherwise, Google Sites will alphabetize the pages, which isn't always idea.

Here's another example:

This theme had a dramatic look!

This is a checklist that I gave to students for their informational writing site:

After this, my students were ready for an ePortfolio. It look some practice in getting everything to work on iPads, which can be temperamental and wonky at times, but we had a number of "experts" in no time. Soon, all students had ePortfolios up and running. Here are a few examples:

Notice the titles and subtitles on the left. Students were able to create photo galleries using photos that I had taken during the year and posted on our Weebly website. They simply saved them to their photo album on their iPads.

Here is a close-up of the titles and subtitles. Check out the countdown menu at the bottom. Many students used this for special events like birthdays, holidays, or to keep track of when school ended.

This is the checklist I gave for completed ePortfolios:

I gave this presentation to teachers on how to create ePortfolios with their students. It should answer a lot of tricky questions.

I can't wait to try this again next year. I'll start earlier with my fifth graders. I will make it a point to remind them to take their own pictures of their work to include in their ePortfolios. I hope you try it too!

Genius Hour

It's the first week of summer, and I haven't wasted any time so far. I've begun making plans to introduce Genius Hour (another name for 20% Time inspired by Google) to my class in the fall. In addition to what I learned from the 2014 CUE conference in Palm Springs, CA in March, here is the link from LiveBinder that I've been using to learn more and form a plan for my class next year. There is so much information out there that is it overwhelming!

LiveBinder for Genius Hour from Joy Kirr

The basic idea is that in order to allow for innovation in the classroom, students need to be given time IN CLASS to do it (and let's just include teachers, too, because who doesn't need some time to be innovative instead of grading papers?). Based on the plethora of information out there, here are some of the "rules" about 20% Time/Genius Hour:

1. Students should pick a topic/issue that they are very interested in and want to learn more about. The subject must be vetted by the teacher prior to the launching of their research. Some teachers have an anything-goes philosophy, while others want it to be based on the betterment of the community.
2. Students should be given 20% of their day (realistically, this would be one subject period per week) to explore this topic. 
3. Students must spend their time in class researching and writing/blogging about what they have learned.
4. The length of the assignment is up to the teacher. Some teachers have a year-long project, others have one project per trimester, while others complete a project in as little as five weeks. Either way, students should create an end product that is presented to the class. Typically it would be a five-minute presentation.
5. Here's the kicker: it isn't graded! That doesn't mean that it doesn't matter or that there is no accountability. It's just that this isn't based on getting a grade as an outcome. Learning, inspiration, and innovation are the outcome. It also fits in tidily with Common Core standards. Winning!

Today I started thinking about how I would present this idea to the class, and I was inspired by a video created on www.PowToon.com by Renee Valentine, so I made one of my own. Here it is:

I have so many more ideas to work out, so this blog post is going to be a work in progress. I plan to revisit it as I learn more. I'm so excited for my students and for me!

To be continued...

Red Solo Cup Challenge

This is a great beginning of the year/end of the year cooperative challenge. Students needed to work together using a rubber band and string to lift cups and put them into formations. It seemed impossible at first, but soon students mastered it. To begin, start with a a rubber band for each group (I had eight groups) and tie four strings to each rubber band. Create groups of four. Then have students practice lifting and changing the direction of a cup. Like this:

Next, start with challenges like, put the cups into a pyramid:

Easy does it.

Then make it even more difficult by starting with this shape. 

         And moving them to this:

Not so easy!

I decided to keep going until the students couldn't do it anymore (or they gave up), which ended up being 10 cups. At that point, it got too difficult to keep four sets of hands steady enough to build a pyramid. Overall, I would definitely do this again. It was so rewarding to hear the kids talking to each other and forming a plan on how to accomplish the challenges. Several of the students came up to me later and thanked me for introducing this to them. Winning!

Sticky Bridges

I've been reading about doing this STEM activity for a while now, and during the last week of school was the time to try it! The idea is that students build a bridge created with no more than 100 toothpicks and 50 mini-marshmallows. The students had 25 minutes to create the bridge (I did it in pairs.). After the time was up, I planned to test the strength of the bridges by suspending them on a pair of stacked books with a space of six inches between them. I told students that I planned to put metal washers (in a bowl) on top of each bridge until it collapsed. The winners would get Smarties candies or Dum Dum lollipops. So much excitement in the classroom! 

First, I gave students about 5 minutes to plan and design their bridges. Some used mini-white boards, others used their iPads, and others simply discussed it with their partner. Then it was off to work!

I loved hearing the students talking to each other about why they thought their design was best. Here are some of their creations I witnessed. As I walked around, I asked students to explain their logic. Some couldn't put it into words, while others explained exactly why they thought that their design would support weight.

Looks pretty, but not so strong.

This one is a little more intricate.

Popular pattern, no? 

This one won! It supported 13 washers.

Finally, it was time to test the bridges. The one directly above won because, as the creators explained, "It had crosses and plus-signs to make it stronger." In addition, it has two layers.

"X" is where the magic lies.

Here, one of the designers explains his creation to me. Notice the "X" he is making with his hands!

When I have more time, (and I will make more time for this next year) I would like students to make a second bridge the next day based on the what they learned from their first go-around. Should be interesting. In addition, it could also be extended by studying bridge designs AFTER this lesson. I purposely didn't do this because I didn't want students to have prior knowledge of this. Clearly, most students have seen bridges before, but have they ever really looked at the engineering? I'll bet they will next opportunity they have!