Project -- Providing Some Focus

My work on the Visual Presentation Toolkit (a google site) has not only helped me to practice using many tools we looked at in this class (youtube playlists, drawing, forms), but is also helping me get mentally ready and excited for the school year.  I have some more work to finish up before I think the site is ready for kids, but it is getting close. I have spent a lot of time watching videos and looking at websites on design and specific apps.  Whenever I am looking at a possible site or tutorial , I think about the range of learners in 4th through 6th grades and how useful the resource will be to the kids in that range.  There are plenty of google tool tutorials, but I am struggling to find ones that are both kid friendly and current on certain tools -- like Google sites.  So while the site is getting close to completion,  I want to create a few screencasts for tutorials on some of the apps I am featuring and how we will use them at school.  

Visual Presentation Toolkit

I am a little daunted by and also really enjoying my new project.  I have been focusing on the resources that will be housed in this toolkit.  I have spent a bit of time being reminded that the internet is full of wonderful resources, total junk, and everything in between.  In other words -- I have been watching a lot of videos.  Some of the resources I am including are a little old for my students (for example the Google for Work videos, but I think they are worth including as they are well made and include some useful information that I think is visually accessible.  I have struggled to find upper elementary friendly resources that also include audio.  I am reluctant to include too many resources that are heavily text-based, as I think such sites will be challenging for a portion of EMES learners.  I am getting ready to start making some video tutorials and plan to use different apps for that work so as to practice using them and be able to show kids some of the different tools in action.  My Visual Presentation Toolkit home page now includes a Lego Movie Maker video.

Whirlwind Romance with a New Project

I have gathered resources and drafted prompts to use as part of my Turtle of Oman literature project.   I will definitely be seeing that project work again -- later this year -- but as I read more about personalized learning I just didn't feel that my literature project was Mr. Right after all.  For the last few days I have been flirting with a new project and I just decided to jump in.  My new project is a Visual Presentation Toolkit. One part of my work with EMES learners  -- both in library class and as part of tech integration work in the classroom -- is supporting their creation of visual presentations to express their ideas.  EMES students create book trailers, persuasive presentations, informational presentations, PSAs, and more.  In any class there are students with more technology experience than others and it is always a challenge in opening up lots of options to allow for student choice and still being able to support all learners with the basics of understanding and respecting copyright, manipulating text, adding audio, etc.  Creating a toolkit will allow me to support more personalization of the learning experience as students will be able to choose to access on-demand tutorials and resources or access direct group instruction.  Students who are absent or would like a reminder will also be able to use the toolkit.  As part of this work I want use Google forms for exit tickets to be able to quickly check-in to see where learners are on their project work.

Omani Propaganda -- 2nd date and Youtube Playlists

I have been exploring using Youtube playlists for resources for The Turtle of Oman project. In case you were wondering -- there is a lot of Oman Propaganda out there.

  Here is good one (in terms of propaganda, not one that I would use -- other than as an example of propaganda). Watch a little and then skip to about 2:45 -- you have to watch the transition.

I have found some decent clips and have started two playlists -- one on Oman and one on Turtles.   I think the topic makes it particularly time consuming as it appears that the videos are all government controlled or tourist videos.  I found one short National Geographic one.

I would use these playlists as resources for students when working on projects connected to the book and I think also to introduce Oman visually to the students.

First Date -- Turtle of Oman

For the last 2 years I have worked with the 5th grade teachers on book project using Edmodo.  We have used the book Wonder for 2 years.  Last year -- it just didn't seem to zing as much as it had the first year and I know there are some reasons for that.  The 4/5 teacher and I want to do a project with Edmodo as we feel it helps us teach several digital citizenship habits in an authentic way that we hope will have a lasting impact on our students.  Here is where Google Tools come in
One of the DCF books for this year is Turtle of Oman.  It is about a kid whose family is moving to the US for 3 years (his parents are professors).  The boy does not want to leave Oman and is struggling to pack his one suitcase.  His mother arranges for him to go away with his grandfather on a camping trip for a few days.
I will use Edmodo for the discussion prompts and a place for students to share projects.  These kids will all have chromebooks.  I am thinking about using google tools for projects and resources.
Possible projects
Suitcase:  If you had to leave VT for 3 years and move to a foreign country, what would you put in your suitcase? I think slides would be a good one to start with.  These are 4th and 5th graders.  I am thinking I can make some tutorials for kids and try to do some of the explorer vs tour guide approach you have done in class.  Explorer's would get some tutorials or tips/tricks docs and create on their own.  Could also use photos databases and practice crediting sources.

Oman -- Where is Oman.  I am thinking some a youtube playlist or research link list with a google form quiz included.  This is tricky and needs to be guided.  Quick searches show Oman propaganda coming up a lot...:and thanks to the wise decisions of of the Sultan....."

Where would you go?  What places are important to you in VT?  If you were leaving for 3 years -- where would you go  What makes those places important to you?  WeVideo project. or maybe tourbuilder?  Linda mentioned tourbuilder to me.

Turtles -- the boy in Turtle of Oman loves turtles.  Research project on turtles -- maybe that is a place for tour builder.  Turtles of the world.  Collaborative project that kids contribute together.

I of course need to finish the book (I am half way through and then got distracted by the prospect of reading an adult murder mystery).  To properly date, I must finish the book!

5 Ideas

Multicultural Fairytale Collaboration project -- work with Jenn Fitch to create end of year unit and design student projects for her 2nd and 3rd grade class.

Incorporating Google Tools for student response in Edmodo project.  We will be reading The Turtle of Oman in 4th and 5th grade.  Book has a strong sense of place (Oman, Jordan).  Possible projects -- you are leaving for 3 years and can only take one suitcase.  What goes in the suitcase -- we video project.  You are leaving for 3 years -- where do go in VT?  Slides for an ebook?

Forms for checklists and peer assessment rubrics with kids -- have kids generate a list of steps we need to complete a project.  With class -- create a form to use as a checklist that kids track their progress. Peer rubric -- create form that kids use to assess peers during presentations.  Start with 4th grade?

6th grade -- a passion project? and what needs to be fixed project. I do a big unit with 6th grade around robotics and I collaborate with our Spanish teacher on several projects.  I also collaborate with our music teacher (but that may change this year).  I am thinking that I want to do something different with 6th graders.  WeVideo or slides for kids to create a passion project.  That learning serves as some learning for kids to create "A What Needs to be Fixed" project -- a local or global issue.  Kids in the end create a site with embedded resources.  The site must include research.

Communication -- redesign my library webpage.  include more ways for community to provide input.  books we should have.  evening events we could include?

A PD plan -- a plan for leveraging data sorting features in sheets with staff.

Do Google Educator Certification.

Aspirations

I am thinking about using several of these tools in different ways
Spreadsheets -- data collection for participation grades for each of my classes
Spreadsheets for assessment of student projects.  I would like to add a component of this with my 4th graders and book trailer projects, where the kids do peer assessment.
Forms -- checklist (where students record where they are in a project eg have photos, have storyboard, missing music,)
Forms -- data collection with robotics  Possible example -- students record their kicker data along the way and students make predictions about what robot will be the most successful based on the data.
Spreadsheets and data collection for flexible groupings and reteach.  Seeing the way to add conditional formatting and the color coding gave me ideas about how to make managing the volume of data needed to make flexible grouping decisions in real time feasible.

Slides -- I am thinking about using slides for collaborative ebook creation.  This could really support Red Clover book response with the younger grades.  I have some management to think about (we don't create google accounts for kids under 2nd grade, but Amy gave me a good idea about using a generic user for that kind of work and creating folders for each of the students).  Harvey Rabbit rides again!