CoSpacesEDU - complete!

The 7th graders turned in their projects today and WOW!  I am extremely impressed, especially given they had only a few days of work time.

Shmuel Bet Capital Assessment

Take a peek at some of the end products of this brand new project that will now be a keeper!

Example 1 - LINK

Example 2 - LINK

Example 3 - LINK

At the very end of the project students had to complete two additional tasks.  First, they had to evaluate their teamwork.  Then they had to visit at least three other projects.  I loved reading their responses to their classmates work!

"The first presentation I went to did Waverly, Michigan [as the new capital] because it has so many shops and that helps the economy.  The second presentation I went to had a lake and a bridge that lead to the giant capital castle and was super cool.  The third presentation I went to is where I learned that Jerusalem has a giant fortress that protects Jerusalem." -- BL

And another student response:

"The first space I visited chose Mackinac Island as their Michigan capital because of the immense water supply and the low crime rate.  In the second space I visited I highly enjoyed the animals telling jokes and the oasis with various plants and a lady standing a bridge.  That must have taken a lot of work!  You can also go up the towers!  That is awesome!  The third place I visited was a Lansing location where I learned that the Grand River supplies the water to Lansing." -- TC

Again, if you haven't explored CoSpacesEDU it is definitely worth checking out.  The possibilities are limitless with what kids can bring to life to showcase their learning!

Stop Motion + Earth Day = Creative Explosion!

This year's mini-unit on Stop Motion culminated not with state tours.  Instead, it culminated with something equally as important.  Earth Day videos.

After watching a few clips on Earth Day, 3rd graders were given 20 minutes to design their own Earth Day clip.  Yes, we're using the somewhat clunky Chrome app.  Yes, 20 minutes is not a lot of time.

And yes, these kids created some pretty adorable clips!

Flippin' for Fridays

Fridays are special in the Jewish community because they are the start of Shabbat. Last year, my school started a new tradition, Shabbat Mishpacha, where every Friday morning, the whole school mixes up into multi-grade Shabbat families for activities, community, and shabbat blessings.  COVID may have thrown a wrench into the mixing up into families this year, but it didn't stop the celebrations from happening.

Our rabbi has gotten creative with the activities this year, sometimes incorporating technology into the mix. This week, was Parashat Shemot (I'm still learning all about these Parsha - truly a foreign language to me!) and the directions to students were:

"Even though Moshe was a great leader, he needed help. He needed a push from God to do something that was hard for him.  After you watch the video, share about a time you did something that was hard. What did you do? Who helped you?"

So many of the responses were incredibly thoughtful! So refreshing to see young people sharing thoughts and experiences, reflecting on times of challenge, and appreciating the helpers in their life. All of this was made possible by the ease of Flipgrid - even the kindergarteners were able to share!

"It's easy to ask for help, but sometimes it's difficult in your mindset... it's easy to just ask for help, but it's hard on the inside." - 7th grade student

BrainPop: Creative Coding

As part of being a Certified BrainPop Educator, I have to keep my training fresh.  So a few months ago, when BrainPop offered up some new tools, I jumped at the chance of giving them a go.  

Creative Coding is a new favorite tool that I am excited to try with my school.  It offers a simple way to bring the skills of coding into the familiar tool that is BrainPop.  Because it's connected to different BrainPop movies, it makes for a fantastic formative assessment tool, as well as an engaging way for kids to explore creativity and showcase their knowledge of content and coding skills!