Be Safe, Be Respectful and Be Responsible with PicCollage (and Educreations!)

-


Here at Coonley students follow a simple code of conduct:  be responsible, be respectful and be safe. Sounds simple, right?  As adults we all know what this means but for students sometimes it takes a bit more detail.  In 4th grade Ms. Malhiot's class decided to dig deeper.

Setting the Stage

Still getting to know each other,  Ms. Malhiot's students discussed their various learning styles.  As the picture suggests this class is "off the chart" (pun intended!) when it comes to being visual learners.  Having that knowledge helps the teacher determine what types of activities students might respond to best.

Even though the Cougar Code is displayed in the classroom Ms. Malhiot decided to take the concept and give students a chance to visually represent it.  This not only reinforces the notion that this is an important set of rules but gives students specific examples of what someone might mean when they walk in and say "Be Responsible!", "Be Respectful!" and "Be Safe!"

The Lesson

Room 301 began by using their SmartBoard to have a discussion about what it means to be responsible, respectful and safe.  Students listed specific examples for each. After, it was time to storyboard what this would look like.  Students worked in groups to fill out a graphic organizer. 
 

The Technology

Once the students had a sense of visual ways they could demonstrate the three codes of conduct it was time to complete the actual artifacts.  I came in and used the document camera to demonstrate how to create a collage using the iPad app PicCollage which was already installed on the school iPads.  Students were already familiar with the app and eager to get started.  They worked cooperatively in small groups to take pictures both in the classroom and around the school to demonstrate their specific code of conduct.  They did a great job!  





But Wait!  There's More!

Here is an example of a 2nd grade class focusing on the same Code of Conduct.  I assisted the class in using Educreations to generate a video presentation of their work.  They did great!





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Twenty Years is Worth Two Cents

-
Image
Time It’s been an interesting year.  My twins entered middle school (time flies).  My mom died unexpectedly leaving me parentless with probate and a house built by my grandfather in 1948 (time stands still).  Oh…and CPS is shuttering my school  (time to move?). The school I’ve built my career at and spent the last twenty years with students. I sat in the library with my colleagues and was read two scripts; one by my principal and one by a Chicago Public School Central Office employee.  With that, it was done (or in the beginning phase of 'done'). Teachers were told to “have a good day of teaching and learning” (one of our daily mantras) and were sent off to teach their students after just being told our school was not remaining open after this school year but our building would remain open with a new faculty and three student bodies.   George Leland school would inhabit our building while May Community Academy and Louis Armstrong Math & Science Elementary would be
Read more

Understanding Plagiarism

-
Image
Our middle school is 1:1 with Chromebooks so students spend a fair amount of time researching topics online.  A teacher noticed there is a lot of copying and pasting of information by students and asked me to come in and have a conversation about plagiarism.  I developed a Prezi with an accompanying notes guide for the students to complete as I presented the content to them.  The Prezi and notes guide are below.  As we wrapped up the students were able to use their Chromebooks for a bit of fun (with a topic that isn't so fun).  We played a Kahoot game where they reviewed concepts about plagiarism from their guide.  They loved it!  What I loved is that Kahoot also provides a summary of student responses to the game- I can see which students missed specific questions which allows me to follow up if needed. Resources used in the presentation (good for teachers and students): http://www.plagiarism.org http://en.writecheck.com (this has a plagiarism checker available) https://o
Read more

Water the Flowers, Not the Rocks: Tips from 10 Years of Instructional Coaching

-
This June I wrapped up ten years of instructional technology coaching. Soon (tomorrow, in fact) I will begin a new journey in my career where I will still utilize my coaching skills but in a different capacity. This new opportunity has caused me to reflect on lessons learned throughout my time as a school-based coach. If you are a coach or aspire to be one following are ten tips I've learned during my ten years in the role. Be a model . Practice what you preach! If you want your teachers to join Twitter make sure you are already there. If they would like to try a new tool or lesson familiarize yourself with it first in order to lend additional support. Be honest . If you don't know something, say so. As a coach, your faculty will look to you as an expert. There have been several times throughout my career that I've said, "I don't know that tool/concept/strategy but let me see what I can find out about it." If you are a former classroom teacher, remind peo
Read more