Category: Weekly Reflections (Page 1 of 2)

This week, teacher candidates from EKTEP took part in a local elementary school-wide event called Innovation Hour, where students had the opportunity to discover, explore, and play with different types of educational technologies.

Taking place in the gymnasium, we set up five different stations for the event:

1. Button making
2. Go Cubes
3. Microbit AI
4. Chomp Saw
5. Unplugged Activity: Brain in a Bag

GoCubes

The first station I facilitated was the Go Cubes, which are electronic and bluetooth Rubik’s cubes that connect to a mobile app designed to help the player solve the puzzle and play interactive games. The app has lessons, games, and even has new puzzles for you to try out. You can even connect with friends to compete in speed games against one another.

Setting up this station was a bit of a time-crunch. With 15 minutes to connect all of the cubes to their respective iPads and ensure the app’s digital cube matched the physical cube, we were racing to complete everything before our first group of 15 students.

One of the most important lessons to learn about becoming a teacher is the ability to think on your feet. With our first group of students excited and eager to explore the GoCubes, our team of EKTEP teacher candidates decided we could utilize this eagerness in having them help us configure all of the cubes. We turned a tedious task into an interactive lesson on collaborative problem-solving, giving students a chance to troubleshoot technology alongside us while keeping their curiosity and engagement at the centre of the experience.

Each group was given approximately 12 minutes at each station. With each group our team became a well-oiled machine; we introduced the cube, talked showed what a ‘solved’ cube looks like, and showed how the app on the iPad can help them solve it and play interactive games. Rubik’s cubes help students develop spatial awareness and problem-solving skills. Original non-electronic cubes can be extremely challenging to solve (I still haven’t figured it out!), which may cause some frustration in students. The GoCube can bridge this gap, providing students a guided lesson at their own pace.

ChompSaws

I was very excited to manage the next station: making cardboard airplanes with the ChompSaws. I spoke about this amazing tool in my previous post linked below. This station was a great hands-on experience for me to learn how to introduce the tool and inspire creativity in students.

We had three teacher candidates running this station. With a little extra time to prepare, we set up a game plan consisting of three substations, one for each teacher candidate to manage: tracing, drilling, and cutting. Because there were only six Chompsaws for groups of 12-15, we also added an area for colouring plane parts to keep students busy. Students were placed in pairs, sent to trace their parts first, either drill the holes or cut next, and finally assemble and colour the plane if there was time left.

I really enjoyed this station. If I were to do it again, I would recommend having students spend at least 20 minutes at each station. I felt bad rushing through instructions, but I knew that if I didn’t, they wouldn’t get to see their finished product. Nonetheless, students seemed to enjoy the overall experience. Finished or not, students walked away excited and happy about the opportunity to use the Chompsaws.

I think Chompsaws are a great way to inspire students and give them a glimpse into the career of carpentry. Crafting an object or piece of art with your hands provides a sense of satisfaction that is hard to describe. Having opportunities like this event can help students see real-world applications for their creativity.

Key Takeaways

The Hour of Innovation event was such a fun experience for the students. The gym was teeming with excitement, joy, and laughter. In the future, I hope all schools in SD5 will get the opportunity to have this event at their respective locations. I also recommend finding a way to lengthen the amount of time. Perhaps this could take place over the course of a week, having classes come in to spend 30 minutes to an hour exploring each of the activities. I feel that this extra time would allow for a well-rounded learning experience, ensuring connections are made to the BC Curriculum. For example, with the Chompsaws, it would be fun to allow students to design their own planes. They would learn about weight distribution requirements and figure out what exactly makes a plane fly through prototyping and experimentation.

For this week’s class, we had the opportunity to visit the School District 5 Design Lab located at one of the local elementary schools. The instructor explained the idea behind Transformative Learning and Technology, which seeks to build creative and critical thinking through hands-on, inquiry-led processes using digital tools.

One device that was shown to us that I loved was called a Chompsaw, which is a kid-friendly and kid-safe power tool specifically designed to cut cardboard (not fingers!). Watching the instructor demonstrate its capabilities and safeguards made me think of so many different ways this could be used in the classroom. Regardless, I think it is a great way to foster creativity. I would have loved one of these as a kid! Their website features so many different lesson and activity ideas, ranging from building and designing a hat, making 3-dimensional shapes, to making a racetrack for toy cars and making a crane.

The Design Lab had other resources like Cricuts, digital Rubik’s cubes, robotic hand sensors, green screen for video creation and editing, and an assortment of legos. I was unsure about the digital Rubik’s cube, initially thinking that the online feature would defeat the purpose of the puzzle. After some digging, I see that it won’t necessarily just give you the answer. Rather, the online features can provide lessons and tutorials for figuring out how to solve the cube on your own. Very cool!

It is amazing how many different things you can do with a Cricut device. I instantly saw the potential behind making one-of-a-kind classroom decor that saves time and looks professional. We created buttons by designing the logo on the Cricut app, cutting it out on card stock, and using the design lab’s button pressor.

There were many different Lego kits, including one where students are tasked with creating a gondola that transports their lego figurines from one side of a lake to the other. I think Legos are an engaging and fun way to make ADST and hands-on. The Lego kits encourage teamwork, creative thinking, and persistence through the process of inquiry, ideation, prototyping, testing, and refining.

Visiting the SD5 Design Lab was an enriching and exciting experience. I am looking forward to taking my future classroom there, as I can see how engaging and fun this resource can be. Not only this, I see it as a way to foster creativity and inspire students to think outside of the box. One of the common ideologies that has been reverberated within EKTEP is the need for experiential learning, or “learning by doing”. I think the Design Lab embodies this mindset, allowing students to become designers, testers, creators, and problem-solvers.

In Class nine, groups presented on their Education Technology inquiry projects. Apart from our own presentation on Virtual Field Trips, topics ranged from digital literacy, high tech vs. low tech, to technologies designed for security and surveillance purposes.

After our group presented, the next group discussed developing digital literacy for both the teacher and the learner. More specifically, they wanted to explore how it tied into social-emotional learning (SEL). A common theme across all of the presentations today was intentionality, and this was applicable here, too. The presenters discussed how incorporating technology into SEL needs to be purposeful when used in the classroom. Moreover, building internet awareness was stressed, especially during a time of artificial intelligence and virtual access to content of all shapes and sizes…

The third group compared high tech and low tech in the classroom, and discussed their pros and cons. Low tech includes items like visual timers and noise-cancelling headphones. I see myself incorporating low tech tools like these into my future classroom, as they are an easy way to encourage UDL and accessibility. High tech also has many benefits, including individualized asynchronous learning and high levels of engagement. Examples of high tech include virtual learning resources like Prodigy Math and Scratch. I see myself giving these resources a shot, but I’m hesitant to make them a reoccurring activity. Ultimately, it will depend on my class’ specific needs, capabilities, and what learning styles they most prefer.

The fourth group of presenters discussed how to use technology as a bridge rather than a barrier. They mentioned the importance of recognizing not only the increased average amount of screen time at home, but also the fact that the digital divide has become larger. I think using technology as a bridge means to supplement hands-on learning and experiences. It should not be a replacement, and done with intentionality rather than convenience. Something I found interesting that this group brought up was a condition called rapid eye movement fatigue, which can happen with overstimulating technologies. This is another reason I intent to use high tech devices sparingly, as I think we need to be mindful of when technology crosses the line from supportive to overwhelming.

The final group discussed finding the balance between security and privacy for school surveillance systems and technologies. This middle ground is hard to pinpoint, and the answer is subjective. It reminds me of Edward Snowden when he leaked classified documents showing that the NSA had been spying and collecting data on global citizens. Some viewed this Espionage (including the U.S. government), and others saw him as a hero; revealing the truth and validating a right to privacy.

This group also discussed emergency communication applications that families and students can utilize to contact emergency services in the event of an emergency. I think these are great for relaying information in a quick, efficient manner that also may serve to be discreet. My only concern would be to inquire whether these apps are tracking your location, and what they do with your data (i.e., are they selling it to third parties?).

All groups brought interesting points to the topic of educational technology. I appreciated how each group highlighted both the strengths and the challenges of incorporating technology into the classroom. My key takeaways are as follows:

1. Be intentional with what you use, how you use it, and when. Technology should not replace hands-on experiences, it should support it and bridge gaps in understanding.
2. Understand the impacts and potential implications of the digital divide. Students will have varying degrees of usage, knowledge, and comfortability with certain technologies you have in your classroom.
3. Technology can be an easy way to implement Universal Designs for Learning. Whether it is a pair of noise-cancelling headphones, a visual timer, or an immersive virtual reality field trip, technology can open so many doors for students with accessibility and/or cognitive impairments. These not only will foster a sense of inclusion in your classroom, but they can save time and stress for the teacher as well.

Overall, these presentations reinforced the importance of using technology with purpose, care, and an understanding of students’ diverse needs.

This week, our class had the amazing opportunity to work with students in a local elementary school with stop-motion films. I think there were many takeaways, both for the grade 3s as well as the student teachers! For this week’s reflection, I am choosing to do a Gibb’s Reflective Cycle to write about my experience.

Description

Our group of mentor teachers arrived at the elementary school just as lunch and recess time was wrapping up for the students. Walking into the school, we could hear excited chatter and laughter coming from behind each of the classroom doors, including our grade 3 In-situ room. We had been advised by our teacher that their class has a substitute for the day, but the kids are nonetheless excited for what is to come. Just as we have been warned by teachers from all walks of life, things never seem to go to plan. You just have to roll with the punches!

As we entered the classroom, you could tell the students were full of energy after spending their break playing out on the playground. The room was quite noisy, but the teacher was able to quickly regain their attention while she took attendance.

Once we were introduced and the classroom teacher gave a brief overview of the students’ next steps, we broke into groups to begin our stop-motion filming project. We began by brainstorming what we wanted our film to be about. We used a template (pictured below) to help the students identify and determine key parts of their story.

Once we had completed our template we began working on props and filming. The group of four worked well together and seemed to distribute work fairly evenly.

Feelings

When first walking in to the classroom, I must admit I felt a bit overstimulated. The room was quite noisy and many of the students were having side conversations while the substitute was trying to provide instruction. When we first split off into our group, the students were having a hard time remembering to listen when others were speaking. I asked them to use quiet hands when they had thoughts or ideas relating to the project which seemed to help a lot. Once we finished our template, the students seemed to naturally assume responsibility over the creation of props and setting up the filming. This was lovely to see! After filming and seeing our final creation for the first time, it made me happy to see how excited the students were to see what they had made. You could tell they had a lot of pride!

Evaluation

There were many positive outcomes to this project as well as areas for future improvement. I would have liked to know the background or mini-lesson that was given to the students on stop-motion films prior to our visit to the classroom. In my grade 3 six-week practicum, I remember having to spend quite a bit of time working with the class on the necessary elements of a story. Many seem to forget that there needs to be some sort of resolution (or initial problem that needs to be addressed). I think having a story template like the one pictured above is a great tool for addressing this.

I think the students were very motivated and eager to work on this project. Stop-motion filming gives students lots of creative freedom- it is one of those lessons where learning may not feel like learning because we are having so much fun! Whether they knew it or not, we covered the following from the BC Curriculum for Grade 3:

• English Language Arts
  • Recognize the structure and elements of story
  • Exchange ideas and perspectives to build shared understanding
• ADST
  • Generate ideas from their experiences and interests
  • Use trial and error to make changes, solve problems, or incorporate new ideas from self or others
  • Develop their skills and add new ones through play and collaborative work

Analysis

I plan to use this project in my future classroom. For next time, I intend to assign roles to students (or ask them to assign their own roles, depending on the age). In our group, we had one student who had a difficult time sharing his own ideas. I wanted to ensure his thoughts and ideas were implemented to I assigned him the role of ‘director’. I told him to direct his classmates, tell them where to move the characters and props. It was wonderful to see his confidence grow in just a short hour!

I think providing roles to students gives them a sense of purpose and responsibility. It may also be easier for some students to approach a multi-faceted project like Stop-Motion films when its components are broken down into chunks. This also ensures every student contributes to the film and they get a say in the final creation. While the ability to delegate and distribute work evenly amongst colleagues, assigning roles for group projects can save time and energy for both the student and teacher.

Conclusion

This in-situ was all-in-all a great experience full of hands-on active learning that was so much fun. Stop-Motion Filming in the elementary classroom is a great way to incorporate technology while also allowing students to collaborate and create something they are proud of. I could see this activity being made into a unit plan, where groups are tasked with writing out a detailed script and story board for their film. This can be adapted for multiple age groups, ranging from grade 3 up to grade 12.

Action Plan

For my future classroom, I intend to incorporate this activity into a story-telling unit. Last year during my six-week practicum, I created a unit plan on different ways to tell and share a story. We looked at wordless picture books and silent films, picture books, short stories, and listened to a traditional oral story from a member of the Ktunaxa nation. I think including stop-motion films would be a great way to expand student’s learning by allowing them to create their own visuals in a hands-on way. Through stop-motion, they could explore storytelling structure, sequencing, and creativity while also practicing collaboration, problem-solving, and digital literacy skills.