There are Actually Three Sides to Every Story!

6th grade students at Tidwell MS will not forget this year's triangle unit! This unit was not only informative, but also hands on and  engaging. Students started the unit by learning how to use Geogebra to create triangles. Then, students created a product of their choice (book, comic strip, brochure, etc.) that would allow them to share their learning of triangles with others. Another neat aspect of this project was that students learned how to construct and build triangles from other students. Students in the 6th GT math class created video screencasts showing how to use Geogera and how to create triangles with the correct angles. They compiled their videos on a Padlet wall that was shared with the rest of the 6th grade math classes.

Taidghen, Taylor, Elijah, and Yaleiza from Mrs. Lahit's class got a lot out of this project. "I really enjoyed creating the triangles on Geogebra," said Yaleiza. "I learned that triangles are more than just a shape with three sides. There are many different types of triangles, but you only know the type based on the angle sizes. I also learned that you can not have two obtuse angles within a triangle, or two right angles." This project made students think about triangle properties during creation. Elijah points out, "The most difficult part of the project was making the equilateral triangle in Geogebra because you had to make sure to get all of the sides the same."

Creating Specific Triangles in Geogebra

Taylor and Taidghen loved the choice and creation aspect of the project. Taidghen comments, "I liked making my project stand out. I came up with statements for my book that would help others understand triangles in kid friendly words." Taidghen enjoyed Book Creator as his creation platform because it gave him plenty of options such as inserting images and shapes, as well as choosing specific fonts, backgrounds, and colors. Taidghen even utilized the drawing feature to point out matching and opposing angles within his book.

Projects were turned in on a Padlet wall, which allowed students to see each other's work. "I enjoyed seeing how other students used Book Creator differently than I did," said Taidghen. Yaleiza added, "I enjoyed looking at the Powtoons that some of my other classmates created. The Padlet helped us see all of the ways that we could have shared our knowledge."

All four of these students agreed that next year's 6th graders should complete this project. Taylor mentions, "Next year's class should do this project because it's a chance to be creative while learning." Elijah concludes,"This is a great project because you really learn about all of the triangles and the theorems."

• Taidghen's Project Link
• Yaleiza's Project Link
• Elijah's Project Link
• Taylor's Project Link

Student Created Tutorials for Using Geogebra:

Student ISTE Standards:

Creative Communicator: Students communicate clearly and express themselves creatively for a variety of purposes using the platforms, tools, styles, formats and digital media appropriate to their goals.

• 6a:Students choose the appropriate platforms and tools for meeting the desired objectives of their creation or communication.
• 6c: Students communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating or using a variety of digital objects such as visualizations, models or simulations.
• 6d: Students publish or present content that customizes the message and medium for their intended audiences.

Empowered Learner: Students leverage technology to take an active role in choosing, achieving and demonstrating competency in their learning goals, informed by the learning sciences.

• 1c: Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.

Striking It Up: Innovator's Day

Eighth graders in Mrs. Nolan’s Communication Applications class at Medlin Middle School recently explored what it meant to be an innovator. As part of this process, students participated in activities that would lead them to develop an original business, charity, or product that would culminate into a formal professional presentation in front of their class.

To begin, using Genius Hour concepts and Thinking Maps, students brainstormed their passions. This process helped guide them through decisions for which passions they would move forward with in developing their business, charity, or product. After narrowing their list down to their two best ideas, they began doing some in class market research by conducting survey interviews with their peers. This enabled them to see how their idea fit with the need in the market. They also did research online to ensure the idea was unique, yet still directly related to their passion.



Using the Organizational piece from WICOR, students kept their ideas in a booklet provided to them by Mrs. Nolan. This booklet was an integral part to the process and it contained everything they needed to know about their business, charity or product as they moved it towards a digital presentation.

Their next step to building this concept would be designing a logo, slogan, and jingle that would represent their idea. Their jingle would need to be an original tune, or it could be a tune that already existed with new original lyrics. It was especially neat to hear Mrs. Nolan featured as the voice behind several jingles. Tess says, “My favorite part was getting to design my logo for my company that would go into my commercial. It let me express my own artistic skills and it was fun to do.”

Although each student was tasked with coming up with their own ideas, during the process of building their concept, the students sat with the same group of peers each day in class. They collaborated with their peers and were encouraged throughout the process to get feedback from their groups in many of the decisions made about their business, concept or charity. When it came time for their formal presentation in front of the class, students shared about their journey and the development of their idea. Their peer group also stood with the presenter and reported what they contributed during the developmental process.

“Technology helped me learn what a realistic commercial looks like and it gave me a chance to learn about making my own commercial by giving me the resources to do so”. (Tess)

The majority of the class decided to use PowToon to create their commercial. The commercial had to include their logo, jingle, a voiceover, and a minimum of four advertising techniques studied throughout the semester. Student discovered various web tools to tie things together. Many of them are credited for teaching their peers how to try something new on the Chromebook.

When asked about using technology in class, Serena said, “I love using technology in class because it's not boring to learn about different subjects. I get really excited when teachers say we can use technology to do projects or research things because I really enjoy learning online and using my technology. Also, its easier to understand things online than it is in real life." Both Serena and Tess will be presenting their commercials at this year's Techno Expo event.

Additional projects that will be presented at Techno Expo:

• Tess - The Volleyball Store Commercial
• Megan - Trebletide Commercial 

Do You Know Your Brain?

Can you name all the parts of the brain and their functions? No worries, Mrs. Smith's 5th Grade GATES class at Schluter Elementary has you covered. Students embarked on a cerebral adventure in which they created original work to showcase their knowledge of the brain. Students could choose any digital tool, and their resulting products reflect each student's passion for learning.

"We made a song about the brain parts as a parody of the song Heathens. We went on YouTube and found background music. We kept on thinking of things that would fit in, if the words went with the song. We alternated between our lyrics and the rhythm of the music to make sure they matched. I don't think we would have been able to do this project without technology. We had fun and we learned more about the brain by making the song."
~Luke & Christian 

 

"We needed to find a way to teach people about the brain, in a more fun format. We chose to do a parody of YMCA. You have to find research, a lot of beforehand research. We used a notebook to write lyrics and multiple devices. It is easy to decide on the lyrics by finding the lyrics to the original song online and as you go along, you change out the words for what you want it to say. Then you get a device to record. We used a piano version of the music, which felt slower than the original version."
~Brandon & Trevor

Powtoon Link (Brylee)

Powtoon Link (KiKi)

"The purpose of this project was to explain what we've learned about the brain and our growth. Working with Powtoon was hard at first, but we liked it because you can express it in different ways, how you feel about it. We learned more about the brain from doing this project because you have to write it out and research and really have to think about it and plan it out a bunch. I shared it with my parents and they were amazed and proud of me because they liked how we expressed it different ways." ~Brylee & Kendall

"I've used Google Slides before; for each slide, I chose what went together. If we didn't have technology, I probably would have made a poster. I prefer Google Slides instead of a poster because it is neat and organized. If we didn't do the project, I wouldn't have wanted to learn more about the brain." ~Lucy 

"I did a Smore and I wanted to use it differently than I have before. When you share a Smore you can look and see where it went and who saw it, all over the world. For Smore, you can look more about what you're working on, which you can't do with a poster. We didn't go full-on in class about the brain, so this project let us go in more detail and learn more." ~McKenzi

These student products not only teach others about parts of the brain, they also showcase how these future-ready students are empowered learners, innovative designers, and creative communicators, standards described by the International Society for Technology in Education.

Technology is Making a Big Impact

Google Sheet Learning Journal with Peer Feedback

How did technology influence, impact or change _______? 6th grade students in Mrs. Wilsie's Tech Apps class at Tidwell Middle School were tasked with this question and got to fill in the blank with the topic of their choice. They soon realized that keeping up with their ideas, sources, and summaries would be a big task!

The Tech Apps class has had many opportunities to utilize their Google Drive this year. This project, however, revealed that Google Sheets could be more than a place for numbers. Mrs. Wilsie found a resource to share with students that allowed them to organize their research and thoughts in different columns and tabs. After a few days of research, students shared their sheet with a small group to gather feedback on their progress. They then used the feedback to go back and fill in gaps.

Aryi wants to be a dermatologist, so she chose to research how technology has influenced the medical world. She's especially enjoying using Google Sheets for the learning journal. "The learning journal was very helpful. When I use technology for projects, it’s usually not very organized, so I go back to using paper. The learning journal showed me how to organize my information." She added, "I got to write out what I had learned in the different columns which was good because it kept me from just pasting a bunch of research in one place." Another student, Brody, points out, "I like using this because it’s an easy way to track your data. The sheet keeps up with the dates for us, so that we can go back and find them. I also like that I can have group members comment on my research." 

Students using a variety of tools from the
Tools That Make IT Click Blog to
create their final presentation

Another neat aspect of this project, is the amount of choice involved. Now that the research is complete, students are grouped based on their research topic. They will be putting together a presentation for the class on their research. Students are using the Tools That Make IT Click Database to get ideas. Brody comments, "We went through the tools and saw Emaze. I have used it once before and we chose it because we think that we can embed our different projects within the slides." 

Tatum is doing her research on Quantum Physics and is presenting her information in a Google Site. She wants to take something big and outside of the box and make it easier for others to understand. Another student LiLi is creating a PowToon video for her presentation. "I’ve never used it before, but it looks like a cartoon and I think my class would enjoy watching this." 

Students will be presenting their research presentations to the class this week. According to their research, technology has influenced many different areas of life, but it has also made a BIG impact on these Tech Apps students who get to try new tools and learn new skills daily!

Texas Oil: A Digital Exhibit

For this project, 7th grade Medlin students were asked to create a digital exhibit that records the history of the first Texas oil boom at Spindletop in 1901 and describe the social and economic effects of the discovery. Students researched the history of Spindletop, collected data, composed relevant charts and/or graphs, and present the information digitally. Students had the choice of what to use and   how to present their digital exhibit.

This student group created an emaze to communicate their learning on Texas oil. "I benefited from this project as a student and learned how the oil discovery at Spindletop accelerated the production and use of oil. The old discovery at Spindletop made oil the leading energy product for automobiles. This large oil discover led to oil production taking over as one of the World's largest industries is in the US and even the World."

Vanessa and Isabella created a video using Microsoft Movie Maker for their digital exhibit. "This project was so much fun! This project was a good experience for us to learn more about the oil industry. The technology we used was appropriate for the task given. I thought the fact that boomtowns arose in a matter of days was very interesting. I loved this project!"

For more projects, please visit the links below:

Smore: Oil, how did it affect Texas? 

PowToon: Texas Oil Project

Smore: The Rise of Black Gold


Thanks to Mr. Perrin and Ms. Scholler for their collaboration on this post.