No Markers, Map Colors, or Crayons Here

6th grade science students at Wilson Middle School were given the opportunity to not only read about Mars, but experience it visually through creation. Mr. Jason Deardorff and Mrs. Lindsey Warren challenged students to build a civilization on Mars digitally. Their final product had to solve at least 2 of the problems below and demonstrate solutions to the problems both of which strengthens the critical thinking skills. Students were given the Product Rubric at the beginning of the project to set the expectations high.

Topics of Choice:

1. How can humans live on Mars with the atmosphere? How can you change the atmosphere to be more like Earth’s? How can you invent a way that we can breathe the air on Mars?
2. What kind of accommodations would a vehicle need to be able to provide transportation on Mars with its terrain and gravity? Can you design a vehicle with the necessary components to navigate the surface of Mars safely and efficiently?
3. How can you provide food for your colony? Will you be able to grow food as in vegetables and other edible animals? How will you accommodate for the differences in the weather, minerals, atmosphere, soil quality, irrigation?
4. How will you stay safe on Mars? What will your shelter need to provide in order to protect your colony from the harsh conditions of Mars? (atmosphere, weather, terrain)
5. What is the difference in gravity between Earth and Mars? What are the effects of the different amount gravity on the human body? How will you design a way to cope with the different amount of gravity?


Several students chose the website www.thinglink.com which made this learning fun and interactive while allowing for collaboration and sharing of ideas while on the new school issued Dell Chromebook. Callie, Christopher, and Natalie not only created great products, but came away from the lesson with a deep knowledge of how to create an atmosphere that would provide living on another planet such as Mars. Click on the picture below to view their projects.



https://www.thinglink.com/scene/830842384693592064

Ava, Maggie, and Emma stated, “We were given a PBA to civilize Mars. We then had to pick to real problems astronauts would have to face when going on Mars which is normal food and shelter. Our project shows how we solved this problem with an audio recording, a video, 4 images, 1 video, and lots of text boxes.” Check out their product below.



https://www.thinglink.com/scene/830867904558792705

To showcase the student products, the teachers created a GALAXY WALK in order for students to visually interact and with each group product in one class period.



During the walk students would leave reflective feedback posts at each station. All of the students stated how much they enjoyed learning about Mars this way.

An Experience Worth Every Penny

A tool for the presentation, a tool for feedback, and a tool
for presenting information. 

Freshman in Mrs. Hayes Principals of Business Management and Finance class at Steele High School recently had a great experience not only researching currency exchange, but presenting ideas, and receiving/giving specific feedback. Students were told whether they would be researching a first, second, or third world country and then got to chose which country's currency they would explore. Each student used Thinglink to display research and Doceri as they presented their information to the class. The class then gave feedback to each member that presented using Verso.

Fine Tuning Presentation Skills
with Doceri

Punn and Emily got a lot out of this project and shared a bit of their experience. When asked what they enjoyed about the project, Punn states, "Using Doceri was very helpful. I enjoyed being able to go in to edit mode, circle words, and emphasize key points for the audience without having to use a laser pointer." Emily enjoyed using Doceri as well and actually grew as a presenter as she used it for the first time. "I learned how to get over rocky situations with Doceri. This was one of our first times to use it. I learned to keep smiling and presenting if there were bumps in the road." To be more specific, she added, "the free version of ThingLink did not let me present full screen, so it was a little difficult. If I had the option, I'd practice with Doceri ahead of time. I think that all students should use Doceri because it helps the speaker maintain eye contact with the audience. If the speaker looks at the visual rather than the audience, the presentation seems detached. Despite the challenges that I faced, I loved being able to look at my audience rather than the screen."

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of this project was that students got immediate feedback from their peers. Punn comments, "Verso was nice because you got anonymity from your peers, so you could be honest and give true constructive criticism. At the same time, you got instant digital feedback." As seen in the image to the right, Verso allows the students to be anonymous when responding to each other, while the teacher can see student names.

Punn also expanded more on the research itself. He points out, "We used several sources while finding our research. The CIA world fact book was helpful for determining our world’s economic status, and a simple Google search gave us most of the information that we needed otherwise." Researching currency exchange was only a part of what students learned from this experience. It was a mix of organizing and communicating research, presenting ideas to an audience, and both receiving and giving feedback that made this experience worth the time invested!

Emily's Thinglink: 

Punn's Thinglink:

Cell Analogy Project - Making A Real Life Connection

Digital age learning lends itself to create and promote a culture that provides rigorous, relevant, and engaging education for all students.  In Mrs. Greiner’s 7th grade class at Wilson Middle School, students were asked to create an analogy to show their understanding cells. Analogies help students make connections that enhance comprehension and no longer makes a topic difficult to grasp. Students got to choose which tool would best help them present their work.  Below are two outstanding projects that show depth of thinking and understanding. Both of these projects will be showcased in TechnoExpo 2016.   

  

Nick did an excellent job and compared his cell to a football stadium using the format of Smore. 

Haley transformed her learning into an interactive experience using the tool of ThingLink. 

Through student collaboration and a bit of research, students were able to quickly create an informative and creative presentation.  The final product provided students with a link that can be shared via the internet so that others can learn from their discoveries beyond their own classroom.  You will see these and many other GREAT technology based projects at TechnoExpo2016.