Author's note: Since the prompt for blog post #2 detailed a specific audience/scenario, I decided to have a little fun with it...😊
Now that I've had my first class in this course, I feel as though I have some - but not enough - clarity on the differences between assessment, evaluation and reporting. I know that all three are connected, but different.
One thing I have learned throughout my Genius Hour Project is that an overwhelming number of edutainment games are directed at children between the ages of preschool and grades two and three. I never noticed this before - while games certainly do exist for older students, I didn't realize that there were a lot less than those directed at younger students.
I'm familiar with the idea of Google Cardboard - I actually have a Cardboard viewer around my house somewhere - but somehow, until recently, I'd managed to not hear about Google Expeditions.
Google Expeditions are, essentially, a futuristic and lower-budget field trip. I say lower rather than just low because the materials per-student are still not cheap...sort of. Let me explain.
Just a quick post to announce that I've completed both my Genius Hour Intro Video and my Genius Hour Movie Trailer!
Thank you very much to Zack for acting in the trailer!
The two videos can be viewed on the Intro and Trailer pages of this website, or below.
Until next time,
😊 Morgan
Intro
Movie Trailer
Since last week, I have begun to gather a list of educational video games that myself and my friends recall from our childhoods. While we have not played every game of this type out there, I thought a good place to start would be with what I (or those close to me) are already familiar with.
One obstacle I encountered from time to time was a struggle with simply remembering the details or names of specific games. A lot of Googling and comparing memories between friends helped me pinpoint more of the names than I could have on my own.
By next week, I am hoping to have taken my very messy working document and refined it into a clear chart, as well as to have added more specific details about each game I have gathered. I am also planning to gather information on recent games next week, as so far I have only focused on older games. If I can, I plan to being my comparison between the two as well.
Until next time,
😊 Morgan
The website where I found the idea did not expand upon it at all, so below is my idea for a PJBL project on this topic - in Popplet form! To be completely honest, now I want to do this assignment!
Something else I created to match this theme is a Tagxedo word cloud.
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| Tagxedo. (2017, September 21). Mars Word Cloud | [Image]. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/2hmSTE3 |
This word cloud was created with words I found online related to the colonization of Mars. If I were to run the PJBL explained above, I would put up this word cloud as a part of Setting the Stage. I would ask students what words in the cloud stood out to them, and which ones they knew the meaning of (but not the super tiny ones!).
Until next time,
😊 Morgan
I thought this was a neat video because of the fact that it incorporates a pop culture concept (the "life hack") but in such a way where a little bit of education is included! Physics Girl even invites another YouTuber to explain a chemistry concept that Physics Girl is not as familiar with!
I have created a short quiz based on this video for anyone interested. 😉
I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it!
Until next time,
Morgan 😊
If we could only do one, what is the best way to make our school "greener"?
Until next time,
Morgan
Share what you've learned about Genius Hour so far. Share your 'Genius Hour' question. Discuss your goals and motivation.
I found myself struggling when it came time to choose a Genius Hour topic, not because I couldn't think of any, but because I thought of too many!
Initially, I considered using the Genius Hour project to motivate myself to finally learn the guitar - something that has been a personal interest I haven't pursued yet despite owning a guitar. I also thought that learning to play the guitar could benefit me in the future as a teacher. Growing up, I had multiple teachers who incorporated music into their lessons in one way or another, often through the use of guitars, piano or drums.
The more I thought about it, the less I felt like learning the guitar was the ideal genius hour project. While it would be fun and beneficial, and it would be interesting to see just how far I could develop over the limited time we have for this project, it simply felt lacking.
The topic that I have chosen instead focuses on looking at what made edutainment (educational + entertainment) video games in the past either successful and unsuccessful, and comparing this to the games which exist today. Certain games in this genre were widely renowned, while a very large amount were considered simply poor quality media which failed to balance education and entertainment in a way that engaged children - or, which engaged children but then failed to teach them. You can click here to view my Google Slides proposal.
What classroom activity from our first two lessons might you use in your own classroom? How would you adapt it? What planning and management considerations would you have to make?
A class activity from our first two lessons I would consider using in my own classroom is the About Me Pinterest board. While I have never really been a huge fan of Pinterest, it was interesting to see what things people chose to add to their boards and get a quick overview of their interests. I think this would be an excellent opportunity for students to begin getting to know each other, and for me as a teacher to try and pick up on trends I see across the boards which I could then incorporate into the classroom.
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For example, if I see a popular game (such as Minecraft) popping up on multiple boards, I could look into incorporating it into class learning as several teachers have done in the past.
I would plan to give the students time to complete this assignment both at home and in the classroom as not all students have access to computers at home. I would give them examples of what they can add to their board (such as sports, games, books, animals) but encourage them to add whatever is meaningful to them. I would have them send their boards to me, and I would encourage (but not force) them to share with each other.
To be completely honest, before today, I knew approximately nothing about copyright. I believe in the past I had heard that all new materials were automatically copyrighted to their owner, but if you had asked me to write a blog post about it, I'd probably look a lot like this baby:
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| Inkles, P. (2011, September 15). Business Baby Pointing [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://flic.kr/p/e2QMS5 |
In my days in school, I often saw stretched clipart, unsourced photos and drawings I'm confident my teachers didn't draw sprinkled through out my school work. I think a lot of people, including some of my teachers, have been living their life under the impression that if they can find it on Google, they can use it. In reality, it isn't acceptable (or legal!) to go around using any image you might happen to find online, as they may not be licensed for redistribution. Additionally, I was unaware that it is breaking copyright laws to duplicate things such as resource packets for students when the original material is considered "single use only" - I have definitely seen photocopied question booklets before in my life.
A way to avoid accidentally breaking the law when looking for a way to spice up a PowerPoint is to search for redistributable resources. Many photos, audio clips, videos and more use a Creative Commons license to specify what can and cannot be done with the material in plain language. Some images can simply be redistributed with attribution (that is, proper credit), while others are allowed to be modified, and even shared with no attribution needed!
If I were teaching now, I think it would be most important for my to let my students know that you can't simply download any image (or sound clip, etc) you want and use it without permission or credit. I would teach them how to use the Creative Commons search to find materials for projects, as well as show them how to properly cite the resources they use. Proper citations deserve a huge thumbs up.
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| WerbeFabric. (2015, October 29). Free Photo: Thumbs Up, Thumb, Hand, Positive [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/2gI5WMo |
Morgan 😊
This is my first post on my brand-new blog. I will be using this blog to document my progress throughout my Genius Hour project and my own personal development. I may also use it to document resources and experiences throughout my next two years through the Teacher Education program at Brock University! You can also find me on Twitter and Pinterest, though I'm very new to the latter!
The picture you can see above is my "Passion Heart" - or Passion Triangle, haha! It is a brainstorming session to show what things matter to me. 😊
That's all for today! I'll leave you with a song, I hope you'll enjoy:
See you later! 😀
