Collaborative Tech/Buddy Project -Word Clouds

     Ashley Rockey and I wanted to try a tech project that our 1st and 4th graders could work on collaboratively.  We decided to have them create Word Clouds. We used the site http://www.abcya.com/word_clouds.htm.  It is pretty simple to use.  Before doing this project together, I had my 4th graders practice using it first.  We were studying adverbs in our reading unit, so I had them make a list of adverbs and put them together in a Word Cloud.  It worked well to have them try it first before using it with their 1st grade buddy.  There are a couple of examples of their Adverb Word Clouds below.  We printed them in black in white (saving the color ink for our buddy project).
     We met with our buddies today.  Even though it was a bit cramped in the computer labs with around 45 kiddos, it went pretty well.  The kids all came into the lab with a list of words or phrases about Rousseau School.  We thought this would be a great Word Cloud to create since we are getting ready to celebrate Rousseau's 50th anniversary on Sunday.  They took turns typing the words and phrases and helped each other spell the words correctly.  The 4th graders knew how to use the ~ symbol to put words together. The students did a good job of collaborating on this fun project!  It would be great to work with our new buddies again!

Tech Project - Quizizz

     I tried Quizizz, and I really like it as an other option for formative assessment. My favorite thing is that there are many features such as taking away the time element and students being able to do it at their own pace.  The first Quizizz I made was for my math class.  I made a chapter test review.  I wanted to have kids each have a device so they could take it on their own, but due to testing I was unable to make this happen.  I did end up using my iPad to "run" the Quiz, and played the game on my computer.  Pairs of students had marker boards and were able to work the problems, discussing them with their partner.  It actually worked quite well!  I like that they were able to discuss the answers and show their work.  They enjoyed the interactivity of the quiz as well as the funny "Memes" after each question.  I used my Name Selector app to have one student come up and choose the correct answer for the class.
    This morning, I quickly made a  Quiz izz using our grammar lesson on Adverbs.  I had partners take the quiz at their own pace.  It was a great way to check their understanding.  They, too, really liked moving at their own pace and the fun "Memes" that popped up when they got the answer correct.

Collaborative Project - Socrative and Educreations

        I was blessed to have Carin and Carlie help me with a couple of projects in my math class this week!  I wanted to have my diff math students create math questions to get ready for the NESA test.  I paired them up and assigned them each a chapter or two from our math curriculum.  We started by having them write their questions on paper.  This was not an easy task for them.  They used the textbook or notes to write their questions.  We talked about writing a good question, especially multiple choice.  They had to write at least one of each of the three question types.  Having the worksheet set up just like it is in Socrative was helpful (see below).  I also had to read through the questions to check for accurate answers (and good questions).  Some kids had to make some corrections before they were ready to type.

     On that day that Carlie and Carin came, I worked with three groups at a time to type their questions.  I used all three of our teacher accounts. (It didn't seem to work to have multiple people using one Socrative account at the same time.   We then ended up with three different quizzes. Carlie and Carin each took 1 group at a time and worked with them to create a short video of one of their problems using Educreations.  We ended up with two different videos.  I am posting them on our 4th grade website. Tomorrow during class we will alternate between playing the Socrative games and watching the videos.  I plan to do student paced since that seemed to work best the last time.  The students are pretty excited to play the games that they created as well as watch their videos!  I'll have to post more after class tomorrow.

     All in all, I think this was a great project.  I know I wouldn't have been able to do this all by myself.  I think after using Socrative once, I could send individuals or pairs to work on this a bit more independently.  I'm not sure if they are ready to use Educreations on their own or not.  It is certainly a great way to check for understanding.  I know that Carin noticed a few kiddos that needed a bit of reteaching before they were ready to make their video.  Here are the links to the two Educreations Videos. 

Carin's group            Carlie's Group