If you were to visit this blog, you would see a similar blog post title. The reason for that is because two classes: 5th grade Technology Exploratory & Mechina (ages 4 & 5) joined forces to become better bloggers and understand a little bit more about digital citizenship. When it became clear that both mechina and fifth grade were actively blogging this school year, we thought it would be ideal to help each other out. So many learning opportunities arose that we did not even plan for:
1) Creative genius. Fifth graders had to use their creative minds and teamwork to put together an engaging lesson for their younger counterparts.
2) Skills, skills and more skills. After developing the lesson, the fifth graders had to put their writing and technical skills to the test and learn some new skills along the way as they wrote a digital citizenship script and made a movie. Creating a movie involved filming and editing using a green screen, an iPad, and an iPad tripod.
3) Information. Let's not forget the content. The fifth graders had to brainstorm and work as a team to discover what were the most important points to share with the younger students.
4) Practice, practice, practice. The 5th graders had to practice their presentation skills so that they would sound knowledgeable and serve as strong role models for the little ones. This proved to be invaluable. When they got up to speak, they looked goooood.
5) The relationships. Fifth graders had the opportunity to be nurturing leaders and create a special bond by focusing on a common goal: becoming better bloggers and learning more about digital citizenship.
6) Ownership. Never underestimate the power of empowering our young learners. By owning the lesson, the fifth graders were fully invested, engaged, and motivated.
I'm not going to lie. It was definitely one of my prouder moments. There is no question that the mechina students were riveted by their older role models and the knowledge that they shared. When I returned to my computer later that morning, this was in my inbox from the mechina teacher: "It was awesome. As soon as you guys left they were all
asking when you could all come back again!!!" Sure enough, we will be back sooner rather than later. Here's to new partnerships!
You might be wondering whose feet these are and why they are there. These are actually my feet resting after a glorious day of #MakerMonday with The Davis Academy students. What a day it was! I'm going to admit that I was a little nervous at first. What if the students were bored or worse, what if no one came? OR, what if they ran circles around me and I couldn't control our young makers. Happily, none of these fears came to light. In fact, it was so much fun that I can't wait to do it again!
I was impressed with the students' creativity, independence, and enthusiasm. Some of them came away with great new inventions: feather dusters, a computer built of Legos, and pipe cleaner necklaces. Others may not have walked away with something tangible but they dabbled in a new skill: programming, animating, and/or coding. I saw students having Sphero ball duels to see who could outrun the other. I saw a student watch a tutorial on the ScratchJr. app and in minutes create a three slide animation filled with colorful sprites that could speak to each other. At one point, I overheard a student say, "this is better than recess". I couldn't believe it. Better than recess?! It really was a magical day and luckily, we all walked away with new found knowledge. Although I have such confidence in our students, today reminded me that we really are a community of learners bonded together by our shared passions and a thirst for the freedom to make.
