4th and 5th Graders Prepare Their "All About Me" Google Sites Pages!

Fourth and fifth grade students have spent the last few weeks setting up their Google websites.  They have named it, picked a color theme and added their image.  This week, students began working on an "About Me" webpage.  They are very proud of their work!  The fact that a potentially larger audience will eventually see their webpages adds to their desire to do a good job.  

We have talked about the importance of remembering that every piece of information they add to the internet (and future social networks) is a reflection of who they are.  They seem to grasp the significance, and it is a joy to watch and listen as they work to make their websites ready for publication!  When we do publish their websites, it will be restricted to "link only" access, for their safety, but they will be able to direct family and friends to see their sites!

1st Grade is Mixed-Up Just Like Eric Carle's Mixed-Up Chameleon

Our 1st graders love Eric Carle!  He is like an old friend to most of them since they have been reading his books since they were tiny.  So when I introduced The Mixed-Up Chameleon, they applauded even though most of them had never read it.  Here is the story for those of you who don't have the book...

After reading the book, the students shared what they thought the The Mixed-Up Chameleon was trying to teach...the moral of the story.  We discussed several possibilities, but most students liked the fact that in the end, the Mixed Up Chameleon decided to be himself!

We visited the New York Zoo's Go Wild website called Build Your Wild Self.  This website gave students an opportunity to select different animal parts just like the Mixed-Up Chameleon.  Students went wild building their own mixed up avatars!

For a closer look at these mixed-up first graders, I added their images to a Padlet so everyone could see them!  Clicking on each image will give you a closer look!  

Mrs. Heggs's Class is our sample above, but make sure to check out the other 1st grade classes that are also mixed-up!!!

Check out Mrs. Johnson's Mixed-Up Class!!!

Check out Mrs. Zeglin's Mixed-Up Class!!!

Check out Mrs. Grant's Mixed-Up Class!!!

Some May Wonder...Why Teach Coding???

I just finished a week of introducing coding to 3rd - 5th graders using the new coding game BotLogic. (Check out my post about BotLogic!)

I am certainly not an advanced coder myself.  I am largely self taught and I am married to a "coder" who helps fill in the gaps in my knowledge.  I know a few fundamentals and I seek out programs that teach those fundamentals.  What I do have is a belief that all student benefit from learning the basics of coding.  I recently found this YouTube video that led me to a great website called code.org

All students benefit from learning the logic of coding, whether they are going to become the next Mark Zuckerberg or Steve Jobs or not.  I know that years from now many of my students will not choose to make a living from coding, but statistically speaking, there is a high likelihood that some in the group will choose to pursue it.  Teaching them the basics of coding early might help spark their future!!  

Oak Hills Students Take Their First Steps Toward Coding With BotLogic!

This week I introduced BotLogic to our students in 3rd through 5th grade.  Boy did the kids love it!!

What is BotLogic you may ask?  The creators of Botlogic describe it best...

BotLogic.us is an educational puzzle game that challenges kids and adults to tackle complex logic problems while teaching valuable programming concepts. Using simple commands (and eventually code), players program their bots to navigate through progressively challenging mazes.

For years I have introduced the concept of programming to students using the MIT created programming language Scratch.  Scratch is an online programming activity where students can create their own interactive animations.  It continues to be one of my favorites, but it is great to have an additional tool for teaching introductory coding!

BotLogic is great for several reasons.  It provides a great opportunity for differentiation within each class.  It works on any device that has web access, so it bridges the divide from desktop computer to mobile device.  While a student can play the game using the operational buttons provided, there is a place for students to type actual code to make their bot move.  Several students successfully maneuvered their bot this way.  

One of the most exciting things has been seeing how much students enjoy it.  On Monday, I introduced BotLogic to Ava with her 5th grade class.  On Tuesday a introduced it to her sister Emily in her 3rd grade class. As soon as I was done introducing, Emily proudly told me that she had already heard about it the night before from her sister Ava.  It was great to hear that students were going home to tell their families about it.

1st Graders Use Photo Booth and Big Huge Labs to Preserve Their Image...

Recently I sat down with ISD194's Digital Learning Coordinator, Trish Harvey, to discuss a plan for our students to begin collecting for a digital portfolio that would contain their digital projects from 1st through 5th grade.  Wouldn't that be great!  Students could look back over their elementary years and enjoy their progress and their accomplishments!   Part of that plan would involve having our 3rd - 5th graders create a Google website, which we have already begun. (Read about our Google website work in an earlier posts - Google Sites - Digital Portfolios & 5th Graders Make the Mark Using Google Sites)  For our 1st graders, I would like to begin gathering their work throughout this year.   As we near the end of the year, we will have them store their work by saving it into their Google Drive.   Then when they are a little older we can have them create their website and add the items they stored when they were in 1st grade...isn't Google Drive a wondrous thing!!  

I knew it would be really fun if we could add a 1st grade picture to their future website.  So last week, I introduced students to Photo Booth on the iMacs.  I always take an entire lesson to introduce Photo Booth to 1st graders.  Even though it doesn't take very long for them to learn how to take their picture, once they see all of the "Effects" (Mirror, Twirl, Stretch) that they can do to their image...I loose them.  The room instantly fills with lots of chatter, laughter and "Look at This!" and "Look at That".  They simply want me to leave them alone so they can have time to explore. 

During this week's lesson, we used the photo they saved from last week, importing it to a great website, bighugelabs.com to add a nice fall finish to their photo.  BigHugeLabs, their motto is "Do fun stuff with your photo" is a great site when you want to create a quick and easy photo finish. Our 1st graders now have a wonderful picture for their future websites!!

Introducing Symbaloo to OHE - A Fun Way to Search and Bookmark!

Try it!  Oak Hills Elementary Library and Technology Symbaloo

I am excited to introduce a fun way for sharing bookmarked websites with students and teachers at Oak Hills Elementary! I first heard about Symbaloo at a conference several years ago.  I loved it immediately.  It is not only the most visual way to bookmark sites, Symbaloo is the perfect opening page for any computer!  Within Symbaloo, the user can create "webmixes", which are pages of bookmarked sites.  Each webmix has tiles that resemble apps on an Apple device.  Each tile directs the browser to the bookmarked site.  

Symbaloo also has an app for when our students are using their iPads!  They can access the OHE Symbaloo from the app or their iPad browser.  Either way, it is fun and easy to use!

Google Sites, Digital Portfolios - It's A Beginning

This week I introduced Google Sites to our students!  This will give them a place to share their learning and creating for many years to come!  The lesson provided a great opportunity to have a conversation about online safety and password security, a conversation that we will revisit many times this year.  Students were really excited to get their own Google accounts, especially when they began creating their own websites!

I walked them through the steps to create their website.  Once their Google Site was created they had fun personalizing it by changing the theme, color and fonts.  I am looking forward to our next time together because we can begin adding content to their website!