While I normally only post free apps and games every now and then something really special comes along. If is one of those games. This role playing game was designed by creator of Madden NFL and is specifically geared towards teaching students positive social emotional skills with basis in mindfulness. While the first chapter is free to play this video game does cost a whopping $20.99 for the full version.
General Announcements:If you are wandering the hallway past the computer lab you may have noticed our "Community Connections" hotspot. This showcases one free local or national event that may be of interest to students. So far announcement have included: the Science of Breakin', Monday After School Adventures at the Institute for Discovery, and now our NASA Future Engineering Challenge. I encourage you to take an information sheet from the hanging file folder next time you stop by. 3-5 Final ProjectsWhile the majority of the students at Leopold are participating in the Create a Mini-Music Video in Scratch final project I am consistently impressed by the work being done in the less popular Women on 20's and Interactive Fiction projects. Students will be wrapping up the beatmaking portion this week so they have enough time to adequatly code their video. Students whose parents agreed to have their work displayed (via the beginning of the year registration) will have their works posted online in our class radio station (to be posted) final approved music videos will be posted to our Youtube channel for the community to enjoy. If you choose not to have your students work displayed but would like a personal copy please email me or give your student your email address and they can send you a copy themselves! If you would like to release special permission for this project please email me and let me know. 1-2 Genius Hour Final ProjectsOver the last week students explored all the various research topics they could choose from. Students were allowed to choose any topic with a PebbleGo encyclopedia entry. Student choices ranged from "What is Light" to "Killer Whales" to "Muhammad Ali" to "Volcanoes" and everything in between! Make sure to ask your student about their choice for research. Students will continue research for 1-2 more weeks before sharing what they have learned by writing on the computer, drawing on the computer, or recording voice audio. KindergartenKindergarten is such an amazing time. Before working here at Leopold I worked in 4K so my heart is in the younger years, however, with only 30 minutes each week at Kindergarten it is harder for us to fit in the big projects. Instead, students are building those foundational skills using the mouse, keyboard, and navigating our REACH links page. Students are getting used to making choices, collaborating with peers for help, learning how to be in the computer lab, and getting accostomed to desktop computing in general. I am so amazed by the growth we have seen over this semester where many students came in without any knowledge of desktop computing (as opposed to tablets or phones) and are now able to navigate and figure out our REACH links page. We have done a lot of work in PebbleGo, BrainPop Jr, ABCYa!, Starfall, Bookflix, Tumblebooks, and Cool Math Games. Ask your kindergartener about their favorite game or lesson over this semester! Teacher Reflectionhttps://mspe.education.wisc.edu/We've had some interesting conversations this last week in many classes. Some students were related to or know of Tony Robinson and were very eager to hear the DA's decisions. There were some big emotions but I was very proud of all the students I was able to work with for voicing their frustrations positively and generating possible civil activism the children could use to help (ie: writing letters to the mayor, congress, district attorney, governor, etc).
I am excited to announce that I will be returning to UW-Madison this summer for a Master's program in Education Psychology with my focus on the intersection of technology and child-development. With many new and exciting curriculums being developed by private companies I believe that this professional development will assure that I can review materials with a better eye for where children are in their development. I also believe this will help me create inclusive and trauma informed adaptations to those curriculums to tailor them to our school and each class. I want to ensure that our students are getting the best curriculum tailored to their developing psychology and, although bias as a Badger alumni, know the UW can help me achieve this for our kiddos. Today NASA announced it's K-12 Engineering challenge. Students across the United States have been invented to design a new container for space. If you are looking for a fun STEM centered project to get your students interested in over the summer this could be a really great family project. Student challenges range from 5-12 years and 12-18 years for older siblings as well.
General: Wow, to think we only have about 6 weeks left in school. As the year is winding down this is a great time for students to start showing all the cool skills they have learned. 3-5 Final Projects Students in 3rd through 5th spent last week exploring the three different final project choices and this week they made their final selection and began working. I encourage everyone to check out our self-guided project walk-throughs on our homepage! New levels will be unlocked as students progress. Ask your child to share their project with you, many pieces can be accessed from home as well!
1-2 Genius Hour
Students in first and second grade will be starting an cumulative project Genius Hour. Genius hour is based on a Google model where employee's are encouraged to 20% of their time working on any pet project of their choosing. For our students they will be allowed to explore and learn about any topic that interests them in order to create an original piece. We will use a variety of online and offline resources which we have been introduced to throughout the course of the year. At the end students will choose to share what they have learned in one of three ways: voice recording, writing, or drawing on the computer. Teacher Reflection: I am really excited by the variety of interests the students have. Their diversity pushes me to find more choices and resources for them. I am also excited at the innovations coming for our library media space as this will considerably expand our technological capabilities. I am looking forward to expanding Makerspaces at our school and hoping to find more funding and grants over the summer towards this goal. As this year begins the slow wind down and culmination of student talents I am excited about all that the upcoming year has to offer. |
Ms. SmithMs. Smith is the author and editor of the Leopold Lab Report. Archives
December 2015
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