M-Powerment Strategy #8
Research and Inquiry-Based Thinking
M-Powerment Strategy #8 Highlight:
Students demonstrate critical thinking and higher-level understanding through rigorous questioning, project-based learning and inquiry-based instruction.
Instructional Strategy: Genuis Hour and Sphero Spark
Ideas to Consider
Instructional Strategy: We Are All Makers
Experiment with Makerspace, STEM, Virtual Reality, Coding, and other activities that focus on future careers:
From A.J. Juiliani - http://ajjuliani.com/
- When I was in 3rd grade my best friend Mark and I built a treehouse out of wood scraps we found in the forest behind his house. We were makers.
- In 5th grade, our group of friends created a new sport with a Nerf football and a hula hoop at recess. Soon the entire grade was playing the sport having a blast. We were makers.
- In 9th grade, our band “The 25th Hour” recorded our first EP. We set up the audio recording, the mics, and everything in the room to try to get the recording as best possible. We were makers.
- In 11th grade, I took a programming class. My first product was creating an electric football game on the computer. It looked awful but it worked. I was a maker.
- When I first got my Macbook and Garageband came out I spent hours and weeks creating beats, mixing and matching songs together to play for friends. I was making.
- A few years ago during a snowstorm, all my siblings were stuck in our house. We created a new card game and played it for five straight hours well into the night. We were makers.
In each one of these stories, I was exploring what I could design, build, and make. And as I was making I was never thinking about the space. I hope the message we are giving to our students is not one that they need a maker space in order to be a maker.
We Are All Makers Do you believe this about yourself? Do you believe this about your students? Let’s agree on a Bigger Definition of Creativity (see video below) and empower all of our students to make regardless of having a Makerspace or not.
The Superpowers are looking for YOU!
Picture Courtesy of Quora
MMS Media Tips:
Genrification will soon be underway in the CAVE! The end of the school year we will stop checking out books on May 12th. This will be the last day that students will be able to check out any books for the 2016-2017 school year. This will give us plenty of time to sort books, label, and shelve the majority of books before the end of the school year so that beginning 2017-2018 school year fiction books are ready and in their new genre locations for students. We apologize for this inconvenience and the mess but we know it will be GREAT! I believe both teachers and students will love the way books will be on the shelf to find books by genre instead of using Dewey!
From Cuz's Desk
MMS Instructional Tips
Bring in or Skype with community speakers, and arrange (virtual) field trips to allow for experiential learning.
Google Earth VR , a new service that allows users to virtually explore the world from different perspectives and right from the comforts of their own place. You can walk, fly or stroll through amazing places and experience incredible sights from standing at the top of the highest peaks to soaring into space, Google Earth VR will help you explore the wonders of the world in 3D virtual reality. Earth VR comes with cinematic tours and hand-picked destinations that send you to the Amazon River, the Manhattan skyline, the Grand Canyon, the Swiss Alps, and more. You can check the preview gallery in Google Earth VR home page to see some examples of amazing places you can visit using this new service.
http://www.discoveryeducation.com/Events/virtual-field-trips/explore/
Take your students beyond the classroom walls and into some of the world's most iconic locations for rich and immersive learning experiences — no permission slips required. Tour the National Archives, see how an egg farm works, explore NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, or hear from the President of the United States. Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips are fun, educational, and free!
https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/about/
Discover artworks, collections and stories from all around the world in a new way. Explore cultural treasures in extraordinary detail and easily share with your friends.
From the Help Desk:
Reminder that June 5 is Laptop Collection for students. Please help reminder parents and students of this date. If you send home newsletters or reminders for the end of the school year, please add this date for parents and students. Students are responsible for backing up information or saving to their Google drive account.
Superpowers Are Here For You!
Allison Long
Email: allisonlong@mgsd.k12.nc.us
Website: http://superpowersactivate.weebly.com/
Location: 233 Kistler Farm Road, Mooresville, NC, United States
Phone: 704-658-2720
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MmsMediaCenter
Twitter: @mmsmediatips
Felicia Davis
Email: feliciadavis@mgsd.k12.nc.us
Website: http://superpowersactivate.weebly.com/
Location: 233 Kistler Farm Road, Mooresville, NC, United States
Phone: 704-658-2720
Twitter: @mooresvillems
Elizabeth Stapleton
Email: estapleton@mgsd.k12.nc.us
Website: www.tinyurl.com/mmsmediatips
Location: 233 Kistler Farm Road, Mooresville, NC, United States
Phone: 704-658-2720
Michael Cline
Email: michaelcline@mgsd.k12.nc.us
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/mgsd.k12.nc.us/mmstech/home
Location: 233 Kistler Farm Road, Mooresville, NC, United States
Phone: 704-658-2720