Wednesday Wit

 Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson is by far my all time favorite comic.  Here's a classic Calvin moment:

#ScratchWeek

With all the end-of-year chaos happening, and the additional cause-of-covid add-ons (think: zoom programs, recordings, editing, sharing, etc) it's been a chaotic week and a half in my world.

But I couldn't let this week pass without mentioning Scratch because this week is #ScratchWeek!

And it's quite timely, too, as our fourth graders are finishing up the video games they designed on Scratch.  I am rather impressed with how they're turning out, too!  The kids have seen their games from design to near-completion, and are currently in the testing phase.  A part of me thinks the testing phase is their favorite, as they're playing each others games and providing feedback to make them even better.

Because of the way the unit was scaffolded, the kids are practicing using their sources.  The directions for each of the three different games we created together have been posted in Google Classroom.  We've tasked the kids with comparing what they need in their game (for example, a sprite that is controlled by arrow keys) and then finding the directions in one of the games we already created.  

I am super excited to see the finished games - I promise to post them when they're completed!

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Fun with Fonts

Want a fun and simple way to add a bit of pizzazz to your Slides and Documents? Check out these Text Generators! All are free and web based - the only download is your finished product!  (And perfect additions to end-of-the year certificates and slides and such!)

Cool Text

Text Giraffe

Curve Text

TextAnim

This site let you copy and paste fun text into Google Classroom and such!

P.S.  I learned about these in the GEG MI Tech Challenge.  Look for it next year if you want to join in, too.  It was a blast!

Wednesday Wit

I loved teaching cursive in third grade.... it's more than just the handwriting that is gained...

"Grown Up" designed by fishbiscuit5 on Shirt Woot

CoSpacesEDU - complete!

The 7th graders turned in their projects today and WOW!  I am extremely impressed, especially given they had only a few days of work time.

Shmuel Bet Capital Assessment

Take a peek at some of the end products of this brand new project that will now be a keeper!

Example 1 - LINK

Example 2 - LINK

Example 3 - LINK

At the very end of the project students had to complete two additional tasks.  First, they had to evaluate their teamwork.  Then they had to visit at least three other projects.  I loved reading their responses to their classmates work!

"The first presentation I went to did Waverly, Michigan [as the new capital] because it has so many shops and that helps the economy.  The second presentation I went to had a lake and a bridge that lead to the giant capital castle and was super cool.  The third presentation I went to is where I learned that Jerusalem has a giant fortress that protects Jerusalem." -- BL

And another student response:

"The first space I visited chose Mackinac Island as their Michigan capital because of the immense water supply and the low crime rate.  In the second space I visited I highly enjoyed the animals telling jokes and the oasis with various plants and a lady standing a bridge.  That must have taken a lot of work!  You can also go up the towers!  That is awesome!  The third place I visited was a Lansing location where I learned that the Grand River supplies the water to Lansing." -- TC

Again, if you haven't explored CoSpacesEDU it is definitely worth checking out.  The possibilities are limitless with what kids can bring to life to showcase their learning!