ImagineIT - Phase Five
For several days I have reflected on my dilemmas from Phase Four. The dilemmas revolve around assessment, a very loaded topic, and curriculum. I have also spoken to my colleagues about my ImagineIT project. All of them have expressed excitement about the project. Generally, all of my colleagues have the same reaction when I describe the scope of my ImagineIT. "Science has the coolest and most fun projects. That's why kids love it so much." However fun it is, however, there are still some weighty issues I need to address. After receiving some great advice from my colleagues, and after conferring with my students, I have some good ideas about how to proceed.
My students and I tackled the implementation of my ImagineIT project. As a start, we discussed the definition of a pattern and brainstormed some patterns that they encounter in their everyday lives. We generated a nice list, finding a lot of patterns in my classroom. I then introduced the four types of patterns that we were focusing on this year:
With my student group, we discussed how to incorporate this idea into our curriculum and also use it as an assessment piece. At the end of each unit in Earth Science, we are going to add information and photos to enhance our Patterns Portfolios. Each student will focus on the pattern they researched, and connect it to what we have been studying. At the end of the year, we are going to have a full picture of the patterns found in our curriculum. The portfolio will serve as the assessment of what my students have learned this year. Through the use of Google Classroom and Google Drive, students will be able to keep their finished portfolio for years to come.
As we were working on these projects, my students kept remarking how much fun they were having and how excited they were to continue this exploration during the year. I'm very excited as well!
My students and I tackled the implementation of my ImagineIT project. As a start, we discussed the definition of a pattern and brainstormed some patterns that they encounter in their everyday lives. We generated a nice list, finding a lot of patterns in my classroom. I then introduced the four types of patterns that we were focusing on this year:
- Fractals
- Spirals
- Voronoi pattern
- and the Fibonacci sequence
With my student group, we discussed how to incorporate this idea into our curriculum and also use it as an assessment piece. At the end of each unit in Earth Science, we are going to add information and photos to enhance our Patterns Portfolios. Each student will focus on the pattern they researched, and connect it to what we have been studying. At the end of the year, we are going to have a full picture of the patterns found in our curriculum. The portfolio will serve as the assessment of what my students have learned this year. Through the use of Google Classroom and Google Drive, students will be able to keep their finished portfolio for years to come.
As we were working on these projects, my students kept remarking how much fun they were having and how excited they were to continue this exploration during the year. I'm very excited as well!