Acquaintance Maps-Using Technology to Get to Know Your Students

Welcome back to the 2018-2019 school year!

For those of you new to the intermediate grades this school year, this blog was created as a collaborative tool for tier 4 in the Wausau School District. I am excited to once again share ideas, projects, and resources as the school year progresses. Please add your ideas, thoughts, projects, and pieces you have found helpful in context with featured topics in the comments below!

Summer comes to an end...

Every summer's end I reflect on how fast it flew by and the highlights that stand out. While I visited many places I've never been this summer and learned lots of interesting historical and cultural things, I always go back to the people in my life that make the best memories. These "Littles"...my grandkiddos... have brought so much joy and so many smiles to my life. (The "big people" in this picture...my son and daughter...are pretty amazing too!)

Signs of new beginnings...

September means new beginnings and with that the smell of brand new waxy crayons, un-chewed sharpened pencils with a clean eraser at the end, untattered and undoodled notebooks and folders, and nametags that still stick to the desk. School must be starting! 

There's nothing quite like brand new school supplies!

That also means a classroom of fresh excited faces and names to learn. Last year, I posted how to get to know your students on a deeper level through a letter to the teacher and I plan to do that writing piece again this year because I found it to be so valuable. You can find more information on that post HERE. 

This year instead of pulling out the standard, "find someone who..." sheets to have students and teacher get to know each other, why not try this activity using Mindnode Mind Map? I call this activity Acquaintance Mapping.

Getting Started

Students added colorful backgrounds 

and experimented with various features.

Students start with four categories. I used Family, School, Hobbies, and Vacation, but you can use whatever topics you'd like. From here, students brainstorm specific ideas related to each of these areas they feel describe them. They can include their likes as well as their dislikes. The cool thing about this app is that students can add as many strands extending from the topic as they choose. However, I did give the expectation of a minimum of 3 ideas per topic. There were a few other guidelines I set such as using a mix of both pictures and words, and to be sure everything fits on one screen. Yep, someone tried to see just how far they could extend the lines off the screen!

If students couldn't find an icon that made sense to their ideas, they went online to find a picture that would work.

Students were immediately engaged in this activity. After the Acquaintance Maps were completed, we uploaded them to SeeSaw where everyone could read each other's Maps and find shared interests and commonalities that they might not have otherwise. Students love to comment on each other's posts. I made sure I turned off the "like" option in order to encourage students to be thoughtful and specific in their comments to each other. 

Someone with family connections to Elvis Presley! 

Who knew?? I sense there's a story here!

As a follow up to this activity, as well as digging into our  district literacy goal of using oracy, I gave students some time to get together to discuss their interests further.  The activity definitely helped me understand student likes, dislikes, and interests. This would be a great activity for staff too!

Please share beginning of the year acquaintance activities you find helpful.

Here's to having a fabulous 2018-2019 school year!

Growing Green Hair and All Things Summer

Thinking Green and All Things Summer!

It's that time of year when we look forward to being outside in warm weather, blue sky, green grass, and summertime. I am looking forward to activities such as planned vacations,  Chalkfest, gardening, biking the Green Circle in Stevens Point, and hiking up Rib Mountain behind the chalet, to name a few.

Granite Peak Ski Hill, a little slice of summertime Heaven.
The ski chalet really is somewhere at the bottom.

Participating in our local Chalkfest is a great way to take part in a community event as well as discover muscles you didn't know you even owned! (2016)

"Chalking" on the sidewalk is a fun way to grow as an amateur artist. 
Growth Mindset in action!

This is one of my favorite parts of the Green Circle in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. We are so lucky to have this bike trail so close to our community!

But my absolute favorite activity that I'm looking forward to is spending time with my sweet Grand-Kiddos! Two of them!! I foresee lots of travel time to get to these two...each within two hours in opposite directions of Wausau but so worth every mile!

My kids (both successful alumni of the Wausau School District) and their kids! 
First time the new cousins "met" each other!

Some Green What?
We also realize there's still a month of learning ahead of us and engaging students can often become that much more challenging! What better way to bring in some of that anticipated summertime than to grow some Green Hair? Throw in a little bit of scientific inquiry, a bit of observational writing and journaling, a little bit of gardening, and a lot of hands-on!  What kiddo can resist doing Grass Heads?

 Materials to Have on Hand:

All you need is a plastic cup (we used 3 oz. size), a nylon knee high, wood shavings, potting soil, and rye grass seed. Perhaps an eyeball or two. And yarn for pigtails if you want to be stylin' some long green hair! It should be noted that after a number of heads lost their eyeballs, it was discovered that a touch of hot glue (done by an adult only) is the best way to keep them from popping off the head and rolling away! 

How-To:
First, place a teaspoon of rye grass seed in the toe part of the nylon followed by a small scoop of dirt. 

Pull nylon over a larger cup (than the 3 oz.) to 
make the insertion process easier.

Scoop in enough dirt to completely cover the seeds
and give the grass roots some soil to dig into.

The remaining space is filled with wood shavings (found in a pet supply area). The head should be filled full enough so that it looks kinda like a potato. 

Animal Bedding Wood Shavings

A layer of seed, soil, and wood shavings.

Tie off the nylon with a rubber band or simply tie the tail in a knot.  The head will sit mostly on TOP of the plastic cup with only a small bit pushed inside for balance.  The excess nylon will hang down into the water filled cup. If there is a lot of excess nylon, some may need to be trimmed off but it's important to leave it long enough to access the water. This will act as a self-watering system. 

The freshly seeded head will need to be initially watered enough so the seeds and dirt are quite moist. Thereafter, students will need to monitor their cups and add water as it evaporates and possibly re-wet the head if it should become too dry.

All we need now are some eyeballs and a puffball nose.

Grass Head Journals:
Students keep a "Grass Head Journal" to record the needed materials, list step by step procedures, and a couple hypothesis/inquiries of this activity. The journal also contains space to write daily observations, draw sketches, and anything additional done to the heads such as turning  or watering them.

Great place to keep track of all steps,
inquiries, and observations in one spot.

Lots of detail!

The Outcome:
Students were super excited as the green grass hair started to sprout! Observing their Grass Heads is the first thing they want to go see in the mornings.

Little baby sprouts have popped up giving evidence that growth is taking place!

Even if spring has had a big challenge making its way to north central Wisconsin this year,
we have our oh-so-green Grass Heads in the classroom to make up for it!

Looks like we have some shaggy grass heads badly in need of some fashion stylin'.

Students were even more excited when the day finally came for some hair stylin' work! There were attempted braids, trims, pig tails, mohawks, and other interesting do's (and don'ts)! 

Final measurements before stylin' time begins!

Here we go!

The stylist of this Grass Head said it was styled after his dad's hair! 
And yes, that would be accurate!

The end product CAN be a unique item to give mom for a Mother's Day treat. Kids are so proud of their Grass Heads and what mom can resist a Stylin' Grass Head?

Summer Point of Interest:
One last site to note, especially for those of you local to this area (and extra bonus when you teach latitude and longitude)...if you are interested in standing in the center of the world, there is a small town nearby you won't want to miss checking out! 

Few People Know The Center Of The World Is Actually Hiding In This Tiny Wisconsin Town

Have a safe and fantastic summer!
See you back here in the fall!

Five Stars-Writing Book and Product Reviews

How often have you used book reviews and product reviews as a "go-to" before making your final decision whether to purchase an item? How many times have you read unhelpful reviews or just as disappointing, found no reviews?

Sometimes the review doesn't even matter as I have unhappily discovered in one case of hotel reviews. Based on a couple decent reviews one summer, I spent a night in a hotel room that looked as if it said, "Welcome to the 1960's" with its pink tiled bathroom, vintage furniture and decor. This interior design was not a purposeful blast to the past, I might add. While I am certainly open to new experiences and exciting adventures, this just wasn't high on my list of "gotta-do's".  I quickly learned that my hotel standards were much higher than the two reviews I read and now I have a strong need to either stay in a well known reputable hotel chain or see pictures first when it comes to hotel rooms!

Image retrieved from https://chuckmantorontonostalgia.wordpress.com

Nevertheless, when it comes to making a purchase, I'm scouring reviews for 4 and 5 star ratings! It seems to me like reviews are a way of life.  I'm grateful to those who take the time to write helpful reviews and I make the effort to give back and do the same for others.

Knowing this is a life-skill, I wanted to teach my students that writing helpful reviews is a positive way to give back. Since my students had recently completed book reviews, the transition to writing a product review was simple. We had already checked many Amazon reviews written on their favorite books. We discussed why reviews are helpful to consumers as well as companies that look for feedback in order to improve their product and processes.

Product Review Guidelines

Similar to book reviews, we discussed the differences between reviewing a book and reviewing a product. Here are some basic guidelines I have students follow in order to write a helpful product review...

*Share any positive things about the product. Just saying, "love it" is not helpful.

*Be helpful and try to answer questions that YOU may have had about the product.

  *Share a tip or trick you learned when using the product.

*If you honestly didn't like the product, don't be rude and bash it. Simply share why you were disappointed. Be honest, kind, and factual.

*Reviews must be clear and concise. Just be genuine, polite, and helpful.

*Proper spelling and grammar is a must in order for readers to see you as someone with credibility.

Using Real Examples

We look at lots of real product reviews on items kids are familiar with and then decide if the review has met any or all of our guidelines. I find Nordstrom reviews to be very user friendly. We began by looking at Nike Presto Extreme Sneaker on the Nordstrom site. Students read the reviews and discuss which ones meet our guidelines and which ones not so much. After reading the reviews and taking a show of hands, the majority of the class was ready to make the Nike purchase for themselves. I admit that I was too!

Nike Presto Extreme Sneaker

Another item we looked at was a popular game for 4th and 5th graders on Amazon called Laser Maze. Out of 40 reviews 95% gave the product either a 4 or 5 star rating and 1 person gave it 2 stars. After reading many of the reviews, a show of hands revealed that only 2 students would purchase the product. We discussed why and discovered that the single 2 star reviewer gave such a detailed review of the game's disappointments, students felt it wouldn't be worth the money...even with all those positive reviews. Consumerism 101.

Laser Maze

Next we started writing our own product reviews with a simple item that all students are familiar with...the shoes on their own two feet. Many of those shoes are very old friends by this point in the school year. Even if they're brand spanking new, students have at least worn them for several hours and have something to say about them. Students have fun with this review! We do several more product reviews including a review on their desk, their pencil case, backpack, or other school supplies.

There were a few boots mixed in with the majority of sneakers.

Most students seem to love their shoes. 
One boy said he downgraded his 

rating over the weekend due to the fact that his Air Nikes "leaked"!

Students have more opinions 
about their desks than one might think.

Apparently a desirable desk trait is when 

the surface can cool off a warm face!

For their final review I have students choose their own product. Besides being an appropriate item, it must be a product they personally use and are very familiar with. No, since they cannot actually drive yet, they may not write a review on the new family car. Someone asked. The only restrictions I set besides being an appropriate product they use, is that it cannot be a video or any type of electronic device/game.  I have students tell me ahead of time which product they would like to review to avoid anything questionable.

Students used the Book Creator app to type up their product review and added a picture of it onto their iPads. The product reviews are then transferred into the SeeSaw app where everyone's reviews can be accessed by the rest of the class.

Students chose a wide variety of items 

to review and have definite opinions of them.

Students access and read classmates' reviews and respond with two positive comments about the review and one suggestion. Questions can also be asked but I turn off the "like" feature because students tend to become "like happy" and tend to forget the task of writing thoughtful feedback.  Instead, they are to comment on their "big take-away" that perhaps they didn't know before.

Gotta love it when the personality comes out!

I found it works well to  give a sentence starter such as, "This review was helpful because...(give specifics)" otherwise they leave comments such as "You told me about the product." which isn't helpful. Kids absolutely loved this project! They couldn't get enough of reading their classmates' reviews. Many were interested in where to find specific items and eager to try them for themselves!

Too funny, but how true!

It is amazing the variety of products students choose to review. I always end up learning about a product I didn't know of and get excited to check it out...with further reviews, of course! And FIVE stars.

Does anyone else have their class write product reviews? Please share any experiences you've had with this type project.