Resource Goes Remote

Are you part of a Resource Team? Most of us naturally think of music, art, PE, library, STEAM, or other similar classes.

Transitioning to a world where we’re now completing distance learning, I had a hard time wrapping my head around what that would look like for a Resource team. I’m used to seeing 850 students in a span of one week. How am I going to replicate that model through distance learning? And let’s be real - you can’t. Just like classroom teachers cannot replicate their teaching for 25 (ish) students, we cannot replicate our teaching for the entire school.

So as team leader, I wanted to find a model that would work for my team, my students, and my parents. I wanted something that offered choice, minimal materials, hands-on learning, and time to bond as a family. Does all of this sound like something you were striving for to? I’m sure it is and it wasn’t easy, was it? Especially as a STEAM teacher. I think of my classroom and the many materials I have acquired through grants, donations, and stretching the little bit of money I have. The experiences that I am able to provide my students in the classroom just aren’t possible through a computer screen. But I also knew that there were still many learning opportunities from home.

So what did I land on? A Bingo board.

I assigned each letter in “Bingo” to a different member of my team. We’re even lucky to have a Wellness Integrator at my school, so we sprinkled in wellness-driven lessons within each of the Resource content areas. I encouraged my team to create plans that all students would have access to. Think minimal materials because we don’t want parents having to drive to the store, library, or a friend’s house. We also loved the idea of a Bingo board because for families that have children across multiple grade levels, they could complete the same activity together. They would never have to feel the need to ensure there children are completing a specific assignment, and the choice offers students autonomy to pick something that interests them. We know that it is hard to keep students engaged during distance learning, but if you give them choice in their learning, they’re more likely to want to engage in the work, thus retaining what they learned.

While none of this distance learning is ideal, I feel confident that we’ve found a model that helps students learn, take some of the pressure off of parents, and keeps our students engaged. So take a peek! Download the Bingo board for yourself and get your students learning!

Resource Bingo Board

Encouraging STEAM at Home

STEAM does not have to be the latest technology or most expensive building materials. In fact, all of STEAM is rooted in the basics - finding random materials and building.

My 15 month old son is the perfect reminder of this!

Just the other day he grabbed his wooden blocks and coasters off of our coffee table and just starting building. In this moment I did not discourage him. There was no reason he couldn’t use the coasters and I knew he was about to make an amazing discovery! In fact, he learned that the coasters have a larger surface area to stack blocks. Now you’re right, a toddler is not going to remember the term surface area (which I definitely shouted in excitement!), but he is definitely going to remember that moment of building. It’s up to us as teachers and parents to encourage moments, both small and large!

Our children are born engineers! They are inquisitive. Constantly testing how to make an object fit inside of another object, or throwing books (probably not want we want at the moment) to see what happens when they fall. Ok, not your kids, just mine? That’s ok he’s a toddler and he’s still learning! I want to help you build these engineering moments in your home. Whether your children are pros at building, or they’re still getting used to the idea, this resource is for you! I have put together 8 easy STEAM activities to get you started. In fact, you don’t even need a lot of resources to be successful. All of the STEAM challenges in this free resource require materials that are just laying around your house. I bet there’s a lot of materials hanging around your living room that you don’t even realize can be used to help you children learn and grow as engineers! So download this free resource, grab a pencil and paper, and let your children start planning their next great adventure!

Free Resource: STEAM at Home

Are you in need of more ideas? Check out these blog posts to get your gears moving! STEM Movies and Building Materials

It's Not Goodbye

It’s now been a few days since the governor of Virginia closed schools for the 2019-2020 school year and I’m still in shock. Honestly, I fully expected Governor Northam to close schools until May 1st and then reevaluate the situation. I know this is the best decision for the health and safety of our students, staff, and parents, but boy did it come as a shock to hear the words come out of his mouth at the press conference. Everything still seems so surreal, like we’re watching a movie unfold in front of us and we’re trying to guess what happens at the end.

Michelle Weeks, an amazing friend and former coworker, recently posted a blog, This One’s For You, that allowed me to stop and think. In the last few days we have all been dwelling on what we have already missed and what we will miss with our students. However, there are many things that this school closure can never take away from us. We’ve been in school since August or September and there are so many learning moments, projects, and relationships that are built during that time.

1. For the first time, 1st - 5th grades all successfully set up Engineering Notebooks! While it was a feat at first, students in all grade levels were rocking it!

2. Our 3D-printers were finally able to be set up for the first time in 2 years.

3. I had 4th and 5th graders excited they got set up on TinkerCad, so they could design at home too.

4. I was able to transition into a room that was over two times larger than my previous room and students had space to move around and learn!

5. I was able to present at 2 conference - VMI STEM Education Conference and Virginia Children’s Engineering Convention.

6. I worked with 3Doodler in a multitude of ways - publishing articles (Full STEAM Ahead with Brittany Ballou, Harnessing Student Excitement, and STEAM Education: An Overview from an Expert), writing a lesson plan (Doodle Snowflakes: Geometry and Symmetry), and we were in the middle of highlighting how my students were completing a project.

7. My 5th graders used a new piece of technology that we had never used before - Makey Makey, and they did an amazing job creating a model of a cell and detailing what each part did. They loved using the new technology so much that they were giving me more ideas to use it in the future.

8. I was able to get more hands-on learning tools, like Create and Design Drill Kits, so my younger students could have hands-on experience learning how to use drills and screwdrivers.

9. I led my first STEAM Enrichment - Design Like Disney! I had so much fun with that group of 12 students as they built new rides for Disney World’s 50th Anniversary.

10. My kindergartners were really growing as engineers! They were sharing, planning, building, and learning from one another.

So, as Michelle challenged me, I challenge you. Reflect on this school year. While it is not over, yet, and there’s still learning to be had, we will be in a different environment than we’re used to. Take a few minutes to think of 10 positive things from this school year and hold onto those moments as we navigate the waters of digital/remote learning. Because the 2019-2020 school year is not over and it’s certainly not time to say goodbye to our students!

Flipping the Classroom

Who would agree with the statement - we live in a digital world? Let’s face it, it’s almost impossible to escape the world of technology because it’s all around us. At school, home, work, doctors offices, etc. And that’s a good thing because the technology is there to make our lives easier. Right now, teachers across the world are thankful for this technology as we’re navigating uncharted territory - a school shutdown due to covid-19. In a matter of days or hours, for some, we went from teaching in a classroom to learning how to teach remotely and/or digitally.

While this process is never going to be perfect because we have not been meticulously creating lesson plans for this exact moment, there are digital resources out there to help you navigate this transition. Check out these three tools that can keep your students learning and interacting from home!

1. FlipGrid - This is a video recording tool that allows students to respond and stay connected with their learning. As the teacher, you can create an educator account to start topic ideas, share daily videos, have students record responses to questions, and even interact with one another’s video responses. I highly recommend this tool for quick, easy video recording to get your students communicating about topics they are learning about.

2. Zoom - This is a video conferencing tool that allows you to see students live! You can schedule a time to “meet” your class for a discussion, read aloud, or a time to answer questions. It is also a great tool to use for parent/teacher conferences in a scenario that a parent is unable to meet in person.

3. Khan Academy - This is a tool that allows you to easily differentiate your instruction for all students through instructional videos and practice exercises. Students are able to learn at their own pace through all core subjects from kindergarten through advanced level high school/college courses. There’s even specialized content from NASA, MIT, and museums across the world.

If you’re already comfortable with these online tools and you’re looking for something more hands-on that students can do at home, then check out these blog posts for ideas! STEM Movies, STEAM on a Budget, and Building Materials

Minute to Win It Game Show

When you’re stuck at home what do you like to do for family bonding? I know that growing up my family loved to play games and we still do! Maybe your favorite is Monopoly, Candyland, UNO, or you like something a little more active, like Pictionary. We all know that adding a little more movement into our days will help, so let me remind you of a show that originally aired back in 2010 - Minute to Win It! The title basically says it all - you have a challenge to complete in 60 seconds in order to win a prize. Competition, movement, and family bonding, what could be better than that?!

Do you have younger kids at home? 60 seconds may seem like a quick turnaround for them to feel like they have a chance to be successful, so you can adapt your game play! Instead of setting a timer for 60 seconds, allow them to compete against someone else, start a timer, and record the total time it takes them to complete the challenge. You can even take it a step further by dividing your family up into teams and recording the total time it takes for each round to get the winner.

If your family loves the competition and is all about winning prizes, I even added prize ideas to the list too. You won’t want to miss this free resource to get you started!

Minute to Win It Game Show

Are you looking for other ideas to keep your mind busy, while at home? Check out the blog post about bringing escape rooms to your living room with Escaping Boredom with Breakout EDU!

STEM Movies

What do you do when you’re stuck at home? Watch tv, movies, maybe some cleaning in between if you can find motivation? Let’s be honest, we all know it is hard for our students to completely transition from an 8am to 3pm school day to all of the sudden distance learning from home. On top of it, many parents are teleworking and trying to keep up with their normal work duties. It is so easy to pop in a movie, so you can have a few minutes (or 2 hours!) to yourself.

How can we make this time more meaningful for our students? You should pick movies that students can connect learning to! Yes, believe me, all movies have teachable moments in them - think about plot, literature elements, writing process, and even STEM! Well if you know me, you know STEM is my thing, and lucky for you, my friend, Chris Woods has done the work for us! He has compiled a list of well known STEM movies along with project ideas, big questions, and ways to challenge our students to study more about a topic from the movie.

Checkout the list below to get your students relaxing and learning at the same time!

And be sure to check out Chris Woods’ website, Daily STEM, to find more resources.

Teaching in the Midst of Chaos

It has been a long time since I have updated my blog because life - an infant that quickly turned toddler who’s 15 months old, juggling work/life balance, being with friends and family, writing grants, innovating in my classroom, presenting at conferences, and so much more. It’s amazing how when you’re in the middle of it, it can be hard to look ahead and then we’re all stopped in our tracks.

COVID-19 or coronavirus.

If you had asked me a month ago what this was, I couldn’t have given you a solid answer. I knew people around the world were being affected by this virus, but you never expect it to truly hit home. And boy did it. One day we were teaching our students and the next day we’re told we won’t see them for “at least” 2 weeks. It still doesn’t seem real. It’s like we’re all in a movie, watching it unfold, trying to guess what’s coming next, and feeling anxious for the ending to get here, so we can see it wrap up in a beautifully packaged box. But this isn’t a Hallmark movie.

We are all (hopefully by this point!) practicing social distance and learning how to navigate teaching our students and/or kids at home. It’s not an easy road by any means. Teachers are craving that personal relationship with their students that they’re used to. We’re learning how to teach digitally, while balancing the fact that many of our students don’t have access to technology. We’re trying to find the balance between family time, watching the news, not becoming too anxious about what lies ahead, and so much more.

Teachers and parents, I hear you, I see you, and I’m here with you. If you need help getting your students engaged in learning outside of the physical classroom, check out the resources on my blog, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook by searching Imagineer STEAM. Or better yet, sign up for my email list. Let’s navigate these times together. Because we’re better together!

7 Building Materials for Classrooms

Part of STEAM is building prototypes to rectify a problem, so building takes place each week in my classroom. While sometimes students are using recyclables and consumables to build, having a variety of non-consumable building tools is an important part to my classroom instruction. If you read my previous post, Learning with LEGO, then you already know how versatile and beloved the brick is by my students and myself.

However, having a variety of building materials is important because it gets students thinking in different ways. I’ve compiled a list of materials that are easy to add to your classroom instruction. They are perfect for students of all ages. While I tend to use them for solving problems such as, build a bridge to get your elephants across or Cinderella needs a new castle, they can also be used for anything from imaginative play to concrete math concepts.

• Magna-Tiles
• K'NEX
• Brain Flakes
• Building Straws
• Pattern Blocks
• Keva Planks
• Lego

Later on I’ll break down each tool (and even more tools!) and how I use them in the classroom, but for now, go check them out and start brainstorming how you can add them into your instruction today!

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Some links may be affiliate links which means if you click through and buy the products I get a kickback but it does not, in any way, effect your experience. I only recommend things that I either have and use or that I fully believe in.

Innovation in Technology

Over the past few months I had the honor of going through the process for the RVA Tech Innovation in Education Award sponsored by Trillium Technical. I was first nominated in January 2019, and was announced as a finalist on April 24th. All of the finalist were invited to the RVA Tech Gala on May 8th, which was held at the Richmond Convention Center. While, I did not receive the Innovation in Education Award, I left with a very valuable experience.

Most educators only go to events that are education-based. However, The RVA Technology Council predominately works with and recognizes a variety of businesses, but one award is presented to an educator. During the RVA Tech Gala I was surrounded by men and women in the technology business world. It was fascinating to hear how they are applying technology in a variety of business sectors. I met a start-up business that researched how to make and use biodegradable packaging for shipping products, a non-profit that created a website to help those in need, augmented reality being used by Dominion Energy to “place” and “move” utility boxes for power lines, and so much more.

On the flip-side, they were enthralled with how I work with my elementary students using the Engineering Design Cycle to implement projects. The common statements to me were, “Wow. I wish that I had something like that when I was in school!,” as well as, “And wait, you’re doing this with kindergarten through fifth graders?! Your students are going to be so much further ahead than I ever was.” You see, the thought holds true - we are preparing our students for jobs that don’t even exist yet.

In order to prepare them for these careers, we have to get them hooked onto STEM careers from the beginning. There’s nothing that says a kindergartner can’t learn how to code, and if someone tries to tell you that, I’m here to prove them wrong. Because, I have 150 kindergartners who can explain that a robot is able to follow directions in the order in which you give it, they can code sequences, and by the time they leave fifth grade they will be able to code even more advanced robots and script on Chromebooks.

Technology is an ever-changing field and it is our job as educators to navigate the expanding landscape for our students. We cannot be stuck in our ways just because it worked in the past. We have to be willing to try new things, expose our students to a variety of technologies, and bring to light the numerous STEM jobs that are available to them.

I always leave my students with a challenge, so I will challenge you with this - even though the school year is nearing the end, how can you find a new way to incorporate technology into a lesson, STEM challenge, or project in your classroom?

Breakout EDU Game Designer

I published my very first Breakout EDU game - Searching for the Sea!

You maybe wondering, what is Breakout EDU? A quick rundown is that it’s an escape room for the classroom! It gets students out of their seats and collaborating together to solves puzzles to breakout of a box.

Starting in February, Breakout EDU ran their first cohort of teachers to learn how to make a Breakout EDU game from scratch! We shared ideas, critiqued each others’ puzzles, learned how to screencast, and eventually left the cohort with a published game. I absolutely loved the experience because it connected me with other like-minded educators as well as learning the skills to create a game that is puzzle-based and not worksheet based. I always say, “DITCH the worksheets!’ and this really put me to the test. The puzzles for each lock are not meant to be a worksheet hidden in a different format, but rather a true puzzle that will make students think and collaborate together.

Going into the process I knew it would be time consuming, but I found that generating the puzzles was easier as you started to create a few because I learned how to think differently. Now for me, personally, it took me longer than I would have liked because I was juggling learning how to balance my time between work and taking care of my newborn. However, when I clicked submit - boy did it feel empowering. Here I am a new mother, of a now five month old, and I created a Breakout EDU game from scratch in between feedings, diaper changes, snuggles, and oh yeah, my actual teaching job too!

While I have a lot more ideas running around in my head, I will definitely sit on them a bit, so I can enjoy more snuggles and finish out the school year. If you’re interested in learning how to design your own Breakout EDU game be sure to checkout the Game Design Tutorials.

And if you want your own class to play Searching for the Sea, get Breakout EDU’s paid-for platform. I promise, you won’t be sorry! It has transformed learning at my school!

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Want to learn more about Breakout EDU?! Click the link to learn all the ins-and-outs of why you need it at your school!