Author: Terri Eichholz

Terri is a curriculum and tech integration specialist, speaker, and author with a passion for engaging and empowering learners. She delivers engaging professional learning, consultations on a variety of educational needs, and professional articles for various outlets . Find out more about Terri on the About page in the site menu.
Education, K-12, QR Codes, Teaching Tools, Videos

Black & White and Scanned All Over

Terri Eichholz

Most of the traffic to this blog, lately, seems to be headed for my posts about QR codes.  So, I thought you might enjoy this video I found on the different ways McGuffey School District in Claysville, PA uses QR codes.  I like the title for their project, “Mobile Zebra”!  I also like that they show how QR codes can be utilized even without the use of mobile devices.  PC’s with webcams can be equipped with software, such as Quick-mark.  For other ideas on how to use QR codes, you can choose that category on the right by clicking on the down arrow next to “Category”.

The short link for the video below is:  http://youtu.be/ayW032sKtj8

3-12, Creative Thinking, Education, Independent Study, Motivation, Problem Solving, Research, Student Products

Genius Hour Update, Part III

Terri Eichholz
A couple of months ago, I mentioned that I would be trying a “Genius Hour” with my 5th grade GT students.  You can read this post and this post to find out about the origins of this idea.  Click here to read about The Beginning of our project.  And, click here to read about The Middle.
First – a little background.  I teach 13 5th grade Gifted and Talented students once a week from 8:45-1:30.  Many of these students have been in my GT class since Kindergarten, so they know me and the other students fairly well.  All of these factors might make it a bit easier for them to take risks than students in a regular classroom.  

The Conclusion

The students did a pretty good job with completing their projects by the deadline.  Last week, they presented them to the class.  While one of the pairs was presenting, a student kept whispering my name frantically.  I tried to sign to her to listen to the kids standing up front, but she could not wait.

“I didn’t finish,” she said, desperately.

Several thoughts came to mind, such as saying, “You should have used your time more wisely.”  Instead, I said, “That’s okay.  Just show what you have.”

She had started a website on pet care.   When it was finally her turn, this student, who rarely speaks in class, stood by herself in the front of the room, and showed us what she had done.  As she got deeper into her presentation, she almost seemed to forget that we were there, and clearly showed more confidence and passion about her topic.

When she finished, the other students asked clarifying questions about what she intended to include to complete the site.  I told her that I thought she had done a fabulous job on the portions she had finished.

At the end of the day, when the students were lining up to leave, the student approached me with her research notes from class in hand.  “Can I bring these home?” she asked.  “I want to finish the site before next class.”

This project was not for a grade, and the presentations were done.  Yet, she wanted to finish what she started – on her own time.

That’s what Genius Hour is all about.

(Two other recent posts by fellow bloggers might interest you about this concept:  Educational Technology Guy and Free Technology for Teachers)

3-12, Creative Thinking, Education, Independent Study, Motivation, Student Products

Genius Hour Update, Part II

Terri Eichholz
A couple of months ago, I mentioned that I would be trying a “Genius Hour” with my 5th grade GT students.  You can read this post and this post to find out about the origins of this idea.  Click here to read about The Beginning of our project.
First – a little background.  I teach 13 5th grade Gifted and Talented students once a week from 8:45-1:30.  Many of these students have been in my GT class since Kindergarten, so they know me and the other students fairly well.  All of these factors might make it a bit easier for them to take risks than students in a regular classroom.  

The Middle

As our Genius Hours continued, the students began to get interested in each other’s projects.  Many of the kids were using Weebly for the first time, to create websites.  They would end up criss-crossing the room to consult each other on such things as how to make logos or to embed games into their sites.  Several of them were confounded by our district’s filters as they tried to access sites they could easily jump to at home, and quite a few of them got lessons from me on copyright violations.

A few of the groups decided to make websites that linked to fun games.  This led to not a little time being spent on playing the games to “make sure they are appropriate for school”.  We ended up having a conversation during one of our feedback sessions about whether or not they were making the best use of their Genius Hour by doing this.  They agreed that the games could be explored at home during the week instead.

The one student I absolutely could not help was fortunately one of the most self-motivated.  He had decided that he was going to make a remote-control robot.  He brought all of the materials from home, and took them back home each week so his grandfather could aid him with the tough parts, like welding and figuring out electrical circuits.

Two other students had selected a project that would be done, for the most part, outside of Genius Hour.  They wanted to start a tutoring group to help kids with Science.  They used their Genius Hour time to make a poster advertising the tutoring group, write letters to the teachers explaining their proposal, and to find support materials.

One of my students wanted to design a video game, so I introduced him to Gamestar Mechanic.  He basically got all he wanted out of it in three sessions, and started wandering around to help others with their projects.  Then I showed him Sketch Nation Studio on the iPad and he was back in business.

The variety of interests and projects was exciting.  We were all learning, and I kept hoping that an administrator would walk in during our Genius Hour to observe the engagement amongst the students.  When I was a little girl and pictured myself as a teacher, this was exactly the image that I had in my head – kids enthusiastically taking responsibility for their own learning.

Come back tomorrow for the final post in my Genius Hour series!

The “homemade” logo made by one pair of students for their gaming site
3-12, Education, Independent Study, Problem Solving, Research, Student Products

Genius Hour Update, Part I

Terri Eichholz
A couple of months ago, I mentioned that I would be trying a “Genius Hour” with my 5th grade GT students.  You can read this post and this post to find out about the origins of this idea.  In the next few posts, I would like to share with you the results of this “pilot run”.
First – a little background.  I teach 13 5th grade Gifted and Talented students once a week from 8:45-1:30.  Many of these students have been in my GT class since Kindergarten, so they know me and the other students fairly well.  All of these factors might make it a bit easier for them to take risks than students in a regular classroom.

The Beginning

When I first introduced the idea of a “Genius Hour”, the students were excited, and eagerly brainstormed possible projects to work on.  This occurred independently and in groups.  My only caveats were: they had to learn something new during the process, it had to be appropriate for school, and they would have to present what they learned at the end.
After brainstorming and selecting topics, the students worked on planning their projects, then viewing some videos I had selected on internet safety and doing internet research.  Once they completed these preliminary requirements, they were permitted to plunge into their projects.
Before each hour started, I usually gave them a 5-10 minute “lesson” on various things, from possible Web 2.0 tools that might be useful to how they should plan their time.  After each hour, we had a debriefing about what did or did not work during the hour.
What I Did Right:  worked in a lot of brainstorming of possible topics, required students to watch videos on internet safety and research, gave them short lessons before each hour, elicited feedback after each session
What I Would Change:  I would probably change the planning sheet layout so that it inspires more creativity, and I would probably start this near the beginning of the year so that there is no “deadline” and students can work on a series of projects throughout the year
Join me again on Monday to find out more about our progress!
The Robot one of my Students Worked on During Genius Hour
Creative Thinking, Education, K-5, Student Products, Teaching Tools, Videos

Sylvia’s Super-Awesome Maker Show

Terri Eichholz

Sylvia’s Super-Awesome Maker Show is a website that has short videos with easy directions on how to make a wide range of items – from the soft-circuitry products featured in the photo above to paper rockets and sidewalk chalk.  Sylvia is a kid with a lot of personality and very engaging videos.  If you are looking for some suggestions for your students for the summer, show them this site.  They will have many projects to choose from, and they might want to send Sylvia a request for a new video.  Your really creative students will see these, and want to make their own videos!  Here is the short link to the YouTube video below:  http://youtu.be/j3g_tdPIo0o

Art, Creative Thinking, Education, Games, K-5, Student Products, Websites

She Wears Many Hats

Terri Eichholz

Here is a cute printable from Fuel the Brain just in time for Mother’s Day.  I love the thought of brainstorming all different types of hats with my younger kids, and then guiding them to think about how their mother “wears” them.  “In what ways is your mother like a police officer?” I might ask – and I might just be surprised by some of their answers!  Fuel the Brain, by the way, has lots of games and interactives that you might want to check out in addition to the printables!

UPDATE: Here are some examples from the books my students made!