Tag: hexagonal thinking

Teaching Tools

Enter For a Chance to Win!

Terri Eichholz

I know, I know. If you receive my posts in your school e-mail, the embedded video below from @Abbott ElementaryABC is probably blocked. But I couldn’t resist the clip because it’s equally touching and funny. If you’re a teacher, you know the constant tug of war between your awareness that you never went into this profession for the money and the natural human-need to feel valued. Hopefully, you can visit the link for the video or watch it outside of school if you didn’t have a chance to catch this episode of Abbott Elementary.

@abbottelementaryabc It’s #TeacherAppreciationWeek! Join #AbbottElementary ♬ original sound – Abbott Elementary

In the meantime, I want you to know how much you are appreciated. Over the years, I’ve reached out to some of my former teachers to tell them what they meant to me, and I hope that you receive those reminders, too. From the bottom of my heart, I feel immense gratitude to the teachers who shaped me into the person I am today as well as the incredible colleagues I worked with for 29 years.

To show my appreciation, I am giving away free tuition for two of my online courses: Harnessing Hexagons and Genius Hour. There will be one lucky winner for each, and everyone who enters will receive my newsletter that will contain a coupon code for 50% off each course. Entries need to be received by 5/12 at midnight CST. I’ll use a random drawing extension to choose the two winners. You can still enter to try to win the free courses even if you already receive my newsletter. Since these are online and self-paced, they are the perfect way to earn some credits when you don’t feel rushed this summer or, if you prefer to protect those weeks off by not doing school-related tasks there is no deadline.

It’s hard to find ways to give back to a profession that gave me so much over the years, but I try my best to share free downloads and tips with the hope that you will receive my heart-felt message that I respect and value you so much.

Thank you!

Critical Thinking, K-12, Universal Design for Learning, Writing

More Hexagonal Thinking Ideas

Terri Eichholz

I bookmark a lot of examples that I see on social media of uses for Hexagonal Thinking. Sometimes teachers who have been to one of my workshops mention me, and it’s great to see HT being used in the wild. Recently, one teacher even emailed me a Canva example from her 3rd graders!

What is Hexagonal Thinking?

Hexagonal Thinking involves using hexagon-shaped cards to represent different ideas, concepts, or topics. These cards can be moved around and connected to one another in order to explore relationships, make connections, and generate new ideas. You can have words and/or images on the hexagons, and connections are represented by moving hexagons next to each other so they share sides. I first learned about this technique from Pam Hook. Below is an example one small group in my classroom did when we were reflecting on the book, Tuck Everlasting.

Hexagonal Thinking by 4th Graders for Tuck Everlasting

Who Can Use Hexagonal Thinking?

If you don’t know what Hexagonal Thinking is, I cannot emphasize enough how flexible this strategy is; it can be adapted to use in any classroom for any subject in any grade level. In fact, one teacher challenged me on Twitter when I made that claim by asking, “#physed application?” I didn’t even have to answer, because another reader gave this list of options:

Thanks, Erik. I couldn’t have said it better myself!

Literature Example

Becky Gentry was kind enough to share a link with me from a Canva project her 3rd graders did using Hexagonal Thinking with Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH.

As you can see, students don’t usually just discuss and arrange the hexagons. They generally explain their rationale for the placement in written form or out loud.

Hexagonal Thinking + Math

My former colleague, Kelly Cross, has been bringing HT to math teachers in her district. Here is a recent example:

Speaking of math, how about this idea tweeted by Laura Depp to use hexagonal pattern blocks instead of cutting out paper?

And even though this isn’t technically Hexagonal Thinking, it is a Twitter thread involving hexagons, thinking, and math from one of my favorite mathematicians, Dan Finkel and one of his followers, Hana Murray (click on this link if you want to see the whole thread):

AI + Global Goals + Hexagonal Thinking

Lastly, I have this Tweet from Marilyn McAlister, which not only demonstrates using Hexagonal Thinking with the Global Goals, but also offers the idea of using Chat GPT to suggest the terms to put in your hexagons. Pair that with Pam Hook’s Solo Hexagon Generator and you have a winning combination!

Want to Learn More?

If these examples intrigue you, but you don’t know where to start, you can take my online course or invite me to your school or district to do a workshop (terrieichholz@engagetheirminds.com). You can also see some other ideas for using HT in the classroom in recent blog posts I’ve done, such as this one or this one. Or, do a search on my website for even more! You can even download some free templates.

Hexagonal Tile
3-12, Creative Thinking, Language Arts, Writing

Hexagonal Thinking and Poetry

Terri Eichholz

Since I’ve been doing a few Hexagonal Thinking workshops lately and April is National Poetry month here in the United States, I thought that I would see if any teachers have suggestions for how Hexagonal Thinking could be used to analyze and write poetry. I found this post on Teach Living Poets where the author describes how her students used Hexagonal Thinking to make connections between 15 poems that they had been assigned to read.

Though this idea is not specifically about poetry, I like this TikTok from Emily Pool (@toopoolforschool), where she explains how each student grabs a hexagon as they enter the classroom and puts it on the whiteboard at the front of the room, explaining any connections that they make. This is not only incentive to get to class early if you are an introvert, but also a fun retrieval practice idea. Place words on the hexagons from a poem you’ve been reading or titles of several poems to see what relationships the students perceive.

How could we use Hexagonal Thinking to write poetry? Of course, Hexagonal Thinking can be used for brainstorming. You could give small groups of students a set of 8-10 blank hexagons, and have them brainstorm a word for each one on a theme, such as “things that grow” or “things you do in Spring”. Download my free Spring S.C.A.M.P.E.R. packet for more Spring Brainstorming ideas. Then ask the group to connect the hexagons discussing commonalities they share besides the original theme. You can either challenge them to write a group poem then, or assign them to choose three words that were connected to write their own individual poems. If the students need a bit of help, they can try this AI powered poetry creator from Google, Verse by Verse.

Another idea might be to “find” some words in a piece of literature you have been reading to add to the hexagons, and then create a poem from the connected “found words,” similar to the idea in this post.

Perhaps you provide them with the connections, and students are challenged to write poetry that hops from hexagon to one that adjoins it, going in any direction they choose but with a specified minimum of “hops.” In the image below, for example, the student would be given the triangle with words, and choose four that are connected to consider metaphorically. They can brainstorm in the spaces underneath, then write their poem.

Hexagonal Poetry

Or, students create an actual poem within the hexagons. There are so many ways to use Hexagonal Thinking. Do you have any suggestions?

Interested in learning more about Hexagonal Thinking? I provide workshops in several formats. Work at your own pace with my online course, or invite me to present virtually or face to face to your district or group!

7 hexagons that each have a picture of world masterpiece
K-12, Teaching Tools

Pictorial Hexagons for Hexagonal Thinking

Terri Eichholz

I just added a new, free Google Slides template on the Downloads for Teachers page: Pictorial Hexagons. Last Saturday morning, I did my “Harnessing Hexagons” workshop virtually with some Northside ISD teachers, and I was so blown away by the pictorial hexagons they created during the workshop that I asked if I could share them here on the blog. Then I realized that it wouldn’t be fair to readers if I didn’t also share the template, so I cleaned it up a bit and added some directions so you could download it as well if you like.

In my “Harnessing Hexagons” workshop, teachers learn how to use Hexagonal Thinking in their classrooms for: introducing, making meaning and reviewing, assessing, and reflecting. If you are new to Hexagonal Thinking, here is one of my many blog posts explaining how I used it with Tuck Everlasting with my 4th graders.

I also like to use HT for introducing. You can use it to introduce students to each other, as I describe in this post, or you can use it to introduce a topic or unit. One way to do the latter is to use pictorial hexagons (sometimes called, “visual” hexagons — but I feel like they are all visual whether using pictures in them or not, so I decided to rename them). When I use these, I give students a static group of hexagons like the one below, and ask them to look for connections between the pictures. When you do HT, hexagons that are connected by a side or vertex should have something in common.

So, one of my students might look at the skeleton and car pictures, and say they both have bodies. We continue in that vein for a couple of minutes. Eventually, I ask students if they can think of what all of the pictures might have in common with the middle one since they are all connected to it, and they would hopefully eventually come to the conclusion that they are all systems, which is what my next unit is all about.

Since I like to give “make and take” time during my workshops, the teachers get to make some of these that would apply to their own classrooms, and here are some of the ones that they offered as examples (see if you can guess their overall themes — answers at the bottom of this post!):

submitted by Natalia C. of NISD
submitted by Belinda G. of NISD
submitted by Samantha S. of NISD
submitted by Lizette G. of NISD

In the interest of full disclosure I should mention that I have had this lesson completely crash on me before, so you may want to read about how not to do it before you give it a try!

Thanks to all of the teachers who spent their Saturday morning with me (including teachers from our past sessions last semester!)! I can’t wait to hear how you use HT with your students. Here are the answers for the clusters above: communication over generations, volume (for math class), World War II, and Productive Struggle in PBL Building a Boat.

coming soon on white surface
K-12

Top 10 Posts of 2022 and What I’m Planning For 2023

Terri Eichholz

Happy New Year! Someone asked me for my New Year’s Resolution, and I said that I’m not making any — because I truly do try to improve every day. That may sound a bit braggy, but what I actually mean is that I am interested in accomplishing so many things that it’s impossible for me to narrow them down to one goal, or even a few. I’m not really proud of the fact that I can’t focus my curiosity. I even asked Canva’s Magic Write tool to help me come up with a better way to describe this shortcoming, hoping for a more flattering descriptor, but this is what I got:

I kind of like #13, “Jack-of-all-trades, mediocre-at-all,” but, frankly, even that one is a bit generous.

Anyway, I’m doing the standard looking back at the year to see what went well and what direction(s) I should go moving forward. It’s interesting to look at my top 10 posts for 2022. Some of the posts that did well are surprising to me. See what you think:

  1. Fourword Word Ladder Game
  2. Genius Hour Resources
  3. AI Generated Poetry
  4. Name Picker Tools
  5. Getting to Know You Hexagons for Back to School
  6. Blackout Poetry Maker
  7. Let’s Talk About Twos Day
  8. Gifts for the Gifted
  9. Interactive Google Slides Templates
  10. One Pager for Genius Hour in Kindergarten and First Grades

Coming up for 2023 I’ve planned a new self-paced course on Hexagonal Thinking that should be available soon. Based on feedback from workshops I’ve done, this is one of the most useful and flexible tools to elicit deep thinking teachers can use, so seeing that blog post in my top 10 isn’t surprising. In fact, Kelly Hincks recently referenced the post in an article she wrote for the American Library Association about doing Hexagonal Thinking with her students.

I’m also revamping the website to include my own marketplace, where you can download freebies as well as purchase some things I’ve personally designed. The freebies have always been available, but you kind of have to hunt for them on my site, so now they’ll be in one place. (Want to know my most downloaded freebie? Click here to see it!)

I’m also scheduled to present at TCEA in San Antonio with Amy Chandler (Assistant Director of Gifted and Talented in North East Independent School District) on January 30th, 2023, on Digital Differentiation. Come see us at 1:00 that day if you are attending(not sure of the room, yet).

Speaking of North East Independent School District, current teachers will have another opportunity to take the self-paced Genius Hour class we offered last fall for free. Since it was so popular, it’s been arranged to offer it again during the March Super Saturday weekend, and you can earn 4 credit hours! If you are not in NEISD, and would like to take the course on your own, I recommend the Course Bundle I have here. All participants also get invited to our private Genius Hour Facebook Group.

If you want to keep updated on all of these upcoming events and more, be sure you’ve signed up for the weekly newsletter — where you’ll also receive content not posted on the blog and special discounts!

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black and white carbon pattern
K-12

Getting to Know You Hexagons for Back to School

Terri Eichholz

Longtime readers of this blog will know that I am a HUGE, TREMENDOUS FAN of Hexagonal Thinking. I do blog posts on it, PD’s on it, and pretty much recommend it to everyone I meet professionally.

One way you can use Hexagonal Thinking is to get to know students at the beginning of the school year. Give them each a hexagon to design where they reveal some things about themselves. Then see if they can connect their hexagons to each other’s based on similar sides. For example, I put some of my “favorites” in the hexagon below. If someone else has a hexagon with pizza as a favorite, they can put their hexagon next to mine with those two sides touching. You could put this on a bulletin board, so you have the whole class displayed on the board, where there is at least one connection for everyone, and some of them may have multiple connections.

I love to use Canva because I can set up frames to drag photos into easily, as I did with the triangle frames within the hexagon. If you use Canva, here is the template. Or, if you prefer to have students draw or write on a physical hexagon, here is a blank PDF version.

Getting-to-Know-You-HexagonDownload

Either way, the hexagons will need to be printed and cut out so that students can try to match sides.

You can just have students put a favorite in each section, or give them prompts like: something that makes you smile, something that challenges you, something that is easy for you, etc… I wouldn’t go too deep as this is a beginning of the year activity so students need to develop some trust first.

I’ll be adding this post to my Back to School Wakelet. And here is one of my posts about using Hexagonal Learning in case the concept is new to you.