Why do they keep murdering people in my classroom?

Ever since I staged the Boston Massacre in my classroom, my seventh graders have been begging for a similar experience. I was going to wait for 8th and make it a rite of passage and then I asked myself, "Why?" Exploration should not be saved. I knew I wanted to do something with Julius Caesar and I totally lucked out to find exactly what I needed on a fabulous website run by an amazing Mr. Kevin Roughton. He is an amazing teacher (whom I have never met; I'm entirely an online groupie). Who puts ALL of his resources for Ancient World History online for free. To say that his work is engaging and amazing is an understatement. I have been using his interactive notebook ideas all year and was excited to give one of his activities a whirl. I decided to do his Cold Case: Rome activity, which would have the kids decide the true motive for Caesar's death; was it to save the empire, was it jealousy, or did Caesar actually know all about it and decided to die in a blaze of glory? His lesson includes an amazing launch video he created and 12 different stations with evidence at each. What is fabulous, is that he made the autopsy report look like an autopsy report, quotes from bodyguards looked like affidavits, etc. I decided to out my mark on it and start with a hook. The kids had a basic day close reading and foldables ahead of them but each table got to spend ten minutes taking detective notes on a mysterious scene of a crime that had shown up the night before.

As they were observing and taking field notes, I heard one of my reluctant kiddos lean over to another one and say, "Man, Wilkins always goes big or goes home." Yeah! Win for me! At the end of class we discussed our observations and linked it with any background knowledge the kiddos already had.

 

The next day they walked into 8 stations. I launched the activity with my own launch video that I made with iMovie and my fabulous app that I couldn't gush over more, Green Screen by Do Ink.

 

They then spent about five minutes at 8 stations answering two to three questions per station. One station was a video and another was an audio recording.

 

At the end, the kids had to choose one of the three motives an write an endictment with textual evidence. Voila! It's a Common Core activity in disguise.

The kids had an amazing time and we will totally be doing this again. Check out Mr. Roughton's website....you will not be disappointed!!

 

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Engaging Tech Tips: Green Screen by Do Ink

So when I went to fabulous EdCamp Boston a couple of weeks ago and I accumulated massive amounts of new information on everything from new apps to new ways of thinking. One of the apps I decided to purchase was Green Screen by Do Ink. It was $2.99 and totally worth every penny for the giggle factor alone.
The intro video that comes with the app does a good job at explaining how to use it so I was literally up and running in less than ten minutes. The best thing about this app, beyond its simplicity, is you don't need a GREEN screen. You can use any color you have hanging around. I went and pillaged our art room paper and thought this bright yellow was the best bet.

I was launching an activity where kids were making plays on the various groups of settlers that went out west and totally wanted to give this as an alternative to kids who don't like to perform in front of a live audience. In true Wilkins' fashion, I made a launch videos using the green screen.

The kids loooooved it and it got them totally jazzed to use the app. We're going to be shooting the videos this week but my student government already had fun playing with it.

They went to a Justin Bieber concert.

And hung out with the Care Bears!

This was a no brainer purchase! Do Ink is also a major presence on Twitter so they are easy to contact. I give this my total recommendation. Download it now and have some fun!!!

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PBL and Real Estate.....too much fun!

So, as the year is nearing a close (21 days and counting, not that I'm counting:)) I'm going full tilt. I'm throwing my best at them and we are loving it!

In my 7th grade, I just finished up a totally fun PBL on Athens and Sparta. Here's the explanation and info.

Here's the launch video:

First I explained to the kids what a real estate agent was and what their assignment would be. Their first activity was to become experts in what daily life was like in Atens and Rome for various family members. We considered this the orientation phase. It consisted of textbook reading, studying the fabulous information provided by the British Museum and some fun and informative Horrible Histories videos.

In phase 2, students were then assigned a family that consisted of a father, mother, son, daughter, and slave. There were two possibilities for each family member; a person who would fit in Sparta and one that would be a perfect fit for Athens.

To randomly choose the family and really add to the problem solving, each member was chosen randomly, using this awesome app called Decide Now!

Using my fabulous Apple TV, I projected my iPad and each family member was chosen randomly for each group. Students then, had to pick the best vacation spot for each family based on the largest amount of family members they made happy.

Once they figured out where they should live based upon majority, realty groups needed to make a pitch presentation that only focused on what would make each person happy about their new vacation destination. Students could use Google Prentation or Pow Toon to make their pitches. First I launched the third and final phase of the project with my own Powtoon video.

Then they made their own!

 The kids absolutely loved this project and totally became experts on Athens and Sparta.  They also got to work on their argument skills so that is always a plus.  If you are interested in doing this in your own class, click here for all the resources. Make a copy for yourself and feel free to modify.  I would love to hear from you if you use it in your class!

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I Appreciate You!

My entire store on Teaches Pay Teachers is on sale for 20% right now! Use the code below for additional savings! Happy Teacher Appreciation!

Head on over to TPT right here!

 

 

 

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What's In My iPhone?

So my students have turned me on to these YouTube celebrities that talk about hair and makeup and the maddening idea of what is in their purses or what their room looks like.  I really do find it absolutely amazing that 4 million people would care what is in the purse of a YouTube celebrity... but I get it.  I have to admit that I absolutely loooove Nerdy Nummies with Rosanna Pansino and listen to her talk about nothing.
All of this gave me an idea, though.  Every day I leave school with about 20% juice left in my battery because I use my phone constantly... seriously, I abuse my phone.  The kids and I both know that my phone enables us to have the class they enjoy.  So, what's in my phone?

Photos - Photos are obvious.  I take pictures all the time for my blog and our schools website.  But how do I use it to truly engage learners?  I use it like a document camera.  In my school district they are fabulous and give each teacher a MacBook Pro.  Because of this, when I take a picture on my phone, it shows up in my photo album about 1 minute later.  I can quickly take a picture of amazing work and project it quickly.  The kids loooove seeing their work projected!!!

YouTube - I worship at that altar of Youtube in class and have figured out how to get around my distict's filter.  I recently received an Apple TV for my class (AMEN!!!!) and now I can quickly project any video I'm watching.

Twitter - So, no, I don't use Twitter in the classroom but Twitter has truly helped me to become a better teacher.  Over the last three years I have taken part in #edchat, #sschat, #tlap, and #sstlap.  I have sat through a lot of PD in my 16 years.  I have learned how to write across the curriculum, manage my classroom, and collaborate with other disciplines.  I have never heard, "Hey!  We're getting this amazing social studies person in to talk to you guys."  Twitter allows me to have relevant PD every week and learn from amazing teachers.  And, to be honest..... PD is so much better in pajamas with a glass of wine:)

 Google Drive - As most of you know, I'm a google fanatic.  Not only can I access Drive easily, I've turned it into a mobile gradebook.  I've set up a spreadsheet with all my classes and it allows me to walk around the classroom easily gathering grades from kids.  I don't have to be anchored to a desk and I don't need to double enter from a paper and clipboard.

Quizlet - I've blogged about Quizlet before.  The kids love it and my phone becomes a study station.  It makes me smile!

Class Dojo - I absolutely loooove that I can walk around my class and award points.  I project up the full screen so the kids can see who is earning what.  I don't use Class dojo everyday, but whenever I feel like I need the kids back on track, I can pull my phone out of my pocket and start the rewards.

Plickers - Plickers is my new favorite toy.  I use it about 3 times a week in class and the toy hasn't lost its lustre.  The kids love it and I adore the data I receive.  The other teachers in my cluster were so excited when they saw it!

Remind101 - In my district, I can not rely on internet access at home but many of my families have cell phones.  Remind101 allows me the ability to reach out whenever.  The kids love the text from Mrs. Wilkins and I love the communication.

Podcasts - I looooove listening to educational podcasts.  I'm a total ed geek but I love listening to a good discussion or debate about trends in ed.  my favorite station is Bam! Radio Network.  It offers a little something for everyone and I adore listening to it in my car on my commute.

So, now that I've shown you my iPhone, is there something amazing in your iPhone that you would like to share?