Making Connections with Mind Maps

Using Mindmeister I created a mind map of the curriculum my students are engaged in during the geometry unit. I chose to do this unit because it involves a lot of definitions and concepts that can be verbalized. I struggled with deciding what concept to mind map because I think it is more difficult to do such an activity with Math topics. The idea behind my mind map is that the students would create one like this at the end of a unit, as a review of the concept learned. By putting their ideas into a mind map, it forces the students to see how the concepts are interrelated. It helps them to solidify the concepts by verbalizing explanations of them. Mind maps such as these could be used for the purpose of assessment in place of traditional paper-pencil assessments.
The most important lesson that I learned from this activity is that students need to have to opportunity to display the knowledge that they have learned in multiple ways. It was difficult for me to get started, but once I got going, it was easy to add ideas.
I liked that MindMeister had a large canvas that allowed you to expand your ideas as far as you wanted. I also liked that you can collaborate with many people at one time on this site. It acts as a wikimap. This allows for students to all work on one class map. I disliked its ability to include Math concepts. Students have a hard time figuring out how to display math symbols on the computer. I would have been nice if they had a data base of math symbols for students to use while mind mapping.
I see myself using this tool mostly as a way to review for tests. Next time, I would have students create mind maps as study guides for tests. I would consider having them work together in groups of two. Students always view things in different ways, making group work perfect for this activity.

Evaluating Engrade

Engrade is a free online gradebook. It offer many features that are helpful for teachers both in and out of the classroom. I created a fake class to test out Engrade and this is what I thought.


Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

 There was many features that I liked and some that I disliked. I loved how easy it was to create a class. It was easy to select how your grades are configured, I chose weighted grades. I also liked that you could easily create lessons, quizzes and flashcard activities on the site. I found the flashcard program to be very useful in helping students prepare for tests and quizzes. It is an interactive study aid that allows them to study the flashcards, match the definitions to the concept and then answer multiple choice questions about the vocabulary. Lastly I liked the calendar in that it posts the assignments on the calendar on the date they are due. Students then have a visual reminder of due dates and can use the same links to check grades once the assignment is complete.

I did not like that the students or their parents have to have an email address in order to create an account and view their grades. I posed as a student to see what the process is like. I was able to fairly easily create an account as the student. The view of the grades from the students perspectives was good. They can click on assignments to view individual grades as well as see their real time overall. I was also not a fan of the attendance page. I would take attendance in the form that my school prefers and I would not record it twice. It would not be of use to me. I think it is good for students to be able to view their grade at any time. However, if the teacher is not diligent in inputting grades to keep it accurate, problems can arise.

My biggest suggestion for Engrade would be for them to make the access code capable of allowing the students to see their grades without having to make an account using an email address.

Using Area and Perimeter in Life

Using Animoto, I created a movie depicting how area and perimeter are used in life. I would use this video as an introduction to a project that my students would participate in. The students would research their own ideas about how area and perimeter are used in life. They would then find their own pictures to represent their ideas. Using those pictures, the students would create their own Animoto videos. The videos would be shared with their classmates.

I enjoyed using Animoto. It was very easy to use. You upload your photos, video clips or text, select music for your video and select a background for your video. One downfall is that the free version only allows you to make a 30 sec. video. There is also no way to insert your voice to narrate the video. So for digital story telling tools, it is good, but I don't think it is the best. I think it would be a good introduction to digital story telling, especially for students who are not very familiar with technology or video creation.

Sheldon's Movie

Fran was having trouble viewing Sheldon's movie. I am not sure why, but I wanted her to be able to view it. We tired several different things to problem solve, but were unsuccessful. So, here you go Fran!! Enjoy! Nice job Sheldon!