Final ImagineIT Report
This has been a crazy year thus far. I don’t think I would be surviving this year without the support of the MSU-Urban STEM group. A new grade level and content, new role as NGSS Leader, micromanaging from administration that is beyond extreme, and students with academic deficits that I have never faced before- I feel overwhelmed. At the same time, I have hope in my ability to be the best STEM teacher I could be because of the collaboration of the people in this program.
I am looking past all of the hurdles in implementing my ImagineIT of using 3D design to enhance students learning and my hurdles of implementing my Deep Play Group’s focus of game-based learning and gamification. I created a Donors Choose grant to receive EEG headsets so the students can play games with their minds after I read about it in my Deep Play’s chosen book The Game Believes in You by Greg Toppo. I have developed a unique after school program for my students, which I titled “Gamifying Your Learning”. We have only met 5 times, but I took the assignment the STEM fellows had of creating professional website and had each of my after school students create their own Weebly site to track their own learning and creating. They absolutely love it.
For my ImagineIt the students have created 3D representations using homemade play dough of creatures they invented to live in particular biomes and they drew blueprints for Rube Goldberg Machines that they made as a homework assignment as well. We are implementing a Friday’s Maker Space where the students will design on paper and then bring their designs to life through 3Doodlers, play dough, construction paper, origami, etc. We are even devoting a whole week before Christmas Break to creating pop-up cards, origami tree ornaments, and presents for students’ families. I can now see that 3D printing and design does not necessarily mean using the 3D printer. It could just be making something flat and 2D pop up to 3D life and I cannot wait to continue sharing this view with my students as I move forward.
Notes on The Game Believes in You by Greg Toppo
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IRiHj5ZfDDwk2FKa99Fzwmu19BBsLQCYiCIBfhW3bT8/edit?usp=sharing
I am looking past all of the hurdles in implementing my ImagineIT of using 3D design to enhance students learning and my hurdles of implementing my Deep Play Group’s focus of game-based learning and gamification. I created a Donors Choose grant to receive EEG headsets so the students can play games with their minds after I read about it in my Deep Play’s chosen book The Game Believes in You by Greg Toppo. I have developed a unique after school program for my students, which I titled “Gamifying Your Learning”. We have only met 5 times, but I took the assignment the STEM fellows had of creating professional website and had each of my after school students create their own Weebly site to track their own learning and creating. They absolutely love it.
For my ImagineIt the students have created 3D representations using homemade play dough of creatures they invented to live in particular biomes and they drew blueprints for Rube Goldberg Machines that they made as a homework assignment as well. We are implementing a Friday’s Maker Space where the students will design on paper and then bring their designs to life through 3Doodlers, play dough, construction paper, origami, etc. We are even devoting a whole week before Christmas Break to creating pop-up cards, origami tree ornaments, and presents for students’ families. I can now see that 3D printing and design does not necessarily mean using the 3D printer. It could just be making something flat and 2D pop up to 3D life and I cannot wait to continue sharing this view with my students as I move forward.
Notes on The Game Believes in You by Greg Toppo
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IRiHj5ZfDDwk2FKa99Fzwmu19BBsLQCYiCIBfhW3bT8/edit?usp=sharing