Sixth graders in Media classes did a big research project this year. They got to pick any topic they were interested in, as long as they were able to find reliable sources on the topic online. There were eight major steps in this research project
Because students are always working at their own pace, students had access to this document on Google Classroom, so they always know exactly what they are supposed to be doing at each step if they needed to move on ahead of other students. I did mini lessons on citations and note-taking as needed, but the first time they were exposed to these topics in class was through videos. I used https://www.playposit.com/ to create a blended learning opportunity. Students would watch a video mini lesson of me teaching them note-taking skills, and then I inserted different questions they had to answer on playposit before they could move on to the next part of the video. It was an awesome tool that worked perfectly. Students then created a digital poster on Google Slides. Citations were posted on their second slide. Here are examples of some of the posters! After the digital poster was turned in, students had to use our makerspace to create something related to their topic. We had recently purchased a button maker at the start of the project, so many sixth graders chose to create a button; however, there were kids who used legos, created collages, and made blackout poetry, all relating to their research topic. Students loved being able to choose what they researched. They also loved being able to create at the end in the makerspace. I will absolutely do this unit again!
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I ran across these free instructions on how to make a heart by folding pages inside an old book. I quickly followed the instructions and created my own folded book art heart. ![]() I knew right away that students would love doing this activity in our makerspace. We had just weeded three book carts FILLED with books. I went through and saved the hard cover books in good condition, printed out the instructions, and I simply set my book heart on the library counter. Every time students walked in, they asked who made it and if they could make one. I decided to let students come in before school to get started on this project. With Mother's Day around the corner, I brought in wrapping paper for students to wrap their finished creation up if they wanted to give it away as a gift. It warmed my heart to see just about every single student who has started a book talk about who they want to give it to and why. For their first heart, it probably takes kids about 45 minutes to one hour for them to complete from start to finish. Once they know how it works, they are allowed to come in the library any time they have permission. to work on it. Kids are seriously spending their recess time in the library to work on this project. I had a really hard time locating other free instructions online for other shapes to create. I decided to make my own patterns to give more options for students who wanted to try this project. Here are the instructions I created for the star and the butterfly:My goal is to get students to create their own instructions for different shapes. I'm guessing I'll have some takers!
I am a little late to the Instagram game, but the Storm Lake Middle School Library is officially on Instagram @slmslibrary. Follow us to see what students are doing every day! The police department donated money to give to 5th graders who were caught doing something kind for the book fair this year! Students at Family Fun Night trying out our new Bloxels! Our StickTogether posters are always really popular! Color by number, only it's sticker by letter! April is School Library Month. We are celebrating our library all month long. Students can write what they love about our library on a heart, and we will display them.
One of my major goals for the second semester of the year was to start our Media Center Makerspace. Because we have very limited space, we cleaned out our picture book corner, slid a few tables together, and we had a place to work with. Because it was near the end of the school year, I decided to start slow and end the year with Makerspace challenges, one new one each week. For April we had poetry challenges. We then moved on to STEM challenges. Magazine Poetry Blackout Poetry Marshmallow Toothpick Tower Challenge Corner Bookmark Challenge For Free Comic Book Day the first week of May, we had a corner bookmark challenge. Students had to measure and closely follow directions in order to make the bookmark. Paper Tower Challenge We did this in class, so we moved this to the other tables so all students could participate! Power Clix Magnetic Blocks Next Year?Next year I would like to continue with weekly challenges and also continue building up the supplies that students can use at any time. I have started boxing up challenges and putting them on the shelves in the Makerspace, available for students to get out and use.
I have Ozobots, a 3D pen, and LittleBits ready to go right away next year. My goal is to have the Makerspace being used at all times of the day. I need to work on promoting the space at the start of the school year to get students involved right away. I am excited and extremely glad I started the Makerspace this year. I am looking forward to how it grows throughout next year. |
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