As we near the end of the year you may find time to invest in some classroom activities once exams and assessment have finished. In my experiences the unstructured, dreaded worksheets of crosswords, puzzles and santa drawings often encourage poor classroom behaviour and general unrest in students.
I suggest that if you do happen to have time up your sleeve that you consider planning some meaningful learning to keep your students focused and engaged in their schooling.
End of year Tech-tivities!
Listed below are a few ideas for end of year activities which primarily use technology. Feel free to add more in the comments.
Film a class movie
Most laptops and tablets have the capacity to film, edit and produce movies. Filming is an excellent creative tool that can be adapted to all ages and skill levels. Some ideas you may like to include in your class movie:
- Recap Topics of each term
- Re-enact memorable lessons
- Re-perform funny moments from throughout the year
- Narrate special features/characteristics of the class and demonstrate by performing them.
For Microsoft devices, Movie Maker is by far the simplest to use and is exceptionally intuitive on the Surface Pro 3. For Apple devices your go-to software for ease of use and simplicity is iMovie. If your are familiar with Adobe, you may like to try Premier Pro.
Create a class Photo Story or Office Mix
Using a combination of class photos from throughout the year, some of their favourite music and student's narration you could create a photo story of Office Mix. One possible idea for a photo story might be for students to prepare next year's class for the year ahead, giving them tips on what to expect and how to be successful in the class.
Mystery Skype
Mystery Skype is an education game, invented by teachers, played by two classrooms on Skype. The aim of the game is to guess the location of the other classroom by asking each other questions. Craig Kemp recently wrote a 7 Steps Starter's guide to Mystery Skype, it's well worth checking out! Hour of Code
"Computing is a fundamental part of daily life, commerce, and just about every occupation in our modern economy. It is essential that students are exposed to the field of computer science in our K-12 system—as it is foundational in transforming the way a student thinks about the world. (csedweek.org)"
Code.org's initiative, Hour of Code is a great tool for your students to experience the amazing world of programming.