One of the EBL challenges last week was to visit the website “scribble scoop” and use creative tools to communicate one new thing that was learned. The kiddos weren’t really sure what to do at first and their interest was slow going. “what do you do on scribblescoop.com?” “I don’t know.” They were invited to visit the website and simply explore – look into the various posts, watch interesting videos, read short articles, and view images. But they were not told what specifically to watch, look at, or read. So they stumbled a bit. Sometimes we forget how often children are told what to do, even despite our best efforts to offer choices. Once they got comfortable with the website, what it had to offer, and the idea that they were not going to be told “how” to interact with the website, they gradually grew more and more excited. “Look at this blob fish! That is disgusting.” “Octopus escape! Look, he’s moving the cap off!” I observed them happily sharing their new knowledge with the people next to them and to friends across the room. “What if you went swimming and you see this!” “That is very scary. What did you click on?” “They have go-pro’s on their helmets so they can film the whole thing!” As I was getting ready to leave, the kids were engaged in their creative descriptions of what they learned. Many were drawing images of scenes from videos or still images and writing down some ideas: “scribble scoop makes fun of stuff.” “I’m drawing that thing – it’s a Pokémon.” “I’m not a very good drawer.” While I certainly love children using drawing as a means of communication, the experience the kids had exploring this site was certainly not fully communicated via their drawings this time!
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The kiddos who signed up for the “create your own Pokémon cards” workshop sat eagerly around Jaime on the rug, laptops on almost every lap. The technology and online learning skills needed to begin this workshop were apparent right away. The kids first needed to open Google and sign in to SeeSaw where they would find additional directions necessary for their Pokémon card creation. Then Jaime asked them to open a new tab, open Google drive, and create a “Pokémon” folder. Then they needed two sub folders – one for images and one for their completed cards. The value of a multi-age classroom shined at this moment. Some of the kids struggled through these steps, where they needed to draw not only on their technology skills, but literacy ones as well. “I could help you! I could help you!” Jovian declared, coming to Julian’s aid. The kids were excited when they finally mastered each step which would make it possible for them to save their work: “I have a tab!” “I see what I need to do now!” “Oh awesome! I got it!”
At this point the room quieted down as the kids settled in to watch the video links provided about the details of Pokémon card creation – some alone, some in pairs, and some in small groups. Ernesto was the first to begin to create his cards. He sat, quiet and focused, navigating his way through the card creator. He was especially conscious of each choice, and spent a few minutes deciding, “what I should do for a power.” As the other kids began to create their cards, the room was a buzz with excitement. They maneuvered through the Pokémon card creator, a website they were not familiar with, vocalizing their struggles and successes – “oh my god! I just found out how to make a different card!” The skills the kiddos used and were learning during this workshop seemingly based on “Pokémon” are relevant to their daily interactions with technology and online learning. They worked on navigating their way through Google (searching for and saving images), Google drive (naming and creating folders), and figuring out how to use a program without being formally directed in each step – skills that reach far beyond Pokémon itself. |