Mar 07 2018 March 7, 2018 September 15, 2018 NoComment by David

3rd Grade Fractions Book

Posted in 3rd Grade, Math

Third graders at Laburnum Elementary have been learning about fractions as parts of a whole and as parts of a group (SOL3.3). Today students in Ms. Forrester’s class made fractions books to show examples of each type using BookCreator. First, Ms. Forrester set up her account and gave the access code to her students. Once they were logged into her class, I showed them how to create a new book. We all picked the square size since we will be combining our individual books into one class book. On the cover of our book, we typed a creative title, picked a background color, and added our photo using the built-in webcam feature. On the next page, we illustrated a fraction as part of a group using the shapes tool. We made several shapes one color and other shapes a different color. Then we typed a sentence identifying the fraction. I asked them to illustrate a fraction as part of a group on the last page. They used the image search feature to find a photo of an object that could be divided into parts (food seemed to work well). Then they used the drawing tool to draw the parts and “cut out” some of them. They also typed a sentence identifying the fraction. This gave them practice using all the different tools BookCreator has available. Finally, the students published their books online and I combined them into a class book. You can read their book here. (UPDATE: I taught a similar lesson in Ms. Long’s class at Varina, and you can read their book here).


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Mar 07 2018 March 7, 2018 September 14, 2018 NoComment by David

4th Electrical Circuit Animations

Posted in 4th Grade, Science

Fourth graders at Laburnum Elementary have been learning about electrical circuits (SOL4.3b), so today, students in Ms. Waltz’s class created animated circuit diagrams using ABCYa! Animate. First, we reviewed the parts of a simple electrical circuit and how the parts work–batteries, switches, and objects that turn on. We discussed a variety of electrical objects so everyone didn’t draw the same one (lights, radios, toys, televisions, computers, washing machines, ovens, robots, etc.). If your students need some extra help with circuits before doing this activity they can practice building their own here, here, here, or here. Next, we went to ABCYa! Animate, and I explained the process of creating the animation: (1) draw the complete circuit with an open switch in the first frame, (2) slowly close the switch in the next few frames, (3) show the flow of electricity however you like, (4) turn on your object in an interesting way. Finally we saved our animations as .gif files and shared them on Schoology. You can see them all here.


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Mar 06 2018 March 6, 2018 September 5, 2018 NoComment by David

2nd Grade Probability Book

Posted in 2nd Grade, Language Arts, Math

Second graders at Holladay Elementary have been learning about probability (SOL2.18) and predicting whether an outcome is likely or unlikely. Today, students in Ms. Edmonds’ class created a Probability Book with BookCreator. After reviewing several examples of probability, we logged into BookCreator with the teacher code and created a new book. On the first page the students added a text box and typed “Probability.” Then they added a photo of themselves using the built-in webcam feature. I also showed them how to change the background color. On the next page, they drew a group of different colored objects and typed a sentence like, “What is the probability of picking a yellow ___ ?” Finally, on the last page, they typed the answer (LIKELY or UNLIKELY) and added a photograph from the Internet. This gave them practice using the three different ways to get images in BookCreator (using the webcam, drawing, or uploading a photo). Once all their pages were finished, I combined them into one book and published the link on Schoology. Now, as they read their class book, they are reviewing probability and its terms in a fun way! You can read their book here.


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Mar 01 2018 March 1, 2018 June 21, 2018 NoComment by David

5th Grade Energy Animations

Posted in 5th Grade, Science

Fifth graders at Varina Elementary have been reviewing potential and kinetic energy (SOL4.2), so today, students in Ms. Primrose’s class created animations to illustrate these concepts. For this lesson, we used a different way to animate that I learned about from a fellow ITRT, Michael Price. He showed me how to create an auto-playing animation with Google slides. First, we reviewed potential and kinetic energy and brainstormed several examples (pulling back on a bow and arrow, squatting before a dive or a basketball throw, twisting a rubber band, squashing a spring, blowing up a balloon before releasing it, etc). I explained that we would be animating both the potential and kinetic energy of an action, so the students needed to choose one they found interesting. Next, we opened a blank Google slide, and clicked the Background button. The students used the built-in Google image search to look for a background that would fit their action. Then we added Shapes to make our characters and objects. We copied the slide (right click > Duplicate slide), and moved the shapes around slightly to make it look like the characters and objects were moving. We continued copying slides and making adjustments until our animations were complete. Now it was time to add the animation magic! We clicked File > Publish to the web and chose “Auto advance slides every second.” We also clicked the two boxes so that it would start automatically and repeat when it was finished. When the link appeared, we changed the number that came after “delayms=” to 100 to speed up the animation. You can see their final projects here.


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Feb 26 2018 February 26, 2018 June 21, 2018 NoComment by David

Kindergarten Presidential Portraits

Posted in Kindergarten, Language Arts, Social Studies

Kindergarten students at Trevvett Elementary have been learning about Presidents Day and the two presidents it honors: George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Today, students in Ms. Gouldman’s class painted presidential portraits based on research. Yes, even kindergarten students can start learning how to do research. I explained that we wanted our portraits to look like the real presidents, so we had to find out what color their skin, eyes, and hair were. First I asked them to guess, then we looked online for portraits and photographs to confirm or revise our initial thoughts. It was difficult, though, to tell some of the colors from just paintings or black and white photos, so I showed them how to ask Google a question with the microphone button. “What color were George Washington’s eyes?” I asked, and the answer came back: blue grey. Then the students tried it with Abraham Lincoln. We discovered that his eyes were green or grey or hazel (that type of eye color fluctuates depending on the light). We already knew that Abraham Lincoln sported a beard, but we learned that George Washington had light brown or reddish hair, and powdered it so it appeared white (it was a military thing, like a modern day buzz cut). As we looked at the different websites in our research, I explained that some sites are reliable, and some are not. I pointed out that anyone can make a website, in fact, they will be making a sort-of website today, actually. Our website won’t be reliable since we are not professionals, but websites like encyclopedias or museums or scientific organizations are usually reliable, especially when they agree with each other. Now that we had our facts, we went to ABCYa! Storymaker to paint our portraits. The students had already practiced drawing on the computer this year, so that part didn’t take too long. It was a perfect time to teach some typing skills. Storymaker makes typing seem easy and familiar by including elementary lined paper (press the yellow button on the right). I showed the students how to use Shift to make an uppercase letter, and we typed the presidents’ first names. Finally, we exported our pictures and shared them on a Padlet, which is their own “sort-of” website that Ms. Gouldman can send home to parents.


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Feb 21 2018 February 21, 2018 June 19, 2018 NoComment by David

5th Grade Physical & Chemical Changes

Posted in 5th Grade, Science

Fifth graders at Laburnum Elementary have been learning about how matter can change physically or chemically (SOL5.6), so today, students in Ms. Hall’s class created animations to illustrate some of these changes. First, we reviewed the differences between physical and chemical changes and looked at some examples. Then, the students chose a type of change they wanted to animate, and I explained how to download a suitable background image with a Google image search. Next, we went to ABCYa!Animate to create our animations. We clicked the “Edit Background” button and uploaded our background image. Then, we used the paint tools or the image library to create our first frame. I demonstrated how to copy the frame and make small changes in each subsequent frame so that when they press “Play,” it shows matter changing over time. When we were finished, we exported our animations as .gif files and shared them on Schoology. You can see them all here.


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Feb 21 2018 February 21, 2018 June 12, 2018 NoComment by David

4th Grade Social Studies Videos

Posted in 4th Grade, Social Studies

Fourth graders at Laburnum Elementary have been reviewing the regions of Virginia (VS.2b) and famous people from the Civil War era (VS.7c), so today Ms. Mayer’s class created Social Studies videos on these topics to help them review. First, they chose a partner to work with and decided together on a Virginia region or a Civil War person to research. Next, we spent a few minutes looking over our notes and finding information online to share. I showed them how to download and save online images about their topic to use in their video. Then we logged into WeVideo to begin making our movies. WeVideo starts out in Timeline mode, which is a little complicated, so we switched to the simplified Storyboard Mode (click the three lines in the top left). Storyboard Mode already has a Title page set up in the timeline. We clicked the Edit icon on the Title page and typed our title, remembering to use capital letters. Now it was time to record our intro. I guided them through the process of installing the webcam extension and modeled how to record an effective intro (speak loudly with enthusiasm while stating your names and your topic). After the students had recorded themselves, we uploaded the pictures we had saved and dragged them into the movie timeline. The students planned what they would say about each image, but before they recorded their voiceover, they chose their Theme by clicking the magic wand icon. I found that it is helpful to choose the theme before recording the voiceover because the theme sometimes changes the duration of the video. Just be sure to mute the audio while recording the voiceover so it’s not playing while you are recording. The students recorded their voiceovers, providing facts about each picture. Finally we published our videos and shared the links on Schoology. You can see them all here.


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Feb 13 2018 February 13, 2018 May 16, 2018 NoComment by David

2nd Grade 3-D Habitats

Posted in 2nd Grade, Science

Second graders at Holladay Elementary have been learning about animal habitats (SOL2.5b), so today, students in Ms. Brown’s class used CoSpaces to create 3-D models of different habitats. First we reviewed the habitats they have studied (desert, woodlands, grasslands, ocean, arctic, etc.), and they chose one they wanted to illustrate. Next, we went to CoSpaces, logged in with our Google accounts, created a new space, and chose an image from the Environment library that resembled our habitat. Then, the students needed to find plants and animals from the Objects library that would live in their environment. There are plenty of models to choose from, but students could also design their own using the 3-D shapes. I showed them how right clicking on an object presents a menu they can use to change its color, size and position. They clicked the speech bubble icon on one of the animals and wrote a complete sentence about that animal and its habitat. Finally, we published our model and shared the link with our classmates on Schoology. You can see them all here. v


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Feb 12 2018 February 12, 2018 June 7, 2018 NoComment by David

5th Grade Science Review Comics

Posted in 5th Grade, Language Arts, Science

Fifth graders at Trevvett Elementary have been reviewing various science topics in preparation for Benchmark testing. A fun way to review is to make a comic study guide. Today students in Ms. Capano’s class used StoryboardThat to make comics about science topics of their choice. First, we reviewed the units they have been studying, such as rocks (SOL5.7), oceans (SOL5.6), and cells (SOL5.5). Then, they selected an idea they were interested in and went to StoryboardThat where they chose background scenes to best represent that topic. I showed them how they could use the “Edit Scene” button to change its weather or appearance. Next we clicked the Characters tab at the top and added people or animals. They could customize the characters as well by clicking the “Edit Pose” button. Finally, we added speech bubbles with the Textables tab. The students wrote complete sentences providing facts and information for review. Many of them even added bold or highlighted words, which they’ve learned are text features of nonfiction (SOL5.6a). In order to save and share our comics, we took screenshots and posted them to Schoology. You can see them all here.


Feb 12 2018 February 12, 2018 May 25, 2018 NoComment by David

2nd Grade Famous Americans eBook

Posted in 2nd Grade, Language Arts, Social Studies

Second graders at Trevvett Elementary have been learning about famous Americans: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Susan B. Anthony, Helen Keller, Jackie Robinson, and Martin Luther King, Jr. (SOL2.11). Today, students in Ms. Fletcher’s class created an eBook (electronic book) about all of them. First, we reviewed the famous Americans, and they chose one whom they found most interesting. Then we spent about five minutes researching the person’s contributions. Students could use their notes, classroom posters, or a quick Google search to find relevant facts. Next, we logged into BookCreator using a class code. I showed them how to create a new book and customize the cover. We changed its color, typed a title (remembering to use uppercase letters), and added a photo of the person using the built-in Google image safe search. On the following page we recorded a video of ourselves telling about the famous American’s accomplishments. Although video is a fantastic feature of eBooks, I’ve found that it doesn’t work well in BookCreator. The videos just seem to load and load and load… and never play. Be aware of that issue if you try it with your class. On the last page we typed a complete sentence about our person and used the drawing tools to draw a picture of them. Finally, I combined all the students’ individual books together into one big book. You can read it here. Be sure to check out BookCreator’s newest feature, “Read Aloud.” When you press the button, a computerized voice will read the book aloud. It’s a great way for students to recognize spelling and grammar mistakes.


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