Icebreaker... Three P's

 I don't know about you, but first days of school are long and often boring. Though I do try to avoid spending most of the time on procedures or rules, I also realize (as an introvert) that asking me to stand up and talk about my summer is ABSOLUTELY not something I want to do. I don't care to hear that you went to Europe or hiked to the top of Pike's Peak. I watched Netflix, so thanks. :)

So, with that in mind, I often try to do icebreaker activities in smaller groups and in a way that isn't going to upset my introverts too much. 

Here's one that I think might work well from Tophat.com that I created a document to go with--

Divide students into small groups, and have them share three facts about themselves: something personal, something professional and something peculiar, such as an interesting hobby or habit. 

A few little pieces of advice:

• Always ask students to say their own names on day 1 (so you don't butcher them AND so they have a better opportunity to let you know what they go by-- so you aren't calling someone Alexandria when she prefers Lex!) and have a seating chart so they know where to sit (this prevents shy kids from feeling like they have no friends and avoids cliques from sitting in groups). I usually just say, "Okay, let's see if you found the right seats..."
• If you do a sharing activity, divide them into small groups and let them share in a little group rather than a big class forum. Then, you can collect the papers and review them on your own (I think it's nice to collect them after giving a little "work and small share time" and then ask if they want to share something they learned from someone else and you can make notes on the papers while they do. 

Here's my "worksheet" for the activity. Feel free to make a copy of your own!

Icebreaker fun! The NUMBERS game!

 It's early summer but I am already on the hunt for ideas for back to school (it's a given when you have 6 preps in one semester and you refuse to repeat activities since some kids may take you multiple classes per day!). 

I ran across this fun idea today, the Numbers game! Here's the YouTube video and then my suggestions.

I love the idea of getting students UP and MOVING. I think week 1, this is important. This is also a great activity for getting them to have to work with others (without them even realizing it because it all moves so quickly). 

So, the guy in the video just has them doing arbitrary numbers, but as a business teacher, I thought... come on, how can we make this a little more "interesting" and so here is my take!

• I may not have 20 or 30 (or exactly that number, rather) kids in a class... so I think setting this up with maybe smaller group numbers would be easier. You might have to have a person in the group who does not have a number and helps put them in order OR you could have a number that repeats (like zero) and have multiple of that one.
• Price is Right style-->
• Go on Amazon or get out the local grocery store ad and use prices of items
• If someone is correct, they win... or you can give them so much time and then pick who is closest to award points OR you could say that this team is closest and the answer is higher or lower or whatever
• "When Did It Happen" style-->
• I found this webpage from Information Age with key events in the story of technology and this one from LiveScience with Internet History. You could use dates for all answers (4 digit years)... granted, many of these will have a 1, 9, or a 2 in them... but it would be a race to guess correctly AND you can relate it to tech!
• Examples:
• 1832: Charles Babbage invents the first Computer.
• 1904: John Ambrose Fleming invents the vacuum tube.
• 1936: Alan Turing proposes what has become known as the Turing Machine.
• 1976: Queen Elizabeth II hits the “send button” on her first email.
• 1981: IBM invents the PC.
• 1983: The Domain Name System (DNS) establishes the familiar .edu, .gov, .com, .mil, .org, .net, and .int system for naming websites.
• 1991: CERN introduces the World Wide Web to the public.
• 1995: The first online dating site, Match.com, launches.
• 1997: Netflix is founded by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph as a company that sends users DVDs by mail.
• 1998: The Google search engine is born, changing the way users engage with the Internet.
• 2003: The blog publishing platform WordPress is launched.
• 2005: YouTube.com launches. The social news site Reddit is also founded. 
• 2007: Apple releases the iPhone.
• Get to Know Mr/Mrs style-->
• Honestly, I'd embed this in the other games, but you could have a few just fun facts about you to help them get to know you... like the year you got married, graduated high school, turned 40, got your first car... 

What do you think? I am excited to try this one out in the fall. Heck, this might even be fun in an adult leadership retreat or conference!

Google School? Advisory? Read on....

We have Advisory where we get kiddos when they start high school and have them daily until they graduate. When I had a new group coming in last year, I sent them all an email before school started to give them a heads-up (also emailed parents) about my room, where it was, and my profile. Then, they started on their profile. Some did it in advance, others did not, but I gave them time during the first week to add to it as they wanted. Then, I had them update it at Christmas and again at the end of the school year.

I really like having all of this info!

Anyway, watch my video and learn about it...

And here's a copy for you! Feel free to modify as you see fit (click File> Make a Copy).

Making a FUN Syllabus... sorta. :)

I've used numerous online tools to create my course syllabi over the years. Back in the day, we had to print them and send them home (I think we even had to get them signed!) but nowadays, a visual syllabus posted to a course website generally will suffice. But, they sure can be boring!

Over time, I have decided a syllabus should be an overview of the course, not a list of do's and don'ts (some of my college syllabi were 5 pages long!). I don't think it's a place for all the rules or a restatement of school policies. I think it should include some degree of expectations, what is needed for success in the course, and what the learning outcomes are. But, some schools may require specific information that you have to include.

In the past, I used Piktochart, and it's great. But, you are limited to 5 documents (so... I might have two accounts, one with my personal email and one with my school one).

This year, I picked up a new course (Business Law) so I decided to create a syllabus in Google Slides. You can check it out below or view it here (and feel free to File> Make a Copy and edit if you want to use it as a template for your own). I started by downloading a template from Showeet because they had some nice "techy" artwork.



I did use Piktochart to create an About Me page to post in the room and on my Canvas page for the students to learn more about me (I love their infographic options and clipart icon gallery that is built-in). I think it's important to give students some background information so they can better relate to me when school starts. Here it is (their site provides an embed code and I embed it on my class page like this, too):

I hope this is helpful!

Going Fishing at School... icebreaker!

I'm knee deep in curriculum development today and ran across a "fun" little "go fish" activity from We Are Teachers. Go check it out there! You can even download a template and create your own. Here's mine:  (PDF)

I'm gonna go pick up some tree limbs (maybe.. or maybe I'll buy some sticks...lol), grab some string, get some magnets and let the kids get in groups and fish for questions. Students struggle making conversations, so my rule will be that you:

1. Get in groups of 5 (I think that's a good size).
2. Dump the fish in the sea (I had to decide whether I want to put them in something so it's more random or let them see the colors so they can somewhat pick the fish... decided on the latter so my shy people would feel some element of control over the questions). 
3. Take turns fishing. After you fish, you read the question out loud and answer it. Then, at least two people in the group (you could make rules about who... like the person to the left and the right of you, for example) have to ask a follow-up question and you have to respond. 

Looking forward to seeing how this goes over and hoping no one gets "seasick."  :) he he

Gallery Walk for Classroom Procedures! #firstday

I'm sure you have heard of the Gallery Walk instructional strategy. This year, instead of talking for an hour or more, I decided to use this as a strategy for covering some of my first few days "things" in my classroom. I generally like to go over my classroom procedures, which are a big thing for me (thanks, Harry Wong!) and have students complete a notes sheet that they keep for reference all semester. Further, I have a class "map" that is on the back where they identify where the various things are in my classroom (handouts, passes, makeup work, where to turn in work, staplers, printers, cameras, extra pencils, etc.).

This year, I decided not to talk, other than informal conversations. I put on music, let them pick partners, and gave them the notes sheet and map sheet. To prepare the room, I printed my PowerPoint that I would typically go over and hung the slides up (in random order) all over the room. I also put more noticeable labels and arrows pointing to the items from the class map (and I'll leave those labels up all year, but not the slides).  So, they walked around freely and helped each other locate all the information, scavenger hunt style. Occasionally, I'd yell "freeze" and they had to go find someone they didn't know and introduce themselves. It worked pretty well. They were up and moving, engaged, and no zoning out while I talked and talked.

I think next semester, I might hide some "easter eggs" (as they call them) maybe in the form of QR codes or something with some fun information. It worked pretty well, though, and I didn't end the first week with a sore throat. WIN! :) Hope your first days were (or will be) great!

ADDED 8/17: Here is my PowerPoint, since a few of you asked!

Piktochart for a Syllabus? Why not!? #firstday

We had our first teacher meetings for the new school year today, so I am spending the afternoon in my room trying to revise (or put a little life into) my course syllabi. I saw someone (not sure who...sorry!) had shared a syllabus they create in Piktochart online, a free tool for creating infographics. I figured I'd try it myself! Check it out. What do you think?


I had an account on this for awhile, but hadn't really used it. There are few free templates, so I had to delete several 'blocks' on the template and edit it a bit, but there are many icons built in and it was easy to use. You can't underline and you can't change font or size in the same text box, so it's pretty simplistic, but I like the layout and think it looks pretty cool. You can download the finished design as a PNG or JPG or it gives a direct link and embed code (like I used above).
Direct link-- https://magic.piktochart.com/output/7286124-adv-ca-syllabus-2015

#freebie #busedu Back2School Web Design Class PowerPoint

Today, I decided to revamp my Web Design PowerPoint a bit. This is mostly what I did last year with minor modification. So, sharing with all of you. Here it is and you can feel free to modify and use if it works for you or just use it for some inspiration.

I start off this class like the others with some basic need to know stuff before this PowerPoint. Then, I begin taking about how helpful taking a coding class, as we are heavy HTML/CSS coding in my class, can be for them.

For our "fun stuff" we do two activities:

• What Animal Are You? Online Quiz



• They take the quiz online (it's 21 multiple choice questions) and then get up and put their name in the box on the wall of the animal that was revealed to them. 
• Then, they share with their neighbors whether they agree or disagree with the results. They can chat quietly and get to know about each other's personalities a bit this way while others are finishing up. 
• Sometimes, if there is time, I will have them get into their animal groups. If I was feeling goofy, I might provide masks of each animal... but my school frowns on masks. :)
• Common Denominator
  I made this up a few years ago and I have one big rule (that they don't know)--all of the boxes describe me! My daughter suggested I make all of mine be about summer this year, so that's what they are if you click the link above, but previously, I used this one which was more general:
  
• Oh, grayed out (the final slide) is a "placemat" activity I keep as a "just in case" activity to help them get to know each other. I didn't need it last year, but you can read about it. Sometimes, high school kids like to get out the crayons, too! And, I have them brainstorm terms associated with web design, so it gives me a picture of what they might already know. You could even use it to open day 2.

So, there you have it! That's what we start with in Web Design. If you teach the class and have ideas for any fun activities, please share! And, if you use any of the resources, would you leave me a comment? I prefer to upload these to Teachers Pay Teachers to make it easier to track how many people download, but since these are pretty specific "computer education" stuff, I figured I'd just link them from my OneDrive here.

Happy class planning!

#freebie Back2School Photoshop Class...First Day PPT!

I'm about to head home for the day, but I spent a good while working on a first day PowerPoint for Photoshop class (and I tend to overplan, so the character quiz might go to day 2).

Many sources say that the first day should be interesting and provide a hook to want them to come back. And, they should learn a little about the class, but not heavy on rules and procedures. So, I begin with a "need to know" PowerPoint (which I am not including here) that takes a few minutes in each class. Then, we dive into deciding if this class is a match for them or not and answering the most common questions.

Thus, this Powerpoint (feel free to download if you teach a graphics class).  I start with a fun game of "Photoshop or Nah." They will find a partner during a short game show musical interlude and then each group will be given a paddle with yes on one side and no on the other. I have a few "before" and "after" Photoshop images (well, some aren't Photoshopped) to show them. They will collectively decide whether they think it is or not and then I'll ask for answers all at the same time and reveal the truth.

Next, I go over the reasons you should or should not take my class (good thing I'm an elective, huh?). I hit a few important details (required SD card, grading schema, common questions) as well.

Then, I dive into showing examples of work from previous years and talk about some projects briefly. Projects vary from semester to semester, of course.

Lastly, if there is time, we do a "Cartoon Character" game where they each write down answers to a 10 question quiz and figure out which character they are. Then, they will write their name on a big poster I have under the character they are!

Hey, that's a fun first day, right!? :) Let's hope. Of course, that's just Photoshop. Three more classes to prepare.... but going home!