I am always trying to plan technology lessons that expose students to something new, challenging, and relevant long after our class time together. This week for K-4 we Built With Chrome. This great project between Google and Lego is one that can be used in so many ways, so I wanted students to have this experience this week. I had a feeling the Legos would be a hit, but what I didn’t account for was how fascinated each class would be with Google Maps. We had conversations about geography and map skills that I never planned to have, but they sure where great. I sometimes forget that things I expose my own kids to, other kids may have not experience with. For many of the students I saw this week, Google Maps was fascinating because they had no idea such a thing existed. Many of them wanted to build where they had lived previously, where family members lived, and my little ones wanted to go to the “white place” where Santa, or the penguins lived! Several of my students have families with European or South American descent, and this was an opportunity for them to see where their families came from! These very unplanned leaning moments were the best part of the week!

While Google Maps were a hit… they were also pretty excited about those Lego bricks! Watching students build was a window into who they were. I saw creativity, detail, and patience in kids I have never seen before. I observed those who would start on a task, and 30 minutes later be adding the last perfect detail, as well as kids who looked at others work, compared themselves, and wanted to completely start over.  I watched students show grit and determination, and that was pretty great to watch!

 

While both Google Maps and Lego Bricks made the week, often the bigger picture is the real win. This week I stepped back and realized that for the first time this year, most of the classes were showing independence and collaboration. Instead of having everyone asking me for help, they asked each other. It was such a great observation for me. While not everyone would walk into my room and see kids “playing” with Legos online as learning, I could debate that opinion on so many levels. Every time students come into my room and are exposed to a new digital creation tool, they are also getting additional exposure to the online environment, online tools, and online vocabulary. We all know that so many of these things consistently overlap online. Each of these experiences helps me to build a school full of independent digital creators, not just digital consumers!

So with that week in the books, I have the next two weeks to plan our next big adventure. I have a pretty good idea where I want to go with my big kids already. I am so thankful for these days. While I am truly exhausted after teaching 750 kids in 5 days, the reflection makes me realize it is all worth it.