Are you looking for something to do at the end of the year that is fun and creative, but still rigorous? Then it's time to break out the Ozobots!
The 5th graders have worked with Ozobots before, so at the end of the year, we asked them to create a game for the kindergarten and first graders to play on the last days of school using the Ozobots. We started with the Engineering Design Process.
They had to think about their audience and ASK themselves what would kindergartners and first graders like? It needed to be interactive and give the kindergartners and first graders ideas for developing their own game after playing the 5th graders' game.
Then they had to IMAGINE what the parameters or rules of the game might be, create a PLAN for their design, then CREATE it!. Next, they had to play their own game to see if it worked or if they needed to make improvements. The things they came up with were so creative!
They created mazes:
They created races:
Dance competitions:
And magic 8 ball-type games:
They had many more ideas that were better than what I had thought of, and the first graders and kindergarteners loved playing the 5th graders games on the last few days of school!
Next time, I will make my own improvements to this lesson by giving the 5th graders more time to work on their games, test it out on their audience, make improvements after they see how it goes with the kindergartners and first graders, then make improvements again. That would also give our primary students time to play these games, then try to create their own game based on their favorites. I can't wait to do this with students again!
Good luck on your last days of school!
Em, I am always in awe of the activities you come up with; and the target ages! By teaching 5th graders to LEARN, THINK, CARE and TEACH 1st graders, gives this exercise a fourfold purpose:
ReplyDelete1.) LEARNing technology
2.) THINKing about others
3.) CAREing about others
3.) TEACHing what they've learned to others, which reinforces the lesson.
I have no doubt that you have inspired some to continue in the teaching field, too!