Giving Technology a Reason

Since the beginning of the school year I've been continuing my adventure with an amazing class of technological enthused children - they've taught me so much.  It has been a blessing having the same children again this year as it has meant I can build an everything I did last year.

I've been striving to make sure that the children have real connected purposes for learning in our classroom again this year.  Linking as many skills from as many subjects in one project is so very important.  I feel this is essential for learning in every classroom, whether in Primary or Secondary schools.  

Children need to see the point of learning these skills - "what are people using these skills for right now in the world and what can I use them for?"

Thinking more about the outcome and then working backwards to find the skills needed is something we need to do more in our schools.  Don't runin the surprise for the children, allow it to be a a surprise.

Don't start with a learning objective, start with a question and see where is leads.  

So what have we done so far?

I started the year with the children getting enthusiastic on Edmodo and starting to suggest ways in which we could use Minecraft in school - read about it here. Well the child who suggested the Science investigation has completed his findings and has been sharing his learning on Edmodo for the class to see.

It was great watching him carry out his investigation in class as he'd planned it and was so very excited to do it.  It was pleasing to see how he'd thought it through and planned to use his findings to help him in the game.

We predicted that the diamond sword was going to be the quickest, but I asked him for evidence and he provided it by following a scientific investigation.  

He used the techniques we'd learned in school to plan and carry out his investigation. A true test of application of skills.  To add to this he even published his results using a bar graph - a good use of his maths skills.  If you're interested or you have any 7 year olds who are, here are his results:

I've no idea why he chose 28 cobblestone blocks, but crucially he kept it fair.  

Added to this, he was using a stopwatch on his iPad to time the experiment to two decimal places, "just in case it's really close."

He is planning other experiments as we speak!

Using Minecraft allowed him to carry out a real life investigation using the skills he'd learned to solve a problem that he was interested in. He wanted to find out once and for all which was the best pickaxe.  We now have the scientific proof that a diamond pickaxe is better at mining cobblestone in Minecraft.

Area and Perimeter: Using Minecraft

We started to investigate Area and Perimeter in mathematics this week, built on the idea that architects need to use this information to build our houses and schools. 

The children wanted to know how buildings were constructed and how their homes had been designed.  What did those designs look like?

Building on from this question, we started to think about why are kitchens are one size, but bedrooms and gardens are another size.  Using Minecraft and the idea that a bed takes two blocks, we could start planning room sizes in creative mode.

We used the blocks to calculate the area of the rooms we built by counting the blocks, a simple but effective way to calculate the area of a shape.  We then quickly made the leap into making our calculating more efficient by thinking about how arrays worked and how we could multiply the length by the width to find the area.  

We moved onto splitting irregular shapes into two or three shapes and used different coloured block to calculate.

The children then took this 'playing' into their maths books and demonstrated a clear understanding of how to find the area of regular and irregular shapes following a formula they'd discovered.

Makey Makey, Circuit World and Building Traction Cities.

Looking at the buildings we live in we wondered how the electricity moved around our homes and schools. Investigations into circuits and switches was needed. We started by researching circuits. Using our flipped learning model I posted a link on Edmodo and the children used the website to learn. They brought their thoughts and ideas to school and we started to discuss what we could use this learning for.

We had already planned to design and build Traction Cities from the book Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve.  Why couldn't they move?  Well, actually why couldn't we make them move?

The children could not be more excited! They had a reason to learn.  We began using an online circuit design application to try and test our circuits. This proved to be a master stroke, as any primary teacher knows that the electricity box form the cupboard only contains dead batteries, stripped wires and rattling bulbs.

Have a look at it here - Circuit World  It really could be used by children in the early years, thanks to the friendly symbols.  

The children started to design their own circuits for their traction city motor and tested them using the website.  We then took those working circuits and built them using wires, wheels and motors.

We have almost finished building our models and we will then work out how to attach the models to them.  This process has been a great learning opportunity as the children have failed at so many points and had to adapt their ideas and designs.

By flipping my classroom I was able to spend more time applying the knowledge the children acquired  outside the classroom. Without this model we would have needed to spend more time researching the knowledge behind these circuits and spent less time designing, building, failing and adapting.

On top of this I had one child who worked at home and produced their own video based on the idea of conductors and insulators.  They even made a digital clock work using a lemon and some zinc.  How inspiring is that!

Makey Makey: Circuits to control computers.

We've not done massive amounts with Makey Makey yet, but we've had a play whilst we were investigating circuits.  The children have built a Pear Piano and used pencil and paper to control the games they've been designing using Scratch.

We plan on developing this more after half term by using it to control the games they've been designing - read about those games Making Coding Relevant 

They are wondering if they can design a control system using their feet, basically jumping on pieces of tinfoil as it conducts electricity - good links with the circuit work we've done. 

I really like Makey Makey, it's again another piece of kit that encourages children to design, fail, and improve their thoughts and ideas.  It'll be something I will be investing lots of time in over the next school year.


What's next for the digital natives?

After half term the children will be researching a city of their choice (flipped model at home) and then writing travel guides to them in class.  We'll then use those guides to publish a travel guide app on the app store and google play, so the whole world can use them.  I wonder how many downloads we could get? I wonder if we can advertise it anywhere to boost downloads?  

The children have a purpose to do this, it's a real life task. People are doing this right now across the world. Why can't these children learn this process now?  So look out for the Travel Guide in the app store before Christmas.

What have I been up to and what's next for me?

I'm really proud that article I wrote on my Flipped Classroom has been published and is now available from The Teaching Times Website - here

I've submitted my article for Teach Primary and it'll be available in shops in November so look out for it on your staff room tables.  I've written about flipping Art and English lessons in Primary Schools.

I'm also hosting training sessions in December and March for Subject Support. You can find out more here

I've been invited to present at The BETT show 2015.  I'll be presenting Pause, Rewind My Teacher: Primary Flipped Learning at 10.00-10:45 on Saturday 24th January - see you all there!

I've also been invited to present at The Digital Education Show in London on Tuesday 30th June alongside some great names like Sir Ken Robinson, Sugata Mitra and many others - Find out more.


Keep following on Twitter @chriswaterworth

Six steps to setting up your Flipped Classroom

So you've read all about it, you've got all excited and can see the benefits to flipping your classroom and you're ready to get started.  I've been asked a few times, "what is the best way to get started when flipping your classroom?"

Here we go then, a short, to the point guide to setting up your own flipped classroom.

Step 1: Decide which technology you will use.

Whether you use a low tech or high tech approach, choose something that suits you and your students.  You must feel comfortable with what you’re using.  You really don’t want to be spending hours editing video and getting frustrated, when a hand written example could do the job. 

If you are creating videos, keep it short and to the point.  Don’t expect your students to sit through a 45-minute video if you wouldn’t.

Step 2: Decide where you are going to upload your videos?  How do my students access them?

Again, find something that suits you and your students. You could simply upload to YouTube or Vimeo and give the students a link to the video or host them on a social media site like Twitter, FaceBook, Showbie or Edmodo. 

Personally, I upload my videos to YouTube as it available everywhere and on every device.  I then post the link on our class Edmodo page so everyone can comment and share thoughts and ideas – start the learning before school starts.

Bottom line - make sure your videos can be accessed on multiple devices. Can everybody access your videos on a smartphone, tablet or laptop?

Step 3: Start making your videos

Your videos need to be short, to the point and entertaining. Don’t spend huge amounts of time editing, refining and adding in fancy transitions – You’re the entertainment. 

If you don’t want to perform on video, use screen-casting applications like Explain Everything, Vittle or QuickTime.  They record your movements on screen and your narration. Ask questions during the video, encourage your students to pause and have a go, and then check the answer. 

Finally, decide how long you want your videos to be, longer videos for older students and shorter for younger.

Step 4: Introduce the concept to your students and parents

You really need to spend time on this part. Maybe use a detailed letter home, hold a presentation evening, but ultimately make sure you keep all stakeholders in the loop.  Be honest and clear with everyone – this is why I’m doing this.

Spend a session with your students teaching them how to watch a video, make notes and write down next steps. Model the whole process for them, sell the concept and make it exciting.

Step 5: Make sure everyone has watched the videos

There are a few ways to make sure your students have watched the videos and you need to find a way that you feel comfortable with.  Give the children a sheet to complete their notes on to bring to the next session, detailing what they learned and their next steps.

You could use a simple quiz at the start of the session to ascertain if your students have watched and understood the content of the video.  None of these are fool proof, but it gives you an idea of who’s completed their pre-learning.

You are aiming for the children to feel accountable and ultimately be independent learners in time. They will see the benefit of flipped learning soon enough.

Step 6: Keep going and don’t give up!

Flipped learning takes time to embed in the classroom, but don’t give up. It will be hugely beneficial when it is fully embedded in your classroom and will give you more time with your students to push them further in their learning.

Using videos will enable students to view or review a piece of learning at anytime and anywhere.  Students, parents and teacher will be put on a level playing field every time you put a video online. 

Have a go, try to flip one lesson, one subject or one class for a term and see what the impact has been on you and your students.  Remember you are still the biggest resource for the children and by using this approach you are giving them more access to you.

Good luck.

Twitter: @chriswaterworth

Website: http://videoformyclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/

Scratch: How can we be creative with coding?

Well, we're all back at school and love it or hate it programming is a part of the new National Curriculum that we're all going to have to deal with at some point.  We need to look at coding from the point of view of the children; they have no fear. They really don't, it's just learning a new language on a device that they are comfortable with because the technology has always been there for them.

So how do we get the children onboard?

Great Cities, but not great air - topic plan 

This term WE have planned (the children and I) to use a picture from the photographer Yann Arthus Bertrand as the creative spark for our learning this term.  http://www.yannarthusbertrand.org/

We looked at one of his photographs of Paris titled, 'Great Cities, but not great air' and had a whole morning to plan together as a class on Move Up Day.  The children were magnificent and as we travelled through the questions and discussions we realised how much learning we could get from a single photograph.  This is the plan we put together as a class. 

I gave the children the the book Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve as it is based on the city of London in the distant future when the world looks very different. It is a stunning read, have a look here - http://www.philip-reeve.com/mortalengines.html

How did we link coding to the book Mortal Engines?

Again, the children had the idea - the best ones usually come from the children!  I was lucky to follow my technology enthused class into Year 4 this year, something I've been excited about all summer. I didn't need to get to know them and I could hit the ground running.  

The children had spent hours in class, at home and at coding club after school learning how to code using Scratch.  Find out more - http://scratch.mit.edu/  I have blogged a few times about how this current class got started and how they ran their own CPD for the staff after school - Children as Teachers. They were already coding, so we needed am ongoing project that they could get their coding teeth into.

Philip Reeve- Mortal Engines

After reading the opening to the book the children were inspired - it really is that good of an opening!  The illustrations helped to bring the opening to life for some children and then came the idea!

"Why don't we create a hunting game? The game will involve London travelling around the dead North Sea collecting larger and larger cities."  This conversation created their learning for the foreseeable future. 

So where did the children begin? How did they spread the work? How did they decide who they wanted to create their games with?

The Software Companies Were Born.

The children decided that they wanted to build the games together in small groups to spread the workload.  They decided they need one person for the backgrounds, one for the sprites and as a group they would code the game.  I liked this way of working as each child could bring something to their game, whether it be a design of a sprite or writing lines of code.

I gave each group a huge piece of paper to help them organise their thoughts. Immediately the classroom was alive with discussion about code, designing levels, sprites and bonus levels.  We hadn't even got a MacBook out yet!

This planning stage proved crucial and a master stroke as the children were able to verbalise and plan their games without just 'making it up as they went along.'

Their planning was very creative. The levels were well thought out and the sprites and backgrounds were coming together nicely.  When should I let them code?  I decided that the children needed to present their ideas to the rest of the class before allowing them to start coding the game. 

When the children presented their ideas, they were not only sharing, they were gathering more information from the rest of the class about how to develop their games further.  When the groups, sorry software companies, were happy they asked for a MacBook.

Bring out the MacBooks: Time to Code?

The children created their own log ins for their software companies, so they could collaborate in school and at home. This is something I encouraged the children to do using Edmodo. It was a way to share thoughts and ideas when they were not in school coding together.   I liked this idea as it is something that happens in the real world in software companies around the world.  They bounce ideas around the company, even when they are not in the office. Real life skills.

A week later I received a few notifications on Edmodo from some of the children in my class, they had something to share....

Here you can see the design and the first screenshot from one of the software companies - Mortal Rush. I could share a few more, but I'm sure this does the job.

I was so excited, I loved the graphics, I loved the name of the company and I loved that I could follow a link to the opening scenes of the game.  The children were hooked.  Some of the screenshots that I've got looked so much like the games you would download on mobile devices, clearly they'd been influenced by them.

They are a long way of completing, but this is a good thing in a world were instant gratification is rife.  The children will need to work hard to accomplish their goals and fail plenty of times along the way. You need to learn from your mistakes whilst coding, it what makes you a great coder.

I haven't told the children this yet, but they will be designing their own controllers using Makey Makey and packaging the whole thing together.  We are then going to be creating websites or wiki guides for the games, just like Minecraft fans do.  HUGE potential for the rest of the year.  I wonder if we could export it and sell them on the App Store?

Why did the children buy into this so much?

I've thought about this over the last week and come to the conclusion that because I had given them freedom to design whatever they wanted to they felt as though they couldn't get it wrong.  The children also saw the relevance of the coding - they had a reason to create this game because they were so invested in the book.  

We all know that the application of skills is much more exciting than learning very specific skills and this is why they are enjoying this project so much.  This week we will be sharing any problems we have with each other and working as bigger teams to sort the coding problems - social learning CAN happen with computers.

Think about the links to other curriculum areas when creating something on Scratch. Art: Sprite, background and text graphic design. PSHE: The collaboration needed to get a company working. Maths: Coding is full of maths, just look carefully. English: Knowing the story for the game in detail and presentation skills.  I really could go on, but you can see the power of being creative with your planning can really bring the curriculum alive.  

The next time you plan your coding sessions in school, try to balance skill with application and link it to your current topics in class.  Coding is incredibly fun and rewarding when you see the relevance to it - the same with anything.  Give the children some freedom and allow them to work in teams to code. It's so much better to code in teams than on you own.

What next for me?

I'm really proud that the article I wrote on my Flipped Classroom has been published and will be available from September. It also made the front cover! 

You can subscribe or download the article from The Teaching Times website - here

I've also been asked to write an article for Teach Primary on Flipped Learning that should be out in October, so keep an eye on your staffroom tables!

I've also been asked by Subject Support to run two, one hour online training sessions in December and March with an emphasis on setting up your own flipped classrooms. You can find out more about this  - here

I'm going to be doing a few workshops for ITS Learning this year, one in London, one in the North West and an online sessions that will be broadcast live from a fabulous location.

I've also applied to speak at BETT 2015 about my journey into flipping my primary classroom.  I'm really hoping to do this and share my story with people in person. 

Follow me on Twitter @chriswaterworth

MinecraftEDU - What do the children think we could use it for?

MinecraftEDU - What do the children think we could use it for?

Well the new school year is just around the corner and I'm thoroughly excited to be getting back into the swing off things. Well, I'm sure I could manage just one more week at home or one more round of golf, but good things have to come to an end. 

MinecraftEDU - Can it work in school?

I've being playing around with the idea of using MinecraftEDU in school for a while now and this term I'm finally going to start crafting in class. But how can it inspire my children to create, test, explain, solve problems and work collaboratively? 

I'm lucky to have a 7 year old son at home who has started this journey with me this summer and together we've come up with some super ideas for how we could use Minecraft at school.

I managed to survive my first night on Survival mode and I'm now the proud owner of several diamonds, crafted myself a diamond sword (my son was very jealous), but I did unfortunately die when lava well on my head - don't mine vertically, lesson learned.  Here are a couple of screenshots that I'm proud of - the creepers can't get inside!

My Crafting Room

Creepers and Zombies Keep Out!

I started to research the use of Minecraft in classrooms and came across a couple of excellent articles and presentations to really get me excited. 

This presentation from HomeSchoolers.org gives you a quick overview of what MinecraftEDU can be used for in the classroom.

Crafted: Is MInecraft the Ultimate Educational Tool? - Download  It's a big file, so give it time, but worth the wait to give you a quick overview.

MInecraftEDU - The website is a great place for information and has a really active community, with a great Twitter feed on the homepage to give you even more links.

There is a great video to watch on there as well, which will get you very excited about the prospect of using MInecraft in the classroom.  Visit the site - MinecraftEDU

So what do the children in my class think? I'll ask them!

Well it's 31st August and the children are not even back at school until 3rd September - Edmodo to the resuce!  The children are obviously streets ahead of me in terms of the game and as I've found out tonight with ideas of how to use the game!

So how best can I utilise this application in my classroom?

I've blogged about how my class uses Edmodo to create an online social learning environment and how it saves me huge amounts of time when sharing content for my flipped classroom.  I decided to post out a few screenshots and see what the children think of my ideas?  I was stunned, and at the time of writing this there are still ideas coming in!

Ideas for Minecraft using Edmodo

This is the original post on Edmodo. I showed the children what I'd been up to and asked them how we could use the game in the classroom.

I had a few ideas sent through and of course I posed questions back to the children. In true flipped learning style, the children had begun to think and learn outside the classroom.

We had ideas around map making for Geography, designing buildings for DT and Art and even a great idea for using the blocks to create graphs in Mathematics.

I loved the way the children have thought differently and it's something I've always believed in - just ask the children what they want to find out about. Teach them the skills and then watch them apply the skills and present them in an engaging way to get your message across.

The final comment that inspired me to write this blog tonight came from one chid who suggested we used Minecraft for Science. This is the conversation we had tonight.  

Ben has clearly demonstrated what he knows, and what he wants to do with it.  He's used the approaches we learned to plan scientific investigations from last year and shown me he's ready to do it himself!  I love the detail in his answers, and how clear his ideas and plans are. I can see the modelled plans we used last year being used in his head.

I've created a huge skyscraper in my classroom for the children to role play in with a few old Mac Minis in there so they can use GoogleSketchup and Minecraft when they are in role as builders, architects and designers. There is also K-Nex and Lego in there for the more hands on children. I'll post some pictures when the children finish the role play this week.  I think I might spend some time in there myself.

Just the beginning...

This really is just the beginning for me using Minecraft in the classroom and I will be learning so much from the children whilst using this application in school. I'll post more as we move through the projects.

We're reading Mortal Engines as inspiration for our topic on 'Great Cities, but not great air.' A topic the children have designed around a photograph of Paris from the air.  

I'm thinking more about Minecraft and its story writing possibilities - build a traction engine in Minecraft and write stories about its movements, survival stories, but amazingly the children will get to live those ideas in the game!

This is my overview for the half term, or term or however long it takes.  We did this together on move up day in the summer term. These are the children's thought processes; they wanted to find the answers to these questions when inspired by the photograph.

It's going to be a great term! Minecraft will hopefully be a big hit in my classroom and we'll have some creative results to share.

What next for me?

I'm really proud that the article I wrote on my Flipped Classroom has been published and will be available from September. It also made the front cover! 

You can subscribe or download the article from The Teaching Times website - here

I've also been asked to write an article for Teach Primary on Flipped Learning that should be out in October, so keep an eye on your staffroom tables!

I've also been asked by Subject Support to run two, one hour online training sessions in December and March with an emphasis on setting up your own flipped classrooms. You can find out more about this  - here

I'm going to be doing a few workshops for ITS Learning this year, one in London, one in the North West and an online sessions that will be broadcast live from a fabulous location.

I've also applied to speak at BETT 2015 about my journey into flipping my primary classroom.  I'm really hoping to do this and share my story with people in person.

It's going to be an exciting year with my amazing class, I still can't believe I get to take them into Year 4 and spend another technology filled adventure with them!

Follow me on Twitter @chriswaterworth

Reflecting Over The Last Year in my Flipped Primary Classroom

This year has been one of my most exciting, and one in which I have learned so much from, regarding the implementation of technology into my primary classroom.  Impressing Ofsted, being featured in The Guardian, holding my first Webinar for ITSLearning and having over 20,000 hits on my blog!   

So what went well, what didn't go very well and what is in store for next year?

My Flipped Classroom using Edmodo

This has been my biggest success this year without a shadow of a doubt.  It has changed the way I work day in day out in my classroom and I'm beginning to see some real impact since its implementation.  

The future is very bright for this method of learning in my classroom when combined with social media, who knows where it can take me and my class!  

It has been a superb learning adventure, one that started back in January at The BETT show and has led me to start this blog, run a Webinar, sign up to TeachMeet, and run CPD later this year.

Edmodo

This piece of FREE online software transformed my flipped classroom and you can read more about my journey - here

I'm planning on using more online collaboration, homework and involving parents with the platform - stay tuned.

Padlet - Aiding Pre-Planning

Once again Padlet has been a big hit this year for collecting and storing information and questions from the children.  It has been a superb way in helping me plan during my half term breaks without the children actually being in the classroom.

I'll certainly be using this application again next year to share thoughts, ideas, pictures, web links and much more when the children are not in the classroom.

Scratch - Computer Programming

I introduced Scratch into my Year 3 class this year with HUGE success.  The children are now freely creating and collaborating on games and animations at home and continuing them in school and at Coding club, read more here

The children used Edmodo to share and help each other by sharing screenshots of code and asking for help with ongoing coding projects -  they really are inspired.

I'm hoping to introduce Programmable Robots (no, not Roamer) next year and show the children how they can control items in the real world via computer programming.

Using videos to find next steps in PE

By using iPads and cheap handheld video cameras the children were able to film their performances and compare to professional sportsmen and women.  They could then see how they could improve further by analysing  the footage - read more here

I intend to use more social media to ask for help from coaches around the world. Watch the video - what can we do next to improve?

iBook Author and Book Creator

Giving the children an opportunity to choose how they would like to present their work led me to Book Creator.  The children used this simple iPad application to produce some of the most engaging books this year.

Being able to embed sound, images, video and text into a book has made report writing come alive this year. Get. This. App.

I'm hoping to be using iBook Author next year to create more books, but this time hopefully submit them online to be 'published.'  This will really give the children a purpose for learning.

Children running their own CPD sessions for staff on Coding

This was a stroke of genius that came to me when I was planning the second session of training on computer programming - just let the children do it!

They were magnificent. The session ran beautifully and inspired the staff to try it for themselves in their classrooms.  The children modelled different aspects of coding and answered any question the staff had when they got stuck.

Next year I will be inviting the children to run their own Coding Club for the new Year 3 class with an option for staff to drop in when they feel they need a helping hand. Coding Ambassadors.

We'll be covering video editing, music creation, coding, robotics and much more - let the CPD continue!  I'll also be getting the children to create coding guides for flipped learning to be hosted on our school website.

Blogging - Me and The Children

Blogging took off in a huge way for me. I find it great for connecting with people, being reflective about my work and a way of inspiring others to give things a try.

The children didn't share my enthusiasm. We used EduBlog and it didn't capture their imagination.  I'll be trying again this year, with a less cluttered blog. I want them to have an online Learning Journal and to show how useful it can really be.

Going forward - where do we go from here?

A question I've been asking myself over the last few weeks.  Where can I take these children now, how can I build on all the amazing things we've discovered this year? I've never had an opportunity to follow a class up into the next class, but one I am relishing.  I'm taking my current technology enthused Year 3 class into Year 4, so a lot of skill acquisition lessons can be skipped for more time experimenting and improving.

Robotics linked to Scratch

The logical next step is start building on the children's programming skills and give them a real life challenge involving robots.  Using the Vex IQ kits, I'm going to be setting the children a variety of problems linked to our book Mortal Engines.  

I asked for a demonstration at The BETT show and I was amazed to see them using Scratch to write code to control the various motors of the robot.  The children will build on their skills, I'm sure.

Minecraft EDU - Building Virtual Worlds

This has massive potential, if used carefully.  I intend to use it to link to Mortal Engines, the book that I'll be planning all our learning adventures from.  

I want the children to build virtual worlds and use them as a base for story writing, problem solving maths investigations and engineering.  I am looking forward to getting this up and running next year.  Stay tuned, this could be a HUGE hit!

Creating an Online Video Library.

One of the problems faced this year using Edmodo was when an area of learning was completed the video dropped down the timeline.

I want to create a library of videos we've used for the whole school to access, including our parents.  Having an online library available will enable all stakeholders to  access the videos, on any subject, at anytime.  Our new maths curriculum will be utilising these videos - watch this space.

Makey Makey - Building Something Purposeful

I really want to boost our DT curriculum into our computer curriculum more this year - the whole STEM curriculum is exciting me!

Our first project will be to design and build our own computer gamepad. The children will program the Makey Makey kit to control the games they've created this year on Scratch.  

I really want them to design a gamepad that the circuit board can fit into and then market the whole package, a young enterprise project linked to our maths curriculum.  I'm hoping to find a company who would let us use their 3D printer to actually build their designs - any takers?

App Designers - A Future Business.

One of things I never got around to doing this year was teaching the children how to design and create their own apps using a WSYWIG system.  

This will be how the children will be publishing  their non-chronoligcal reports next year.  Gathering information and creating a selection of information apps based around the topic they're researching.  

As we have an account with iBuild App, I really want the children to actually publish their designs to the Apple and Google stores and sell them - How's that for real life STEM!  Just think about the amount of the curriculum that could be covered in that one project - I'm excited.

And the future for me?

Well, as I said earlier I'm venturing into Year 4 and I cannot wait! I love a new challenge and it'll help keep things fresh and interesting. 

We're starting to plan in a very adventurous way next year - the children will be leading the journey, we really don't know where we are going to end up at the end of the year - it really has got me excited.  The children really will drive the adventure.  The plan is to start with the child, move out to the local area, then further afield and onto global issues.  

Hopefully over the next few weeks the article on Flipped Learning I've written for Teaching Times will be published and you can have a read on their website or magazine - another milestone achieved this year.

I've also been asked by Subject Support to run two, one hour online training sessions in December and March with an emphasis on setting up your own flipped classrooms. You can find out more about this  - here

You can still watch my Webinar on Flipped Learning.

This school year has been one of the most memorable for me and I'm excited about the future.  Looking forward to writing more next year - I'm going to try and keep blogging over the summer, especially when I'm playing around with some new kit.

Follow me on Twitter @chriswaterworth