5th Grade Creates 6 Word Memoirs

We had a couple of Genius Hour presentations this week. Here is the slideshow about optical illusions that was presented:

We also began creating 6 Word Memoirs, short statements that tell the reader a lot about the author. A few of the students completed theirs using a combination of TypeDrawing and WordFoto on the iPads. Here are their finished products:

5th Grade Drafts Their Dream Teams!

The 5th graders had a few Genius Hour presentations today:

African Elephants

The Battle of the Alamo

Koala Bears

In addition, the students worked on their “Dream Team Scripts” on which they are planning talk shows where the host introduces their Dream Team of people who inspire them.  Some of the students have completed their scripts, and are already working on the next phase of creating their Talk Shows using the Puppet Pals app on the iPads.  I can’t wait until these are completed!

 

5th Grade Makes Tumbling Tetrahedrons

For one of their Genius Hour projects, two of the 5th grade girls wanted to learn more about the “Tumbling Tetrahedra” project on the activities page of the Museum of Math.  For their presentation, they taught the rest of the class how to make them.

We also had an intriguing Genius Hour presentation today from Ian, who created a “Glog” about the mystery of Oak Island.  I have embedded his glog below. (Be sure to click on “Play” so you can see the video of his research.)

5th Grade Examines Influential People

Before the winter break, 5th grade finished watching the A&E videos that listed the top 100 most influential people of the last millennium.  This week, they used the Depth and Complexity icons from Sandra Kaplan to think a little deeper about the people on the list.  They spoke about the trends they saw, (such as war about religion), the ethical controversies over time (such as slavery), and other topics.

In addition, they continued to work on Genius Hour projects.  I was particularly impressed with two groups who had hit some tough obstacles with their projects, but they persevered – and their persistence has paid off.  We almost have a working wind-up car, and an interesting tetrahedra circle was created – despite many stops and starts!

5th Grade Genius Hour

5th grade GT students are emulating Google’s “20% Time” by incorporating an hour of exploration and research into each GT day.  During this time, they can work on projects of their choice, and learn about anything that interests them.  When they complete their projects, they present them to the class, and begin a new project.  So far, we have had presentations on: simulations, The Bermuda Triangle, video game design, and shelters.  Some upcoming ones are:  wind-up cars, the Philippines, and tetrahedra.  Below are some pictures of the 5th graders at work.