UTeach Maker Portfolio
Maker Education
Welcome to the Education page! I believe that making can be used in the classroom to enhance student learning experiences. It is important for students to get the chance to explore and interact with content in a way that is personally meaningful to them. This page contains maker lessons/activities that I have implemented in the classroom for my students. It is split into two sections, "Low Tech" and "High Tech". The Low Tech section involves making in the classroom that does not require a lot of technology, and the High Tech section involves making with more technology.
This is some of the student work that my students have made in the classroom.
Low Tech
Reviewing Linear Functions
Paper Quilt
This is a review activity we did in our Algebra II class about multiple representations of linear equations. They had to create paper quilt squares from a given equation. These paper quilt squares contained a chart, graph, and an equation with labels. This lesson was implemented over the course of one block day.
Reflection
I wanted to give students an opportunity to express their creativity and make connections between concepts in math. I also wanted to provide an anchor for them to better retain the information that they know about lines. Students were able to have improvements in plotting points and identifying parts of an equation. For my thoughts on a future implementation, I would want to have students come up with a visual representation of their equation to help them apply the math and storify it. I would also want to be more explicit in having the students identify the changes in x-values and y-values in the table and have them show it on the graph as well. This would help them better make the connection between the different representations of an equation, table, and graph. More details about the lesson reflection can be found in the lesson summay in the button above.
High Tech
Intro to 3D Spaces:
Living Room Design
This is an exploration of 3-D spaces activity that I had done with my Algebra II students using TinkerCAD. They had to create their own living space or their own furniture for their living space. They were about to learn systems of equations with 3 variables, and I wanted to get them familiar with what a 3-D space would look like before we started that section of our unit. This activity was done in three block days.
Reflection
When students started to get more familiar using TinkerCAD, they were able to come up with their own designs, and since the activity was open-ended, they started coming up with interior designs, small neighborhoods, houses, and other living spaces on top of the furniture they were asked to design. They decided to work individually on this, and they would ask their group members for help if they were struggling. I was not expecting this to happen, but I was happy to see them express themselves in this way. They really enjoyed using their imagination and interacting with 3-dimensional spaces in this manner. Students were able to explain their thought processes while I was circulating, and it was nice to see them explain why they made changes in their design. Ideally, I would like to have every student 3-D print their design, but that would take up a lot of time, which is why we ended up voting on their favorite design across all of the classes. In the future, I might just have students design more in their groups and have them 3-D print their designs.
The Importance of Iteration in Classrooms
A major issue I ran into when trying to implement maker-type lessons into the classroom was finding a way to implement iteration into the activities. Since I define making as "a process in which humans engage with their creativity to create something to connect them to the world," I want to use iteration as a process in which students can reflect on their own work and interact with their own creations and artifacts to review and reflect on their process.
This would mean that students need to be open to sharing their designs with each other. This also involves getting students to feel comfortable with their vulnerability. Like I stated before, a key aspect to my philosophy of making is being open. The act and the process of putting one's work out there and sharing it for review is a vulnerable thing. A lot of people are discouraged from making because of this vulnerability.
In a space for students to make in a classroom, implementing a set of ground rules to use when students give each other feedback is needed. There also needs to be a way for student to explain themselves and their process. When students are reviewing each other's work for iteration, they will need to understand each other's processes in order to give valuable feedback. To work around strict school schedules, I plan on creating an non-judgmental environment where students can interact with each other and their making in meaningful ways, and I also plan on implementing a system where students can check-in with their process of making with each other and themselves. Furthermore, having the students pause and reflect on their process will allow them to iterate meaningfully.