Design Brief
This week we learned about how to make a design brief. The facets we studied were as follows, investigation and design, where we brainstorm concepts. Production where we actually created the concepts we thought might work. Finally, analysis and evaluation where we wrote down our observations about what happened and conclude which model was the best and most efficient way to make a frog jump.
We had to work in pairs and four materials, a cardboard strip, tape, little paper frog and a rubber band to work with. It took some time but we came up with the following ideas that are listed below:
INVESTIGATE/DESIGN
1) The rubber was released from folded cardboard to try and make it jump.
2) Fold it into a zigzag shape and tie frog down with the rubber band and then press down to bounce up and down.
3) Folded cardboard in half, tape down to the edge of the table. Rap the rubber around the bottom and then launch the frog from the top of the folded cardboard.
PURPOSE
1) It only jumped once.
2) The cardboard was too heavy and the model just fell so there was no real jumping involved.
3) It leaped the farthest.
ANALYSE / EVALUATE
1) This didn’t work because it took too long to release the rubber band by hand and it didn’t leap very far.
2) It didn’t work because the folds were too tight so the push and jump idea didn’t work very well. The weight created a problem for the force of jumping.
3) This is the model that worked for us because it was steady by the tape and when released it leaped very far.
The professor then went through all our ideas and I thought this was very effective because students should always be encouraged to share and learn from their peers and their teachers. There needs to be a sense of communicative learning where all students feel safe sharing and learning and if the teacher notices that the activity is widely popular then why not extend it further. Foe example, how far you can get kids to think about jumping frogs--maybe interrelate this idea with other subjects, such as science, for example students can increase the size of frog to see if that changes the distance traveled. It is so important to create and catch students’ interest because that is how they learn.
After going through all our ideas, the professor explained that there were actually 8 different ways to make the frog jump effectively and he outlined a couple in the class. The first method was to use sticky tape and put it on the inside of folded cardboard; place elastic around the fold and release and he said it should jump pretty far based on the dynamic of the model. The second example he gave us was to put a hole in cardboard and twist the elastic inside the hole and release it, allowing frog to jump far.
Through the dynamics of this activity it is clear that participation, teamwork and a sense of community must be established and present at all times in the classroom.
QUIA: Games and quizzes
In this part of the workshop the professor introduced us to an interesting database where teachers and students can create educational activities on the web. You can play, create and administer various activities for various topics something that is so crucial in a classroom because the teacher must always try and stay current with their material and this QUIA helps do just that.
We started off by creating a quiz about something that we love and I am crazy about soccer, or should I say football. It is hard getting the terms right because to me it will always be soccer but maybe that is because I am from Canada. Anyway, I created my quiz about soccer and the process in order to do this was very straightforward.
There were about 8 steps to the entire process to make this kind of quiz and they were:
1) Select the amount of questions you want
2) Choose the amount of answers you want i.e. A, B, C, D
3) Format of the quiz i.e. multiple choice, fill in the blanks, etc..
4) Create questions and answers
5) Select the right answer in the column next to the answers
6) Look over the questions and answers to make sure they are correct
7) Press create quiz at the bottom of the screen
8) Write down the URL of your quiz for future reference
After this process is completed the quiz was ready and in my opinion, the best part of the workshop began. All of us walked around the class to each computer and tried each other’s quizzes. This definitely broke the ice and created the energy and the community within the class that we needed. Every one felt at ease and open to try and share and it was a pleasure to see. I can really see myself using this activity for an icebreaker for block or the block itself.
IF YOU WANT TO TRY MY QUIZ, ClICK THE FOLLOWING LINK:www.quia.com/quiz/2538621.html
The final part of the workshop was extending this process, like the professor said previously if it’s captivating then extend it further. So instead of creating another quiz using the same database we created an activity based on the material we used previously and I did a soccer jumble. Creating this activity was as easy as it was to create the quiz and the steps, mentioned above are almost the same and the activities can be applicable for all subject areas, such as math, english, geography, reading, and the list goes on….
IF YOU WANT TO TRY MY SOCCER JUMBLE, CLICK THE FOLLOWING LINK:
I really enjoyed this week’s workshop and I know that I will be using these items again in my classroom. I can't wait to create our safe classroom community where students are free to be excited, enthusiastic and happy to participate in an activity like this. Thanks for the introduction to this program Greg!
Until Next Week :)
Also, if you are intrigued by any of this feel free to get a 30 day free-trail and to test all your friends. Just go to www.quia.com/web and you will get all the information you need there in becoming a member whether it’s for 30 or more!! Enjoy!
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