Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Google Docs + Forms = Interactive Cultural Reading

To learn more about cultural differences that exist in vacation planning, students read an article that I placed into a  Google Doc.  At the bottom of the Doc, I placed a link to a Google Form I created that assessed their reading comprehension.  The thing I really liked is that the combination provided a richer reading experience for students and made it more interactive.  In addition, with the new Google Forms features, I was able to include a map image that was needed for reference for one of the questions.  Students were much more focused on this activity than with traditional reading activities that I have done in the past.  Also, many commented on how they liked it much better!  Check out the video below to see the activity taking place!

Take a look at the activity! > Unit 1.2 Cultural Reading w/linked Google Form


Monday, September 9, 2013

Custom Google Search - Intro. to our first unit

In Spanish 3 I am currently re-doing the curriculum and basing all of the major units around an essential question/understanding.  For unit 1 it is "How do people enjoy the outdoors in other parts of the world?".  To introduce students to this and have them learn about some of the popular outdoor activities in other countries, I created a customized Google search using various Spanish websites.  I then had students search and put together a list as a class of the different countries and popular outdoor activities there.  The activity when really well and what I liked is that they were exploring the sites, coming up with their own information, and sharing it with the class versus me just telling them about it.  Take a look at the video below to see how it went!