Teamwork, Giving, 7th Graders, Baby Blankets????

How do you make it a warm holiday for newborns in the Cedar Rapids area when they need to spend some extra time in the hospital?  Of course, a warm fleece tie blanket made by 7th graders at Excelsior!  Teamwork at its' finest, the floors of the 7th Grade hallway at Excelsior were covered with fleece, scissors, and students who have all come together in their OCM classes to make blankets for newborns in our local hospitals.  It is hard enough to be a new parent, but having to spend extra time in the hospital with your new little one is stressful and exhausting.  The students and teachers have found a way to ease this with the blankets.  Students donated all the materials and have spent the last 2 weeks assembling the blankets.  This is the 3rd year for Excelsior donating blankets for the holidays and with this teamwork, I imagine many more!  Great Job!

        

Busy in the Media Center or should I say Indus Valley?

With all the activity in the Media Center it is hard to keep track of everything, but tracking down students in the Indus Valley became almost impossible in Alex Hajek's 7th Grade Social Studies class. Student's set off on their journey through the Indus Valley creating games, Prezis, Google Presentations, and video using the green screen.  From songs and interviews, to debates and newscasts, the Indus Valley and its' history were thoroughly covered by the students.  Below is a picture in which the students shared all their facts by song, then added the images to match their information using the green screen app Do Ink.

 

Formative Assessing? Plickers Please!

Who says each student needs to have a laptop, iPad, or phone in front of them to conduct an online Formative Assessment?  In Mrs.Yerke's 7th Grade Reading class, all you need is a piece of paper, a teacher device, and Plickers Formative Assessment App.  Each student is assigned a number and a matching Plickers card.  Start asking questions and the student decides how to rotate their Plickers card to match the answer they selected.  A quick scan by Mrs.Yerke, and all of her class answers are quickly recorded and organized for her to review.  Fantastic!

 

Let's Review for a Test With Quizlet Live!!!

Next week is the test in Mr. Gasper's 7B Science Classes at Excelsior.  Today, Mr. Gasper reviewed with the students using Quizlet Live.  Students brought their own devices, used iPads, or computers in the classroom to play.  Mr. Gasper created questions on Quizlet which then were used for the review.  Once each student logged in using the game code, they went LIVE!  Quizlet made groupings for the students and once everyone was settled the game began.  Each student in the group had 4 possible answers to the questions being asked with each device having a different set.  Once the question appeared, the group of students had to work together to see which device had the correct answer.  Select the correct one and gain a point for your group, choose wrong and your group goes back to zero.  First group to answer all the questions correctly wins.  Tons of engagement, multiple rounds of Quizlet Live and a lot of collaboration.  Bring on the Test!!!

The FBI Comes to Oak Ridge!

On Tuesday, October 18th the students in Mrs. Gapstur's computer classes had the opportunity to meet and hear from two special agents from the FBI.
 
The students completed a unit about internet safety using the FBI's Safe Online Surfing website. At the end of the unit, the students completed a quiz and competed with other students from around the country for the top score for September. Mrs. Gapstur's classes ended up with the fifth highest score for our school size!

Mrs. Gapstur and Mrs. Redington were so impressed with the students' hard work and dedication that they worked with our volunteer coordinator for the district to arrange a visit from the FBI.

The agents spoke to the students about the importance of staying safe online and they answered questions about what it is like to be an FBI agent.

From 3D to Barely Moving....A Lot Happening in Industrial Tech.

It is hard not to notice the 3 large machines in the back of Mr. Ortiz's and Mr. Stamp's rooms, but what are they?  Turns out, they are brand new 3D printers!  What was once a concept designed by 7th grade students, is now reality as they design and print their objects.  The 3D printers are allowing students to see how their design on the computer translates into real life application.

It is easy to get lost watching the printers create, but that isn't all that is happening.  Eighth Grade students are creating motorized vehicles to accomplish different challenges.  Fastest, Slowest, Best Climber, are just some of the obstacles that each build team will face.  Now with the 3D printers, you can add vehicle parts design to the other many things students are accomplishing in Industrial Tech.