Explore the Chronicles

Monday, August 12, 2013

Building Community with Padlet

I've started planning my first few days of school and my mind has been spinning with ideas. My mind is racing so much that it's started to affect my dreams. Each night they get a little weirder and complicated. Once, I dreamt I arrived at school to find the entire hallway decorated like a farm. Everyone was dressed in farm attire with cows and goats. I missed the memo and barely remembered to put on pants! I was distraught because my classroom looked nothing like a farm... Weird, huh? 

Back to planning... :)
In one of my Specialist classes this summer, our icebreaker activity was to post on the discussion board a photo that represents us and write a brief explanation. Why not have 5th graders do the same? Since I don't use a discussion board format, I thought it would be fun to get a jumpstart with Padlet (formally Wallwisher). This activity will introduce my students to the functions of padlet: uploading images, writing text, and posting on the board as well as introducing themselves to one another. Not too shabby if you ask me! 

I've started our Padlet wall with my own intro and image. I'm excited to see what unique posts my students create!


3 comments:

  1. We aren't entirely sure what a Padlet is, it looks like a really cool way to connect with your 21st century learners! Do keep us posted.

    Barbara

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  2. I second the previous comment...what exactly is Padlet?

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    1. I like to think of Padlet as an online anchor chart. Students (or anyone who has the site) can double click on the page and add another sticky note or text box. Multiple users can add information at once. If you constantly refresh the page, you can watch as the text boxes multiply with student responses. A fun and engaging tool!

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