This was the first week that Room 8 had participated in the discovery part of Adventure Learning. At the end of the session I had a conference with each group. During this they reflected on their learning, challenges and how they could overcome these. Overall it was a really successful first session. There were a couple of teething problems e.g. some children found it challenging working as part of a team and knowing what to do when they were stuck with their learning. Other than that it all ran pretty smoothly. Next week we will reflect in greater depth as a class about how we can overcome these challenges as a class.
Each group has an Adventure Learning scrapbook that they use for planning, recording their new learning, pasting in photos etc. Because we are reflecting on Padlet I'm going to create a QR code that will link to the Padlet wall. Each week the QR code for the weekly reflections will be printed and pasted into their group scrapbooks. Photos of the scrapbooks to come, once there's a bit more in them.
Here are their first reflections.
Last week I wrote a blog post about the Adventure Learning model I've created to support children with Adventure Learning. You can view this blog post here - http://goo.gl/1QuqIj
Over the past week my Year 4 class have worked hard to come up with an individual design of what they think our the visual model 'Adventure Island' could look like. The idea is that each of the six stages in the model is represented by a visual icon on the island. See below for an example. This is a work in progress. The six stages of the model are written in bold.
Adventure Island
Explore at Sunshine Cove
Plan under the coconut palms
Discover at Mermaid Lagoon
Create at the volcano
Share at the island tree house
Take it Further in the hot air balloon
Here are the completed Adventure Island designs so far...
Adventure Island Maps -
Video Maker
This afternoon Room 8 did a walk and gawk around the room to have a look at each other's designs. They were then given the opportunity to share ideas that they really liked, as well as to suggest what our next step might be. I was really impressed by the positive feedback that they gave each other. The children shared that they want to use different ideas, from as many islands as possible so that everyone feels included.
As well as designing Adventure Island maps, Room 8 have also been designing badges. There is a badge to match each one of the six stages. As their group completes a stage they will earn a badge for their adventure explorer passport (still to be designed). Here are some of the designs. We will continue to keep you updated and would love any feedback.
20 YouTube videos to inspire Adventure Learning for teachers and students.
Want to give Adventure Learning a go, but not sure how to best support the children in your class? This blog post is for you. If you think that because Adventure Learning increases student engagement, that you'll have time to sit down with a coffee and flick through a magazine you might get a bit of a surprise. Here are ten tips I've put together for teachers who are doing Adventure Learning in their classroom.
1. Spark excitement and inspire your learners.
Most children have never been given the opportunity to learn about something that they're passionate about, while at school. Some children will instantly light up and know what they have always wanted to learn more about, others will struggle with the idea of being given this time. Spend the first couple of weeks sparking excitement about Adventure Learning. Watch YouTube clips, share passions and talents, create a class Pinterest account or a physical Twitter board in the classroom to get children sharing and discussing ideas, provide examples of previous children's Adventure Learning projects or create an 'I wonder...' window. For ideas around sparking excitement see my blog post - http://goo.gl/VK40Fs Please note that I'm aware that some of the links no longer work and am in the process of updating it, so check back soon.
2. Student voice
Involve your students in the process of setting up Adventure Learning as much as possible, as well as provide ongoing opportunities for student voice. I can't stress how important this is to get student buy in. This doesn't mean that it's a free for all. Yes, there are some things that I want the children to be able to do e.g. reflect regularly and use the Adventure Learning model to support their learning. However; the children always have input and their ideas are valued. The children in my class are in the process of developing a visual model for Adventure Learning. Already most of them can remember the six different stages. Why? Because they've had ownership of it and have actively participated in co-constructing it. I used to make every child complete a written reflection. Some of my boys told me it was too much writing and that it resulted in them being bored. I explained that reflecting was important, but that if they could come up with a different way I would listen to their idea. They came back with the idea of video reflections, which then became an alternative way to reflect on their learning each week.
3. Support the children with learning specific skills
Don't expect your students to guess what is in your head when you ask them to plan their learning or reflect. Make time to explicitly teach these skills. Model what it might look like, unpack it. Reflect as a class on what's working and what needs to be improved. Often during class discussions you will only get the usual half a dozen children contributing their ideas. Experiment with other ways of gathering student feedback e.g. by using a Google form.
4. Get your community on board
Share what you're doing with your community. It can be daunting at first, but you'll be surprised by the positive feedback that you receive. This can be done in a variety of ways e.g. class letters, blog posts and links, inviting parents/caregivers in for a sharing afternoon. Providing nibbles helps. Keep them informed. Also consider inviting them along to work alongside their children or to share their expertise. They're often only too happy to help.
5. Make it manageable
Everyone is different, but I've personally found it useful to limit the number of Adventure Learning groups to no more than six. When someone first suggested this to me I felt concerned that this would stop children from being able to learn about what they were truly passionate about - it didn't. Often the children who aren't sure what they'd like to learn about end up being inspired by what those around them have decided to do. They then naturally slot into those groups. Limiting the number of groups allows me to be able to give more quality time to each group, which in turn enables the depth of the learning to be further extended.
6. Provide opportunities for children to self-discover
One of the hardest things as a teacher is learning when it is best to keep quiet. Don't give children the answers; encourage curiosity, provide opportunities for self-discovery and ask questions that will challenge the children's thinking and further extend their learning.
7. Let the children see you as a learner
Learn alongside the children. One of the most valuable experiences I've had so far was participating in my own Adventure Learning project. I decided to build a chicken house and run. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, enabled me to reflect on how we did Adventure Learning as a class, but most importantly it let the children see me as a learner as well. I shared my experiences, what challenges I came across and how I overcame them. Sometimes it's important to put yourself in the shoes of your students. To read more about my own Adventure Learning project you can click here - http://goo.gl/nN6OEj
8. Conference times and tracking learning
Every week the children book themselves in for a conference time. Initially it is more teacher led, but as the children are scaffold it becomes a lot more student led. The purpose of a conference time is for the children to reflect on what's worked well, what they've achieved, share any challenges and identify next steps. As the teacher, it's important to do less talking and more listening. During the scaffolding stage you will need to ask more questions or provide prompts that will encourage them to further expand their answers e.g. tell me more about that, is there another way you could do this? What made it so successful? What could you do when you're stuck with your learning? What will you need to organise for next week? What are you planning to do next? etc.
Regularly tracking the children's learning is an important aspect of Adventure Learning. Conference times are the perfect time to track the group's learning so far. Find a way that works best for you early on. Whether it's using a physical notebook, Evernote or Google doc make sure it's something user friendly. It's also a lot more effective if the children have access to these notes and next steps. For more information on tracking learning visit http://goo.gl/haVhKa
9. Find a way to collate online resources.
Storing website links, YouTube clips, photos etc in the one place makes it easily accessible for the children. It also allows you to develop a bank of resources over the course of the year, which can be used for future Adventure Learning projects. I've created a class Pinterest account for my class. Each group has their own board that they can then pin ideas to. What I like about Pinterest is that it's visual and easy to navigate for my year 4 children. Delicious, a Google Presentation/ Doc or Evernote, using QR codes could be possible options too. I know there are lots of different tools out there that do the same thing. It's just about finding that one that best works for you and your class. Here's a link to the Pinterest account I recently set up for my class - http://www.pinterest.com/room8smarties/ You could bookmark the website, add a shortcut on your desktop or stick a QR code up in the classroom. Remember that children will need to be provided with log in details to be able to pin new pins to their board.
10. Provide opportunities for children to learn from each other.
In previous years I've let children run a 5-10 minute session at the beginning of each Adventure Learning lesson. This was an opportunity for a child to be the expert and share a skill, app or idea with the rest of the class. Another way I've done this was by having an app smack down. The children were split up into seven groups, each group was given an app to explore that they hadn't used before. They then had to evaluate how useful it was, how it could support how learning or enable us to create content, then they taught the other groups how to use it. This year my aim is to trial a kids educamp in my class. Would also love to collaborate with other schools to do an educamp for kids or possibly a Google Hangout.
After three years of playing with different ideas and working towards creating a model for Adventure Learning the pieces are finally coming together.
Adventure Learning has always been about the process, not a final product. It's about providing children with the opportunity for authentic learning to take place, through a context that they're passionate about. It's about learning to work collaboratively with their peers. Learning how to effectively plan, but also learning that things won't work out perfectly the first time and that it's okay to fail. Knowing that when they're in that learning pit that, that's where their most meaningful learning will often take place. It's about learning how to reflect, explore, discover, identify next steps, create content, to share and celebrate new learning. Both the ability to think creatively and critically are also essential skills that are developed through Adventure Learning.
There are for and against points in creating a model/process for children to work through. Something I've kept at the forefront at all times while contemplating concepts has been that it must allow for self-discovery, creativity and individual learning styles. I didn't want something restricting or a set of boxes for children to tick off. I see this model as more of a tool that will provide support for the children participating in Adventure Learning.
I've done a lot of research around personalised learning, inquiry learning, motivation and student engagement over the past few years. I've been inspired by the work of Sir Ken Robinson, Dan Pink, the Reggio Emilia philosophy, as well as the Montessori philosophy, Kath Murdoch and numerous school visits across NZ and in Melbourne as well.
I'm positive that this concept will continue to grow and evolve, as I continue to adapt it to more effectively meet the needs of my learners. Here is the draft so far...
Adventure Island
Explore
This is where children are given the opportunity to explore their own passions and where initial interest is sparked. See http://goo.gl/dYcnQM for more information.
Plan
During the planning stage the children complete a planning proposal. Once completed they book a conference time to discuss and further expand on their initial ideas with me. See http://goo.gl/duqls4
Discover
The discovery stage is when children gather their information, self-discover, experiment, work through the process of trial and error, build, make, research, practise, make connections with other learners, organise visits or visitors to come in, contact experts. This particular step looks very different for each group and is personalised by the learners.
Create
As I mentioned before, the focus of Adventure Learning has never been on the push for an end product. However; it isn't what we know, but what we do with what we know that counts. It's an opportunity for children to create new content to share their learning. This can be done in any shape or form e.g. a Google Presentation, Animoto, Haiku Deck, an eBook, dance or drama, a presentation board, a photo, an art board, a photo story etc.
Share
Generally the children's learning is shared and celebrated in two ways - via our class blog and Twitter in an attempt to share with a wider audience, as well as a community celebration afternoon where other classes and family are invited along to an open afternoon. There continues to be a lot of student voice even at this point as the children plan and organise the event. It also provides an opportunity for the children to receive authentic feedback via discussions and the feedback forms that are made available at the open afternoon.See an example here http://goo.gl/Mhb3EL
Take it further
Most inquiry models stop at the sharing or celebration stage. In Adventure Learning the children continue to take their learning further, by using the feedback forms to support them if needed. Sometimes children may already have an idea of how they can further their learning, sometimes this may require further peer or teacher support. This step is all about asking so what? Now what? I've trialed this during my whole class inquiry time, but this term will be the first time it's a part of Adventure Learning. I'm excited to see how it goes.
A visual model
The children in my class are currently designing a visual model to represent these six steps. The visual will be of an island, with each stage represented by a different icon. Room 8 have also voiced that they would like adventure explorer books or passports where they can earn badges as they complete each stage. This is a work in progress, but I will blog about it and post photos as we get closer to a finished product.
