Sometimes the topic in the book calls out for a maker activity--students spend so much time reading about and discussing something, that it only makes sense to give them an opportunity to get their hands on it. Other times, a maker activity is added as an unanticipated challenge that may at first seem disconnected from the topic, but, upon completion, reinforces the target language for the students in unexpected ways. I'll describe one of each experience, using the same maker activity.
Many ideas I keep filed away in my memory, or on a Pinterest board, to choose from when I need an activity for class. While teaching a unit on natural disasters, I remembered this pin I had saved. It showed kids building a structure, putting it on a plate of gelatin, and shaking it to see if it would withstand an "earthquake."
We had seen a video from the book about a town that was rebuilt after a tornado, and talked about how to build better, even more environmentally friendly houses. With a heavy topic like natural disasters, which reminds us of how frail we are against nature, sometimes it's good to empower students by reminding them that there are some things they can control.
I did this in a private lesson, but would definitely do it with a group, as well, putting young people in groups to collaborate. When my student came in and saw the building materials I had provided (toothpicks, clay, binder clips, ice cream sticks, and some recyclable material), he knew just what to do, since he had already built things in my class. The surprising part was the gelatin. I told him how we would make an earthquake after, and that his goal was to make a building that remained standing after shaking.
He experimented with a few designs, before finishing his structure just within the time limit. We decided to shake the gelatin shake at different strengths, to represent earthquakes of various magnitudes. His building withstood a mild one, but collapsed after a stronger one. I told him we would have another go at it later, and we continued with the material in the book.
We had been learning past perfect, which emphasizes an earlier action that had happened before a later one. Towards the end of the lesson, I gave the student another opportunity to build a structure, reminding him of the importance of a firm foundation. As he built it, I wrote a few sentences on the board, describing the experience, leaving out the verbs. I decided to put in some advanced vocabulary for him to figure out, as well, including collapse and some adjectives for the design.
As his mother came to pick him up, he proudly showed his structure, demonstrating how it withstood even a strong earthquake. I then asked him to complete the sentences on the board. He had been getting past perfect and simple past mixed up in his homework exercises--often confused about which event happened first. But, because he had lived this event through the maker activity, he knew exactly which form to put each verb in, and his mother was impressed.
It was just another day reviewing a sometimes difficult grammar structure, while reminding a young learner that he can build anything he needs to if he puts his mind to it.
After that class, I started thinking how I could re-use the gelatin I had made, before throwing it out. I immediately thought of my adult class, who had been working through a unit on fears and phobias. I wondered if this would be too childish of an activity to bring to them, and yet I knew that they could really use the experience to develop problem-solving and collaborative skills in English. And so I went for it.
As they came into class, I informed them that they would have a mini engineering challenge, and explained the activity. I only gave them toothpicks and clay, figuring that the focus brought by more limited options was best. The engineers in the class got excited, and the others, though perhaps a little nervous, affirmed their readiness for the challenge. I put them in groups (separating the engineers, of course), we agreed on a time limit, and they got to work. I think it was an energizing way for them to start an evening class after a long day of work. Rather than immediately reviewing language, they got to do something with their hands, using a different part of their brains, all while using English to collaborate on the task.
My challenge was to see who could build the tallest structure that withstood various magnitudes of a teacher-made earthquake. In the end, the taller structure withstood a few mild earthquakes, but not the most intense one. The shorter structure withstood up to a higher magnitude, before eventually falling over. Neither structure collapsed completely, however, being well-planned. The event brought about lots of nervous excitement and laughter.
After this, I put some previously-learned language on the board--a bit of vocabulary related to fears and disasters, and a mixture of adverbials for time, contrast, reason, etc. I challenged students to tell me a sentence about the experience using this language (motivating them with a candy reward when they got it right). I got some great sentences, including ideas like, "While the building was shaking, I started to panic;" and, "Because we didn't build our foundation under the ground, our building collapsed."
Sometimes adult learners need a hands-on challenge, even a slightly childish one, to stimulate their creativity and build teamwork and problem-solving skills while using English. By providing this, teachers create a meaningful, memorable context to reinforce target language, as well as build essential 21st Century skills.
Teachers (and others!), what are some of your favorite maker activities? How do you deal with topics like natural disasters and fears in a sensitive way? I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'll share another Maker Monday post in two weeks. Meanwhile, you can see some of my maker work on Instagram @danitissima.
Many ideas I keep filed away in my memory, or on a Pinterest board, to choose from when I need an activity for class. While teaching a unit on natural disasters, I remembered this pin I had saved. It showed kids building a structure, putting it on a plate of gelatin, and shaking it to see if it would withstand an "earthquake."
We had seen a video from the book about a town that was rebuilt after a tornado, and talked about how to build better, even more environmentally friendly houses. With a heavy topic like natural disasters, which reminds us of how frail we are against nature, sometimes it's good to empower students by reminding them that there are some things they can control.
I did this in a private lesson, but would definitely do it with a group, as well, putting young people in groups to collaborate. When my student came in and saw the building materials I had provided (toothpicks, clay, binder clips, ice cream sticks, and some recyclable material), he knew just what to do, since he had already built things in my class. The surprising part was the gelatin. I told him how we would make an earthquake after, and that his goal was to make a building that remained standing after shaking.
He experimented with a few designs, before finishing his structure just within the time limit. We decided to shake the gelatin shake at different strengths, to represent earthquakes of various magnitudes. His building withstood a mild one, but collapsed after a stronger one. I told him we would have another go at it later, and we continued with the material in the book.
We had been learning past perfect, which emphasizes an earlier action that had happened before a later one. Towards the end of the lesson, I gave the student another opportunity to build a structure, reminding him of the importance of a firm foundation. As he built it, I wrote a few sentences on the board, describing the experience, leaving out the verbs. I decided to put in some advanced vocabulary for him to figure out, as well, including collapse and some adjectives for the design.
As his mother came to pick him up, he proudly showed his structure, demonstrating how it withstood even a strong earthquake. I then asked him to complete the sentences on the board. He had been getting past perfect and simple past mixed up in his homework exercises--often confused about which event happened first. But, because he had lived this event through the maker activity, he knew exactly which form to put each verb in, and his mother was impressed.
It was just another day reviewing a sometimes difficult grammar structure, while reminding a young learner that he can build anything he needs to if he puts his mind to it.
After that class, I started thinking how I could re-use the gelatin I had made, before throwing it out. I immediately thought of my adult class, who had been working through a unit on fears and phobias. I wondered if this would be too childish of an activity to bring to them, and yet I knew that they could really use the experience to develop problem-solving and collaborative skills in English. And so I went for it.
As they came into class, I informed them that they would have a mini engineering challenge, and explained the activity. I only gave them toothpicks and clay, figuring that the focus brought by more limited options was best. The engineers in the class got excited, and the others, though perhaps a little nervous, affirmed their readiness for the challenge. I put them in groups (separating the engineers, of course), we agreed on a time limit, and they got to work. I think it was an energizing way for them to start an evening class after a long day of work. Rather than immediately reviewing language, they got to do something with their hands, using a different part of their brains, all while using English to collaborate on the task.
My challenge was to see who could build the tallest structure that withstood various magnitudes of a teacher-made earthquake. In the end, the taller structure withstood a few mild earthquakes, but not the most intense one. The shorter structure withstood up to a higher magnitude, before eventually falling over. Neither structure collapsed completely, however, being well-planned. The event brought about lots of nervous excitement and laughter.
After this, I put some previously-learned language on the board--a bit of vocabulary related to fears and disasters, and a mixture of adverbials for time, contrast, reason, etc. I challenged students to tell me a sentence about the experience using this language (motivating them with a candy reward when they got it right). I got some great sentences, including ideas like, "While the building was shaking, I started to panic;" and, "Because we didn't build our foundation under the ground, our building collapsed."
Sometimes adult learners need a hands-on challenge, even a slightly childish one, to stimulate their creativity and build teamwork and problem-solving skills while using English. By providing this, teachers create a meaningful, memorable context to reinforce target language, as well as build essential 21st Century skills.
Teachers (and others!), what are some of your favorite maker activities? How do you deal with topics like natural disasters and fears in a sensitive way? I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'll share another Maker Monday post in two weeks. Meanwhile, you can see some of my maker work on Instagram @danitissima.
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