WeVideo and iMovie in Math

Every year my students work in groups to create some pretty exceptional math videos.  Their mission is to choose one math problem from a list, solve the problem, and then create a video that shows how to solve the problem while connecting it with a real life situation.   I took the idea from Math Counts, which is a website that encourages students to think outside the box.  I use some of the materials from Math Counts, and have attached the links I use.  

Students explain in their videos their mathematical thinking, while also showing when you would actually need to solve a similar problem in the real world.  I am amazed every year with how great these videos turn out.  Since it is a huge project, I break apart the project into 9 steps with 9 different due dates.   This helps students keep track of their progress and work at a steady pace.  7th graders are the best procrastinators, so this has really helped with time management.

Here is the production schedule with details for each step.

Step 1 and 2: Establish team.  I allow groups to form on their own in most my classes.  I usually allow groups of 4-5 students.  Teams also choose a team name, so that it is easier for me to identify their work.  The teams also choose one group leader who is in charge of communicating with me during the production process.

Step 3:  Pick and Solve Problem.  Students choose a problem from Math Problem List

Step 4:  Students Brainstorm ideas for how to show the problem's real world application and solution.

Step 5:  Create a Story Board.  Students use the storyboard (pg 9) to map out each scene.   I usually first show them this video to discuss what to include.  They should make sure they include characters, actions taking place, and how they solve their math problem. I use Post It Easel paper for the storyboard process.  My room looks like a disaster with all the papers around the room, but they did a great job on making these.  Here are a few samples.

Step 6: Write your script.  The video script needs to describe the setting, the action of the characters, the dialogue and any superimposed words or images.

Step 7: Shoot the video.  I remind students that they need to make sure they are taping at a place that doesn't require permission.  I have had some awesome videos at restaurants and stores that gave my students permission.  These seem to be the favorite videos.  I'm lucky to be working in a such a supportive community that enjoys our school projects taking part within their stores.  We usually never have any issues with local stores saying yes.

Step 8: Edit your video.  Our students use google accounts, so I have my students use Wevideo to edit.  If your school pays for the upgrade, students can actually collaborate together making these videos. I unfortunately don't have this option, so students just work on one computer. Next year, our students will be switching to iPads, so I will be using iMovie.   WeVideo is just as great though if you haven't used it before!

Step 9:  Submit your video.  I am using google forms to have teams submit their videos.  Since students are using WeVideo, they can then easily just attach the URL link to a google form.  I am also using google forms to have the school vote for their favorite videos.  

Here are a few samples of videos that I usually show my students to get them excited!  I can also email you the rubric I use to grade if you are interested. :)  I will post more examples once they are completed.  We are currently working on the project during the month of May! :-)

HANDS ON! Combining Like Terms

One of my favorite lessons to teach during the year is combining like terms.  It can really be a hard skill for students to figure out at first, so every year I try to tweak my past lessons to try to be more proactive with misconceptions. This year I introduced like terms with an idea of making friendship bracelets.  Students looked at a pattern that called for different colored beads.  Students then discussed how to combine the amounts of each color used in the bracelet to figure out the total beads that we needed of each color.  I totally stole this idea from a Math Club video on distributive property.  The students saw the variables as actual objects that needed to be combined for a goal of trying to buy the right amount of colored beads for each bracelet.  I have taught this lesson in the past and students always say they love combining like terms, but they always then ask how it relates with the real world.  After teaching this lesson, I'm happy to say I didn't have one student stop to ask this question.  Because we had defined the variables as something they could relate to, the students were able to see how they could use this in the real world.  

After introducing the objective, I then had groups complete a word sort with different terms that were written on laminated strips of paper.  As they separated the terms into like term groups, students wrote down questions they had on a sticky note and placed it in our Parking Lot Zone (white board area).  If they didn't have any questions, they were able to write something they noticed or learned and then posted the sticky note on our exit door.  This activity was the highlight of the lesson.  It was so nice to walk around and hear the student discussions and their use of key vocabulary words.

There are some great videos out there, but my favorite video I usually show before talking about combing like terms is the Khan Academy Chuck Norris Video.  The students LOVE this video.  I always then talk about an example with a term that has same variables but different powers being Taylor Swift.  "Chuck Norris and Taylor Swift are both famous (x term), but taylor swift looks nothing like Chuck Norris.  Therefore we can't combine these two terms together." The students for some reason love this part of the lesson.  It seems to make more sense when we define these variables as actual objects they can relate with.

After showing a quick video, I then used the pieces from the word sort to model combining like terms.  I have the kids show me with the pieces how to combine and then show me in their notebooks with different colored pencils.  It's been three years since I started using these strips of paper while combing like terms and it has been amazing to see the difference in student understanding. In years past, I would have so many students making errors with negatives.  Now the students break apart the expression physically using the subtraction as a negative, and they combine the terms by adding. 

My exit slip ticket for the day included students creating their own real world example that modeled combining like terms. The students created some really great examples and it helped me check off my incorporation of literacy for the day.  :-) Awesome! 

If you need any clarification on any of the above activities, please feel free to comment below.  If you do anything awesome for combining like terms, please share.  Thanks!

PBS Math Club Youtube Channel

http://www.radiantfeatures.com

One of my awesome twitter followers sent me a link to the PBS Math Club Youtube Channel. I'm sure I do a pretty great job making math look cool, but I am not nearly as great as these youngsters on this channel.  Oh jeez, did I just use the phrase youngster?  Anyways, these kids from PBS made really awesome and hilarious videos for different math skills. They are extremely worth taking a peek at.  I showed adding negative numbers to my students today, and they seemed to be keen on it.  It was really fun and enjoyable to watch the students' reactions in the classroom during the video, and it started making me think about how my students can do this too!  How cool would it be to have students get into groups and make videos for different skills.  I've done something like this before, but I usually get a student going step by step describing how to solve a problem. Instead of them creating these sometimes dry videos, it would be awesome to have these as samples for them to create their own and relate it to real world.  I hear a future project starting to be created as we speak!  Awesome!  This is just one more thing to add into my toolbox .