Retelling Familiar Stories

Our Multiage class loves to read and had so much fun retelling familiar stories using iMovie.  Students learned about retelling stories using a "retelling rope," which includes naming the setting, characters, problem, an event from beginning, middle, and end, and finally the solution.  They then each chose a familiar book and wrote a sentence about each part of the retelling rope.  After creating an illustration for each in Drawing Pad, the final step was to put it all together in iMovie. By using the voice recording feature, each student created a short video that retells their story using their own words and illustrations.  Enjoy the films of some of our favorite stories below!

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PigeonStayUpLate from Jamestown Elementary School on Vimeo.

4th graders create videos on the Virginia Regions

In fourth grade the students need to learn the location of Virginia's five geographic regions and each region's major features. Our 4th grade class used iMovies as a way to teach each other about Virginia's regions.  The students were broken up into groups and assigned one region to research.  They took notes on this region and became "tour guide experts."  Their task was to make a movie about their region so that the other students could fill out their note sheets on that region when they watched the movie.  So, we spent several days planning out the movies on paper, filming them, and then rotating through stations watching them and taking notes.  The students incorporated sounds and background music, videos, drawing pad images, and photos into the movies.  They were very engaged the entire time and really had to think about how to present the information clearly so that their peers could take good notes.


Example of movie created by a 4th grade pair:

libby and eva from Camilla Gagliolo on Vimeo.


thomas and ryan from Jamestown Elementary School on Vimeo.

This is the apps workflow for creating a movie in social studies:

Multiage Visits the U.S. Monuments

Multiage students have been traveling around the United States for the past few weeks learning about important symbols and monuments.  For their final project of the unit, each of the students chose to learn more about one of the following places: Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, Mt. Rushmore, Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, or Jefferson Memorial.  They then created a Keynote presentation on their iPads, each of which included a title page with an original illustration of their monument done in Drawing Pad, a fact page with information as well as a picture they drew of themselves visiting the monument over an actual photo of the destination, and a short video with one fun fact they learned on their visit. We had a lot of fun visiting new places throughout our great country, and hope you enjoy our projects too!

Kate Dye, Multiage (1st/2nd) Teacher
 The apps workflow for creating these presentations were as follows:

Google Earth and Second Grade

We've been learning about maps and our neighborhoods.  The students used their iPads and went on a virtual tour of their neighborhoods.  We also have been learning about the seven continents: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica as well as the five oceans (Yes, five-- there were only four when I was in school!): Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean, and Southern Ocean.  The students found famous landmarks on each of the continents and explored the border of Antarctica.  It was interesting for the students to do the Street Level view and "fly the person" to do a 3-D tour of the landmark.  The students were really excited to go inside of the White House and look around the rooms!

Here are some of the locations we visited:

* Our school and neighborhood

* White House

* Great Wall of China

* Eiffel Tower

* St. Louis Arch

* Stonehenge

Students also learned how to take screen shots of their routes in Google Earth and imported those photos to the fantastic app, BookWriter.  They created eBooks with the topic "Maps" and included photos, videos, voice recordings, and drawings of objects related to maps and globes.

It was great having students see the world come to life in 3-D, where they were able to tour landmarks and locations and visit the places mentioned in their flat social studies books.

Heather Blake

Second Grade Teacher
Apps workflow for this project

Exploring Story Elements Through Keynote Presentations

To wrap up our unit on narrative elements, fifth graders created Keynote presentations in small groups.  Students were able to choose a short story that they had previously read in class.  Groups created slides that analyzed each of the narrative elements in that story, including setting, characters, plot, conflict, resolution, and theme.  The presentations incorporated original artwork, photographs taken with the iPad, and online images.  Groups presented their work to the class to review what they had learned. 

Simple Machines Scavenger Hunt

Third graders just wrapped up a science unit on simple machines. After exploring and defining the types of simple machines, students went on a "Simple Machines Scavenger Hunt." Students used the "Camera" application on their i-Pads to photograph examples of wedges, pulleys, screws, wheels-and-axles, inclined planes, and levers on the playground. They will import their photos into Keynote to create slideshows with sentences explaining why each piece of playground equipment is that type of simple machine.

Fifth Grade Investigates Cells

Fifth graders used a a new cell app to review cell parts and cell structures this month.  The app shows 2D and 3D images of cell parts.  Students can click on the different parts of a cell to learn more about their function.  They can also view videos and independently explore the site based on their own interests.  Students enjoyed reviewing for their quiz, but using the app.  It reinforced what they had been learning in class, by providing vivid images and practice questions. 

Multiage University: Meet My M.U. Monster!

Welcome to Multiage University! In a cute play off this summer's kid favorite "Monster's University," each of our Multiage (first, second grade) students created a "Meet My Monster" poster introducing the other Jamestown students to an M.U. monster they created.  To help learn the writing process, the students took their monster from beginning to end including brainstorming, first draft, peer edit, revising, teacher edit, and final draft.  Their product was typed in pages, and the students created a portrait of their monster using Drawing Pad. Merging the two together in pages was the final step in bringing their monster to life.  Huge eyeballs and multiple arms galore.... meet our monsters!