Episode 79: Success Stories: How To Show Off Student Work (When You Don’t Have a Bulletin Board)
Why showcase student work—and why not use the bulletin board Sends the message that you value student work Makes students collaborators in the shared space Reinforces the idea that the teacher isn't necessarily the only audience Gives others a glimpse into your classroom and what you are working on Time to think outside the traditional bulletin board Bulletin boards might be the most common method for displaying student work-- but that doesn't make it the only way to show what students can produce Re-doing bulletin boards isn't exactly a fun task/Using ways outside of the bulletin board actually allow you to update student work more regularly. In ASCD's "Classroom Displays: Keep the Focus on Student Work," Mike Anderson, a Responsive Classroom specialist suggests displaying drafts and works in progress, not just final products, and reminds us to leave plenty of space--even if that means you need to display work in shifts http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol6/613-anderson.aspx At the time of this recording, our classrooms are remote-- there is no physical bulletin board Sometimes, bulletin boards aren't the right "fit" for the assignment (not all great student work is visually appealing) Greener (yay environment!) Perfect for traveling teachers (reference episode) Bulletin boards themselves have a limited audience-- only others in the school will see them (parents, others who teach the same subject that you do, etc.) How to display work without that traditional bulletin board 1| Embed the “show off” portion directly into the project/class routine itself Certain apps/websites are designed for sharing (Ex. FlipGrid, ClassroomDojo) 2| Show it off to parents in a newsletter Do you already send a classroom newsletter home? Why not make that another space to show off learning instead of using it simply as a platform to explain what is being worked on [TpT template opportunity?] 3| Show it off to the greater community using social media Does your school have official school social media accounts you can post to? This could potentially get both parents and students to see that great work at the same time 4| Get it in front of the eyes of judges NEA’s “Showcasing Student Work” reminds us of other ways to show off (encourage them to enter their work into contests) http://www.nea.org/tools/57917.htm 5| Digitize Your Bulletin Board-- and show it off in #alltheplaces Shana of @HelloTeacherLady has an amazing tutorial on customizing your Zoom Waiting Room or Google Header (check out more here!) In her example, she shows off how she replicates the vibe by including posters she loves in the virtual space she's made-- why not use your newly created bulletin board instead! Make it once, use it in many places! [TpT Product Template Opportunity]-- use it for the Waiting Room, post it in Stream with that day's announcements, update the Banner, post it on the LMS that you used before remote instruction began. You know the principle that you can share your one piece of content in multiple places because your audience might not be following you in all those places so you really aren't bothering anyone? The same applies here! Some students/parents may have missed it the first time around-- and none of your students will be upset at seeing their work featured once more! Speaking of lessons from social media...Edverything Social!