Friday 18 November 2011

Taboo as a Definition Review Exercise

If you haven’t played Taboo before, it’s a word game where a chosen player has to describe a word so that other people can guess what it is. However, they are hampered by a list of 5 words commonly used to describe the word or phrase – they cannot use these words when trying to describe it to their teammates. For example, if the word is GROOM, the banned words might include: wedding, husband, bride, horse and clean.

This makes it ideal as a means of testing student knowledge of key terms and their definitions. You can make this a student-centred exercise by having them come up with the cards and banned words. Students will have to understand a concept well to describe it to their teammates without using common descriptors as chosen by the student group that created the card.

Procedure:


1.      Explain what Taboo is! (Might be worth bringing it in and playing a round or two).
2.      Divide your class into as many groups or pairs as you need. 
3.      Give each group a sealed envelope. Ham it up a little if you want – you can emblazon the envelope with things like ‘Mission #1’ and ‘Top Secret’.
4.      Tell them that in their envelope, they will find a word or a concept. They have to keep this secret from the other groups. In the envelope should be their word, printed on top of a blank sheet/piece of card (so there is space for their list of final taboo words). If there are many key terms for your current topic, just give your assigned groups multiple cards to create. 
5.      Give the groups 5-10 minutes to make a list of words that they would use to describe their concept. They should then select the best 5-7 (you can decide on how many descriptors you wish to make ‘taboo’).
6.      Have the students pass their Taboo card onto the next group. Each group will then attempt to convey the word to the rest of the class without using the taboo words. Obviously, groups should not partake in the guessing of their own terms! To avoid problems with this, you could label the back of each card e.g. Group 1, and when another group uses their card, Group 1 can sit out of the guessing process.
7.      Do put a time limit on the guessing – in the game Taboo, players usually have 1 minute but depending on your class and their abilities, you might want to increase this slightly.

If your class has done particularly well, it  might be worth hanging on to the cards to use as a model for other classes. You could even laminate them and use them in the future when you're particularly pressed for time. 

Saturday 12 November 2011

If Everyone Could Teleport...

Sometimes, I spend a little too much time contemplating what would happen if we all could teleport wherever we wanted to. It's a question that I like to ask my classes because it gets them thinking about consequences and knock-on effects. I assume that if we are able to teleport in the future, there would be rules and regulations but for the purposes of this exercise, we can teleport as much as we want with no restrictions. 

On a personal level, being able to teleport would be amazing - imagine popping to Morocco for a quick lunch, or heading to the Lake District during break to wind down a little - but it would change the world as we know it:

  • Airlines would likely become defunct with only a few specialised outfits remaining (e.g. scenic views of Antarctica) - I mean, who would choose 32 hours in a plane when they could be at their destination in a matter of seconds?
  • Many low-budget hotels would go out of business if money-conscious travellers could opt to go home at night and save on costs. I would think that some of the more expensive hotels would remain, as they offer amenities that people would be willing to pay for. 
  • Would cuisines continue moving around the globe? Would you choose to go to the Indian takeaway down the street if you could go to New Delhi for lunch instead?
  • Lost/stranded tourists would be a thing of the past if they could teleport straight home.
  • The impact on the tourism industry as a whole?
  • What impact would it have on immigration? Countries try to control the movement of people but if it's possible for people just to turn up, where does that leave us?
  • What about the human impact on areas of the world where travel is restricted for environmental reasons, e.g. Gough Island?
  • What impact would such accessibility to all areas of the world have on our knowledge base?
  • How would we control truancy if children could teleport?
  • How would we maintain control of criminals if they could teleport out of jail? Also, this has impacts for international crime as (I'm assuming) it would be virtually impossible for border control organisations to monitor movement in and out of countries. 
  • What impact would victims' ability to teleport have on crimes like kidnapping and human trafficking?

These are just a few questions that mass teleportation would give rise to  - what other consequences or issues do you think it would create?

Monday 31 October 2011

The UNESCO Challenge

I discovered this challenge on the blog of @jennywrenwatts, 'eternalexploration'. To be honest, I can't believe that I didn't think of this earlier - I've always found the UNESCO sites intriguing, in large part (obviously) because UNESCO's list of sites is basically the crème de la crème of cultural, historical and natural places of the world. Jenny's challenge is to visit as many sites as possible, and she documents her visits on her blog (you should check them out). I'm aiming to at least maintain a record of the places that I've visited here. 


Australia:
  • The Tasmanian Wilderness
  • Greater Blue Mountains Area
  • Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens
  • Sydney Opera House
  • Australian Convict Sites
  • Gondwana Rainforests 
Austria:
  • Palace and Gardens of Schonbrunn
  • Wachau Cultural Landscape
  • Historic Centre of Vienna
Cambodia:
  • Angkor
China:
  • South China Karst
Czech Republic:
  • Historic Centre of Cesky Krumlov
  • Historic Centre of Prague
Holy See:
  • Vatican City
  • Historic Centre of Rome, the Properties of the Holy See in that City Enjoying Extraterritorial Rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mura
Hungary:
  • Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrassy Avenue
Italy:
  • Historic Centre of Rome (etc, etc)
  • Archaeological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata
Malaysia:
  • Melaka and Georgetown, Historic Cities of the Straits of Malacca 
Thailand:
  • Historic Centre of Ayutthaya
United Kingdom (inc. N. Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales):
  • Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd
  • Durham Castle and Cathedral
  • Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites
  • Studley Royal Park including the ruins of Fountains Abbey
  • City of Bath
  • Frontiers of the Roman Empire
  • Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and Saint Margaret's Church
  • Tower of London
  • Old and New Towns of Edinburgh
  • Derwent Valley Mills
  • Dorset and East Devon Coast (Jurassic Coast)
  • Liverpool - Maritime Mercantile City

It turns out that I've completely missed UNESCO sites in some of the countries I've visited (this is particularly annoying in countries I've visited multiple times). Others don't have UNESCO sites. This is it thus far - but fear not! This list is far from complete. This is only the beginning...(cue: dramatic music).

Wednesday 26 October 2011

Re-Engaging Students with Geography - Ideas?

I've found that Geography isn't considered a particularly important subject by students in the country where I teach. This is due to a whole host of factors that I'm not going to get into here. It saddens me, because not only is Geography highly relevant when it comes to everyday life, it is a genuinely interesting and broad subject. As a result, I've been trying to brainstorm ways of raising the profile of Geography and to retain students, especially at a Sixth Form level. 
  1. More field trips and outdoor lessons (bearing in mind a) finances and b) weather).
  2. Setting up a Geography Club (was given some great ideas about how to do this from fellow Twitterers).
  3. Creating a Geography Awareness Week (maybe in conjunction with the other Humanities).
  4. Altering existing curricula (taking into account student interest  - survey time!)
  5. Educating students about future pathways in Geography, and transferable skills.
  6. Liaising with local and national Geography teaching associations for  advice and PD
  7. ...?
I'd really welcome all ideas and suggestions from those more experienced than me. 

Monday 24 October 2011

UN/ISDR - Stop Disasters!

Stop Disasters is the brainchild of the UN and the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction. It is a disaster-prevention simulation game - participants are called upon to upgrade and re-design an urban environment in order to minimise human risk in the event of a natural disaster. 

The site currently offers the following scenarios: flood, wildfire, tsunami, earthquake, and hurricane. Players can choose different levels of difficulty, reflected in the area that has to be covered. The player is given a budget, some goals, costs (for new infrastructure and buildings, demolishing existing structures, building defences, etc) and has to do their best using these to 'harden' the area and reduce risks. At the end of the game, the player is given a report that identifies their outcome (human cost, damage) and the goals that were met. Players receive points for useful actions - the higher the better - and can opt to have their score posted. 

I love this game, because it forces students to use their knowledge to consider how best to manage funds in order to maximise benefit. Players have to consider the terrain and make decisions - a great way to role-play these scenarios. The games are also well-scaffolded, with risk information available for each square of land, which helps players to identify the most at-risk areas. 

Of course, this game helps to tick the boxes for those ICT and critical thinking requirements, as well as being engaging. The use of graphics, sound, information and the time limit component (after which the disaster is enacted) work together to make this a truly enjoyable game (I'm having trouble stopping myself from playing them). 

My one issue is that the movement back and forth around the map can be a little fiddly and is accomplished using the up-down-left-right arrows. However, given that these are free games, one can hardly complain! I would also test the games on your school's computers to ensure that they a) aren't blocked, and b) that the internet is fast enough to be able to play the game reasonably well. They can't be downloaded and have to be played online. 

I'm really looking forward to trialling this in a classroom - if you do use it, I'd love to hear how it went. 

The UN/ISDR are hoping to be able to develop more scenarios, so fingers crossed that they succeed. 

Sunday 23 October 2011

Carbon Footprint Lesson

A busy lesson on carbon footprints that I used with a Year 9 class. As with most things, adaptable up or down in complexity depending on your needs. I designed this for 2 x 50 minute lessons (a double period). 

Objectives:

For students:
  • To be able to define and explain ‘carbon footprints’.
  • To understand the impact that their individual living choices have on the world (through calculating their own carbon footprints).
  •  To be able to identify unsustainable components of their lifestyles.
  • To be able to analyse and evaluate their lifestyles to come up with solutions and alternatives that are more sustainable.
Pedagogical Strategies & Thinking Routines:
  •  Gardner: L-V, V-S, K, Ier, Ira, L-M, N
  • Bloom: Remembering, Understanding, Analysing, Evaluating, Creating (this last one might be considered a little bit of a stretch - but students are coming up with solutions and ideas)
  •  Group discussion, input and feedback
  •  ICT
  • TPS (Think, Pair, Share)
  • Human Continuum
Introduction:
  1. Show an image of a black footprint. Question students about the image (or images, if preferred). Collect ideas and possible definitions, refine and feedback to students to define the term 'carbon footprint'.
Developmental:
  1. Have students complete a carbon footprint quiz on computers. There are a whole host of carbon footprint quizzes available on the internet (I'll post links to a number at the end of this post) but my favourite for use with students is the WWF Carbon Footprint Quiz. It divides consumption into easily identifiable areas, and illustrates the carbon footprint by visually displaying how many planets would be needed to sustain the user's lifestyle (a UK version is also available). 
  2. Have students record their overall result as well as their percentage for each of the 4 areas mentioned in the quiz - ideally, do this on a piece of paper in large font. It'll be useful for the next activity. 
  3. Time for a human continuum! Have students line up according to their consumption (most to least or vice-versa). Discuss results, concentrating on the students at each end to identify why their carbon footprints were large/small. 
  4. Think and Pair: Break up into individuals, and then pairs to discuss solutions for assigned areas (I used travel, school, food and home). Students come up with ways to reduce their carbon footprint for their assigned areas.
Concluding:
  1. Now for the 'Share' portion of the TPS: Have the pairs come up and contribute their ideas to the others. These could be collated on the board or on a computer using a program such as Prezi, Inspiration or Webspiration. 
  2. A nice way to wind down the lesson is to conduct an 321:RIQ - have students think about things that they learned, what they found interesting (or insights), and any questions that they now have. 
If you're pressed for time, I would remove the human continuum and substitute a few minutes of asking students about their results. 

Resources: Paper, whiteboard, pens, computers, footprints image, and a projector

Other carbon footprint quizzes/calculators:
If you do happen to use this lesson, please come back and let me know how it went! All suggestions and variations welcome. 

Friday 14 October 2011

Playdoh in the Geography Classroom

I'll admit it. Sometimes I'm just a big child.

Case in point: I have used Playdoh in the Geography classroom.

And it actually worked quite well.

The Rundown:

Year group: 7
Number of students: 26
Unit: The Asia-Pacific (after a Maps/Mapping unit that had been taught by another member of staff)

Rationale/Aim:
  • Test student understanding of contours and their ability to interpret maps
What happened?
  • Outlined lesson, reasons for lesson and expected behaviour (we are using Playdoh, after all - this could end messily).
  • Had students (in pairs) create models of S.E.Asian countries using Playdoh and atlases (obviously, we're not expecting scaled perfection, but models should resemble the assigned countries). Each pair of students modelled one country. 
  • A quick mini-lesson on contours was deemed necessary as some students expressed confusion and a lack of understanding regarding contour lines.
  • Students produced some rather fine examples of country models (and displayed an improved understanding of contours). It was interesting to see how they worked together, in particular, how those with a stronger grasp of contours guided those who were weaker.
I would've also liked to have students consider the links between land use/human activity and relief using the models - but sadly, I ran out of time and keeping the models until the next lesson wasn't a feasible plan at the time. 

Remember:
  • Playdoh can be messy - build the models on scrap paper or newspapers.
  • Don't let them mix and match colours - you will be left with piles of multicoloured Playdoh.
  • Keep things fast and snappy, and keep checking on them (there are always students who decide to make their own sculptures).
Other ideas:
  • I would quite like to use this in a 'Rivers' revision lesson or as part of a matrix 'Rivers' assignment, having students model the course of a river (and attendant landforms). It could be carried out as a competition, or in the case of the matrix, as a presentation to the teacher. 
Thoughts?

Monday 10 October 2011

Freerice: A Quick Guide

For those not in the know, Freerice.com is run by the United Nations World Food Programme. It offers multiple choice quizzes/games about a variety of subjects, including Geography, English, and Mathematics. For every correct answer, 10 grains of rice are donated to the World Food Program (through advertisers and sponsors). Admittedly, 10 grains isn't a lot, but if you and many others are playing, it adds up. 

I'm not sure how many educators out there use Freerice or tell their students about it. Certainly, it doesn't offer an in-depth geographic education of any kind, and to say so would be disingenuous at best. 

However, it does give geography teachers the chance to build some basic locational knowledge into the classroom. Locational knowledge has taken a backseat to 'skills' over the last decade or so. I'm not saying that skills aren't important, but an integral part of Geography is knowing where places are located, and where events happen. 

It also offers teachers with IT access (or 1:1 programs) the chance to build in a little locational extension - so, some of your students finish early, and you have no extension work for them (it happens to the best of us)? That's okay. Just get them playing Freerice. 

The quizzes are levelled, and while 3 correct answers will see you rise one level, one incorrect answer will see you drop a level. For teachers, this means that the quizzes are automatically differentiated - more capable students will be able to work to higher levels, while less capable students are able to work to their own level. The questions that are answered incorrectly will repeat in a few turns, giving students the opportunity to rectify their mistakes and to consolidate knowledge. 

My favourite part of this is that as students are playing this game, they are helping others around the world (make this clear to them!). It might even be fun to register as a class team to see how much rice can be raised in a set amount of time, or to set a class target. 

Can you think of any other ways to work it into classes? 

Saturday 8 October 2011

Lesson: Mapping the Ash Cloud

Plate Tectonics is a key part of Geography, particularly with regards to studying the effects of tectonic hazards - volcanoes and earthquakes. With the proliferation of recent tectonic events, teachers should have ample material for demonstrating geographic relevance in the classroom. Some examples include:
  • 2010 - Earthquake, Chile (Maule)
  • 2010 - Volcanic Eruption, Eyjafjallajökull
  • 2011 - Earthquake, New Zealand
  • 2011 - Earthquake and Tsunami, Japan
Of course, there are classic case studies that are useful even now, such as the 1995 Kobe earthquake (a great example for students to critique government response) and the 1995 Montserrat Eruption, for which there is a proliferation of resources. These also allow us to examine long-term effects. However, with a focus on recent events, I developed a resource pack based around the Maule earthquake and the Eyjafjallajokull eruption. This post contains the first lesson from the Eyjafjallajokull portion. 

This lesson focusses on map skills and familiarising students with the scope of this particular event. I would suggest that this is a Y9+ activity, but as with most things can be modified (feel free to) for older or younger students. 

Ideally, there will be a brief introduction or starter i.e. students should be aware of the event before diving into the mapping. 

Lesson

Lesson 1: Mapping the Ash Cloud (Map skills and overlays)

Topic: Using maps to map the movement of the Eyjafjallajökull ash cloud over a 48-72 hour period.

Rationale and outcomes: Students will become familiar with creating overlay maps, and build on prior knowledge of drawing maps with BOLTSS. They will also gain skills in visual analysis of maps. If the extension activity is undertaken, students will also learn about correlation, and be able to identify relationships between different phenomena.

Procedure:
  1. Using the following URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8625813.stm , find images of the ash clouds every 24 hours over a 48-72 hour period.
  2. Students will then create a base map of Europe, the North Atlantic, and North Asia, labelling country boundaries and capital cities. Ensure that they include BOLTSS in these maps.
  3. Students will then use the images (most likely as printouts – perhaps they can share in pairs?) and tracing paper to create 3 overlay maps (make sure that they are dated!). Have them arrange them in order above the base map – the map with the earliest date should be closest to the map, and that with the most recent date should be farther away.
  4. Students will then use their maps to answer the following questions:
  •  Describe the movement of the ash cloud over the 3 days. Make reference to the specific locations and directions.
  •  Using your map, list the capital cities in Europe that were affected by the ash cloud. How might they have been affected?
Extension: Have students research the weather patterns of the Earth at the time of the volcanic eruption. Describe any correlations between the weather patterns (wind, rain, etc) and the movement of the ash cloud. What effect might the weather have had on the ash cloud?

Assessment:

Formative – participation and attitude in class
Summative – completed maps and questions

A couple of video resources:

This is a BBC News report:



This is a beautiful time-lapse video by Sean Steigemeier:



Some links to information and images: