In an earlier post, we highlighted the power of visible thinking. Hive students LOVE engaging in visible thinking routines - they simply cannot get enough of them. This week, we began our explorations into Native American cultural regions. Specifically, they are investigating how geography affected how and where the earliest people of North America people lived. The enduring idea behind their research is "To understand the present and make plans for the future, we must first understand the past. Where people live matters."
We offered students an opportunity to share out their learning at the mid-point of their explorations and research in an effort to help clarify any misunderstandings about their research, to build upon their existing knowledge, and to share connections they are making as a result of their learning. Using animal hides (aka brown butcher paper), students drew representations of their learning (much like a sketchnote!) and discussed how people from their cultural regions adapted to the land, resources, and soil that were available to each region. By allowing students to make their thinking visible to one another, they were able to develop a deeper and more meaningful understanding of how the geography of a particular region affects how people live.
This week's guest bloggers share their reflections on this visible thinking experience (the good, the bad, and the ugly). Enjoy.
One positive experience I had during the animal skin activity was when @LightningDragon shared how the people of the great plains region used a special harness to hook up the horses. I did not know about it until she shared that with our group. - PuppyOnline
One challenge that I had during the animal skin activity was when we were all just drawing everywhere and we weren't collaborating well. Next time, we could plan ahead and maybe assign each person a job. That way, everyone would get to draw more than one thing. - @BooksRule
A positive experience I had during the animal skin activity was how our group communicated. Before we even picked up a marker, we talked about a plan of what we were going to draw first. We did not fight and we we did not annoy each other. I have to say, my group was pretty big, but we worked well together and everyone took turns. Great job, great plains group! -@softballgirl123
There were a couple of things I think could have gone better during the animal skin experience. For example, we did not communicate very well and did not talk to each other about what we were drawing, which made it hard to not draw the same thing. I think we could have avoided this by having everyone choose an object or topic to draw. - @HarryPotter
A positive experience I had during the animal skin activity was how our group communicated. If we didn't communicate well, it would have been BONKERS. Communication is important when people are working together. It's how a team is supposed to work. - @BuffBiz
Some things I would do differently next time during a group experience is to collaborate better and to prioritize the work. Some things that our group drew were not really important. We should have had a conversation first about what we were going to draw so that we didn't draw the same things over and over again. Also, we could have spent our time more wisely and not worry about things that are not important. - @SoftballPiggy
It is helpful to see classmates thinking about what we are learning because we can learn things that we didn't know and hear what they have to say about their learning experience. Something we could do better next time is to plan ahead and listen to each other more. - ArcticFox
A positive experience I had during the animal skin experience was when we made a river because they are an important resource in our region and it was something we could all agree on. We voted and picked the Rio Grande River as the one we would draw because it's located right in the middle of the southwest region. Lastly, when we drew corn (or maize), it lead to a great discussion about blue corn and how it gets its color. - @ZombieCat126
There were a couple of things that went badly during the animal skin experience. First, nobody told others what they were going to draw, so there ended up being more than one of the same thing. Second, we did not plan ahead, so everything was random and sometimes didn't really make sense. Last, we didn't really cooperate with each other so it got confusing at times. Next time, we could listen to each other more and take the time to plan ahead so that it goes smoother. - @ChickenNugget
I learned that one of the southwest Native American tribes makes something called Kachina dolls. I have to say, when I first saw ZombieCat126 was drawing something, I thought it was unrelated to our region. Then I realized that it was and I wanted to know more. ZombieCat126 told me that Kachina dolls are figures typically carved from cottonwood root. Amazing. - @CheerQueen
There are lots of things we could do better next time we do this, like working together and communicating with each other. If he had better communication, we would have finished more quickly. It would also be better next time if my group builds on each others' ideas because we would have way more writing and we would have had a better discussion instead of just sharing out random ideas. We would do a lot better next time, but in the end, nothing can be perfect. - @FireDragon5
Some positive experiences I had during the animal skin activity were (number one) if we couldn't come up with any ideas, we could ask other people in our group for help. Second, we were able to ask each other questions so we were sure about our ideas before we used them. - @bob
For my group, the animal skin activity did NOT go well. For many reasons... First of all, we never planned. We never divided the work or did anything like that. Second, some of the people in our group (not all, just some) don't always get along and there were disagreements that didn't help the rest of us be productive. Next time, we could not pick up a marker until we have a solid plan and take some deep breaths if we feel like we are raising our voices. The more we practice all of these mental and physical tools to keep calm, the better and easier they will be to use. - @writingmachine
One thing I thought we could do better is talking to each other before writing or drawing. I wasn't there the whole time, but when I got back, no one was talking to each other and everyone was just quietly drawing. I think we could have talked things out more or planned ahead to let each other know what we were planning to draw so that we all didn't draw the same things or something that wasn't related to our region. - @Burt
A positive experience I had with the animal skin project was how we worked together so nicely. Our group talked and listened and whenever a mistake was made, we always turned whatever that mistake was, around. Everyone contributed on everything! - @WritingGod
The animal skin experience helped me because I went beyond my own thoughts and it got me to think more about my region. I started thinking outside the box. - @magician-of-icecream
