I liked the "Code Blue" wiki about a medial clinic created by 6th graders. The information is fun and interesting. Students take on an adult role and specialize in different medical fields based on their interests. Classes were separated by Blocks in the left hand margin and many links on the main page to aid in medical knowledge. I think the point of the wiki is to get students to post information on their medical specialty which are functions of the human body.
I also like the "Salute to Seuss" wiki. It seems to be more for educators to utilize in the own classrooms. There was an activities page that had a lot of good information/lessons/activities for students. There was also a link to a webquest teachers can use with their students.
The wiki "Grazing for Digital Natives" was a bit overwhelming for me. It had a lot of information on the main page that makes me want to click off ASAP. I did like the side bar that had Workshop Resources for technology such as Ning, Podcasting, Networks, Google Tools, etc... They have almost anything you can think of. The wiki also linked to blogs that included relevant information. I think it is a wiki with great information, just not pleasing to the eye and stressful for me to look at.
There may be wikis in my future. I will need to get used to wikis. At first glance (for the ones I've seen) wikis are not pleasing to the eye and sometimes I find it difficult to take in all of the information given on the page.
I have a few ideas of how I might use a wiki in my Math and Social Studies classrooms. For math, it may be useful to have a wiki to post unit information for student access, math tutorials, games, etc... In Social Studies, I could use a wiki for classroom projects/lessons. In our Native American unit, I could have students create a wiki on the 6 different Native American groups we study. All the information can be found on one site and students can be responsible for posting correct and relevant information. I'm still trying to figure out what the best way to incorporate wikis in the classroom.
It shouldn't take you too long to get used to Wikis. There are ways to make them look better now if you just take a few minutes to add a nice theme. I also like your idea of creating a Wiki for the different Native American groups. You could even have students create a Native American character from each group.
ReplyDeleteI am glad I am not the only one that think wikis need to be visually spruced up a bit!
ReplyDeleteI also really liked CodeBlue! When we did it, we had to stay after and come in early so the students could work in their groups. Using a wiki would have made it so much easier! I have shared it with the teachers I worked with and are thinking about using it next year.
I am thinking a Wiki could be used for most group projects. The question is does it really need to be published to the internet.
I too had problems taking in all the information on most wikis. If I was having trouble, I can only imagine what it might be like for first graders. The wiki I have really liked the most is the one Andrea did with her class last semester. I could look at that page and see the links but not be overwhelmed. The layout and inclusion of pictures made it more visually appealing to me. I do like the idea of your Native American project and it does seem like it would be a great place for all the information gathered to be housed.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad someone else was interested in the "Salute to Seuss". You're correct in that it was meant for educators and all of the information was available for teachers to reference. I especially liked the standards links.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts on incorporating wikis, would be best fit for strengthening vocabulary. Perhaps there could be a page to define and use the vocabulary in a message board/wiki for the students to have free range in creating. This is where class motivation would increase as well as participation.