I’m an Experimenter activity
3 experimenter activities
H5P – https://h5pstudio.ecampusontario.ca/content/7057
I created a Drag the Words activity for students to check their understanding of key terms needed to understand oxidation and reduction reactions in introductory chemistry. This is a topic that many students struggle with so I thought that if students were able to practice on an interactive activity before attempting the online quiz, it might be helpful.
Giphy – https://media.giphy.com/media/DAYTL81ZSMfKMz6FGo/giphy.gif
I created a gif asking students to raise their hands if they have questions. I also made a sticker. Learning this took a fair bit of time, but I like the idea that you can present a serious concept with a goofy joke – I think it makes the content more approachable.
Poll Everywhere – https://pollev.com/multiple_choice_polls/Cl4epJftWQ8NocG97xEAu/respond
I used my phone for this activity to check in with students to see how many of them have taken chemistry before. I always inquire about this to gauge how much previous understanding they might have of the course material.
Piktochart – https://bank.ecampusontario.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/my-visual_55145149.png
In chemistry, there are plenty of activities that involve multiple steps. I chose naming binary ionic compounds – usually I show these steps on my PowerPoint slides but using an infographic to illustrate each step might make more of an impression. Also, more information can be placed on a poster than on one PowerPoint slide.
3 overall lessons learned and how to use these activities in my teaching practice?
I will use all these activities in my classes. Three lessons learned:
- I learned that some of these technologies are fairly user friendly and if I can set aside some uninterrupted time, and with a little practice, I can learn to use them reasonably well.
- Experimenting is fun – and each technology has strengths, so although I really liked Giphy and Piktochart, I would use each in quite different situations.
- I learned from looking at the other submissions and although I’m often intimidated by sharing my material online, I appreciate the benefits of seeing how colleagues tackled the same questions albeit for different courses and topics.
H5P – I already use H5P activities for various topics. I set them up as a “Self Check for Fun! – a low stakes activity to try before attempting their quiz for marks. I plan to expand my repertoire of both types of activities and for topics I don’t yet have activities for such as the calculations for enthalpy and entropy or stoichiometry.
Giphy – There are some funny chemistry memes available online that I like to share with my students. One thing that I like about them is that often, students have to understand a particular concept before they find it funny. Now, with Giphy, I have an additional tool to use to use to emphasize specific items in a fun way. For example, identifying valence electrons in a diagram of an atom or identifying where the activation energy is in a graph.
Poll Everywhere – My plan is to use Poll Everywhere to check in more frequently with students, both personally (“one word to describe how you’re feeling right now” and for content questions (“how many protons are in a boron atom”). I’m hoping this will increase class engagement.
Piktochart – This was a fun activity because I had time to create it so for now, when I make infographics, they will be for special items like instructions for a lab/test, or a topic that can be condensed into a limited number of points that students can then apply to problem solving such as mole calculations.
One experimenter activity created on a tablet or a smartphone.
I forgot to do this! So, I created a fourth activity using Poll Everywhere. I used my IPhoneSE. Although it is quite possible to create activities using the various technologies on my phone, and good to know I can, it is eminently more efficient and effective for me to use the computer since I have an old phone with a small screen. Having said that, eventually I will replace my phone which will offer more opportunities. I will continue to use Poll Everywhere which students can respond to on their phones. I know that some students complete my online quizzes on their phones, and they like to have their phones handy while working on their laptops. So far, my screencasts, slides, quizzes and assignments have all been available via phones if the students prefer or need to use them. The technologies I used in this module also create activities that students will be able to access on their phones etc.
Tweet
Example for "I’m an Experimenter activity":
https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/criQqDVieoE
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