Tech Boost: Engaging Your Students Collaboratively

When planning collaborative assignments, think about the focus of the lesson? Is the focus on engaging every student? Often, the focus strays from student engagement to ensuring every student completes their share of work. Students end up splitting up the work, going their own ways, and submitting the project. Fortunately, with tools like Planbook Plus and other great tech tools, educators can create collaborative assignments that engage students and embrace true collaboration!  These three tech tools will help you create engaging group lessons that put the emphasis on both learning and collaboration.

1. Write a Blog
   Now an additional source of information, blogs allow people to not only share information, but network and build off of each other’s ideas. When working on a new topic in class (even math!), create a class-wide blog. Assign students to write their own posts on a particular topic. As new topics arise, continue to assign students to sub-topics. Students can comment on each other’s posts. Eventually, this blog can become a resource for future classes, a portfolio for students and even a networking opportunity. The best part about blogs is that posts do not always have to be written. Posts can be web-casts, images, interactive videos and even audio or podcasts. Some kid-friendly blog platforms include:
   • Kidblog
   • Edublogs
   • Blogger
   • Journalate
   • Penzu
   • Diaro
2. Create Interactive Agendas
   “Put up an agenda and class objectives.” Something educators hear over and over again. Agendas and objectives are put on the board and many teachers gloss over them before or after class. Unfortunately, many students are not given the opportunity to own the classroom or ask any questions about the agenda. Using a website as simple as Google Docs allows teachers to post the agenda and then let students ask questions and even post their own ideas of what should be covered. As class goes on, students can ask additional questions. This gives teachers even more data to drive instruction and also gives students a feeling of ownership and buy-in regarding the classroom and what they will learn.
3. Popplet
   Popplet is an app and website for mapping out ideas. Whether it is mind mapping, brainstorming or categorizing concepts, students can work alone or together to create a Popplet. Maybe students are assigned to map out the events leading up to the end of the Revolutionary War. Students may create their own and share out or work together to create a Popplet full of sub-topics that build to one larger concept.

Plan out your own engaging lesson using these tools with Planbook Plus! Planbook Plus has various ways of integrating these tools, assigning tasks to individual students and highlighting everything in the classroom. Try it out and let us know what you like best!